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citrus_seasalt's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
GOD. This book was absolutely excruciating to get through. I hated Claire for most of the story, which was GRATING with her being a POV, because outside of her relatable scenes on her gender expression and discovery(and some stuff about her sexuality) she was frustratingly mean. Like, I get it, you don’t want to get bullied and want to fit in, but in the final act her genuine surprise at any of her actions leading to…woe is me, CONSEQUENCES?, was so frustrating. Aubrey was subpar neurodivergent representation, being somewhat relatable at best(I am on the spectrum), and borderline offensive at worst. It took me a while to realize there were no quotations in her POV chapters to represent how she didn’t know if what she said was inside or outside her head at times, but it made reading more difficult. Her thoughts were also relatively simple, to the point where I had to check the tags to see if this was a middle grade or not. (It’s not. I get that the protagonists are only in their freshman year of high school, so there’s not that much of a difference, but she had…7th grader whimsy in some of her internal monologues. I hated it.) There were times in which I couldn’t tell if the infantilization of her was an ableist move on behalf of the parents or the author, thankfully it was more of the former towards the end but, I feel as if there should’ve been an extra reader for the autistic rep because some kind of author bias seeped in(at least to me during my reader experience). It speaks volumes I had to ask myself that question at all because the lines should not be blurred on something as egregious as that.
The only reason that this book isn’t one star is because of a) the thoughtful queer representation, b) how some of the explorations of grief were handled, c) Audrey being respected as a teenager and not a kid in the final act(with the narrative also starting to reflect that, imo), and Claire becoming more of a bearable person lol. Every side character felt one-note, except for Taylor, but even our POVs got repetitive in their gimmicks after a while: Audrey, the “freak” and the “weirdo” who desperately wants to be otherwise; Claire, the “perfect one” who’s secretly “not perfect” and panicking at the realization that her true self isn’t what others want to see or envision her as.
The only way I can see someone benefitting from reading this book is if they’re new to learning about the LGBTQ+ and neurodivergent communities and want to be a little more knowledgeable or familiar on their identities and struggles. Like one of those little pamphlets you find that are short and give you a few basics on different places or subjects. But, that has it’s own issues.
The only reason that this book isn’t one star is because of a) the thoughtful queer representation, b) how some of the explorations of grief were handled, c) Audrey being respected as a teenager and not a kid in the final act(with the narrative also starting to reflect that, imo), and Claire becoming more of a bearable person lol. Every side character felt one-note, except for Taylor, but even our POVs got repetitive in their gimmicks after a while: Audrey, the “freak” and the “weirdo” who desperately wants to be otherwise; Claire, the “perfect one” who’s secretly “not perfect” and panicking at the realization that her true self isn’t what others want to see or envision her as.
The only way I can see someone benefitting from reading this book is if they’re new to learning about the LGBTQ+ and neurodivergent communities and want to be a little more knowledgeable or familiar on their identities and struggles. Like one of those little pamphlets you find that are short and give you a few basics on different places or subjects. But, that has it’s own issues.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Transphobia, and Grief
Moderate: Sexual content, Ableism, and Car accident
Minor: Dysphoria
walrus420's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic friendship, Death, and Dysphoria
Moderate: Car accident, Cursing, and Sexual content
Minor: Homophobia, Infertility, Transphobia, and Bullying
meganlilyflower's review against another edition
The sexual content in this book made me uncomfortable because of its non-consensual nature on behalf of Dahlia and the videos.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Child death, Death, and Ableism
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