Status
Available
Collection
Genres
Publication
Scholastic Press (2023), 288 pages
Description
Young Adult Fiction. Young Adult Literature. HTML: The amazing novel that introduced Nick and Charlie from HEARTSTOPPER �?? and the unforgettable Tori Spring. Tori Spring isn't sure how to be happy again. Then she meets Michael Holden, and they try to unmask the mysterious Solitaire (and survive high school) in Alice Oseman's stunning, unflinchinghonest debut novel, which first introduced her fan-favorite Heartstopper characters Nick and Charlie.
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
2015
Physical description
288 p.; 8.4 inches
User reviews
LibraryThing member A_Reader_of_Fictions
Chapters read: 1
My new policy with review copies, particularly egalleys, is to give them a shot, a brief one, to catch my attention. That didn't happen with Solitaire. I find Tori's narration grating. Her better than thou attitude is frustrating already and reviews indicate it only gets worse. I'm
Would I pick it back up again? Sure, if I hear from people whose opinions tend to be similar to mine.
My new policy with review copies, particularly egalleys, is to give them a shot, a brief one, to catch my attention. That didn't happen with Solitaire. I find Tori's narration grating. Her better than thou attitude is frustrating already and reviews indicate it only gets worse. I'm
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not curious about Solitaire itself or anything else at this point.Would I pick it back up again? Sure, if I hear from people whose opinions tend to be similar to mine.
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LibraryThing member Brainannex
I wanted to like this more than I did. A young girl and many of her friends are just going through the motions of school. A series of sticky notes leads the protagonist to a new guy and a website.
LibraryThing member DarkFaerieTales
Review courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales
Quick & Dirty: A raw, vivid novel about a depressed teenager in the UK.
Opening Sentence: I am aware as I step into the common room that the majority of the people here are almost dead, including me.
The Review:
Victoria “Tori” Spring doesn’t really like much.
Then a blog pops up, and its the only thing the school can talk about. Solitaire.uk starts by playing harmless, funny pranks, like blasting songs over the intercom or hacking into the computers and replacing every screen with a picture of a half-naked actor. But then they start getting dangerous, and a point is reached where people start to get hurt. And Tori can’t help but notice that a lot of the things Solitaire is doing are centered around her interests.
Victoria was a hard character to like. Yes, I get it, that’s kind of the point. But I like to think of myself as a generally optimistic person, and our personalities clashed pretty badly, seeing as she hated most everything. That being said, even I could sympathize with her plights, and the silent depression that was beginning to overcome her. She was a complex, rich character, but her mindset was so violently pessimistic. It was only when Michael began to become her friend that she started to soften, started to see things a tad bit better. This wasn’t centered on a love story, though there was a romance, which I liked. It focused more on Tori’s depression and how she was developing.
There were multiple side characters, all of whom held some significance in the story. There was Becky, Tori’s supposed “best friend”. There was Tori’s brother, who tried to kill himself last year and is anorexic, obviously leaving a huge mark on Tori herself. He is healing, but he’s still going through a lot of pain, and only his boyfriend Nick is helping to get him through. Michael was an important one, Tori’s new friend, who helped her through her worst times. There was a whole “who is Solitaire?” mystery going on, but I basically figured it out a couple chapters in, so there you go.
Altogether, I thought this was a decent read and that people will enjoy it. I didn’t like Tori very much, because our personalities contrasted so severely, but I enjoyed the overall plotline and the complexity of the characters. I enjoyed getting to see a glimpse of life in the UK – I’ve always wanted to visit! I think that the message got a little blurry, and I couldn’t really get a clear focus on what the author was trying to convey, but it was a good story all the same.
Notable Scene:
“Michael means ‘who resembles God'”, he says, “and I think that if God could choose to resemble any human being . . . “
He stops then, right in the street, looking at me, just looking, through the pane of his glasses, through the blue and green, through depths and expanses, bleeding one million incomprehensible thoughts.
” . . . he wouldn’t choose me.”
We continue to walk.
FTC Advisory: HarperTeen provided me with a copy of Solitaire. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review.
Quick & Dirty: A raw, vivid novel about a depressed teenager in the UK.
Opening Sentence: I am aware as I step into the common room that the majority of the people here are almost dead, including me.
The Review:
Victoria “Tori” Spring doesn’t really like much.
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Honestly, she hates most things, from books to hipster clothing. Her two hobbies include sleeping and blogging, and she hangs with a group of friends that she rather despises being around. She’s sick of making an effort to be social, to be happy, when she’d rather live in her own personal pity party. She’s aware that she’s apathetic and pessimistic and can be downright awkward, but what can she do? When two people enter her life – one being Lucas, her best friend from primary school, and the other being Michael, a talented skater and proclaimed freak – her life is suddenly thrown into disarray.Then a blog pops up, and its the only thing the school can talk about. Solitaire.uk starts by playing harmless, funny pranks, like blasting songs over the intercom or hacking into the computers and replacing every screen with a picture of a half-naked actor. But then they start getting dangerous, and a point is reached where people start to get hurt. And Tori can’t help but notice that a lot of the things Solitaire is doing are centered around her interests.
Victoria was a hard character to like. Yes, I get it, that’s kind of the point. But I like to think of myself as a generally optimistic person, and our personalities clashed pretty badly, seeing as she hated most everything. That being said, even I could sympathize with her plights, and the silent depression that was beginning to overcome her. She was a complex, rich character, but her mindset was so violently pessimistic. It was only when Michael began to become her friend that she started to soften, started to see things a tad bit better. This wasn’t centered on a love story, though there was a romance, which I liked. It focused more on Tori’s depression and how she was developing.
There were multiple side characters, all of whom held some significance in the story. There was Becky, Tori’s supposed “best friend”. There was Tori’s brother, who tried to kill himself last year and is anorexic, obviously leaving a huge mark on Tori herself. He is healing, but he’s still going through a lot of pain, and only his boyfriend Nick is helping to get him through. Michael was an important one, Tori’s new friend, who helped her through her worst times. There was a whole “who is Solitaire?” mystery going on, but I basically figured it out a couple chapters in, so there you go.
Altogether, I thought this was a decent read and that people will enjoy it. I didn’t like Tori very much, because our personalities contrasted so severely, but I enjoyed the overall plotline and the complexity of the characters. I enjoyed getting to see a glimpse of life in the UK – I’ve always wanted to visit! I think that the message got a little blurry, and I couldn’t really get a clear focus on what the author was trying to convey, but it was a good story all the same.
Notable Scene:
“Michael means ‘who resembles God'”, he says, “and I think that if God could choose to resemble any human being . . . “
He stops then, right in the street, looking at me, just looking, through the pane of his glasses, through the blue and green, through depths and expanses, bleeding one million incomprehensible thoughts.
” . . . he wouldn’t choose me.”
We continue to walk.
FTC Advisory: HarperTeen provided me with a copy of Solitaire. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review.
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LibraryThing member winterdragon
There are books out there that pull you in, books were you have to keep reading, Solitaire is one of those books for me. I do not have enough words to describe my love of this book. Solitaire, written by Alice Oseman, is about Tori Spring, a cynical teenager trying to navigate her life, with a
The characters were relatable and convincing and the plot was completely engaging and believable. From Tori to Michael to Charlie and Lucas. I wanted to wrap myself up in this book and get lost. The characters made me fall in love with them and cry for them and root for them. I especially loved Tori, who reminds me of myself at that age. I cannot find books, or characters, now a days who represent teenagers or young adults dealing with mental illnesses. Solitaire has beautifully written characters dealing with mental illnesses. I am even more shocked that this book was written when Alice Oseman was 17 and published when she was 18. I think one of the most beautiful, and one of my favorite, quotes is:
"I mean, I'm still not one hundred per cent sure that I really want to wake up tomorrow. I'm not fixed, just because Michael's here. I still want to get into bed and lie there all day because it's a very easy thing to do."
Because you can still love someone, you can be friends with someone, but they cannot save you. No matter how much they want to at the end of the day the only person who can save you from feeling depressed is yourself. I'm glad Alice Oseman wrote Solitaire this way, I'm glad she didn't have this be a typical love story. Because it's not a love story, it's a story about finding yourself and learning to save yourself.
Alice Oseman has an amazing talent and I cannot wait to see what else she writes. I loved this book so much and it has easily become one of my favorite books, and one I will re-read very soon. Everyone needs to go out and read this book right away.
5/5
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brother who is having depression and anorexia issues. Along with having to deal with a new student, Michael Holden, and the mysterious group Solitaire. The characters were relatable and convincing and the plot was completely engaging and believable. From Tori to Michael to Charlie and Lucas. I wanted to wrap myself up in this book and get lost. The characters made me fall in love with them and cry for them and root for them. I especially loved Tori, who reminds me of myself at that age. I cannot find books, or characters, now a days who represent teenagers or young adults dealing with mental illnesses. Solitaire has beautifully written characters dealing with mental illnesses. I am even more shocked that this book was written when Alice Oseman was 17 and published when she was 18. I think one of the most beautiful, and one of my favorite, quotes is:
"I mean, I'm still not one hundred per cent sure that I really want to wake up tomorrow. I'm not fixed, just because Michael's here. I still want to get into bed and lie there all day because it's a very easy thing to do."
Because you can still love someone, you can be friends with someone, but they cannot save you. No matter how much they want to at the end of the day the only person who can save you from feeling depressed is yourself. I'm glad Alice Oseman wrote Solitaire this way, I'm glad she didn't have this be a typical love story. Because it's not a love story, it's a story about finding yourself and learning to save yourself.
Alice Oseman has an amazing talent and I cannot wait to see what else she writes. I loved this book so much and it has easily become one of my favorite books, and one I will re-read very soon. Everyone needs to go out and read this book right away.
5/5
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LibraryThing member villemezbrown
I have consistently loved Alice Oseman's Heartstopper graphic novels, but I'm not terribly keen on her novels so far.
I picked up this one because I knew that it features characters from the graphic novels. I was not aware though that it is set chronologically after the graphic novels, so I got some
I did enjoy the first half of this book as narrator Victoria "Tori" Spring gave us her pessimistic and introverted perspective on her schoolmates, pop culture, and life. But in the final hundred pages, the snark turns exceedingly to self-pity, which I tire of quickly. It's also frustrating that such a bright person is so willfully oblivious to the feelings of the people around her and developments occurring in the plot. And boy does that plot unravel into some purely ridiculous action set pieces that left me rolling my eyes as I closed the cover for the last time.
Of course, Oseman wrote this novel when she was only seventeen, so it is not surprising that the graphic novels have benefited from her added years of life and writing experience.
I picked up this one because I knew that it features characters from the graphic novels. I was not aware though that it is set chronologically after the graphic novels, so I got some
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spoilers for where that story is headed, but nothing that hasn't already been hinted at or will ruin the them for me. But steer clear if you'd rather see the events unfold there first.I did enjoy the first half of this book as narrator Victoria "Tori" Spring gave us her pessimistic and introverted perspective on her schoolmates, pop culture, and life. But in the final hundred pages, the snark turns exceedingly to self-pity, which I tire of quickly. It's also frustrating that such a bright person is so willfully oblivious to the feelings of the people around her and developments occurring in the plot. And boy does that plot unravel into some purely ridiculous action set pieces that left me rolling my eyes as I closed the cover for the last time.
Of course, Oseman wrote this novel when she was only seventeen, so it is not surprising that the graphic novels have benefited from her added years of life and writing experience.
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LibraryThing member sublunarie
Holy sh*t I feel like I was just continuously hit with bags of bricks. But in a good way.
LibraryThing member Danielle.Desrochers
4.5 stars rounded up
I loved getting to know a few of the other characters in the Nick and Charlie world. I’m definitely more sympathetic to Tori now (not that I wasn’t before, but I loved getting to know her better).
I loved getting to know a few of the other characters in the Nick and Charlie world. I’m definitely more sympathetic to Tori now (not that I wasn’t before, but I loved getting to know her better).
LibraryThing member BarnesBookshelf
Since I have read most of Oseman's other work, it was fascinating to read the story that started it all. As Oseman states, this story is very different from her other ones, though I would argue that Radio Silence is closest in style.
For people with mental illness, this is a novel to be careful
I enjoyed the story, but I did keep hoping that Tori would lighten up. This is not my favorite story in the Heartstopper/Solitare universe, but I do like the insight it gives into Tori.
For people with mental illness, this is a novel to be careful
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with when reading. Tori is very dark for most of it, which can be difficult to handle on rough days. However, I can also appreciate how having her darkness can be a good representation for those who need it. I enjoyed the story, but I did keep hoping that Tori would lighten up. This is not my favorite story in the Heartstopper/Solitare universe, but I do like the insight it gives into Tori.
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Pages
288