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tash_readsbooks's review
This book seemed interesting from the description, but unfortunately was not for me.
The plot of this book did not progress at all and neither did the character arc of Elsa. I found myself getting annoyed with her being self absorbed and being so in her mind about everything (as in creating fantasies) that she really couldn't be bothered with her actual life and interactions with people. Her incessant need to be on social media and the internet just shows the addictiveness that is the internet. But the way that Elsa used it bordered on obsessive and almost stalker like.
Her character in relation to her family, friends, and past and present relationships also frustrated me to the point of questioning why she does what she does.
The plot of this book did not progress at all and neither did the character arc of Elsa. I found myself getting annoyed with her being self absorbed and being so in her mind about everything (as in creating fantasies) that she really couldn't be bothered with her actual life and interactions with people. Her incessant need to be on social media and the internet just shows the addictiveness that is the internet. But the way that Elsa used it bordered on obsessive and almost stalker like.
Her character in relation to her family, friends, and past and present relationships also frustrated me to the point of questioning why she does what she does.
dankdelions's review
funny
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
this was my second ARC from NetGalley. i think something that maybe is just my issue is that when the synopsis compared this to patricia lockwood, i got really excited for some interesting takes on social media/digital age etc. but instead, i felt like this was just literally watching a girl stalk people on instagram for 200 pages (but very pointedly not call it instagram), including timothee chalamet, very pointedly never addressed by name but rather as “the actor-character”. a lot of those idiosyncrasies just didn’t land for me, but there were a few parts that i liked mostly in the romance between the main character and timothee chalamet’s they/them friend. i would definitely try something else out from this author, maybe something a little more willing to dig in to the topic of the internet a little deeper.
katiem310's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Thank you to NetGalley, Simon & Schuster, and Madison Newbound for the opportunity to read this book ahead of publishing.
Misrecognition hit a lot (A LOT) of my interests upon reading the synopsis on NG. I’ve been trying to find more queer MC’s that don’t fall into the poorly written queer/questioning category. Unfortunately, I am DNF’ing this book for the time being at 28% (3/12/24).
Much like several other reviewers have said, I’m unsure if this MC’s voice is a deliberate choice or not. I can get where it could be going with the depression aspect, because depression makes people behave in a variety of ways... but she is just so... unremarkable. And the lack of remarkable traits is making this incredibly hard to get through.
The way that Newbound/Elsa presents new characters is ~bizarre~ to me. I’ve honestly been reading this book as someone who’s encountering someone else (Elsa) who has main character syndrome and no one else matters and I’m unfortunately along for the ride. Which would normally be fine if the person with the MCS was interesting... but Elsa is falling incredibly flat and I can’t find it in me to continue trudging through this book because of it right now. I’m also finding it hard to picture any of the characters, they’re just floating orbs in my mind as I read, honestly. There’s nothing about them that conjures any type of character build. You could present me with a group of randomly generated Sims characters, tell me that’s what the characters look like, and I’d shrug and say okay.
The only thing I can appreciate about the writing right now is the vague approach to speaking about social media/pop culture references that has been utilized so far. However, and this is a big however, they’re not vague enough and the references are still going to be outdated within a handful of years or so (the Marie Kondo reference is already dated because I don’t remember the last time I heard anyone bring her up), and the way Newbound writes them (and the way Elsa’s voice presents them) sounds so incredibly insulting? Condescending? I could be reading it incorrectly, honestly... I probably am, but I don’t want to be womansplained as to what an IG story is and how it works as if I don’t spam my friends-only story with animal memes on a daily basis.
The tone for this book right now seems like the author/MC finds the reader stupid, which I am not... so that’s another tick in the dislike column.
Also after reading GR reviews for this book, I’ve come to find out that the actor-character is !!allegedly!! the modern-day embodiment of a sick Victorian child, Timothee Chalamet, and that alone is enough to make me roll my eyes hard enough to induce a Category-5 migraine. I don’t understand the hold he has on everyone, and I am tired of it :) . Maybe if I visualize the actor-character as someone else, I won’t be annoyed.
I will likely let this book sit and come back to it. Right now, reading this is not doing me any favors mentally (because it’s wholly uninteresting and not captivating in the slightest, so it isn’t keeping my attention) and it’s been putting me to sleep whenever I’ve tried to read it.
Hello, me again. It's now the 20th and I am no less confused or annoyed than I was when I started writing this.
Nothing interesting happened until the last 15% of the book. I wish I could have just read that part with zero context needed. It would have been a perfect short story. None of the earlier 85% felt needed, truly. It was so repetitive. SO repetitive. And I understand that breakups and relationships can be very trying. I still find myself psychoanalyzing everything I said and did in my last relationship and wondering what could have happened if I said a different word in a particular sentence. I still find myself unfortunately wondering what they're up to now, even though we ended things under the guise of friendship but don't talk. The ~after~ is weird. But this book lacked any real substance for me and I find that unfortunate. I had moderately high expectations for this book based off of the synopsis.
Elsa doesn't get any less flat as the story progresses. Probably because her character progression doesn't face much change either. Sure she starts to emerge from her shell but it's mayyybe... Five percent of the book?? At the end. I'm not willing to say she gets better as a charter when you compare that five percent to the remaining ninety five.
Between the weird pacing, the weird interactions, the weird way Elsa referred to people (the person called Sam, the actor-character), and the bizarre fragmented sentences/thoughts... I don't know how to really put thoughts to digital paper.
I can't see myself recommending this to anyone I know, unfortunately. There's definitely a niche for this book but I'm struggling to pinpoint exactly what it would be/be called.
Thank you again to NetGalley, Simon & Schuster, and Madison Newbound for the ARC opportunity. I look forward to being given more of these opportunities in the future.
Misrecognition hit a lot (A LOT) of my interests upon reading the synopsis on NG. I’ve been trying to find more queer MC’s that don’t fall into the poorly written queer/questioning category. Unfortunately, I am DNF’ing this book for the time being at 28% (3/12/24).
Much like several other reviewers have said, I’m unsure if this MC’s voice is a deliberate choice or not. I can get where it could be going with the depression aspect, because depression makes people behave in a variety of ways... but she is just so... unremarkable. And the lack of remarkable traits is making this incredibly hard to get through.
The way that Newbound/Elsa presents new characters is ~bizarre~ to me. I’ve honestly been reading this book as someone who’s encountering someone else (Elsa) who has main character syndrome and no one else matters and I’m unfortunately along for the ride. Which would normally be fine if the person with the MCS was interesting... but Elsa is falling incredibly flat and I can’t find it in me to continue trudging through this book because of it right now. I’m also finding it hard to picture any of the characters, they’re just floating orbs in my mind as I read, honestly. There’s nothing about them that conjures any type of character build. You could present me with a group of randomly generated Sims characters, tell me that’s what the characters look like, and I’d shrug and say okay.
The only thing I can appreciate about the writing right now is the vague approach to speaking about social media/pop culture references that has been utilized so far. However, and this is a big however, they’re not vague enough and the references are still going to be outdated within a handful of years or so (the Marie Kondo reference is already dated because I don’t remember the last time I heard anyone bring her up), and the way Newbound writes them (and the way Elsa’s voice presents them) sounds so incredibly insulting? Condescending? I could be reading it incorrectly, honestly... I probably am, but I don’t want to be womansplained as to what an IG story is and how it works as if I don’t spam my friends-only story with animal memes on a daily basis.
The tone for this book right now seems like the author/MC finds the reader stupid, which I am not... so that’s another tick in the dislike column.
Also after reading GR reviews for this book, I’ve come to find out that the actor-character is !!allegedly!! the modern-day embodiment of a sick Victorian child, Timothee Chalamet, and that alone is enough to make me roll my eyes hard enough to induce a Category-5 migraine. I don’t understand the hold he has on everyone, and I am tired of it :) . Maybe if I visualize the actor-character as someone else, I won’t be annoyed.
I will likely let this book sit and come back to it. Right now, reading this is not doing me any favors mentally (because it’s wholly uninteresting and not captivating in the slightest, so it isn’t keeping my attention) and it’s been putting me to sleep whenever I’ve tried to read it.
Hello, me again. It's now the 20th and I am no less confused or annoyed than I was when I started writing this.
Nothing interesting happened until the last 15% of the book. I wish I could have just read that part with zero context needed. It would have been a perfect short story. None of the earlier 85% felt needed, truly. It was so repetitive. SO repetitive. And I understand that breakups and relationships can be very trying. I still find myself psychoanalyzing everything I said and did in my last relationship and wondering what could have happened if I said a different word in a particular sentence. I still find myself unfortunately wondering what they're up to now, even though we ended things under the guise of friendship but don't talk. The ~after~ is weird. But this book lacked any real substance for me and I find that unfortunate. I had moderately high expectations for this book based off of the synopsis.
Elsa doesn't get any less flat as the story progresses. Probably because her character progression doesn't face much change either. Sure she starts to emerge from her shell but it's mayyybe... Five percent of the book?? At the end. I'm not willing to say she gets better as a charter when you compare that five percent to the remaining ninety five.
Between the weird pacing, the weird interactions, the weird way Elsa referred to people (the person called Sam, the actor-character), and the bizarre fragmented sentences/thoughts... I don't know how to really put thoughts to digital paper.
I can't see myself recommending this to anyone I know, unfortunately. There's definitely a niche for this book but I'm struggling to pinpoint exactly what it would be/be called.
Thank you again to NetGalley, Simon & Schuster, and Madison Newbound for the ARC opportunity. I look forward to being given more of these opportunities in the future.
npolanchik's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
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
2.75
The premise of the book was more riveting than the book itself. The second half of the book is better articulated than the first and I think if the book matched the whole style of the second half my rating might be a little higher.
The biggest thing that didn’t work for me in the novel is the way characters were introduced without actual names: “the actor-character,” “the man and the woman”. Maybe there’s some underlying choice here but it made the writing seem clunky and confusing.
I never found myself rooting for Elsa but I also didn’t mind her as being a wishy-washy protagonist. I think she was written well for a young adult going through so many emotions.
Ultimately I think there was too much going on with the whole story, with some clunky writing. I hope Madison Newbound finds her groove in the next novel because there is definite potential.
The biggest thing that didn’t work for me in the novel is the way characters were introduced without actual names: “the actor-character,” “the man and the woman”. Maybe there’s some underlying choice here but it made the writing seem clunky and confusing.
I never found myself rooting for Elsa but I also didn’t mind her as being a wishy-washy protagonist. I think she was written well for a young adult going through so many emotions.
Ultimately I think there was too much going on with the whole story, with some clunky writing. I hope Madison Newbound finds her groove in the next novel because there is definite potential.
fiendfull's review
2.0
Misrecognition is a novel about a lost young woman who becomes obsessed with an actor in town for a play and the actor's androgynous friend. Elsa is back living in her childhood bedroom after breaking up with an older artist couple, and a film she watches with her parents leads to an obsession with a hot young actor who just happens to be in town for the summer. From her job at a fancy restaurant, she can spy on the actor and his friends, including Sam, who Elsa is immediately drawn to.
It's hard not to immediately summarise this book with 'the literary fiction book about a woman becoming obsessed with Timothée Chalamet'—the actor-character constantly referred to in the book is clearly Chalamet, if you can recognise that the film is clearly Call Me By Your Name—even though that is really only part of the narrative. The novel has third person narration centred around Elsa, and many characters are given epithets rather than names: the aforementioned "actor-character", the man and the woman who Elsa split up with, and Sam, who is referred to as "the person called Sam" for a good chunk of the novel. The slipperiness of the pop culture references and characters' names feels like it is meant to be a thing, but it can also be hard to know what the point is of making them obvious, but also having them mysterious.
Elsa herself is a fairly blank protagonist, depressed and occasionally trapped in online spirals, sometimes exploring her sexuality amidst other characters who are more sure of theirs, but mostly just being obsessed. Similarly to many other novels of this type—depressing young woman back in hometown falls down some kind of specific rabbit hole—there's not much character development for her, and she seems mostly to be a "relatable" stand-in, with the slight meta angle that she's doing the same thing with other people, like the "actor-character" or influencers she watches. By the end of the book, you know more about her failed relationship with the artist couple, but a side plot around her supposed best friend never goes anywhere, and narrative-wise there's not much in terms of character or plot.
Being non-binary, I wanted to like the character of Sam, who is given not much more than a girlfriend, a "the person called" epithet (which feels very "look, I'm good, I know they might be non-binary"), and 'they/them' pronouns (the ARC I read slipped up on this once I think, which I hope is fixed before publication as it didn't seem to be intentional in any way), but they just seem to work as someone for Elsa to position her sexuality around, with gender nonconformity being an opportunity for someone to consider life outside of a cis straight world. Disappointingly, the narrative didn't really explore gender at all—not Elsa's ambivalence to Sam's gender (which is never actually discussed by the characters), not how Elsa's own gender relates to the online influencers she watches—even though it feels like it wants to. Essentially, it feels like this book expects readers to be Elsa, not Sam, and Sam is just another ambiguously-gendered character in a novel without any character traits for a protagonist to have their own journey in relation to (but without any meta-commentary on this that might make it interesting).
I liked some of the quirks of Misrecogition and I wanted it to go deeper, to actually explore the internet culture and gender and sexuality and polyamory that features within its narrative, rather than just to be like 'Elsa is depressed and obsessed and the internet is bad'. The ending didn't really show any progression or changes, and almost felt like there should've been a few more chapters or at least the ones that were there explored what any of this meant for Elsa. I wanted to like this book, but it just fell flat for me.
linipanini's review
mysterious
reflective
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
4.25
A NONBINARY PROMINENT CHARACTER!!! Sorry, just had to get that out there. As a non-binary person myself, I keenly notice when characters are non-binary. Honestly, it’s not the easiest to find them portrayed as important characters in books, so I was really really excited to meet Sam. Elsa and Sam are boxers, just tiptoeing around each other as a summer passes by. This novel is not action-oriented, but instead is a descent into the mind of Elsa as she navigates loss of love, general life confusion, and the awkwardness of attraction. I normally am the type of reader that struggles with these more introspective kinds of books, but this book had me enraptured from the first few pages. I could gush about Newbound all day, but what I will say is that they elevate the mundane and make it matter. Keep writing, it’s powerful.
heartleafmads's review
3.0
Confusing at times, big sad girl vibes. I appreciate the spice and queer rep. The cover is great and I'll definitely handsell at the store. Thanks Simon & Schuster for the ARC
el_tuttle's review
1.75
Listless after a poly breakup, Elsa moves back with her parents. By day she obsesses over the actor-character and by night she consumes mindless videos online. Fans of Monica Heisey's Really Good, Actually, Lillian Fishman's Acts of Service, and/or Emma Cline's The Guest will find something they like in this story, which covers obsession, relationships, and a general lack of meaning in one's early 20s. In general, this is best suited for readers of the New Adult genre.
Yet, I found this wanting. The protagonist is incredibly hard to like. I even enjoy an unlikeable protagonist, but it's not clear that this is intentional by the author. The main character is someone I'm simultaneously uninterested in and embarrassed for, the walking embodiment of cringe. I want to shake her and tell her to grow the fuck up. Usually second-hand embarrassment results in something dramatic and exciting happening, but this story offers very little action.
I love a good commentary about being chronically online, and I thought from the novel's synopsis and Patricia Lockwood comparison that perhaps this book would offer such a critique. Instead, we just watch Elsa scroll on her phone and watch YouTube without any nuance, critique, or insight. The "commentary" provided is akin to "The internet causes alienation," when we're about 15 years into that bandwagon opinion.
I also had trouble getting into the way this was written. The author purposefully uses strange phrasing about the characters in Elsa's life - "the person called Sam," "the man and the woman," and "the actor-character." I kept waiting for this to be a relevant stylistic choice, but I never found it provided any depth or meaning to the story. This may have worked better if Elsa herself had more depth or personal growth that could serve as a contrast to these fleeting, nameless people in her orbit.
I nearly DNF'd this a number of times. The story picks up about two thirds of the way through, but never enough that it's worth having slogged through the rest.
Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the e-arc in exchange for my unbiased review.
Yet, I found this wanting. The protagonist is incredibly hard to like. I even enjoy an unlikeable protagonist, but it's not clear that this is intentional by the author. The main character is someone I'm simultaneously uninterested in and embarrassed for, the walking embodiment of cringe. I want to shake her and tell her to grow the fuck up. Usually second-hand embarrassment results in something dramatic and exciting happening, but this story offers very little action.
I love a good commentary about being chronically online, and I thought from the novel's synopsis and Patricia Lockwood comparison that perhaps this book would offer such a critique. Instead, we just watch Elsa scroll on her phone and watch YouTube without any nuance, critique, or insight. The "commentary" provided is akin to "The internet causes alienation," when we're about 15 years into that bandwagon opinion.
I also had trouble getting into the way this was written. The author purposefully uses strange phrasing about the characters in Elsa's life - "the person called Sam," "the man and the woman," and "the actor-character." I kept waiting for this to be a relevant stylistic choice, but I never found it provided any depth or meaning to the story. This may have worked better if Elsa herself had more depth or personal growth that could serve as a contrast to these fleeting, nameless people in her orbit.
I nearly DNF'd this a number of times. The story picks up about two thirds of the way through, but never enough that it's worth having slogged through the rest.
Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the e-arc in exchange for my unbiased review.
hannahhjl's review
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
myralane's review against another edition
reflective
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5