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fragrant_stars's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Grief and War
Minor: Cancer, Sexual content, Suicide, Terminal illness, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol
jojo_'s review against another edition
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Death, Drug abuse, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Misogyny, Sexual content, Violence, Death of parent, Murder, and Abandonment
Minor: Biphobia, Sexual violence, Fire/Fire injury, and War
alyssasaurus's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, and War
Minor: Blood and Fire/Fire injury
mykes's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Addiction, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and War
greenlivingaudioworm's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Moderate: Death, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, and Fire/Fire injury
juliettea's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, Abandonment, Alcohol, and War
Minor: Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Rape, Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Classism
nightfell's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
A lot of people say that the book is slow paced and the first half is hard to get through, but for me that was the best part of the book. You witness Addie's fear of dying before she has lived and experienced everything, her meeting Luc which is one of the most magical parts of the book. Then her struggles living in Paris, and the flashback chapters in the first half are so turbulent. The angst of her present situation paired with her struggles in the past makes the first half so interesting.
However, once Henry was introduced the book dragged a bit for me. This man is one of the most boring, dull, stale love interests I have ever read. He brought nothing to the table and every chapter I had to read in his pov had me questioning if I even like the book to begin with. During his 'backstory' when you learn more about him and why he can remember Addie, I did relate to him on some level but he was still boring and I just didn't care about him.
Addie and Luc's relationship throughout the book is definitely the main reason I gave this book 4 stars. They had good chemistry, and there is something so deep about their bond that goes beyond romance. The fact that he was the only person who remembers her for 300 years and despite her hatred and resentment of him, she was relieved everytime he showed up gave so much complexity to their relationship beyond the standard 'enemies to lovers' which I don't really see them fitting into that category, as they are so unique. I know they are toxic and some of the stuff he said/did or didn't do was questionable, however I just love the fact that for better or for worse he remembered her, and saw her (mostly) every year.
There is a line that goes something like "perhaps an enemy's company is still better than none" and I just think that perfectly sums up the complexities of their relationship.
Towards the end I kept getting whiplash, because one minute I'd be reading Addie and Luc is some mysterious location saying some dramatic dialogue, then I'd turn the page and see Henry asking Addie if she was to go to the Ice Cream Factory, like??? People who ship Addie and Henry do so in spite of the people who ship Addie and Luc, because there is no other explanation that can justify liking them. Not even in comparison to Addie and Luc. I feel like the Henry stans need to hear that they don't have to ship anyone with Addie, because they were so boring I swear. Or just ship Addie and Sam, they were cute.
I wish Addie had fallen in love with a girl (like Bea) instead of Henry, because then maybe I would have rated this a 4.5/5. Ik everyone was crying over the ending but....it wasn't that sad, if anything it felt like it ended on a cliffhanger and I wish there was a novella.
Overall, I enjoyed this book, I just wish it had more emotion and depth. Addie and Luc carried this book. Also why was Luc more of a comedic relief in this book than Henry and his friends. I knew the stuff he was saying was hurtful to Addie ect but I was laughing (not at the possessive stuff though that kinda gave me the ick).
Graphic: Toxic relationship
Moderate: Misogyny and Grief
Minor: Body horror, Death, Drug abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and War
ludmireads's review against another edition
- 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
The book is slow-paced and it does not center around action, the main focus is on the thoughts and feelings. The main characters are well-developed and you can see the change in their (especially Addie’s) personalities throughout the time. I have to admit that I found Henry’s POV not exactly less interesting than Addie’s (because they definitely weren’t) but less beautiful. Addie’s chapters were filled with so many beautiful thoughts and therefore had a bigger impact on me. Don’t get me wrong, Henry’s chapters weren’t bad, there were many pages I wanted to rip out of the book, frame them and put them on my walls, but there simply weren’t enough. But this is also another thing I loved about the book. The language in Henry’s chapters was different than the language in Addie’s, which is something that not all writes can achieve. And because of that, it was easy to distinguish whose chapter I was reading and it made the reading experience even better.
edit: I forgot to mention one aspect that I was surprised I actually enjoyed, and it was that the book kinda “spoils” itself. The narrator briefly mentions something that will happen in the future and it didn’t spoil the book for me at all. On the contrary, it made me want to read faster to reach that part of the story.
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, and Alcohol
Moderate: Mental illness, Grief, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Cancer
falltumn's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Death, Drug use, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Suicide attempt, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Sexual content and Alcohol
Minor: Fire/Fire injury
wordrevel's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
4.75
The reason I decided against a full 5.0 rating is that I found it odd that in her 300 years and with such a curiosity of languages, Addie's nine languages were all romantic or germanic languages. She hadn't learnt any Asian or African languages, even though she lived in New York, which has had a sizeable immigrant community for a long, long time.
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, and War
Minor: Alcoholism