Reviews

When You Get the Chance by Robin Stevenson, Tom Ryan

Only show reviews with written explanations

issie_20's review

funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted relaxing fast-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

5.0

I really liked this book. It was easy to get through and get into. I didn’t want to read a romance and this is what it gave me. When it comes to romance I mean smug which there was none. I also really liked how everyone interacted especially Paige, Mark and Talia. When it came to the journey it was not what I expected but I still loved it

rayjpeg's review

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inspiring lighthearted reflective fast-paced

2.25

there is some slight character development, but I overall didn’t love the plot and found it a tad boring. Yes, messy family. Yes, Mark is privileged and needs to grow up. But I think for the world building that was done, I wanted to see more plot than the typical break up find another person trope. I appreciated the non-binary representation, though. Was lovely to see that properly represented

raonaid's review

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medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.5

wheresthebirds's review against another edition

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lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

notlikethebeer's review

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2.0

Eh. Another book that I wanted to like but... didn't, really? It gave me You Know Me Well vibes, but sadly it didn't quite deliver. Both of the characters annoyed me - admittedly, Talia more-so probably because I could see some of myself in her... and Mark was truly just an entitled asshole! There's been a lot of ~discourse~ about Talia's response to her partner coming out as polyamorous. Full disclosure, I'm in a long-term monogamous relationship, so am by no means the authority here. However, I do think that both of the characters were 'in the wrong' here. Talia, particularly with all her holier-than-thou preachiness, should know that being closeted is not the same as lying. At the same time, her partner getting her to march with them in the polyamorous group? - also a dick move! I can't remember so much about Mark, probably because he's the type of person in life that I prefer just to ignore... Like most of the other reviews, I definitely feel that Paige stole the show, she was truly the MVP for me.

apireading's review

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4.0

**the e-arc was provided by the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really like the first part of the book. We dive quickly into the Tremblays and the shared point of views between the two main characters is a very good idea. Even though Mark can be such a douche, I felt really connected to Talia.

The intrigue really starts when they all hit the little cottage near Toronto. It’s a bit unusual to begin your story in the forest – but hey it’s Canada after all – I loved that part. Mark and Talia tiptoe around each other in attempt to catch up with all those years apart and it was interesting to show that despite being a member of the same family and being a member of the LOGBTQI+ community, you can always get along.

The journey begins quickly after that. It was more about finding themselves and what they seek in their respective relationships in this road trip towards Toronto Pride. They have to put aside their differencies in order to get to their destination. Luckily, they have Paige. I loved that kid, she’s so wit and smart, and even if she’s a bit confused about the questions of genre and sexuality, she’s open-minded and well-intentioned. I hate that Mark treated her as a burden, a fun-killer of his road-trip. My little girl deserved better than her awful big brother!

I’m usually not very fond of ‘road trip’ stories as they frequently built on the same pattern. But everything becomes more fun when you add some extra queer gents in your schemes! The Tremblays came across a rainbow – see what I did there – of people who helped them get through their journey and I loved them. They were all very endearing and welcoming.

I think that one of the main topics that I liked the most was that the LBGTQI+ is not a big homogeneous group who has the same issues. The relationship between Erin and Talia is really interesting and explore many of those issues: when you’re in a very small group of queer people, people – or yourself – tend to regroup and being drown with the other. But it doesn’t necessarily match. The importance of verbalizing our preferences is essential in a world that don’t usually want to acknowledge the fan of diversity. Therefore, we are not able to understand one another.

Identity and sexuality are commonly resume as the same thing. I was glad to see in a book that it’s two different things, very-well explained and carried by all the characters. Those two subjects are usually seen as irreversible, carved in marble whereas it’s an hiking trip and it’s okay to question yourself and it’s okay to decide you still haven’t figure it out. At the end, I think the authors wanted to tell us that it’s okay to live your own experience, you don’t have to be in the mold to blend in, and most of all : be happy with who you are and what you want.

It was a good book. Very entertaining and informative on a lot of subjects.

[rep : pp gay, pp lesbian, non binary rep,]
[tw : misgendering, forced coming out, homophobia]