Reviews

Thank you to Gillian Flynn Books and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this title prior to publication. I heard about this book from Modern Mrs. Darcy's Summer Reading Guide, and I was intrigued by the description and the cover. This is a story of Anisa, who wants to be a translator, and a secret school where one can be fluent in a new language in 10 days. Anisa attends this school and eventually learns the shocking secrets of how it works. This book reminded me a lot of Babel and Yellowface by RF Kuang and Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro. I really enjoyed the commentary on India and Pakistan, language, translation, publishing, class, and appropriation. The twist is jaw-dropping, though now looking back I can see some clues. This was a captivating story that I won't forget anytime soon.

bookishconnections's review against another edition

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challenging dark funny 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

2.5

I’ve been wanting to read this book for ages and the premise sounded right up my street.

As I got more into it, the storyline just seemed to fragment.

The author was talking about lots of different issues via the character and then when the real issue of how the centre work came through, I was surprised and kind of horrified but by the end it ended so abruptly, any progress or conclusion made was gone.

I would recommend this book for fans of Mexican Gothic, Earthling or Burnt Sugar because it is very claustrophobic and focuses on body horror as well as a very uncomfortable sexual situation that may trigger some people.

Some of the tangents in the book were just not developed as much as they could be but the narrator made this book incredibly engaging which is why I rated it higher than I would have otherwise.

Content Warnings

moth_gf184's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious reflective fast-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

2.75

charl's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.75

This was fun!! Engaging read and some nice discourse, didn’t completely sweep me off my feet but I wanted to read it instead of watch telly and that’s something surely

tinkerer's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.5

eheidenreich's review against another edition

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2.0

Spoiler

This book was mediocre. I like to rate books on how enjoyable it was and what it wants to say. Therefore, when a book is said to handle difficult topics, my expectations are higher than if the book was written solely for enjoyment. This book didn't deliver well on either aspect. Sometimes, the Centre didn't even feel like it was the main storyline & this book felt like an autobiography that just included her going to a language center. As a white American, I don't think I have the adequate understanding to decide how well she handled race and religion, but other people have discussed this in their reviews & I'd agree that it didn't feel like the book did much actual intuitive commentary. The next issue was the themes of colonialism. When you learn the 'plot twist' of what is happening at the center (which was an easy guess, by like 40% you can guess what is actually happening at the Centre and you'd be right,) it seems as though the book might be trying to draw parallels to the consumption of a person's whole being with colonialism & it's basis being the consumption of a people, culture, and land. Especially when you learn that the founders are men from Britian, America, Israel, and India. Countries that have colonial pasts and stay acting as colonizers. But these men are shown in a mostly good light. The man from Israel, who is mentioned to have helped develop practices used for the Center FROM THE IDF & this is just said in passing as if that shouldn't add to the troubling details about the Centre. The ending seems as if, yeah, Anisa was horrified to learn she ate people, but she chilled out, so it's alright now. Her and Shiba talk about continuing the work & they will change it for 'better.'' The ending falls flat, and by the time I finished the book, it didn't feel as though it had accomplished anything.

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