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bookstorian's review against another edition
3.5
After reading The Rachel Incident a few months ago and being a fan of Sentimental Garbage Podcast I was elated to find a copy of Promising Young Women on my most recent trip to a book store.
Marketing assistant by day and agony aunt by night Jane is adrift. Living in a new apartment after a recent break up she seeks solace in the bottle and work. So much so that she catches the eye of her married, much older boss and tumbles into the world of the other woman.
While the novel is somewhat darker than I expected, even gothic perhaps, I did appreciate the character development and exploration of power and sex. Especially the imbalance that this creates in relationships let alone the ramifications on their personal and professional life. Relationships were at the core of this novel and what I am finding, as of late, is that I enjoy books that are very relationship heavy. While there is a lot of self development within the novel it's the relationships between Jane (herself), her boss, colleagues, friends and room mates that are the make up of the plot.
For me, there were certainly moments of sheer outrage for what Jane experienced as well as exhaustion for the cycle that she was stuck in. Whilst this can make the book all the more enjoyable, the later meant that it tended to drag for me.
In addition, I think the main element of the story that I struggled with were the mystery ailments faced by the character and the moments of memory loss. I guess there was a tinge of fantasy to this read that made it a little more difficult for me to piece everything together as most of the reasoning wasn't really made clear, medically speaking. Whilst it was a downfall for me, this also perhaps is what sets this book apart from other 'Messy Millennial' reads.
If you are a fan of Ask Shameless Newsletter or Everything I Know About Love and Dear Dolly by Dolly Alderton I think you would also enjoy this read.
Marketing assistant by day and agony aunt by night Jane is adrift. Living in a new apartment after a recent break up she seeks solace in the bottle and work. So much so that she catches the eye of her married, much older boss and tumbles into the world of the other woman.
While the novel is somewhat darker than I expected, even gothic perhaps, I did appreciate the character development and exploration of power and sex. Especially the imbalance that this creates in relationships let alone the ramifications on their personal and professional life. Relationships were at the core of this novel and what I am finding, as of late, is that I enjoy books that are very relationship heavy. While there is a lot of self development within the novel it's the relationships between Jane (herself), her boss, colleagues, friends and room mates that are the make up of the plot.
For me, there were certainly moments of sheer outrage for what Jane experienced as well as exhaustion for the cycle that she was stuck in. Whilst this can make the book all the more enjoyable, the later meant that it tended to drag for me.
In addition, I think the main element of the story that I struggled with were the mystery ailments faced by the character and the moments of memory loss. I guess there was a tinge of fantasy to this read that made it a little more difficult for me to piece everything together as most of the reasoning wasn't really made clear, medically speaking. Whilst it was a downfall for me, this also perhaps is what sets this book apart from other 'Messy Millennial' reads.
If you are a fan of Ask Shameless Newsletter or Everything I Know About Love and Dear Dolly by Dolly Alderton I think you would also enjoy this read.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence
eleanorth's review
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Minor: Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Violence
angelina_orsola's review
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
tense
slow-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
4.75
Although this story was tough to read at times as someone that has experienced something similar I found the conclusion to be very impactful.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Sexism, Suicide, Mental illness, Gaslighting, Violence, Toxic relationship, Rape, Panic attacks/disorders, Emotional abuse, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Addiction, and Abandonment
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