Reviews tagging 'Dementia'

Cleopatra und Frankenstein by Coco Mellors

59 reviews

bookswithchaipai's review against another edition

dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring 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? It's complicated

4.5

What first made me believe is a love story, gave way to a very deep tale which touched lightly on a lot of heavy subjects. First off, I was carried away by the title which was quite a mouthful. But what I was not ready to discover hiding under such a frivolous name, was something which would change my perspective on a lot of matters, the first of which is love. The book takes us through a repertoire of emotions, ranging from laughter, sadness, disgust, dread all the way to rapture.

Cleo, at the tender age of twenty four, bumps into Frank who is twenty years her senior and a whirlwind romance ensues. But then we are jolted out of our pleasant reverie with marital problems. 

At first I thought it was only about Frank and Cleo, but then their bunch of crazy friends join the melee and we watch their lives intermingling, interweaving and then spontaneously combusting, as each of them are put in the spotlight to narrate their story.

Infidelity, fat-phobia, racism, depression, suicide, dementia, toxic relationship, addiction, alcoholism, Dysphoria are given a large stage to perform and showcase its abilities. The number of content warnings are shocking. Moreover, the drug-addled, quick New York life and the way it changes a person is examined.

The book is divided into chapters, months apart, with vignettes portraying the viewpoint of different people and their relationship with Frank and Cleo. I found the writing style akin to Sally Rooney, but where Rooney failed to grasp my attention, Mellors burrowed herself into my heart. Especially the Sugar Glider called Jesus!

I am so glad this book did not have the cliche happily-ever-after ending, making love and marriage triumph. It was all about the discovery of two souls letting them live the way they want and finding happiness in their individuality.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Animal death, Alcoholism, Suicide attempt, Racism, and Dementia

danaaliyalevinson's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful 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

This book did things to me. An impulsive marriage is a star at the center of a galaxy orbited by friends and family. And when that star simmers and explodes, everyone feels the aftershocks.

I forget exactly when, but at one point midway through the book I noticed the structure of the narrative. Not in a bad way. In a 'fellow writer albeit in another medium appreciating form' way. And I was struck by how complicated it is to pull off a multidimensional ensemble story like this, and yet how effortless the author made it all feel. Not to mention the emotional pay off. 

That is real skill.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcohol, Animal death, Dementia, Drug use, Sexual content, Suicide attempt, Alcoholism, Blood, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Dysphoria, Forced institutionalization, Infidelity, Mental illness, Self harm, and Toxic relationship

prianka_g's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Blood, Dementia, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Infidelity, Medical trauma, Self harm, Sexual content, and Suicide attempt

lucykateburns's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt and Sexual content

Moderate: Toxic relationship, Infidelity, Alcoholism, Sexual assault, and Homophobia

Minor: Chronic illness, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, Death of parent, Dementia, Drug abuse, Forced institutionalization, Mental illness, Misogyny, and Self harm

neevechristine's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful reflective sad tense slow-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

5.0

This took me longer to read than the average book, but the final 100 pages I read in one sitting. In the final 10 pages I was crying and banging the book against my head. It’s gorgeous and heartbreaking and raw. It filled a void I didn’t know existed 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Self harm, Rape, Transphobia, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Racism, Panic attacks/disorders, Misogyny, Mental illness, Infidelity, Grief, Emotional abuse, Drug use, Drug abuse, Dementia, Death of parent, Alcoholism, and Addiction

bethanstanleyy's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad fast-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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Infidelity, Addiction, Alcohol, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Alcoholism, Death, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, Animal death, Death of parent, Dementia, Drug use, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Toxic friendship

lilysaddler's review against another edition

dark emotional funny 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Drug use, Sexual content, Self harm, Mental illness, Drug abuse, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Toxic relationship, Dementia, Animal death, Blood, Death of parent, Transphobia, Toxic friendship, and Addiction

Minor: Pregnancy

harleysmiller's review against another edition

dark emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This book very easily entered my top 5 favorite books of all time when I was only about 30 pages into it. It is devastating and hopeful and brutal and REAL. You hate every character and love them so deeply. It felt like reading about a little slice of someone’s life like I was being let in on a secret. Every character was so well developed and complex. I would recommend this a million times over. It has the vibe of Conversations with Friends while being completely original and unique. I don’t think I’ve ever felt so strongly about a book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Drug use, Infidelity, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Animal death, Blood, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Mental illness, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Addiction, Chronic illness, Dementia, Grief, and Self harm

cosycourtney's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

This book felt very smart to me? I’m not sure if that will make sense to others but Coco Mellors is clearly an incredible writer who can write a bloody book. It was so digestible but also packed SO much culture and life. I really enjoyed reading it and I was very invested in the lives of Cleo and Frank but I feel like because I read it so quickly I missed the cherry on top of the charm ice cream. That is simply my own fault and my own tastes and no criticism on the book itself truthfully. The way Mellors wrote her characters was really magical. I pictured them SO easily. Frank IS Berlin from Money Heist and after a little stalk I think Cleo is Coco (in the sense that she is ethereally beautiful). The book was so nuanced that if you aren’t reading closely (which as times perhaps I wasn’t) you miss things. I’d be 3 pages into a chapter and think WAIT I missed something and I had to flick back. I think that readers might take issue with that but I sometimes enjoy when books are so good beyond what my brain is capable of recognizing at a time. I found the start and the end the strongest and I really enjoyed Eleanor’s chapters. The way the form changed was a great writing device to separate her from the rest of the group. This IS a book of the moment; one to be read while on the hype train. You should read it now or you’ll get FOMO for sure. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Drug use, Self harm, Mental illness, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Addiction, Dementia, and Animal death