A review by ritugp01
Love and Other Words by Christina Lauren

emotional funny reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

I just didn't like it, but I'm glad I read it nonetheless.  The following is spoilers galore:
The reveal with her dad could be seen coming from a mile away, and I felt like it was such a contrived cop out to the story. I also wish we saw more of the time in-between their reunion, with like more information on how she chose medicine and her life as a doctor. I also wanted to know about him because if anything, his path seemed most likely to be medical. I also felt like Elliot was better only in comparison to Sean, but I failed to see his own appeal independently. I feel like to an extent, the characters despite being a "character driven" book, felt like half-realized carboard cut outs that tend to wax poetic. Although, all this said doesn't mean I dislike it, it was still written really well and certain passages stuck out and will stay with me for a long time. On the final note, I didn't like how quickly we glossed over Elliot literally being a victim and the associated trauma with that. It definitely needed to be addressed.
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