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kaylamae0415's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
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
5.0
jpineau_k's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
cwolf83's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Miscarriage, Drug abuse, Sexual content, Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Gun violence, Drug use, and Rape
ovenbird_reads's review against another edition
4.0
A wonderful read that was full of equal parts joy and sorrow. and the ending. I had to read the last sentence three times to make sure of what had happened. there is so much I would like to discuss about this book. I really need to get myself a book club. and everyone with a book club should put this on the list. I must admit I've been left with a rather persistent ache in my heart since finishing this one though.
spowers26's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
SHE COULD READ EVERYONE. SHE UNDERSTOOD THAT EVERYONE WAS LIVING A GREAT TRAGEDY.
HER TRAGEDY HAD TAUGHT HER THE LANGUAGE OF TRAGEDY- AND MADE HER ABLE TO READ THAT OF OTHER PEOPLE. IN THAT WAY, SHE SUPPOSED IT WAS A SORT OF BLESSING.
THEY WERE LIKE TINY BATTLEFIELD VETERANS. INJURED BY THE TRIALS OF BEING YOUNG, IN THE GREAT CHILDREN'S WAR. PERHAPS HE HIMSELF HAD NEVER ESCAPED HIS CHILDHOOD WOUNDS. THE ONLY DIFFERENCE WAS THAT THESE CHILDREN WORE THEIR INJURIES ON THE OUTSIDE.
I'M AT A LOSS FOR WORDS. THE LONELY HEARTS HOTEL DEALS WITH A SLEW OF TROUBLING SUBJECT MATTERS AND WAS AT TIMES UNCOMFORTABLE TO READ. (EXTREME TRIGGER WARNINGS)
O'NEILL EXPLORES THEMES OF ABANDONMENT, WOMEN'S ROLES. THEATRICS AS A VERSION OF REALITY MORE REAL THAN LIFE ITSELF, POVERTY, DEPRESSION, DRUG ADDICTION. ART AND THE IMAGINATION. AND THE MEANING OF LIFE.
O'NEILL EXPLORES THEMES OF ABANDONMENT, WOMEN'S ROLES. THEATRICS AS A VERSION OF REALITY MORE REAL THAN LIFE ITSELF, POVERTY, DEPRESSION, DRUG ADDICTION. ART AND THE IMAGINATION. AND THE MEANING OF LIFE.
I WENT INTO THIS BOOK EXPECTING A LIGHT WHIMSICAL READ BUT WHAT I GOT WAS DARK. VIOLENT, SAD BUT HOPEFUL STORY.
oricrowley15's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
5.0
zetty91's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Sexual violence, Miscarriage, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Murder
njw13's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
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
4.0
meghanleighb's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
hannah_greendale's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.0
Want to see my 16 All-Time Favorite Women's Prize Nominees on BookTube? Come find me at Hello, Bookworm.📚🐛
Click here to watch a video review of this book on my (old) channel, From Beginning to Bookend.
Ladies and gentlemen, take your seats and prepare to be awed! Witness the story of two babies born of tragic circumstances and abandoned in an orphanage in Montreal, circa 1914. Behold the boy, Pierrot, who entertains his fellow orphans with theatrics and proves to be a prodigy pianist. Feast your eyes on the girl with blushing cheeks, Rose, whose dancing is a physical manifestation of Pierrot's music, so lovely none can resist the allure of her performance. Together they dream of creating the most enticing circus in the world, but forces beyond their control tear them apart. Forlorn and lovesick, they reunite years later and dare to make their childhood dream come true.
The Lonely Hearts Hotel transports readers to a cinematic tale that is as vulgar and harsh as it is sensational and decadent. Step right up and delight in this literary drama that's evocative of '40s film noir.
Pierrot's coat collar was pulled up so you could only see the top of his head. Rose had her fur hat down over her eyes so just the bottom half of her face was visible. Pierrot leaped back quickly as the trolley rang its bell at him and then surged by. Rose stopped at a streetlight as a car rumbled past the tips of her toes. Pierrot lit a cigarette. Rose inhaled from her cigarette. Pierrot exhaled smoke rings. Rose let white swirls escape from her nose.
Be charmed by the seemingly magical connection shared between Pierrot and Rose. Relish in the peculiarities of these characters, two creatures both flawed yet beguiling. Flamboyant artists. Dauntless performers. Lustful night-owls. Ruthless business owners. It seems there's no end to the complexity of these seductive entertainers.
Pierrot was to be a paradox to all those who met him. On the one hand, he was utterly brilliant, and on the other hand, there was no way he could be interpreted as anything except a fool.
Rose was a remarkably introspective child. She wondered about the difference between what was happening right in front of you and all the strange stuff that goes on in your head. [. . .] Sometimes she thought it was just plain silly that we were paying all this attention to the real world when there was this wonderful one in our minds that we could just as well be engaging in.
Revel in the guilty pleasure of paying to see a veritable freak show. Peek behind the curtain to delight in viewing scintillating liaisons, and watch as love is explored, challenged, and manipulated in tantalizing and heartbreaking ways. But viewer beware, for the first one hundred pages portray rape and child molestation against a backdrop of enchantment and whimsy - a jarring juxtaposition of grit framed by beauty.
Be dazzled by a quirky array of similes that make exemplary use of references relevant to the glittering underworld Rose and Pierrot inhabit.
There was a fishbowl by the window with two fancy goldfish that swam in circles, like tassels on a burlesque dancer's nipples.
When the tailor was done, there was a pile of measuring tape on the ground as if a mummy had just performed a striptease.
Observe a heavy reliance on sentences that begin with There was or There were. Weigh in on whether or not those sentences are redundant or rhythmic, poorly constructed or cleverly arranged. Be baffled by the long-winded yet quirky descriptions that sometimes tarry long past their welcome.
There was a sketch of a girl wearing a Napoleon hat. There was a drawing of a clown on a bicycle whose wheels looked as big as a house. There was an illustration of footsteps with arrows - a pattern to an extraordinary drunken waltz, no doubt. There was a drawing of a top hat with a lever so the crown could open and close like a chimney flap and smoke would come out of it. There was a tuxedo with a carnation tucked into its pocket, with holes in the elbows.
They all seemed to be in a state of disarray. As though they had been crammed in at funny angles. As if they were clothes that had been packed in a trunk and now they were straightening themselves back out. The officer couldn't make out their entire bodies. It was like they were a box of doll parts that had gotten mixed up.
Leap from one instance to another where Pierrot plays the piano and Rose is compelled to dance. Dare to ask if these talented thespians haven't evolved into a one-trick pony.
Then [Rose] began dancing the dance of a snow angel. [. . .] And Pierrot played along. They were so synchronized that it was hard for anyone in the audience to discern whether Pierrot was playing along to her dancing or whether she was dancing to his music.
Before the night is over, women will weep, men will curse, and children will shriek in fearful joy!
Happy endings are as high in the sky as an acrobat's tightrope in this moody, eccentric tale of two people drawn together as though by fate. The Lonely Hearts Hotel is a spectacular show guaranteed to entertain only the most intrepid of audiences.
Click here to watch a video review of this book on my (old) channel, From Beginning to Bookend.
Ladies and gentlemen, take your seats and prepare to be awed! Witness the story of two babies born of tragic circumstances and abandoned in an orphanage in Montreal, circa 1914. Behold the boy, Pierrot, who entertains his fellow orphans with theatrics and proves to be a prodigy pianist. Feast your eyes on the girl with blushing cheeks, Rose, whose dancing is a physical manifestation of Pierrot's music, so lovely none can resist the allure of her performance. Together they dream of creating the most enticing circus in the world, but forces beyond their control tear them apart. Forlorn and lovesick, they reunite years later and dare to make their childhood dream come true.
The Lonely Hearts Hotel transports readers to a cinematic tale that is as vulgar and harsh as it is sensational and decadent. Step right up and delight in this literary drama that's evocative of '40s film noir.
Pierrot's coat collar was pulled up so you could only see the top of his head. Rose had her fur hat down over her eyes so just the bottom half of her face was visible. Pierrot leaped back quickly as the trolley rang its bell at him and then surged by. Rose stopped at a streetlight as a car rumbled past the tips of her toes. Pierrot lit a cigarette. Rose inhaled from her cigarette. Pierrot exhaled smoke rings. Rose let white swirls escape from her nose.
Be charmed by the seemingly magical connection shared between Pierrot and Rose. Relish in the peculiarities of these characters, two creatures both flawed yet beguiling. Flamboyant artists. Dauntless performers. Lustful night-owls. Ruthless business owners. It seems there's no end to the complexity of these seductive entertainers.
Pierrot was to be a paradox to all those who met him. On the one hand, he was utterly brilliant, and on the other hand, there was no way he could be interpreted as anything except a fool.
Rose was a remarkably introspective child. She wondered about the difference between what was happening right in front of you and all the strange stuff that goes on in your head. [. . .] Sometimes she thought it was just plain silly that we were paying all this attention to the real world when there was this wonderful one in our minds that we could just as well be engaging in.
Revel in the guilty pleasure of paying to see a veritable freak show. Peek behind the curtain to delight in viewing scintillating liaisons, and watch as love is explored, challenged, and manipulated in tantalizing and heartbreaking ways. But viewer beware, for the first one hundred pages portray rape and child molestation against a backdrop of enchantment and whimsy - a jarring juxtaposition of grit framed by beauty.
Be dazzled by a quirky array of similes that make exemplary use of references relevant to the glittering underworld Rose and Pierrot inhabit.
There was a fishbowl by the window with two fancy goldfish that swam in circles, like tassels on a burlesque dancer's nipples.
When the tailor was done, there was a pile of measuring tape on the ground as if a mummy had just performed a striptease.
Observe a heavy reliance on sentences that begin with There was or There were. Weigh in on whether or not those sentences are redundant or rhythmic, poorly constructed or cleverly arranged. Be baffled by the long-winded yet quirky descriptions that sometimes tarry long past their welcome.
There was a sketch of a girl wearing a Napoleon hat. There was a drawing of a clown on a bicycle whose wheels looked as big as a house. There was an illustration of footsteps with arrows - a pattern to an extraordinary drunken waltz, no doubt. There was a drawing of a top hat with a lever so the crown could open and close like a chimney flap and smoke would come out of it. There was a tuxedo with a carnation tucked into its pocket, with holes in the elbows.
They all seemed to be in a state of disarray. As though they had been crammed in at funny angles. As if they were clothes that had been packed in a trunk and now they were straightening themselves back out. The officer couldn't make out their entire bodies. It was like they were a box of doll parts that had gotten mixed up.
Leap from one instance to another where Pierrot plays the piano and Rose is compelled to dance. Dare to ask if these talented thespians haven't evolved into a one-trick pony.
Then [Rose] began dancing the dance of a snow angel. [. . .] And Pierrot played along. They were so synchronized that it was hard for anyone in the audience to discern whether Pierrot was playing along to her dancing or whether she was dancing to his music.
Before the night is over, women will weep, men will curse, and children will shriek in fearful joy!
Happy endings are as high in the sky as an acrobat's tightrope in this moody, eccentric tale of two people drawn together as though by fate. The Lonely Hearts Hotel is a spectacular show guaranteed to entertain only the most intrepid of audiences.