Reviews

Piglet by Lottie Hazell

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jeannine6's review against another edition

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dark emotional hopeful reflective medium-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

2.5

erinnh's review

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4.0

Piglet is one of the most original novels I have read in a long time. It focuses on the titular character’s relationships - with food, but also with family, friends, her fiancé, and family-to-be. Piglet is in a time of transition, in her thirties and about to be married, where all of her relationships are in flux and she is trying to build herself a perfect life. But just days before her wedding her fiancé reveals a secret, and suddenly the life she has constructed isn’t looking so stable after all.

The language and writing style are so immersive. The first chapter is almost guaranteed to hook you. As others have noted, the food descriptions are fantastic. But I really loved the way emotion was conveyed through the cooking scenes, and how her relationship with food really echoed how she was feeling about the rest of her life as the narrative unfolded. The book also highlights other aspects about people’s relationships with food: how it connects with our identities, with our class, and how it can connect us with others or divide us. There is so much in between the lines here.

I recommend Piglet to anyone who likes character and relationship focused stories. It’s a fast and propulsive read - I finished it in a couple of sittings.

*Thank you to NetGalley and Henry Holt & Company for the gifted eARC in exchange for an honest review!*

aroadtofollow's review

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emotional sad medium-paced

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

4.25

sophc's review

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tense fast-paced

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

4.75

read this in basically one sitting bc it had me so stressed out i had to know what was going to happen

emily_stanford's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

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

3.5

readtotheend's review

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mysterious sad medium-paced

2.5

The cover and the description sounded so good to me but once I started reading it, I think my favorite parts were the food descriptions and not really the rest of the story. I didn't care for any of the characters, including Piglet whose nickname was grating to me for the entire book. The whole unknown factor to the betrayal also didn't work for me - it just made me care even less.

carolinamoon's review

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challenging reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character

5.0

"How could this have happened to her? She had been so careful to follow the rules, to build her life with Kit so meticulously."
"What a beautiful, fucking mess." A truly satisfying critique of class and the idea of perfect coupledom.

This novel was fully engrossing to me. I had to set a timer if i was reading this on a break, otherwise I'd lose track of time. The physical descriptions of anxiety and discomfort in one's body were relatable. The detail with food was enough to make one salivate. I could tell this writer really loves creating food and the presentation of dishes for family and friends. That mixed with the common bullying people experience during childhood from their family over loving food "too much," hence the protagonist's nickname Piglet, shows up in this novel. If someone had some issues with E.D., I would warn them this book might not be a fun read for them.

Content Warnings