First thing: I did not expect this book to be this eye opening
Second thing: the last 30 pages... that's all. that's all that needs to be said.
Going into this book, I was intrigued, and a little worried that I wouldn't like it a lot, as this is not a genre I usually venture towards. And I was right- to some extent. I did not like the pacing of the novel at all. At times, I was barely motivated to go on. However, the overall story definitely makes up for that. Yes, the book is really slow paced for me, but oh my God, the message. I have to say- I was not expecting to learn so much going into this book- both about myself and people I interact with.
For starters, Ava. I related to her. Her anxiety, her need for order, for rules, for steps. These all resonated with me. And I loved her as a character. To me she felt realistic. She's going through loss, she's grieving, and its all described and written beautifully. The way that her and Max's relationship grew, and the way that she realized and she grew throughout the story, was-in my opinion- very realistic and very well done.
Max- It's weird how normalized some of his behaviors are in todays society. Some things that he did- gaslighting, manipulation, entitlement- are not things that are talked about a lot. And this book really helped me realize how wrong, and how harmful these behaviors can be, and how they can be portrayed in a relationship. His personality, i feel, is a common one among many people today. And that's whats wrong about it. The fact that this behavior is ignored and normalized in so many relationships. So many people have had partners this manipulative, and there have been so many Avas in this world.
I feel like this book did such a good job of portraying moving through grief, loss and pain. Along with dealing with a toxic partner, and learning to love and care for your self. Truly, I liked this way more than I thought I would.
Second thing: the last 30 pages... that's all. that's all that needs to be said.
Going into this book, I was intrigued, and a little worried that I wouldn't like it a lot, as this is not a genre I usually venture towards. And I was right- to some extent. I did not like the pacing of the novel at all. At times, I was barely motivated to go on. However, the overall story definitely makes up for that. Yes, the book is really slow paced for me, but oh my God, the message. I have to say- I was not expecting to learn so much going into this book- both about myself and people I interact with.
For starters, Ava. I related to her. Her anxiety, her need for order, for rules, for steps. These all resonated with me. And I loved her as a character. To me she felt realistic. She's going through loss, she's grieving, and its all described and written beautifully. The way that her and Max's relationship grew, and the way that she realized and she grew throughout the story, was-in my opinion- very realistic and very well done.
Max- It's weird how normalized some of his behaviors are in todays society. Some things that he did- gaslighting, manipulation, entitlement- are not things that are talked about a lot. And this book really helped me realize how wrong, and how harmful these behaviors can be, and how they can be portrayed in a relationship. His personality, i feel, is a common one among many people today. And that's whats wrong about it. The fact that this behavior is ignored and normalized in so many relationships. So many people have had partners this manipulative, and there have been so many Avas in this world.
I feel like this book did such a good job of portraying moving through grief, loss and pain. Along with dealing with a toxic partner, and learning to love and care for your self. Truly, I liked this way more than I thought I would.