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A review by kaelaceleste
Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
We've done it kids. We read something for book club that I actually loved (wild cheering)
I knew I would like this bc I love Taylor Jenkins Reid and most especially when they're narrated by Julia Whelan my fav. This took me longer to get into than some of her other books but when we got there WE GOT THERE. I flew through this today (partially because my library loan was about to expire and I knew it would take 6+ weeks to get it back) and while there were definitely a few loose ends that did not get tied up the way I would have liked, for the most part I really really liked. It made me cry multiple times which is usually a good sign! I just love the way TJR writes characters, especially female characters, and this was no exception. I got a clear picture of all of these people in my head and it was really easy to imagine everything. The space stuff was also really cool. I don't always like when books jump back and forth between timelines, but it really worked here. The romance was also SO beautiful, I loved watching their love story blossom and I especially loved Vanessa as a character, I fell in love with her too!!
I do have a few issues with the whole Franny storyline. First of all is it normal for kids to be 10 in 6th grade? Do I just not know how old kids are? But the whole time it seemed like she was way more intellectually advanced than her age which.. admittedly I don't spend time around kids so that could be something, but it just made things seem a bit far-fetched. I guess that could be a way of showing how she was forced to grow up because of her AWFUL MOM!!!!! And speaking of that it's crazy how we're all just like... okay with her sister abandoning her kid???? Like???? I really loved Joan's relationship with her niece but god her sister sucks! You don't just get to give up on someone because they don't fit into your new lifestyle... that really bothered me!
BUT aside from that I really enjoyed it! I'm willing to look past things I didn't like to focus on the things I did, and it was nice to get ahappy ending for LGBT characters for once in fiction!
I knew I would like this bc I love Taylor Jenkins Reid and most especially when they're narrated by Julia Whelan my fav. This took me longer to get into than some of her other books but when we got there WE GOT THERE. I flew through this today (partially because my library loan was about to expire and I knew it would take 6+ weeks to get it back) and while there were definitely a few loose ends that did not get tied up the way I would have liked, for the most part I really really liked. It made me cry multiple times which is usually a good sign! I just love the way TJR writes characters, especially female characters, and this was no exception. I got a clear picture of all of these people in my head and it was really easy to imagine everything. The space stuff was also really cool. I don't always like when books jump back and forth between timelines, but it really worked here. The romance was also SO beautiful, I loved watching their love story blossom and I especially loved Vanessa as a character, I fell in love with her too!!
BUT aside from that I really enjoyed it! I'm willing to look past things I didn't like to focus on the things I did, and it was nice to get a
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Homophobia, Sexism, Abandonment
Moderate: Misogyny, Vomit
Minor: Death of parent, Pregnancy