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siriface's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Xenophobia, Racial slurs, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Ableism, and Body shaming
toffishay's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
As a lifelong Michigander, it was high time that I read this book that so often makes listicles for the quintessential "Michigan Gothic". I can certainly see how it fits the bill. The premise of five young girls trapped in a house becoming more and more isolated from their crumbling suburban community and losing hope for a future until they all commit suicide is extremely Gothic. The premise is that the story is being told years later by a group of men who were obsessed with with Lisbon girls when they were all younger, back when the suicides happened. They have collected evidence, memorabilia, and stories from anything and anyone who was even a little connected to the girls. The need that the men have to collect and analyze everything about them is an analysis and criticism of the ways that boys idealize girls, seeing them as pretty objects so separate from themselves, but ultimately they are all the same. It is an interesting story all about decline, death, the loss of ourselves and our communities.
I think that the story loses me not in the plot, but in the pacing. It comes out hot out of the gate and then things really slow down after the first two chapters and don't pick up again until the very end. I also think that the characterization of some of the girls suffers from the short length and that the space that is used is to add color to that world. Setting the scene is important of course and makes the characters feel more real, but I would have liked a little more insight into some of the older Lisbon daughters like Therese, Mary, and Bonnie. Cecilia and Lux are interesting, but I would have liked a deeper dive all around.
If I were to compare it, it does put me in a mind frame of Don Delillo's White Noise. I don't like The Virgin Suicides quite that much, but I do think that they have similar themes of the decline of the white American suburban ideal, the falseness behind it all.
I think that the story loses me not in the plot, but in the pacing. It comes out hot out of the gate and then things really slow down after the first two chapters and don't pick up again until the very end. I also think that the characterization of some of the girls suffers from the short length and that the space that is used is to add color to that world. Setting the scene is important of course and makes the characters feel more real, but I would have liked a little more insight into some of the older Lisbon daughters like Therese, Mary, and Bonnie. Cecilia and Lux are interesting, but I would have liked a deeper dive all around.
If I were to compare it, it does put me in a mind frame of Don Delillo's White Noise. I don't like The Virgin Suicides quite that much, but I do think that they have similar themes of the decline of the white American suburban ideal, the falseness behind it all.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Sexual content, Suicide attempt, Self harm, Suicide, and Death
Moderate: Medical content, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Vomit, Racism, Xenophobia, Sexism, Fatphobia, and Classism
karol99's review against another edition
challenging
dark
funny
hopeful
informative
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Self harm, Child death, Death, Grief, Mental illness, and Suicide
Moderate: Alcohol, Blood, Confinement, Drug use, Racial slurs, Xenophobia, Fatphobia, Medical content, Misogyny, Racism, and Sexual content
merries's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-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? Yes
3.75
This book is, in some ways, a sign of its times. While, for once, a male author decided to reflect on the presentation of women rather than analyse or explain them, the language screams 1990s. I will say, if you are one for avoiding books with derogatory terms, give this one a miss. Instances are few, but the choice of words reflects 1990s society and how it differs. With the book being set in the 1970s, it further reflects the differences in societal norms.
I, like many others, wish the other sisters were as fleshed out as Lux. It’s clear that she is the sister at the forefront of the narrator’s infatuation, but a lack of development for Mary, Therese, and Bonnie made it hard for me to distinguish the behaviours of the three, almost-forgotten sisters. Cecilia was given more detail as she was the catalyst, and Lux as she was the centre of the narrator’s lust for the sisters.
Speaking of the narrator, the recalling of events and explanations are very description-heavy, which is not my preference. As a result, I felt lost in the concrete events due to the obsession over the abstract. I feel like a lot of this could have been left out of the book, in favour for developing characters who are meant to be the centre of the story.
However, there were a lot of positives to this book: I devoured this book rather quickly, feeling a need to read on to get to the breaking point of the Lisbon sisters. While that seems a cruel statement, the narrator had explicitly stated multiple times exactly how the sisters died - but not what caused it, and it was that which intrigued me the most.
I felt like Mr and Mrs Lisbon were arguably the most complex characters in the book - we never experienced a true exploration into why they were so cruel, and why they restricted the actions of their daughters. They were enjoyable to question, and provided another level of intrigue as I read.
Overall, this was the book that ended my reading slump of Summer 22, and while it was a book I enjoyed on the whole, I do have my qualms with the details.
I, like many others, wish the other sisters were as fleshed out as Lux. It’s clear that she is the sister at the forefront of the narrator’s infatuation, but a lack of development for Mary, Therese, and Bonnie made it hard for me to distinguish the behaviours of the three, almost-forgotten sisters. Cecilia was given more detail as she was the catalyst, and Lux as she was the centre of the narrator’s lust for the sisters.
Speaking of the narrator, the recalling of events and explanations are very description-heavy, which is not my preference. As a result, I felt lost in the concrete events due to the obsession over the abstract. I feel like a lot of this could have been left out of the book, in favour for developing characters who are meant to be the centre of the story.
However, there were a lot of positives to this book: I devoured this book rather quickly, feeling a need to read on to get to the breaking point of the Lisbon sisters. While that seems a cruel statement, the narrator had explicitly stated multiple times exactly how the sisters died - but not what caused it, and it was that which intrigued me the most.
I felt like Mr and Mrs Lisbon were arguably the most complex characters in the book - we never experienced a true exploration into why they were so cruel, and why they restricted the actions of their daughters. They were enjoyable to question, and provided another level of intrigue as I read.
Overall, this was the book that ended my reading slump of Summer 22, and while it was a book I enjoyed on the whole, I do have my qualms with the details.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Mental illness, Physical abuse, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Xenophobia, Racial slurs, and Medical content
natalie28's review against another edition
dark
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Self harm, Suicide, and Xenophobia
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