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wyarttist's Reviews (73)
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
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:
Yes
I want to preface this review with the fact that I typically don't read rom-coms and in my few experiences I've had with them in the past they've felt too 'perfect' in an overly cheesy way. Despite that, I gave The Charm Offensive a chance and it has made its way to be one of my favorite books. Yes it was cheesy but not so over the top I cringed every paragraph. Alison Cochrun made these characters so real it felt they were going to come right out of the page. The mental health representation in this book helped a lot with that and actually tackled difficult mental health issues instead of tiptoeing around them to fit the 'love heals all' trope. My only gripe with this, however, was that the ending felt a bit rushed. The final 'on-screen' conversation could have been longer or another chapter could have been added where Dev and Charlie discuss things off camera. Besides that, this book was fantastic and is why I give it 4.5 stars.
adventurous
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
lighthearted
fast-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
romance novels are supposed to be kind of cringy but this book went well beyond the norm. the characters were more or less insufferable and the only things that pulled me through were the tropes I enjoy even though they surrounded a flimsy plot at best. the way the MC narrated his story felt like a quirky teenager writing in their diary with what they think are funny fourth wall breaks.
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-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:
Yes
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Torture
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Not gonna lie, when I first started this book it was hard to get into, but I'm so glad I pushed through. The slow beginning made for some painfully real character development revolving around the struggle between new beginnings and being trapped in the past all while grieving a friend. As the story progressed the characters grew on me and the plot thickened leaving me to tear through the end of the book in a day. I would definitely recommend this to someone who likes a slow burn and is down for some spooky-ness.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Drug use, Homophobia, Sexual content, Suicide, Blood, Grief, Murder, Alcohol
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-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:
Yes
This book is the existential wake up call everyone needs. Everything about this book: the words, the world, the characters, all of it is profoundly beautiful in a digestible, relatable story. This has been added to my favorite books pile.
And how rare it is to read a book that deals with death whose ending is met in a sad and happy and satisfying manner.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Death, Death of parent
Minor: Animal death, Suicide
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes