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A review by icarusandthesun
I Wish You All the Best by Mason Deaver
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
a pretty decent book—sweet, a bit emotional, inspiring, bursting with positive representation.
but a couple of things still kept me from rating it a 5. the characters were wholesome and all, but i thought the main character ben could be a bit hopeless and slightly annoying at times. i understand their struggles and the desire to push people away sometimes, but some of their actions and thoughts didn't seem fair at all and i found myself feeling sorry for the people around them. sometimes i even wondered why everyone was trying so hard to be their friend, because if it wasn't for their hobbies and trauma, there'd be nothing interesting about them.
all the funny banter involved mostly other people cracking jokes and them just taking it.
they also constantly expect support from their friends without actually supporting them in return (especially mariam).
the book was also very slow and i feel like many of the long scenes were not exactly necessary, rather tedious and boring.
i like that the romance was generally very slow-burn, but the early flirting and holding hands caught me off guard a bit.
i enjoyed the portrayal of mental health issues though and thought that ben was overall quite relatable. if this just didn't feel so much like a self-help book with ben complaining and everyone trying to console them....
but a couple of things still kept me from rating it a 5. the characters were wholesome and all, but i thought the main character ben could be a bit hopeless and slightly annoying at times. i understand their struggles and the desire to push people away sometimes, but some of their actions and thoughts didn't seem fair at all and i found myself feeling sorry for the people around them. sometimes i even wondered why everyone was trying so hard to be their friend, because if it wasn't for their hobbies and trauma, there'd be nothing interesting about them.
all the funny banter involved mostly other people cracking jokes and them just taking it.
they also constantly expect support from their friends without actually supporting them in return (especially mariam).
the book was also very slow and i feel like many of the long scenes were not exactly necessary, rather tedious and boring.
i like that the romance was generally very slow-burn, but the early flirting and holding hands caught me off guard a bit.
i enjoyed the portrayal of mental health issues though and thought that ben was overall quite relatable. if this just didn't feel so much like a self-help book with ben complaining and everyone trying to console them....
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia, Outing, Mental illness, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Dysphoria and Emotional abuse
Minor: Child abuse, Alcohol, Cursing, Homophobia, and Physical abuse