Scan barcode
e_milyking's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
medium-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
2.0
I personally didn’t enjoy this book, I think it’s important to touch on themes of domestic violence carefully and this didn’t feel like a careful book. I thought that some of the plot and internal dialogue painted a good picture of the realities of domestic violence, and some provided excuses for the perpetrator. I appreciated that it came from a lived experience perspective, but I think it’s potentially damaging to market this book as a ‘romantic triangle’ to young audiences and have the ending not provide any sense of actual justice. The writing was good and easy to read, but the character development was a bit undercooked and the concepts felt half-baked. Also why was a minor-adult relationship in there???? And he was meant to be the good guy???? I don’t like what messages it portrayed at times, overall the thread of ending the cycle of violence is great but it could’ve been done a LOT better. Could rant about this book at length clearly
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Adult/minor relationship, Abandonment, and Rape
nixicat1's review against another edition
challenging
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
1.0
I understand why this book is so polarising and why some people connect with it. Although I agree with the intention to provide more lived experience of domestic and intimate partner violence, the failure of execution was too hard to overcome for me. The writing and characterisations are cliche and simplistic. There is a stunning lack of research or logical reasoning applied to the world building or plot progression. Although a bit of creative license is necessary to any fiction, I found it impossible to believe in these characters or the world they inhabit.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death of parent, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Blood, Sexual violence, Violence, Rape, Misogyny, Grief, and Physical abuse
lyssie03's review against another edition
challenging
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
0.5
well. this was a ride. oscillating (still) between 1 and 2 stars. need to figure out a personal rating system. i think 1 means i absolutely abhorred everything about it. this book had some moments where i didn’t hate it or didn’t cringe; and i understand the message and i think, honestly, when i had gotten to the end, the 2 star i was contemplating was due to the message, but i don’t believe coho handled the topic as well as she should have. while i appreciate that this is personal to the author, this is a dangerous narrative to push to impressionable young readers while glorifying and romanticising aspects of it. while atlas was also one of the ‘better’ (tbh, everyone in this story pissed me off at least once; marshall’s might have been the least offensive but i am still undecided) character, he is still not the perfect man and while i’m glad he was there to help that night, it would have been more powerful if someone else could have been the person for lily to lean on—e.g., allysa or her mother.
the attempted rape, graphic sexual assault and humiliation of lily that night should have resulted in ryle never spending unsupervised time with his child, or any children. like i need him locked up. and i wish it was stressed by others in the book at how terrifying this was. allysa, as his sister, would’ve loved for lily to give him a second chance? what the fuck? whether speaking as his sister or her best friend, you should STILL want her to have nothing to do with that man ever again? in fact, you shouldn’t even want anything to ever do with that man. [also pissed me off when she made him tell lily about their brother as if that had anything to do with anything. whole time i was sat there like... is this supposed to make up for you shoving her down the stairs and then GASLIGHTING her about it? talmbout “you fell”??] the fact that it was so different from the first two “incidents” in the fact that it was calculated should have sounded warning bells that this is not just a “damaged” man who is dealing with inner demons. he planned to humiliate and harm her that night. he does not need to be redeemed or coddled or talked down to in order to understand why lily cannot stay in their marriage (“what would you say if it was your daughter?” good god. he is not a child.)
also. regarding atlas, depending on the situation, i tend to have few problems with 16–18 relationships [dependent on the fact that there are no power imbalances, grooming, and that no one is being harmed, etc]; e.g., if the older person had just turned 18/the younger person’s 17th is soon/they had been together prior to one partner turning 18. however, there was genuinely no need for them to have sex. their relationship, to serve as the comparison to ryle and lily’s, worked well enough before the scene and it would have had the same impact had she left that scene out as it had already been established how much they meant to each other and how crucial he was as a fellow child of an abusive home.
also. regarding atlas, depending on the situation, i tend to have few problems with 16–18 relationships [dependent on the fact that there are no power imbalances, grooming, and that no one is being harmed, etc]; e.g., if the older person had just turned 18/the younger person’s 17th is soon/they had been together prior to one partner turning 18. however, there was genuinely no need for them to have sex. their relationship, to serve as the comparison to ryle and lily’s, worked well enough before the scene and it would have had the same impact had she left that scene out as it had already been established how much they meant to each other and how crucial he was as a fellow child of an abusive home.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, Toxic relationship, and Rape
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Adult/minor relationship, and Death of parent
Minor: Pregnancy
munachireads's review against another edition
emotional
informative
inspiring
tense
medium-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? It's complicated
3.75
I put Medium pace as it started to kick in around 9 or so chapters in. There were a lot of quotables towards the end of Part Two.
I enjoyed the complexity of the characters and how realistic the protagonists reactions and developments were however I felt at times there were some overly opportunistic moments to inject romance. I was also wondering if there was more counsel on how a 15 year old would actually write in a diary, it felt more reflective than from that position (little spelling/grammatical mistakes, hyper-mature language, etc). It’s expected the writing age was much older considering the author wasn’t a teenager but it could’ve added something
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Adult/minor relationship, Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, Physical abuse, Violence, Self harm, Alcoholism, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, and Rape
veritas19's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-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
4.5
I just couldn't stop listening to this one. I finished this one in a day. I stayed up past my bedtime to finish it. I already have the next book in the series and plan to binge it soon. Maybe even tomorrow. It was so good but devastating at the same time. This one made me feel everything and, at some points through out, all at once.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse and Physical abuse
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Cursing
Minor: Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, and Infertility
kfquarium's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Rape
Moderate: Medical content, Gun violence, Cursing, Pregnancy, and Death
Minor: Death of parent, Drug use, Vomit, Alcohol, Adult/minor relationship, and Injury/Injury detail
jessbellreads's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Sexual content, Rape, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Pregnancy
Minor: Death of parent and Gun violence
escape_to_reality's review against another edition
2.0
I understand how this could be great for some people, but it truly was not that great.
The six months between Lily meeting Ryle for the first and then for the second time was a bit rushed.
I don't really like the ending, divorcing Ryle was a great decision, but Atlas and Lily would have been better as friends. When they were young the age gap was too big and the domestic violence is not handled in the best way either.
I don't really like the ending, divorcing Ryle was a great decision, but Atlas and Lily would have been better as friends. When they were young the age gap was too big and the domestic violence is not handled in the best way either.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Domestic abuse, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship
stindex's review against another edition
dark
sad
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
1.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, and Adult/minor relationship
sof_721's review against another edition
dark
emotional
medium-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? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship