Reviews with content warning for Toxic friendship - The Story of the Lost Child

really wanted a redemption of sorts after Book 3 of this quartet, but I found this more unbearable than the last.

The writing style of Ferrante is detailed and can be rich. However, it just went on.

There were really tragic parts that you could feel:
- Tina
- Elena’s mother and their growing relationship
- Dede and Elsa’a clear neglect

But overall, I couldn’t stand Elena. I found her to be such an unreliable narrator so self-absorbed and playing the victim in the same way she attributes Nino to doing.

There is also no clear resolution in

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radfordmanor's review

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challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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amaya_jam's review

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medium-paced

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

5.0

Such a strong final book. I found myself rereading so many pages just to reaffirm that what i read was real. Now I have to go buy physical copies. RIP bank account :/

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flucillie's review

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challenging dark emotional reflective tense fast-paced

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

5.0

it touched a layer of my heart and gave a name to feelings i labelled as mundane but controlled my life so much. it felt so real and each character was fleshed out so well.

there’s so much nuance and no one was truly the villain. everyone had their own faults and did not necessarily (ish) want to cause harm. it’s a rollercoaster of emotions: trust, betrayal, and hope.

it follows a point in our lives when all we talk about is marriage, and then babies, and then the accomplishments and failures of our children, and then deaths.

ferrante intertwined the personal and the public so intricately. clearly, the external stressors forced the characters to act the way they did and believe the ideologies they had.

what really shined in this book was the complex female friendships. its sad but we end up competing with other women (whether deliberate or as a consequence) to gain some crumbs of rewards from this patriarchal society. despite the competition, we still find some comfort and solidarity in one another. ferrante illustrated so painfully realistically well the desperation to be desired by men. i felt so disgusted in my own skin knowing i pulled shit like that just to get attention and affection from men i barely burned for. it’s even more barf barf barf how at every turn, men will disappoint you and weaponize their incompetence and violent masculinity against you. it’s not surprising anymore (seeing this depicted in so many media and played out in my own life) but i’m still here hoping someone will prove me wrong wRONG ??!? 🫢

some people found the ending lackluster and vague. i think it was perfect for this story. life is exactly like that, vague. we will never get a definite answer from elena, our narrator, as she has finally decided to stop thinking about lila, the subject of the entire series, and has no more words left to immortalize her.

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