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notenoughnewts's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body horror, Sexual content, and Vomit
Minor: Racism
orireading's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Vomit
Moderate: Blood and Alcohol
Minor: Suicide
the author CONSTANTLY mentioned the 13-year-old character being chubby/fat, what she was eating, what her body looked like, etc. in a way that was rarely relevant to what was actually happening in the scene. that was weird honestlylaurenkchung's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement
Moderate: Vomit
morgan77's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
2.5
I’m really not sure what to make of the book. The prose was so over the top, I found it distracting. The lengthy descriptions of the characters’ bodies and bodily fluids was also way too descriptive. The premise was interesting, but I found myself wanting *MORE*. I realize the plot isn’t the point of the book, but it felt incomplete to me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Vomit
halceeeeeeeee's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
not enough there to be liked or disliked? The plot didn't go anywhere, but the concept in and of itself was interesting. A lot of the sexualisation of the teenage son was completely unnecessary and added nothing, the sex in general felt like it wasn't really serving any purpose. Overall, pretty underwhelming rip.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Sexual content, Blood, and Vomit
Moderate: Racism
euphoriaonpluto's review against another edition
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Where do I even begin with this one?
The 3 stars I'm giving this book is a compromise, as, in actuality, its two halves are two separate books in my head and I'd give the first one 2 stars and the second one 4.
The first half of this book was so boring I have no idea how I got through it. Nothing happened. It was so repetitive at times I wondered if there was an editing mistake and a paragraph had been pasted twice.
The second half, surprisingly, became more and more interesting. By the end I was on the edge of my seat, the way I was promised to be.
One major flaw that was consistent throughout the entire book was the writing style.
1. It was terribly pretentious. Literary fiction undeniably prides itself with complex prose, but this felt like the author was a college student trying to reach a word quota for an essay. It's like he was writing it with a thesaurus right next to him so he could make sure he sounds as intelligent as possible. It was insuffarable at times.
2. Did Sigmund Freud write this book? What was with the obsession with sexuality? Why did everything have to be compared to sex. Why did we have to be reminded of how horny these people are at least 5 times a chapter? I, myself, may be asexual and therefore not entirely well-versed with how libido works, but, surely, middle-aged men don't get erections because????? the sun is out????? and it's a nice day????? Even worse is the fact that this obsession with sexual metaphors didn't spare the teenage children of the protagonists, either. It was disgusting. At times it made me feel like a pedophile by proxy for reading these words. Why did I have to read about a sixteen-year-old jerking off and what kind of porn he likes? Why did I have to read a description of a sixteen-year-old boy and a thirteen-year-old girl observed by their mother, which featured nipples and "curvy" and "jiggle" and a swimsuit straining at the bottom? And why, for the love of god, did there have to be a scene where this middle-aged woman fantasises about making out with a cashier she herself describes as "could be in high school or out of it"????? The way the protagonists' children's bodies were described as sexual in nature was made even more disturbing by the fact that, quite in contrast, their mantal maturity was decreased so much it was like they were 5 and 8, respectively. How is a sixteen-year-old old enough for me to have to read a sentence about his balls, but not old enough to be told that there was a blackout in the city? What is happening here????
TLDR: First half sucked, second half was great, and it would have been ten times better if it had been written by someone who wasn't obsessed with genitals and metaphors about erections and orgasms.
The 3 stars I'm giving this book is a compromise, as, in actuality, its two halves are two separate books in my head and I'd give the first one 2 stars and the second one 4.
The first half of this book was so boring I have no idea how I got through it. Nothing happened. It was so repetitive at times I wondered if there was an editing mistake and a paragraph had been pasted twice.
The second half, surprisingly, became more and more interesting. By the end I was on the edge of my seat, the way I was promised to be.
One major flaw that was consistent throughout the entire book was the writing style.
1. It was terribly pretentious. Literary fiction undeniably prides itself with complex prose, but this felt like the author was a college student trying to reach a word quota for an essay. It's like he was writing it with a thesaurus right next to him so he could make sure he sounds as intelligent as possible. It was insuffarable at times.
2. Did Sigmund Freud write this book? What was with the obsession with sexuality? Why did everything have to be compared to sex. Why did we have to be reminded of how horny these people are at least 5 times a chapter? I, myself, may be asexual and therefore not entirely well-versed with how libido works, but, surely, middle-aged men don't get erections because????? the sun is out????? and it's a nice day????? Even worse is the fact that this obsession with sexual metaphors didn't spare the teenage children of the protagonists, either. It was disgusting. At times it made me feel like a pedophile by proxy for reading these words. Why did I have to read about a sixteen-year-old jerking off and what kind of porn he likes? Why did I have to read a description of a sixteen-year-old boy and a thirteen-year-old girl observed by their mother, which featured nipples and "curvy" and "jiggle" and a swimsuit straining at the bottom? And why, for the love of god, did there have to be a scene where this middle-aged woman fantasises about making out with a cashier she herself describes as "could be in high school or out of it"????? The way the protagonists' children's bodies were described as sexual in nature was made even more disturbing by the fact that, quite in contrast, their mantal maturity was decreased so much it was like they were 5 and 8, respectively. How is a sixteen-year-old old enough for me to have to read a sentence about his balls, but not old enough to be told that there was a blackout in the city? What is happening here????
TLDR: First half sucked, second half was great, and it would have been ten times better if it had been written by someone who wasn't obsessed with genitals and metaphors about erections and orgasms.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pedophilia and Sexual content
Moderate: Racism, Xenophobia, Blood, Vomit, Islamophobia, Alcohol, and War
velaw's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content and Vomit
Minor: Excrement
lantisistan's review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
Vilken otroligt konstig bok. Jag kan inte bestämma mig för om det här är briljant eller skräp. Oroligt frustrerande. Det är som uppbyggnaden till en 1000 sidor lång dystopi men som slutar efter 250. Det är en bra uppbyggnad men otroligt frustrerande att det bara tar slut. Men jag är ocksp samtidigt väldigt säker på att det är det här författaren har velat titta på och beskriva, vår mänskliga natur och förmågan att sticka huvudet i sanden.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Vomit
Moderate: Racism
magnoliabloomfield's review against another edition
1.0
With prose more purple than Thanos’ ass, this book tells a two page short story in 72k words. Maybe I’m just not one of those intellectual types that can easily spot the satire and nuances of books that try to make a commentary on society, maybe I’m just a poor schlub trying to find entertainment to escape my life. But I did not find entertainment here. I didn’t find anything realistic or likable. I only found profound irritation and disgust.
I pretty much DNFed by page 42 even though I had wanted to since page 10 where the mother “could see her children already wiggled into their quick drying Lycra” otherwise known as swim suits “hurtling toward the placid blue. Archie, long limbs and acute angles, barely convex chest sprouting brown twists at the pink nipples; Rose, curvy and jiggling, downy with baby hair, her polka dot one piece straining just so at the legs, pudendum in relief.” Like ok thanks for thinking of your 17 year old sons nipples, and your even younger daughter’s genitals- yeah Google “pudendum” and be as grossed out as I am.
He lists about 55 specific items she bought at the grocery store in one paragraph that was 37 lines long, took up a whole page in all, and lord help me for counting: 418 words.
The sex and masturbation scenes were not what the kids today call spicy, it feels like you were a voyeur but you never consented to it. Highly uncomfortable.
I wish I’d never spent any time or money on this book.
I pretty much DNFed by page 42 even though I had wanted to since page 10 where the mother “could see her children already wiggled into their quick drying Lycra” otherwise known as swim suits “hurtling toward the placid blue. Archie, long limbs and acute angles, barely convex chest sprouting brown twists at the pink nipples; Rose, curvy and jiggling, downy with baby hair, her polka dot one piece straining just so at the legs, pudendum in relief.” Like ok thanks for thinking of your 17 year old sons nipples, and your even younger daughter’s genitals- yeah Google “pudendum” and be as grossed out as I am.
He lists about 55 specific items she bought at the grocery store in one paragraph that was 37 lines long, took up a whole page in all, and lord help me for counting: 418 words.
The sex and masturbation scenes were not what the kids today call spicy, it feels like you were a voyeur but you never consented to it. Highly uncomfortable.
I wish I’d never spent any time or money on this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Misogyny, Racism, Sexual content, and Vomit
nodogsonthemoon's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
0.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Blood, and Vomit
Moderate: Death, Racism, Suicide, Excrement, Islamophobia, Medical content, and War