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potatocomlegas's review against another edition
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Homophobia, Infidelity, and Outing
Moderate: Suicide and Physical abuse
hj0716's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-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
4.5
SPOILERS?? KIND OF. I DONT RECOMMEND YOU READ THIS IF YOU HAVENT READ THE BOOK YET.
This has become a new favorite. Oh my god… 😍 I picked this up due to the simple fact that Harry Styles is about to play Tom in the movie adaptation, which was amazing! I would have never picked it up otherwise. Thank’s harold lmao.
The rollercoaster of emotions through this one really got me going. Patrick is a gem, literally an angel. Tom is questionable, and a little overrated. Marion is self-conceited and literally made me hate her, when she revealed what she did. She did kind of grow on me though.
The representation in this book of that time period is delightful. The way society is ran and how that essentially determines the way certain people are forced to live their lives. It really opened up my eyes to how challenging it all must have been in that day and age.
This is really just a story about how challenging relationships and life can get. Emotions determine how we do things, no matter how rash those things can be. Life is messy, and this is proof. We fall in love easily, more often than not falling in love with an idea of someone more than actually falling in love with them. This deals with the pain and hardship that comes with being forced away from something you just want and feel you need so badly. This book is raw and emotional, and heart-wrenching, and I loved every second of it.
The letter aspect of the writing style, with the POV switching from Marion to Patrick, just beautiful!! Bethan didn’t have to pull my heart out at the end like that, but it was such a good read. 10/10!!
This has become a new favorite. Oh my god… 😍 I picked this up due to the simple fact that Harry Styles is about to play Tom in the movie adaptation, which was amazing! I would have never picked it up otherwise. Thank’s harold lmao.
The rollercoaster of emotions through this one really got me going. Patrick is a gem, literally an angel. Tom is questionable, and a little overrated. Marion is self-conceited and literally made me hate her, when she revealed what she did. She did kind of grow on me though.
The representation in this book of that time period is delightful. The way society is ran and how that essentially determines the way certain people are forced to live their lives. It really opened up my eyes to how challenging it all must have been in that day and age.
This is really just a story about how challenging relationships and life can get. Emotions determine how we do things, no matter how rash those things can be. Life is messy, and this is proof. We fall in love easily, more often than not falling in love with an idea of someone more than actually falling in love with them. This deals with the pain and hardship that comes with being forced away from something you just want and feel you need so badly. This book is raw and emotional, and heart-wrenching, and I loved every second of it.
The letter aspect of the writing style, with the POV switching from Marion to Patrick, just beautiful!! Bethan didn’t have to pull my heart out at the end like that, but it was such a good read. 10/10!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia and Violence
aaliyahdreads's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
This book is simply the story of a married police officer who is in love with another gay man in the 50’s. The peaks into their love is beautiful and the turbulence within the novel feels rooted in the reality of being LGBTQ+ during that time. While I had sympathy for Marion she is also infuriating at other times for reasons that will become clearer near the ending of the book. I do wish the story focused more on Patrick and Tom and less on Marion. I understood why her perspective is important but it should not have taken up so much of the story. But on the whole the story does move at a very slow pace but is beautifully written and is a good read for those who prefer books that focus on characters rather than plot (aka me).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Medical content, and Violence
Minor: Alcoholism and Domestic abuse
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: Outing, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, Misogyny, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Suicide, Police brutality, Terminal illness, and Confinement
ricardo_reads's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Outing
Moderate: Grief, Homophobia, and Terminal illness
Minor: Infidelity, Sexual content, and Violence
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: Grief, Homophobia, Chronic illness, Hate crime, Police brutality, Suicide, Medical content, Outing, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, and Violence
nicoleacdias's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia and Violence
booksbutmakeitgay's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
3.5
As a queer person, this story makes me incredibly sad..
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcohol, Violence, Terminal illness, Sexism, Outing, Lesbophobia, Homophobia, Grief, and Forced institutionalization
toofondofbooks_'s review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Yes, Harry Styles made me read this. I will not be taking critiques at this time.
This book tells the story of Marion, Tom, & Patrick. Tom is a young police officer that Patrick and Marion are both in love with - she as his wife, and he, as his lover in a time where it was illegal to be gay in the UK. The tale unravels from Marion and Patrick's perspectives in dual timelines and as the reader you come to see that no one in this book is an innocent - they each have their pain and they each inflict pain on each other in different ways, and it's often extremely sad to read, but the humanity and messiness of these characters are what made this book so readable and engaging to me, so that was the main thing I liked about it. The writing, too, I thought was gorgeous.
Some issues I had - I don't mind an age gap in a relationship as long as it's ethical as well as legal. Tom and Patrick's age gap itself didn't bother me, but I often felt a little grossed out by the way Patrick was always referencing Tom's youth, his boyishness. It felt....eeeehhh, weird. Didn't love that.
Other than that, I just have this feeling that there was something missing for me during this book. I can't figure out what it was exactly, and if I figure it out, I'll gladly post an update, but whatever it was, it left me feeling that I couldn't give this above a 3 even though I did enjoy it for the most part.
This book tells the story of Marion, Tom, & Patrick. Tom is a young police officer that Patrick and Marion are both in love with - she as his wife, and he, as his lover in a time where it was illegal to be gay in the UK. The tale unravels from Marion and Patrick's perspectives in dual timelines and as the reader you come to see that no one in this book is an innocent - they each have their pain and they each inflict pain on each other in different ways, and it's often extremely sad to read, but the humanity and messiness of these characters are what made this book so readable and engaging to me, so that was the main thing I liked about it. The writing, too, I thought was gorgeous.
Some issues I had - I don't mind an age gap in a relationship as long as it's ethical as well as legal. Tom and Patrick's age gap itself didn't bother me, but I often felt a little grossed out by the way Patrick was always referencing Tom's youth, his boyishness. It felt....eeeehhh, weird. Didn't love that.
Other than that, I just have this feeling that there was something missing for me during this book. I can't figure out what it was exactly, and if I figure it out, I'll gladly post an update, but whatever it was, it left me feeling that I couldn't give this above a 3 even though I did enjoy it for the most part.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Death, Hate crime, Body horror, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Medical content, Misogyny, Gaslighting, Violence, Ableism, Outing, and Confinement
Moderate: Pregnancy and Racism
Minor: Fatphobia, Transphobia, Suicide, Child abuse, Vomit, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Adult/minor relationship, and Death of parent