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maisiepamela's review against another edition
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.5
I found this book so dull! I felt there was no point to the story and it lead absolutely nowhere at all. I liked the different perspectives and finding out what it was like to be gay in the 50s. However the book was so long with details leading no where at all. The characters were all really aggravating and I didn’t like them. There were a few twists but I didn’t find them super shocking. Some of the quotes were very beautiful and the end was also quite good but it was just boring and pointless for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia
Moderate: Suicide
Minor: Death and Medical content
jazzy_t's review against another edition
emotional
funny
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.5
I did enjoyed the read of this book. And the time period I haven't read about in this context so was informative too.
I disliked Marion coming to the end of the book but some of this was wanted by the author. However by the end I was finding it difficult to connect anymore to her character. I saw someone else's review that commented on the same thoughts as me about the difficulty understanding the intent of the author and feeling like they wanted you to simiphise with Marion.
I also at the start didn't realise it was written from a point of view so took me a second to work that out!
It was a good read like I said, and I enjoyed my experience reading it however its not a new favourite.
I disliked Marion coming to the end of the book but some of this was wanted by the author. However by the end I was finding it difficult to connect anymore to her character. I saw someone else's review that commented on the same thoughts as me about the difficulty understanding the intent of the author and feeling like they wanted you to simiphise with Marion.
I also at the start didn't realise it was written from a point of view so took me a second to work that out!
It was a good read like I said, and I enjoyed my experience reading it however its not a new favourite.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia
Moderate: Sexual content and Suicide
tacoshark's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I really enjoyed this book, though it’s a very sad read. I found it incredibly engrossing (I read most of it on a plane, so that helped) and I just wanted to stay in the story and keep going. The perspectives were fascinating in what they did and didn’t show, and the overlapping timelines. Overall I thought it was lovely and I’ll be thinking a lot about it.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Homophobia, Suicide, and Violence
hannahbailey's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
TW: homophobia, outing, toxic relationship, suicide, imprisonment
A well written book -- the setting was particularly well crafted. I could really sense the tense and unforgiving atmosphere both of the time and in between the characters. I hope that the author made these characters deliberately unlikeable, if so, then its excellent storytelling. I'm still unsure whether this novel is a product of its time (2012 :/) or a novel ahead of its time in that it leaves you feeling conflicted. That probably doesn't make sense unless you've read the book, but Marion's actions were unexpected and pretty shocking. I didn't really sympathise her, although I felt like the narrative was perhaps asking readers to, which is why I'm unsure of the author's intent here!
This is a very sad and depressing book, do not pick this up if you're looking to read about queer joy -- you won't find it here!
A well written book -- the setting was particularly well crafted. I could really sense the tense and unforgiving atmosphere both of the time and in between the characters. I hope that the author made these characters deliberately unlikeable, if so, then its excellent storytelling. I'm still unsure whether this novel is a product of its time (2012 :/) or a novel ahead of its time in that it leaves you feeling conflicted. That probably doesn't make sense unless you've read the book, but Marion's actions were unexpected and pretty shocking. I didn't really sympathise her, although I felt like the narrative was perhaps asking readers to, which is why I'm unsure of the author's intent here!
This is a very sad and depressing book, do not pick this up if you're looking to read about queer joy -- you won't find it here!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Homophobia, Misogyny, Suicide, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Police brutality, Grief, Lesbophobia, and Outing
veronicats's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Listen, I wish every queer story had a happy ending. But sometimes the sad ones are really good too.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Hate crime, Homophobia, Suicide, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, and Outing
aaround132's review against another edition
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Alcohol
kajasversion's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I had noticed how different Marions and Patricks journal entries are. While she writes gently, often with much shame and almost fear of saying something wrong, he writes with lust and feeling of entitlement. I must say i felt for Marion. All she wanted was a husband who loved her back. Instead the man of her dreams was cheating on her behind her back and lying about it, then making her feel bad about even asking. But what she did was low and all the lives involved were ruined.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Suicide, and Outing
idaandihn's review against another edition
4.5
This was such a gripping read. I have so many thoughts on it and this is one of the first books that have made me want to write an essay on it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Toxic relationship, and Outing
Minor: Suicide
ilana_pop's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia and Outing
Minor: Suicide
bstar03's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Hate crime, Homophobia, Toxic relationship, Outing, and Gaslighting
Minor: Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexism, Suicide, Abortion, and Toxic friendship