Reviews tagging 'Abandonment'

If He Had Been with Me by Laura Nowlin

17 reviews

strangeweather98's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? N/A
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0


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cloha's review against another edition

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emotional sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

“Finny?” “Oh Autumn.”


Ending was abrupt but not entirely unexpected. I think it portrayed childhood friends and young love well. The book read to me like it was trying to be a modern day Romeo and Juliet story. Right as everything fell into place, all was lost. It was upsetting and taught the importance of being honest. Any book that has the power to do this, is a decent book to me. The character types were kind of cringe but I guess there's a level of realism with that, since coming-of-age is generally thought to be a cringey part of our lives. It was realistic to how we are before we transition into adulthood. My issue is that I don't really know what age range to place this book. Seemed like it was a pretty light read until the end. The whiplash felt unpleasant more than it surprising me or challenging me or giving me something to chew on. It felt a little sloppy even? Like the plot was too clunky or the foreshadowing was too obvious or the characters were too predictable? Unsure. But some positives were that I enjoyed reading about Autumn's friend group. I thought the titling of things like the "Steps to Nowhere" and "The Mothers" was a creative touch. I was pretty invested in the characters by the end of book, so when Sasha and Jamie become a thing, I was so appalled. That's usually a good sign of being committed to the characters.

a few fav scenes:
pg 107 when both Finn and Jamie stood up
pg 88 the lunch table war
pg 132 protectiveness
pg 169 boys being boys meeting boy
pg 205 "Ales spends the night at Jamie's. Jamie tells Alex that he doesn't like Trina. That nobody likes Trina. That everybody likes Sasha. That Sasha misses him." - foreshadowing / power they had over each other
pg 314 "'Well,' Finny says, 'to be fair, you do need a ride.' 'No, I don't,' I say. 'I have you.' Finny smiles."

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laurenrestad's review against another edition

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emotional sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

this book broke me. i loved it though. i’m going to need a epilogue on it, or even a version where finny lives. 

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amaranth_wytch's review against another edition

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emotional sad fast-paced

4.0


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morbidbunny3's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective sad 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? It's complicated

4.0

This book absolutely wrecked me. I really understood the main character in so many more ways than I thought I would. 

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amandawhyatt's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75


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katierosecrane's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I loved this book entirely. I love Autumn she is the perfect weirdo. I love Finny. I love them.  I love the realistic love story. 

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juliedenn4's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad medium-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? N/A

4.75

It’s the only book I’ve ever read that’s made me cry. 

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shaelee's review against another edition

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challenging emotional sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

This book really takes you on a journey. You’re sucker punched right from the beginning with heartbreak and then whisked away into an angsty coming of age love story that strives to make you forget what you read in that very first chapter.

 As you read the book, the fact of what happens lingers in the back of your mind as you fall in love with the characters. Whilst it’s very mundane and simply written, there’s a certain maturity to the story that keeps readers of all ages hooked on the story. It’s more than just the story of a teenage girl going through the motions of high school 

The ending, it retells the first chapter but it doesn’t stop where you believed it does and my gosh, the feeling I felt reading those last few pages is a feeling I don’t think I’ll ever feel again. All the air was sucked from my lungs and my tears just kept flowing. I was quite literally frozen in shock an heartbreak. If you need a good cry, this book will give you that. 

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ksett267's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

I read this really easy and it was easy to keep up with. The end is a lot to take in but the book over all I loved. Definitely recommend for ages about 16-21 since it is a highschool romance.

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