Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

The Wall of Winnipeg and Me by Mariana Zapata

9 reviews

mels_reading_log's review

emotional funny hopeful fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

This is a grumpy/sunshine, fake marriage, slow burn, sports romance novel. Both of the main characters have childhood trauma and trust issues to work through. I really enjoyed the transformation of Aiden, as he opened up and became more comfortable with Vanessa.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Grief, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Abandonment, Addiction, Sexual content, Child abuse, Toxic relationship, Alcoholism, Car accident, Sexual harassment, Violence, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Physical abuse, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Domestic abuse

sebradley29's review against another edition

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Deportation, Alcohol, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Car accident, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual harassment, Violence, Bullying, Abandonment, Emotional abuse, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Torture, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Alcoholism, and Cursing

neermboop's review against another edition

emotional slow-paced

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

5.0

Oh, Mariana. How I love this book ❤️

I adore a book where you feel all the feels. 
We went through hating the grump football player Aiden, to tolerating him, yo understanding him, then loving him. 🫠

I do love when a dumb single minded (football) man opens up his eyes to see what is right in front of his face. 🙈👀👋

Vanessa knew her worth and wasn't a pushover. I love that about her. Aiden was protective but let her do her own thing. 🥰

I don't re-read many books, but this is definitely on the list 💕💖

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content

Moderate: Alcohol, Panic attacks/disorders, and Car accident

Minor: Mental illness, Emotional abuse, Bullying, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Child abuse, Drug abuse, and Toxic relationship

edilyaaang's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Car accident, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, Mental illness, and Sexual content

Minor: Alcoholism, Abandonment, Addiction, and Bullying

elspethmigliore's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

I would have really enjoyed this more if it hadn't been so long. I really did like the story, but the ending was not worth over 600 pages. I get it was a slow burn, but it was almost TOO slow of a burn for the tiniest bit of seeing them together  we got at the end of the book. The characters were great, but sometimes the main character was a little bit cringe and it bothered me. Overall, it was pretty good. 

would most likely reread, but not definitely ☑️

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Physical abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Injury/Injury detail, and Bullying

Moderate: Sexual harassment, Violence, Emotional abuse, Alcoholism, and Death of parent

Minor: Body shaming and Mental illness

ashlightgrayson's review against another edition

emotional hopeful slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This was probably the slowest slow burn I have ever read, but I really appreciated it. There is only one sex scene in the entire book, so if you were looking for a steamier romance, this may not be the book for you. Vanessa has been Aiden's personal assistant for 2 years. She has been thinking about resigning to make a freelance design career her full-time job but has not finalized the decision. Being underappreciated by her employer finally pushes her to make the decision to quit. What she doesn't expect is for Aiden, her boss, to track her down and beg her to come back.  Aiden comes off as a demanding jerk at the beginning. However, he quickly takes accountability for his actions and genuinely apologizes to Vanessa when she reveals why she left and is angry at him. Vanessa is very responsible and cautious about the decisions she makes. After Aiden apologizes and offers her a deal she can't resist, she sits on it for a few days before agreeing to an arranged marriage. 

It was nice to just have the story focus on the building of a friendship rather than a romance for most of the book. Aiden and Vanessa are shown trying their best to communicate and meet each other's needs within a platonic context which made the relationship progression feel very organic. Aiden isn't good at relationship building at all, but you can definitely tell that he tries his best and listens to Vanessa. Vanessa also does the same and this builds a very strong foundation for the romance. Vanessa is reasonably oblivious to Aiden's feelings for a long time, but I also think Aiden contributes to this with his aloof demeanor. He isn't the most emotional or expressive person and Vanessa is very self-conscious about becoming a burden to him. Therefore, it takes them quite a while for Vanessa to realize when her feelings became romantic and Aiden to realize it was mutual. 

There are a series of subplots that help bulk up the story and give some background to Aiden and Vanessa. They both have friends and family histories that are complex and help add depth and context to their personalities and circumstances. It also helps them find common ground in the trauma they have experienced and makes their emotional bonding stronger as they share their pasts with each other when they become friends and eventually romantic partners. The side characters also stand out with individuals with personalities. Zac was probably my favorite. I rarely see platonic relationships between men and women that are just nice friendships and Vanessa and Zac really hit the spot for me. I'm looking forward to reading more from Mariana Zapata soon, this was just the slow burn I needed.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Child abuse, Car accident, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, and Mental illness

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Addiction, Domestic abuse, and Alcoholism

gaebriel's review against another edition

emotional hopeful slow-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Minor: Addiction, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Child abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, and Physical abuse

eddine's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted relaxing 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

5.0

i am so sad that i finished this book!!!

AIDEN MF GRAVES

the slow burn was done soooo goood it was so fcknn worth it when they finally got together at the end. the way this book awaken the butterflies in my stomach!!!!

i love it. i loved the time i was reading this book.

i ddnt expect me to love this book dude

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Body shaming, Car accident, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, and Toxic relationship

ximena88's review against another edition

lighthearted fast-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Car accident, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, and Physical abuse