unfortunately mariana enriquez's writing style really just doesn't work with me in short story format. i found myself wishing this were over faster and none of the stories made a lasting impression on me besides the first one. also the heavy use of the t slur in one of the stories caught me off guard and was just not an enjoyable experience!

maybe the real hostage drama was the friends we made along the way ❤️

im truly never recovering - only 4/5 bc the first half i feel like absolutely nothing happened and i was pretty bored but then i stayed up literally the entire night to finish the second half its currently 8:30am and there are tissues all over my room bc ive been crying nonstop

7/14/22: ive been sobbing for the last 45 minutes i dont remember the last time a book made me cry this hard and the fact that it was a reread?? im down so bad my god

7/25/21: bumped from 4 to 5 stars

the audiobook for this was so good and despite being a rr still managed to make me cry my eyes out

4.5/5:

- I LOVED THIS
- NEW FAV CLASSIC
- but still not a full 5 stars
- basically after a huge event happens at the end of part 7 it's barely mentioned and that just didn't sit right with me i could not get over how this thing that changes the course of the book wasn't examined at all
- levin was the main character not anna idc
- this book should not have been named anna karenina!!!!! again she wasn't the main character to me and i think something war and peace-esque that encapsulated the main theme (either goodness or the relationship between parents and children) would've been way better
- tolstoy really just ends his books and thats it like it just stops

i feel like i could fight god and win

3.5/5: didn't like it as much as the first but still good