Reviews with content warning for Forced institutionalization - Check & Mate

Reviews tagging 'Forced institutionalization'

jencolumb0's review

emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted fast-paced

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

4.75

Another deeply satisfying Ali Hazelwood delight, filled with funny observations, spice, and (mostly) charming characters. (The characters who are not charming get what they deserve and it is satisfying too.)

My own lack of familiarity with chess made the (comforting) tropes feel less predictable. (Though, in the notes, Hazelwood acknowledges that she took a fair amount of liberty with chess details to make the story work out well. I would expect that, if you are a true chess nerd, this book might be annoying . . . and I’d actually be curious as to what is off, technically, about this book. An annotated copy would be super interesting. I digress.)

Mallory & Nolan are easy to ship. Arguably more importantly, as the book unfolds, it’s lovely to see Mallory put down a lot of the things she’s been carrying because she realizes that relationships can be repaired and she’s not as alone as she thinks she is: it doesn’t have to be, forever, as hard as it has been.

Somewhat relatedly, I really appreciated the discussion in the book of casual sex. Mallory is down, depicted (generally) being responsible about it (

the wisdom and safety of hooking up in a car in an otherwise public place raises questions but, throughout the book, there are clear statements of heterosexual couples relying on condoms when engaging in penetrative sex

), clear that “sex” is about sharing of bodies for pleasure and not just p-in-v penetration that can lead to babies, and gives a clearly-articulated explanation as to why she chooses to share her body with the folks she does. The book is fade-to-black (which Hazelwood, naturally, still manages to make steamy but I would call the pre-fade scenes PG-13 at best). Nolan is coded as shades of Ace (or, alternatively, Pan, with

Mallory being the only person he’s ever been interested in having sex with

) SO, reviews that complain about too much discussion of sex are . . . slut-shaming a fictional 18-year-old?? That’s messed up.

Personally, I found this to be a sex-positive delight that slips in neatly between binges of Heartstopper and Sex Education. Bravissima, Ali Hazelwood!

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withlivjones's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced

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

4.0

I LOVED the chess storyline, it was so exciting and definitely my favourite part of the book. The romance was cute but rather sappy and cringe at times. Definitely an enjoyable and easy read.

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thorns_and_thunder's review

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emotional funny 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

3.75

Does this book have every stereotype for Gen Z that could be mustered? 1000%

Is Ali Hazelwood's signature of explaining how much bigger the ML is than the FL everywhere? Of course

Did i also really enjoy the mixture of unserious generalizations of Gen Z with the real and tough topic of dysfunctional family dynamics? Absolutely

I was skeptical when i first began the book (being hit with a mention of a Bill Nye erotic fan fiction on the first page was A LOT) but was pleasantly surprised with how well this book made difficult family dynamics relatable (or at the very explained why people acted the way they did).

I also enjoyed how relatable Mallory was

(when she joked about her she was good at compartmentalizing on page 37, anger that can come from the responsibilities as the first child on page 51, and how much she struggled with feeling as if she was bothering Easton because she felt inadequate in herself and thought it was “justified” for her to be left behind on page 67).

There were many examples but these are just to name a few that stood out when I first began reading.

Overall it was very interesting seeing the dynamic of Mallory and her family, it was an extremely heavy and delicate system

(that was thankfully addressed before the ending of the book- my heart was breaking for all the Greenleaf girls).

Now the only real problem I have with this book is the characterization that it is a rivals to lovers romance.

Neither of them sees each other as a rival (I swear if we could have seen Nolan that first time they played he would have had heart eyes after Mallory beat him).

In general it feels disingenuous to place this book into the romance category at all because it is a sub-plot in the grand scheme of things. After reading it i felt like i did after Love,Theoretically because while the romantic relationships were becoming stronger and did take up space in the book, they did not end in a way that made it nearly as important to the plot as the character development both FMC’S went through from a readers perspective. And while i loved where both of those characters ended up with themselves, the romantic conclusions (in the book- we are to assume they progressed afterwards) were lackluster when reading through the lens of a romance and not as a coming of age/ personal growth (with a sub-plot of romance) because in both stories we are left with more on an open-ending rather than a concrete relationship.

Focusing back on this book, I was really disappointed in the epilogue. I understand the thought process behind it but it’s frustrating to read all of their cute interactions before they have their huge fight to then get next to nothing after they reconcile and just felt lazy on the authors part after, again, classifying this book as a romance.

Would I recommend this book? Yes, but I would recommend it as a coming of age story that has romantic elements, not as a romance.

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sariefaerie's review

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emotional funny hopeful 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 went in assuming this would be good but that it would be my least favorite of Ali Hazelwood's books. With my lack of interest in chess I, wrongfully, assumed that I wouldn't be able to relate to the characters at all. Ali Hazelwood is a genius at making relatable characters, or maybe she just knows people like me a little too intimately.

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yanagi's review

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emotional funny hopeful reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

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alenert's review

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emotional hopeful inspiring reflective fast-paced

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

5.0

Obsessed!

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fairytalefootnotes's review against another edition

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challenging emotional funny inspiring reflective 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

4.75

Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.75
Writing: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Plot: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Characters: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️
Tropes: Rivals to Lovers, Bi FMC, He Falls First, Forced Proximity, Sex Positive
3rd Act Breakup?: Yes

The Praise: Honestly, no author can make me laugh like Ali. Her books are hilarious while also being swoony and sweet. Mallory is messy and complex and occasionally unlikeable, but it gives her a sense of realism. Nolan was so sweet. I loved that he fell so hard for Mallory, how badly he wanted to play against her, and how supportive he was of her. I also really liked the bi rep and how Mallory having sex and several past partners was not a shameful thing. Sex positivity in a YA book is so important.

The Critique: That final fight before the third act breakup RUINED ME. I gasped out loud, had to put down the book and walk away for a bit. Mallory went for the throat and I understand that she was upset and defensive and hiding behind the untrue things she said, which is fine! BUT I wish her apology to Nolan had been more substantial. It felt kind of halfhearted to me, even though it wasn’t (but I only know that because I was reading her inner monologue!) This would’ve been a perfect 5 star for me if the apology had been better.

Final Thoughts: I’ve yet to read an Ali book that I don’t love. Her characters are always so funny and relatable and I love that she tends to focus on her FMCs succeeding in male-dominated fields/sports.

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readyforit's review against another edition

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funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted 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

4.25

4.25⭐️0.5🌶️ (closed door)
I loved this book and I only wish it could’ve been new adult rather than YA! I would’ve liked a little more romance between the main characters, but not necessarily spice, they are only 18 and 20. I feel like she kept it YA for the relationship with her younger sisters, which was written so accurately to how sibling relationships are irl. There was some really funny dialogue between the them. This is definitely a he fell first and harder story. Loved the LGBTQ+ representation. If you’re the oldest daughter this book is for you! Would recommend and will reread.

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