Reviews tagging 'Grief'

Rosewater by Liv Little

7 reviews

sophie42's review against another edition

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challenging hopeful reflective sad 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

4.75

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messymimms's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad 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

3.75

Backstage at a performance, Elsie describes herself as “numb, nervous, brilliantly alive” - and I think that’s the perfect way to describe this book. 

Liv Little has been able to craft an incredibly genuine and compelling story, with characters you’ll be all too familiar with if you’re a queer living in London. Indeed, this book is properly atmospheric - not as in foggy or ethereal, but in that it creates such a clear mood, vibe, space, context. 

The novel is peppered with references - from the coil to Corinne Bailey Rae, Peckham Rye and Rubicon Mango. These all contribute to it feeling really real. In many ways, everything feels quite mundane. Messy and dramatic in a twenty-something, not-figured-it-out way, but mundane. 

When the drama hit, I almost wanted it more pared back - more slice of life-like, but that’s just because this novel does that really well. It’s at its most beautiful when Elsie is channeling Little’s poetry and describing all of the little big details which dog and uplift her life. 

As a narrator, she’s quietly reflective, but likes to conjure up vivid images and dispense the occasional tidbit of wisdom. The poetry included in the book, written by Kai-Isaiah Jamal, is beautiful and fits in effortlessly. But the bigger feat, for me, is that even without those poems - Elsie is written like a poet. 

This shines through when Elsie appraises art and music, and bodies. These descriptions hit so well, and you can tell how fascinated she is by lyricism, words, desire. 

Oh, and Juliet of course.
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melodyseestrees's review against another edition

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emotional reflective 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

4.25

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noah_silver's review against another edition

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emotional funny inspiring reflective fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Uff ähm reading the book felt very intense - I dived in it and found it hard to put it aside. I loved the writing and the way the inner life of the main character was portrayed. The poems in between. The setting of the the scenes through naming/describing songs that are being played. How Elsie navigates her different relationships and life, how she fucks up, how the people around her try to be there but are sometimes not. In different ways the story feels very real and fleshed out and yeah. I also thought the sex scenes were written well with a mix of explicitness and room for own imagination that I liked quite much. It also portrays quite complicated birth family relationships but I also find them credible - and I loved the nan. And many of the other characters <3
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nerdysread's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

Not a bad book tbh but its pacing was off sometimes, like some
Parts were unnecessary. One last thing, the MC was 😬 most of the time. Like go get therapy girl
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kneebees's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective 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? Yes

5.0

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taleofabibliophile's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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