Grief (novel)
During the course of the novel, the ideas of the stages of grief are introduced. The stages are denial, anger, depression, and acceptance. The narrator, as well as other characters in the story, slowly passes through these stages in trying to deal with death.
Truth Serum (EP)
Some critics compared the storyline to the five stages of grief, a theory introduced by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross. Alex Panisch of "Out" opined that the first five tracks "document the five stages of a relationship turning sour: good times, doubt, breaking up, coping, and still being hung up". Critics also noted that, unlike other artists' break up records, the singer admits in "Truth Serum" that she was the person who made a mistake that ended the relationship. Panisch commented that; "When female artists sing about breakups [...] they almost overwhelmingly write themselves in the position of the wronged party and their songs are about recovering and strengthening from the experience. [...] Tove Lo flips the script on this narrative". Shanon Carlin of Radio.com stated that the singer "doesn't try and capitalize off her heartbreak by writing a female empowerment anthem that shames the guy who did her wrong. No, on this album, Lo is not an innocent. It's actually quite the opposite".