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A review by holdingmybreath
Anything But Fine by Tobias Madden
2.0
Why was the MC one of the most unlikeable teenagers I’ve read about in a while? Cause holy cow, was this Hoboken difficult to get through. I can appreciate a flawed character, and I went into this understanding that this is a YA novel, yet the MC was SO self-absorbed throughout the whole thing. Only when he had to face the consequences of his actions did he start to realize how ridiculous he had been.
Also, the love interest didn’t have much of a personality? And their relationship came across as so flat. Maybe this is because I’m coming off of binging the Heartstopper comics, but this romance seemed so lifeless. When the MC “pronounced his love”, all I could think of is ‘why?’. The audience wasn’t given enough depth with the two of them, other than descriptions of text messages exchanged and some teenage hormones.
I did appreciate the best friend character. The representation in this book was one of its stronger points in the best friend and romantic interest. Amina was the only character (other than the dad) that I enjoyed learning more about.
Overall, disappointed, but not surprised.
Also, the love interest didn’t have much of a personality? And their relationship came across as so flat. Maybe this is because I’m coming off of binging the Heartstopper comics, but this romance seemed so lifeless. When the MC “pronounced his love”, all I could think of is ‘why?’. The audience wasn’t given enough depth with the two of them, other than descriptions of text messages exchanged and some teenage hormones.
I did appreciate the best friend character. The representation in this book was one of its stronger points in the best friend and romantic interest. Amina was the only character (other than the dad) that I enjoyed learning more about.
Overall, disappointed, but not surprised.