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kneecole's review
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Death of parent
aksmith92's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
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
4.0
The setup: Casey Peabody is struggling. It's 1997 - she's in debt from a prestigious school where she intended to play golf on a scholarship, but that fell through. She's now working as a waitress at a fancy restaurant where many Harvard folks go and eat and talk, which usually makes her life a bit challenging. She's also wholly unraveling from her mother's death and a rather love bomb—a fallout from someone whom she developed feelings for quite quickly and thought was reciprocated until it wasn't. On top of that, she's trying to be a writer and seems to be just scraping by.
Casey is battling with the idea that you can be a creative and live happily - she's watched many friends give up their goals and dreams to do something to earn money or continue a status quo. We watch as Casey goes through life navigating the grief of her mother's death, her very complicated relationship with a distant father, working at the restaurant to ensure she pays her bills, trying to write a novel where she seems to get stuck, and navigate dating and falling in love after a rocky relationship. We see Casey trying to get her life together, even as she begins dating two different men and begins to conclude a book. It's about Casey's fictional life; I ate this one up!
What I loved: Lilly King can write a book, that's for sure. I was engrossed in Casey's life, particularly her writing journey and the idea that even back in 1997, living creatively can be painful in America. King could intersect grief, love, family, and mental health very well while still making a realistic story. It was nice to have more of a literary and contemporary fiction novel end on a relatively good note. While this was not a happy story, this book made me feel good, and I appreciated all the nuances King gave Casey and her little bubble of a life.
Lastly, it was satisfying to read a book about a thirty-something who navigated her youth and continued working through some past traumas and journeys as someone more mature. As someone around her age, that felt relatable, and overall, it was done well.
What could've made it five stars: This novel was a trope in itself—a white, sad, broke girl who takes on the city and tries to make it. These types of stories are really hit or miss for me, and while this hit, I still kept thinking about this trope/subgenre. I can't articulate it well, but we've read this story before. However, I will say that just because it has been done before doesn't mean I hated this book by any means.
Additionally, there were times when the writing tried to be a bit too profound, and Casey would go on with metaphors, similes, and analogies. Sometimes it was just a lot.
Lastly, while there was a focus on Casey's mom and how her death impacted her and continued to impact her, I felt disconnected from that narrative a bit because we didn't get a ton of information about the memories with her mom other than a bit of abandonment. It's a minor qualm because overall, I felt that everything was done well, including Casey's grief, but at times, it felt like King put this subplot in there to make Casey even sadder. While acceptable for a novel like this, its execution didn't always feel right.
Overall, I really enjoyed this novel and look forward to seeing what King puts out in the future!
Casey is battling with the idea that you can be a creative and live happily - she's watched many friends give up their goals and dreams to do something to earn money or continue a status quo. We watch as Casey goes through life navigating the grief of her mother's death, her very complicated relationship with a distant father, working at the restaurant to ensure she pays her bills, trying to write a novel where she seems to get stuck, and navigate dating and falling in love after a rocky relationship. We see Casey trying to get her life together, even as she begins dating two different men and begins to conclude a book. It's about Casey's fictional life; I ate this one up!
What I loved: Lilly King can write a book, that's for sure. I was engrossed in Casey's life, particularly her writing journey and the idea that even back in 1997, living creatively can be painful in America. King could intersect grief, love, family, and mental health very well while still making a realistic story. It was nice to have more of a literary and contemporary fiction novel end on a relatively good note. While this was not a happy story, this book made me feel good, and I appreciated all the nuances King gave Casey and her little bubble of a life.
Lastly, it was satisfying to read a book about a thirty-something who navigated her youth and continued working through some past traumas and journeys as someone more mature. As someone around her age, that felt relatable, and overall, it was done well.
What could've made it five stars: This novel was a trope in itself—a white, sad, broke girl who takes on the city and tries to make it. These types of stories are really hit or miss for me, and while this hit, I still kept thinking about this trope/subgenre. I can't articulate it well, but we've read this story before. However, I will say that just because it has been done before doesn't mean I hated this book by any means.
Additionally, there were times when the writing tried to be a bit too profound, and Casey would go on with metaphors, similes, and analogies. Sometimes it was just a lot.
Lastly, while there was a focus on Casey's mom and how her death impacted her and continued to impact her, I felt disconnected from that narrative a bit because we didn't get a ton of information about the memories with her mom other than a bit of abandonment. It's a minor qualm because overall, I felt that everything was done well, including Casey's grief, but at times, it felt like King put this subplot in there to make Casey even sadder. While acceptable for a novel like this, its execution didn't always feel right.
Overall, I really enjoyed this novel and look forward to seeing what King puts out in the future!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Toxic relationship, Medical content, Sexual assault, Mental illness, Grief, Medical trauma, Panic attacks/disorders, and Pedophilia
Moderate: Abandonment, Cancer, Gaslighting, Cursing, Infidelity, Misogyny, and Sexual content
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Self harm, and Infertility
vanesst's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent and Grief
Moderate: Sexual violence and Pedophilia
Minor: Abandonment, Infidelity, Cancer, and Medical content
bethaniesherwood's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
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? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Death of parent, and Grief
Minor: Misogyny, Mental illness, and Cancer
laiza1's review against another edition
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent
sammyb's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
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? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent
Moderate: Cancer
jakirby's review
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Cancer, and Sexual assault
lidwinahilda's review against another edition
2.75
Wow I finished this book in two seats.
Some parts I love, most parts are too heavy. And quite triggering.
Some parts I love, most parts are too heavy. And quite triggering.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Grief, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Sexual assault
efsimpkin's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Wow. This blew me away. I’m not normally a huge contemporary romance fan and when the two love interests weren’t immediately “book boyfriend” material I was a little taken aback. But that’s on me, and what I loved about this book is how raw and unflinching it was. We all have our foibles and no one is perfect. I really just loved this and was thinking about it a lot when I wasn’t reading it, which I think says a lot about it. The last 10% was just poetry in motion and I was so happy for Casey. Ahhh this is so good.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Death of parent, and Cancer
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders and Medical content
Minor: Sexual content and Pedophilia
elyssam's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Oh, wow! Oh, wow! I wanted to read this back when it came out but I don’t know if I would have appreciated it as much just those few years ago. Casey is SO ME in her thoughts, fears, and actions. This is how I move through the world, more or less. And this book pulled me in forcing me to root for things to happen but also felt so mundane, a glance at this moment in a normal person’s life. I don’t know how to explain it. AND THE WRITING. At times it was simple but there were so many beautiful, prolific, wonderful lines. I wanted to cry from sadness, from joy. When casey described HER childhood, I felt transported back to mine. I love the writing in this so much, to think it was written by a worm. ANYWAY. I am not as eloquent as I wish to be but I encourage any artist, any PERSON to read this. I love it.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent