Take a photo of a barcode or cover
kaelilili 's review for:
For Whom the Belle Tolls
by Jaysea Lynn
dark
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book suffered from Main Character Syndrome. Somehow, everything always worked out, and the main character was always the most popular, beautiful, and lusted-after girl in the whole Universe. I understand that this book is an opportunity for the author to create an idealized world, but it was a little too convenient how things worked out. It felt like I was reading a fanfiction a lot of the time. Everything was really trope-y and predictable. Also, I did not like the war aspect. It was so lazy and not fleshed out. It felt like a plot device to create tension rather than an actual conflict. Lastly, her being turned into a deity at the end to stay in Hell was so dumb and too convenient. I was left going “Of course” because why wouldn’t it work out for her when everything else in the book did?
Despite my criticisms, I did like the representations of healthy relationships and communication between partners and parents/guardians and children. That was a highlight of this book that improved my rating.
Despite my criticisms, I did like the representations of healthy relationships and communication between partners and parents/guardians and children. That was a highlight of this book that improved my rating.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Infertility, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Violence, Grief, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, War
Moderate: Mental illness, Self harm, Blood
Minor: Vomit, Alcohol
Characters have consensual sex throughout the book in detail. There are moments where two characters relive a memory from their childhood regarding sexual assault, self-harming, and rape. A character fights in a war and kills an entire population of a species, including children. A character is diagnosed with and dies of cancer at the beginning of the book before entering the afterlife. Characters consume moderate amounts of alcohol in social settings in some scenes. A character gags and almost vomits but does not actually puke. However, this scene can be triggering for those with emetophobia.