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ems_rxlibrary's review against another edition
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent and Alcohol
Moderate: Infertility and Infidelity
Minor: Car accident
hannahglenn's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
medium-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? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent
Moderate: Infertility and Infidelity
Minor: Fatphobia
rosalie362819's review against another edition
lighthearted
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Favourite quotes:
"Sarah is my best friend in the entire world, and however much and for however long it kills me, I'll never silently, secretly hold up signs to tell Jack O'Mara, without hope or agenda, that to me he is perfect, and that my wasted heart will always love him."
"All it took was one bottle of wine to lower my guard; for one unwittingly misjudged comment to make me crumble like an abandoned sandcastle when the evening tide comes in."
"Despite the fairy-tale snowstorm out there, this isn't Narnia. This is London, real life, where hearts get kicked and bruised and broken, but somehow they still keep beating."
"There's something about living in a different place that allows you to be whoever you want to be."
"I think we're both living in denial, completely unprepared and unwilling to return to the world we belong to. But who's to say that you have to belong to somewhere forever, anyway? Why do I have to belong to England, when everything there is grey and confusing and difficult?"
"I find myself wondering again whether I'd even have spoken to him if I'd met him anywhere other than on a beach, where all bodies are more or less equal."
"There comes a point where you have to make the choice to be happy, because being sad for too long is exhausting. And that one day, you'll look back, and you'll not be able to remember exactly what it was you loved about that person... But I also said that sometimes, rarely, people can come back into your life. And if that happens, you should keep those people close to you forever."
"You tread lightly through life, but you leave deep footprints that are hard for other people to fill."
"I'm treading water. In fact, that's how I'd sum up my whole life right now. It's strange-- you'd think that in the upheaval of separation, the stability of work would be welcome. It's actually had the opposite effect; it's made me want to throw all my cards up in the air and see where they land. I'm treading water, but what I want is to swim."
"It's strange but you never stop caring about someone, even if you don't want to be with them anymore."
"I jumped in feet first when I arrived and lost myself in the work and the women, and now at last I've surfaced and I'm sucking down fresh, sweet air into my lungs. At first it seemed that I was gasping for breath; it burned my chest. Now, though, I breathe easy and I sleep through the night. It's just me and, for now, I'm good with that."
"'Sometimes you just meet the right person at the wrong time,' I say softly. 'Yeah,' he says. 'And then you spend every day afterwards wishing that time could be rearranged,'"
"Sarah is my best friend in the entire world, and however much and for however long it kills me, I'll never silently, secretly hold up signs to tell Jack O'Mara, without hope or agenda, that to me he is perfect, and that my wasted heart will always love him."
"All it took was one bottle of wine to lower my guard; for one unwittingly misjudged comment to make me crumble like an abandoned sandcastle when the evening tide comes in."
"Despite the fairy-tale snowstorm out there, this isn't Narnia. This is London, real life, where hearts get kicked and bruised and broken, but somehow they still keep beating."
"There's something about living in a different place that allows you to be whoever you want to be."
"I think we're both living in denial, completely unprepared and unwilling to return to the world we belong to. But who's to say that you have to belong to somewhere forever, anyway? Why do I have to belong to England, when everything there is grey and confusing and difficult?"
"I find myself wondering again whether I'd even have spoken to him if I'd met him anywhere other than on a beach, where all bodies are more or less equal."
"There comes a point where you have to make the choice to be happy, because being sad for too long is exhausting. And that one day, you'll look back, and you'll not be able to remember exactly what it was you loved about that person... But I also said that sometimes, rarely, people can come back into your life. And if that happens, you should keep those people close to you forever."
"You tread lightly through life, but you leave deep footprints that are hard for other people to fill."
"I'm treading water. In fact, that's how I'd sum up my whole life right now. It's strange-- you'd think that in the upheaval of separation, the stability of work would be welcome. It's actually had the opposite effect; it's made me want to throw all my cards up in the air and see where they land. I'm treading water, but what I want is to swim."
"It's strange but you never stop caring about someone, even if you don't want to be with them anymore."
"I jumped in feet first when I arrived and lost myself in the work and the women, and now at last I've surfaced and I'm sucking down fresh, sweet air into my lungs. At first it seemed that I was gasping for breath; it burned my chest. Now, though, I breathe easy and I sleep through the night. It's just me and, for now, I'm good with that."
"'Sometimes you just meet the right person at the wrong time,' I say softly. 'Yeah,' he says. 'And then you spend every day afterwards wishing that time could be rearranged,'"
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Grief, and Alcohol
Moderate: Child death, Infertility, Car accident, and Death of parent
vlawton's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent
eleyden's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
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? No
5.0
A truly romantic not exactly holidayesque novel. The writing was so perfectly blended switching from the different perspectives. I loved seeing how Laurie and Sarah’s friendship developed over the span of the novel. And how the secret about bus boy always played a role in Laurie’s guilt. I wish the ending was played out a little longer. But fantastic novel!
Content Warnings
Minor: Death of parent
mollywill's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent
bookbishes's review against another edition
emotional
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.75
wow.
Content Warnings
Minor: Death of parent
jenna36's review against another edition
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I don't quite know what to rate this book. I really enjoyed aspects of it, and there is a kind of melancholy joy that radiates from Josie Silver's writing that hits me in the right spots emotionally. I love One Night on the Island, but I don't think I loved this one as much. Both Laurie and Jack were kind of despicable people, but I still liked reading about Laurie. She seemed to actually grow over the course of the book. Jack just seemed to get more and more insufferable and then the book ended. I think that Jack started off as a really good character; he was flawed, but he was still relatable and I understood what Laurie and Sarah saw in him. Then after his dj career took off he got more insufferable with each year that passed. Who he actually was on the inside did not match up with the image that Laurie had of him. I think Laurie had the opposite pattern of growth, where we see her at her most despicable in the beginning, but she makes an effort to grow and be better. I think by the end she has actually finally grown past Jack, but they are still thrown together in the end for the HEA. I honestly would have rather they stayed apart and moved on with their lives and became better people independently. It had the same feeling as the HIMYM finale, wherein Ted and Robin had obviously grown past their feelings for each other, but were forced together for a tired plot point that had been decided years ago.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent
Minor: Sexism
nineinchnails's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Car accident and Death of parent
greys527's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent