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imstephtacular's review
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mental illness and Ableism
Minor: Bullying, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Infidelity, and Sexual content
aromanticreadsromance's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
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 loved the diverse representation in this book. Jackson, our narrator and main character, is a biracial, Iranian-American, gay teenager. He's also deaf and wears hearing aids. Jackson's best friend, Bowie, is Black, aroace, and nonbinary (they/them pronouns). They're also a CODA (child of deaf adults), so they and their parents know sign language (which is how Jackson learns sign). I can't speak to the accuracy and authenticity of the deaf representation, but I hope due diligence was done in terms of sensitivity readers.
Jackson's sister, Jasmine, is a bit of a lovesick teenager. She has a LOT of ex-boyfriends. To help her feel better after the breakups, Jackson writes breakup lists that he recites to her whenever she needs to be reminded why her ex is undesirable and why she's better off single. The breakup lists are easy to write, until she makes him write one for her latest ex, Liam. The same Liam he fell in love with, and who was his friend before dating Jasmine. Liam is on the swim team with Bowie, and Jackson and Liam become closer when Liam tries out for, and gets the lead in, the fall musical, for which Jackson is the stage manager.
I thought the relationship between Jackson and Liam was so cute! I felt their chemistry and loved them together. I swooned over the little touches before they were officially together, and before either knew the other liked him (these touches had me SCREAMING at Jackson, "He's NOT STRAIGHT!!!"). In my opinion, this was friends to lovers done right. We see the start of Jackson and Liam's friendship and see them growing closer before they ever get romantically involved. Liam is a fantastic love interest. He learns sign language to communicate with Jackson. I'm not sure if it's possible to pick it up as quickly as he does, but the effort is sweet, especially when Jackson's own family couldn't be bothered to learn for him.
Jasmine is insufferable. I couldn't stand her in EVERY scene she was in, and she does little to redeem herself in the end. She is so self-absorbed, shallow, and manipulative. You'd think SHE was the theater child, given her propensity to dramatics. She does something unforgiveable and cruel to Jackson (something I would NEVER do to my brother, no matter how mad at him I am), instigating the third act conflict and subsequent breakup (no spoilers). I didn't like the placement of this breakup, because Jackson and Liam don't get back together until the VERY end. Like, we're talking after 95 percent. The resolution felt rushed in relation to the slow burn in the first and second acts. This was a very fast read, and it probably could have been a bit longer to extend the resolution.
It feels statistically improbable that Jackson's shirt tag would be sticking out as much as it was. It feels like user error. Jackson... bro... you know they make shirts nowadays that have no tags in them, right? Like the tag is printed directly onto the shirt? You might want to think about investing in some of those. Cuts down on the sensory overload, too.
This is a minor criticism, but I didn't like all the cross-outs. In the ARC, the text didn't show as crossed out, so it got confusing. I'm sure this will be fixed in the final copy, but I still think the cross-outs were overdone. I wouldn't say "get rid of ALL of them," because they were a part of Jackson's voice, but I think there should have been fewer.
I mostly liked this book and would recommend it if you want to read an interracial queer romance with Deaf/Hard of hearing representation (not OwnVoices)!
Thank you to Penguin for the complementary advanced copy of this book. All thoughts are voluntary and my own.
Jackson's sister, Jasmine, is a bit of a lovesick teenager. She has a LOT of ex-boyfriends. To help her feel better after the breakups, Jackson writes breakup lists that he recites to her whenever she needs to be reminded why her ex is undesirable and why she's better off single. The breakup lists are easy to write, until she makes him write one for her latest ex, Liam. The same Liam he fell in love with, and who was his friend before dating Jasmine. Liam is on the swim team with Bowie, and Jackson and Liam become closer when Liam tries out for, and gets the lead in, the fall musical, for which Jackson is the stage manager.
I thought the relationship between Jackson and Liam was so cute! I felt their chemistry and loved them together. I swooned over the little touches before they were officially together, and before either knew the other liked him (these touches had me SCREAMING at Jackson, "He's NOT STRAIGHT!!!"). In my opinion, this was friends to lovers done right. We see the start of Jackson and Liam's friendship and see them growing closer before they ever get romantically involved. Liam is a fantastic love interest. He learns sign language to communicate with Jackson. I'm not sure if it's possible to pick it up as quickly as he does, but the effort is sweet, especially when Jackson's own family couldn't be bothered to learn for him.
Jasmine is insufferable. I couldn't stand her in EVERY scene she was in, and she does little to redeem herself in the end. She is so self-absorbed, shallow, and manipulative. You'd think SHE was the theater child, given her propensity to dramatics. She does something unforgiveable and cruel to Jackson (something I would NEVER do to my brother, no matter how mad at him I am), instigating the third act conflict and subsequent breakup (no spoilers). I didn't like the placement of this breakup, because Jackson and Liam don't get back together until the VERY end. Like, we're talking after 95 percent. The resolution felt rushed in relation to the slow burn in the first and second acts. This was a very fast read, and it probably could have been a bit longer to extend the resolution.
It feels statistically improbable that Jackson's shirt tag would be sticking out as much as it was. It feels like user error. Jackson... bro... you know they make shirts nowadays that have no tags in them, right? Like the tag is printed directly onto the shirt? You might want to think about investing in some of those. Cuts down on the sensory overload, too.
This is a minor criticism, but I didn't like all the cross-outs. In the ARC, the text didn't show as crossed out, so it got confusing. I'm sure this will be fixed in the final copy, but I still think the cross-outs were overdone. I wouldn't say "get rid of ALL of them," because they were a part of Jackson's voice, but I think there should have been fewer.
I mostly liked this book and would recommend it if you want to read an interracial queer romance with Deaf/Hard of hearing representation (not OwnVoices)!
Thank you to Penguin for the complementary advanced copy of this book. All thoughts are voluntary and my own.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism
Moderate: Bullying and Sexual content
Minor: Acephobia/Arophobia
betweentheshelves's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
medium-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
4.5
Thanks to NetGalley and Dial Books for an advanced copy of The Breakup Lists by Adib Khorram. Ever since reading Darius the Great Is Not Okay, Adib Khorram has been an auto-read author for me. There’s just something about the way that he writes emotions and relationships that feels so teenager, and this book is no different.
Jackson is such a complicated main character, specifically when it comes to love and romance. He has seen so many of the people he cares about that he’s cynical and pushes people away. Eventually to the point that it hinders his relationships. His emotional journey, which includes eventually realizing that talking to a therapist would be useful, is so well written. And it’s all things that teenagers will definitely relate to.
Another thing I really loved was Jackson’s friendship with Bowie, who is asexual (and aromantic, if I remember correctly). The fact that they had such a strong friendship that didn’t need to eventually turn romantic is something I kind of wish was shown more in YA books. Romantic relationships aren’t the be-all end-all (especially when you’re in high school), and the fact that Bowie was shown to be comfortable with that? I absolutely loved it.
Jackson is Hard of Hearing and occasionally uses sign language throughout the book (mostly with Bowie and their family). However, none of his family signs with him, which is a point of frustration for him throughout the book. It seems like Khorram did his research for this particular aspect of the book, but I’m not a part of the community, so I can’t comment on how accurate it is.
All in all, this is a wonderful queer teen romance with a great cast of characters and strong emotional beats. Definitely check it out when it releases in April!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism
Moderate: Bullying
Minor: Infidelity
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