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refrejarator's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
erebus53'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? It's complicated
4.0
The writing is poetic, weird, fanciful, evocative, and conveys a sense of claustrophobic, existential dread that could easily be described as paranoid schizophrenic. Cthulhu is mentioned more than once; whether the narrator is reliable or not, is your call.
A lot of the discomforting tone of the book is tapping deep into common stressors. Our main character Samantha is forced into group work (the horror!) with a clique of rich and sheltered young women who are completely self-involved, and codependent. She nicknames them "the Bunnies" because they use the term Bunny as an affectionate pet term for each other. This stifling environment is ruled over by an abusive tutor (treated as a mentor and carer) who is continually encouraging them to get uncomfortable and use their pain in their art.
I haven't read a story set in a school with a more real feeling of loneliness, insecurity, and anxiety.. and I have read a lot of YA authors. The girls derive their strength from subjugating their individuality, becoming a hive mind that is as oppressive as it is inclusive. To be accepted one must pay a great price, and even those on the inside are continually being torn down by the narcissistic cycle of love-bombing, gas-lighting, and passive/aggressive negativity. Every interaction feels invasively vulnerable. Every interaction feels like a trap.
The town around the campus feels barren. Although there are opulent houses, there are certain parts of town that are derelict. Samantha finds herself moving out of her stifling p*ss-yellow apartment, in a building full of people with mental illnesses, into a derelict building. She lives with an aloof gothic-punk girl who she attends tango class with, and who carries a hip-flask labelled "drink me". The Alice In Wonderland theme is riffed on, quite a bit. Their relationship is almost homo-erotic, but asexually so.
The Othering in this story is next level. Girls moon over fantasy boys who are often dead superstars like James Dean, or characters from Greek myth. They are made fantasy by being utterly unreal, un-attainable, and fetishised through being exotic or not even speaking English. I only realise this after noticing the sexualisation of the tutor who speaks with a Scottish accent. It's like they are so starved for stimulation, and yet so terrified of reality that they need to create abstracted lust. There is no vulnerability with a partner who isn't really a person, bunny.
Graphic: Animal death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Classism
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Drug abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Sexual violence, and Abandonment
Minor: Suicidal thoughts and Vomit
iohy's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Violence, Blood, Murder, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, and Alcohol
Minor: Eating disorder
niijntjes's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Death, Drug use, Gore, and Murder
Moderate: Animal cruelty
Minor: Abandonment
yomireads'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
Told from the perspective of an unreliable narrator, themes of belonging and self-discovery are explored in a bizarre and unsettling ways that somehow deeply resonante with the readers. Awad's use of prose to reflect the state of mind of Samantha and her relationship with the Bunnies is seamless and engulfing. The subtle foreshadowing to plot development made what was an otherwise chaotic unfolding of events feel less like a suckered punch and more like the twisting of a knife.
Graphic: Toxic friendship
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Mental illness, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Alcohol
Minor: Drug abuse, Drug use, and Self harm
chris_reads's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Gore, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Classism
Minor: Drug use, Suicidal thoughts, and Blood
bookishlittleme's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Cursing, Eating disorder, and Blood
Moderate: Drug use and Alcohol
Minor: Drug abuse, Death of parent, and Abandonment
Basically this book is R-Rated.jkpiowa'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
4.0
Graphic: Animal death, Drug use, Toxic relationship, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Addiction, Death of parent, and Abandonment
yeimyaileen's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
also, if you liked if we were villains, aka
narratively it reminded me of nightbitch and my year of rest and relaxation. weirdly detached and you really have to pay attention to understand whats going on. similarly paced as well.
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Abandonment
Minor: Sexual harassment
ghostmotel's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Gore, Violence, Blood, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Drug use, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
Minor: Body horror, Death, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Stalking, and Abandonment