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oceans_hannah's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
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
Absolutely adored this audiobook. Loved how the story was split across two time periods and particuarly enjoyed the development of Connie and Rose's relationship. Can't wait to read more of Jessie Burton's work.
Content Warnings
Minor: Drug use, Infertility, Toxic relationship, Mental illness, Pregnancy, Terminal illness, Abortion, Death of parent, and Miscarriage
zara89's review
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abortion
Moderate: Infertility, Infidelity, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Death of parent, Dementia, Miscarriage, Medical content, Pregnancy, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Lesbophobia
fiddleysticks's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness and Abandonment
sophieamreacher's review
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
I don’t really know how to rate this. I enjoyed this and I didn’t. Some parts were really interesting and some parts weren’t. Intriguing book. Took me ages to read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Alcohol, Infidelity, Infertility, Miscarriage, and Abortion
anka_not_anchor's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
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
4.5
A beautiful and emotional book that discusses so many complicated aspects of womanhood. I loved it except for towards the end - some of the text felt a little cliche.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pregnancy, Mental illness, and Death of parent
Moderate: Abortion
yvo_about_books's review against another edition
2.0
Finished reading: May 16th 2023
WARNING: guess what?! It's another unpopular opinion!
Right... I already feared this was going to happen to be honest. Slower stories haven't really worked for me lately, and I had my doubts if I was going to be in the mood for The Confession. My TBR jar decided it was time for me to finally read it back in February, and I've been posponing it ever since... This is in fact the third time I tried starting it, which is never a good sign I guess. That said, the slower pace wasn't my main issue with this book. Between the cringeworthy writing("her cunt a warm coal"; WTF?!), the tone being way too pretentious, the weak character development, the unlikeable characters and my general lack of interest in how the story would develop, I had a very hard time convincing myself to keep reading. In fact, I started skimreading quite early on, and I truly wish I had just DNFed it instead. I hated that the women seemed to be defined by their ability to have children, and the feminism incorporated into the plot didn't feel genuine. The male characters hardly had any development at all, and the female characters were simply maddening. Guess who truly didn't agree with her TBR jar this time around? Most people do seem to enjoy this one though, so it might just be that Jessie Burton's writing simply isn't for me anymore.
WARNING: guess what?! It's another unpopular opinion!
Right... I already feared this was going to happen to be honest. Slower stories haven't really worked for me lately, and I had my doubts if I was going to be in the mood for The Confession. My TBR jar decided it was time for me to finally read it back in February, and I've been posponing it ever since... This is in fact the third time I tried starting it, which is never a good sign I guess. That said, the slower pace wasn't my main issue with this book. Between the cringeworthy writing
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Abortion, Death of parent, Infidelity, Pregnancy, Infertility, Mental illness, and Miscarriage
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Child death, Alcoholism, Grief, Self harm, Sexual content, and Suicidal thoughts
anya_lasagna's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This has to be one of my favourite books of all time! It was the first book by Jessie Burton that I read, initially drawn in by the beautiful cover art (not to mention the promise of a wlw relationship) and after my most recent reread, I am taking to goodreads to rant and rave a little bit, because in my opinion, this book doesn’t get nearly enough credit as it deserves (compared to The Miniaturist, at least).
Burton (once again) showcases her talent for writing beautiful prose – although it is not as ornate or as obvious in this novel – as well as her ability to handle complex themes proficiently and sensitively. However, the plot is still present, and kept my eyes glued to the page from start to finish, even without as much conventional mystery as it pertains to the plot. Instead, the reader (and the other characters!) are enthralled by the character of Elise Morceau, and the protagonist’s journey to find out about her mother (Elise). I think the way Burton writes Elise is somewhat genius, in that we are privy to her thoughts and feelings – which are expressed in a rather matter-of-fact way – but the mystery of the character remains intact.
All in all, this book is a treasure! Read if you want: intergenerational female friendships, a wlw relationship which is not treated differently just because of the wlw aspect, poignant discussion of motherhood, reflection on mental illness
Burton (once again) showcases her talent for writing beautiful prose – although it is not as ornate or as obvious in this novel – as well as her ability to handle complex themes proficiently and sensitively. However, the plot is still present, and kept my eyes glued to the page from start to finish, even without as much conventional mystery as it pertains to the plot. Instead, the reader (and the other characters!) are enthralled by the character of Elise Morceau, and the protagonist’s journey to find out about her mother (Elise). I think the way Burton writes Elise is somewhat genius, in that we are privy to her thoughts and feelings – which are expressed in a rather matter-of-fact way – but the mystery of the character remains intact.
All in all, this book is a treasure! Read if you want: intergenerational female friendships, a wlw relationship which is not treated differently just because of the wlw aspect, poignant discussion of motherhood, reflection on mental illness
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infidelity and Mental illness
Minor: Death of parent
andreapap15's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
tense
slow-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
3.75
Enveloped in Burton's beautiful prose, a deep dive into parental abandonment, and what it does to a child growing up without a mother. A feminist novel about motherhood, and what defines a woman. Filled with complicated relationships and believable characters (minus the men). Oh and it's sapphic!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Mental illness, Infidelity, and Abortion
Moderate: Abandonment and Pregnancy
Minor: Sexual content and Suicidal thoughts
chloleighton's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Abandonment, Abortion, Infertility, Miscarriage, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Self harm, Death of parent, and Suicidal thoughts
rebeckareads's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
It was easy to suspend my disbelief for this book and I overall enjoyed the writing, the themes, the generational parallells and the flaws of the characters. It also had some questions in the end in case you're reading it for a book club, which was cool.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infidelity, Abortion, and Mental illness