A review by theespressoedition
Loveless by Alice Oseman

challenging emotional tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I've got to admit that I struggled quite a bit with this book. Not because it was a bad book, but because I felt really disconnected from the story and the characters.

There's a lot of discourse surrounding adults reading YA and then getting frustrated when they can't relate to the characters. I'm not going to do that right now. I can't objectively be upset with a YA for having characters that I no longer relate to (or really, never related to because I was never someone who went to uni or struggled with my sexuality). However, it did feel like it was written for a very, very niched-down audience, and I was not the target.

None of these characters were particularly likable to me (aside from Sunil, who is a gem). I realize that there was a lot of growth that needed to happen throughout the story, but even by the end, I felt myself getting more frustrated with them than impressed by their development.

There were some really tender moments in this book that made my heart soar, and that's why I gave this a higher rating than I originally intended. However, for the most part, I felt like this was a very time-consuming story that wasn't intended for me and that's perfectly alright. I know that the target audience will benefit quite a lot from a book like this!
Expand filter menu Content Warnings