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carojust's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Cassie is a marketing writer at Voyager, a user data startup promising ROI for its customers. She is far from home, not happy in San Francisco, barely affording rent and needing to buy outlet groceries despite being "senior" in a big tech job. Every day is a new nightmare, as she works endless hours and performs, to be told she's not performing. She relies on drugs, and a half-relationship with a chef, who admits he and his girlfriend are trying an open relationship. Throughout her life, she is followed by a black hole that grows and shrinks. She becomes infatuated with black hole research.
Sarah Rose Etter is a talented writer, and doesn't hold back in her relentless descriptions of late-stage capitalism, have and have-nots, sexism, depression, the helplessness and bitterness of an entire generation trying to survive pandemics and a housing crisis.
I had a hard time sorting through the many metaphors being thrown at us -- fruit and seeds, black holes and space, fire and filth, bloody meat, singularity. On top of this, dictionary definitions marked each chapter, which felt oddly campy and a bit of a disservice to the quality of the writing. All of this made for a distracting read, when I really just wanted to sit in the heart of the rage and recollections of our disintegrating narrator.
This is also a cast of horrible people that you'll need to be fine with hating. Even with Cassie, who endures verbal abuse at home and at work, you'll likely become frustrated, and belabored with the self pity displayed on each page.
You should still give this a try if you're okay mentally with a lot of depressing and triggering content, have survived the woman-in-tech experience (weak laugh), and like trippy, unstable narrator reads.
Graphic: Addiction, Bullying, Cursing, Drug use, Infertility, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Suicide, Blood, Excrement, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Abortion, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Pandemic/Epidemic
kaicedcoffee's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Drug abuse, Toxic friendship, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic
virgcole398's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Addiction, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Suicide, Medical content, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic
Minor: Sexual content, Police brutality, and Toxic friendship
smallmac's review against another edition
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Drug abuse, Drug use, and Pregnancy
Minor: Suicide, Abortion, and Suicide attempt
tajosima's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
The way I feel about this book is the way I felt about The Bell Jar when I read it when I was younger. Now I’m older and I have Ripe to describe how i feel
Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Abortion, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic
Moderate: Body shaming, Fatphobia, Infertility, and Racism
katilein's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Self harm, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Toxic friendship, and Pandemic/Epidemic
biobeetle's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide, Pregnancy, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Vomit, Abortion, and Fire/Fire injury
alysereadsbooks's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Graphic: Mental illness and Abortion
Moderate: Drug abuse, Drug use, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, and Toxic friendship
dustghosts's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Drug use, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Abortion, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Body horror, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Sexual content, Alcohol, and Pandemic/Epidemic
Minor: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Police brutality, and Toxic friendship
rachaelwho's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I would not have called this magical realism. There's no indication that the black hole is literally, physically there.
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Abortion, Fire/Fire injury, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Addiction, Drug abuse, Infertility, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Police brutality, Colonisation, and Pandemic/Epidemic