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issianne's review against another edition
5.0
I know people don’t like this book but like...can’t relate. It’s weird and gothic/dark academia and kinda confusing... There’s definitely an audience and time for that, and that was this book. I’m obsessed with the weird timeline and the shallow characterization of anyone.
dowryofbooks's review against another edition
2.0
2/5 stars
SO UPSET that a book with such a beautiful cover let me down so much.
Catherine House has been one of my most anticipated reads of the year ever since I first read the synopsis. Dark academia is a subgenre that I haven't read much from, but one I'd really like to explore more of and I figured this book would be a good start.
The only thing saving my rating from being a one star is that I think Elisabeth Thomas did so well building an eerie, gothic atmosphere and I enjoyed the writing style a lot.
I was loving the setting, all the imagery of the house. The beginning of this book had me thinking this was about to be an enthralling slow burn mystery, but then I hit the 50% mark and nothing was happening... and then the 70% mark and nothing was still happening. Even the ending felt anticlimactic.
There were interesting characters that ended up being not so interesting after chilling with them the entire book through an endless routine of studying, eating, getting drunk, partying, and having sex. It got so repetitive and boring to read about the characters doing the same things every chapter, meanwhile nothing significant is happening to progress the plot. A lot of scenes exist in this book that probably could have been cut out, because they add literally nothing.
Positive side note- Ines and Yaya's friendship was my favorite thing in this book.
Also I wanna let it be known that this is advertised as an "infused tale of literary suspense" and it is NOT that. The suspense is very light to nonexistent. Even the "mystery" of this book, the whole plasm thing, was always very painfully vague every time it was brought up. I read the ending and I still feel confused about what plasm is and whats the purpose ?? This book ends with a lot left unanswered and I was not a fan.
With the intriguing setting, characters, and a secret mystery surrounding a secluded school THIS HAD SO MUCH POTENTIAL TO BE AMAZING. I'm disappointed it wasn't what I hoped it would be.
All that being said, this is a debut and I loved the writing, so I'm curious to see what this author writes next. I wouldn't confidently recommend this book to anyone, but if you're someone that likes heavily character driven stories with little plot, you could possibly enjoy this one.
SO UPSET that a book with such a beautiful cover let me down so much.
You are in the house and the house is in the woods. The woods are in the house. The stairs are in the house. Down the stairs is the hallway, and at the end of the hallway is the ballroom. You are in the ballroom. The ballroom is in the house. You are in the house and the house is in you.SERIOUSLY WHAT THE HELL?????
Catherine House has been one of my most anticipated reads of the year ever since I first read the synopsis. Dark academia is a subgenre that I haven't read much from, but one I'd really like to explore more of and I figured this book would be a good start.
The only thing saving my rating from being a one star is that I think Elisabeth Thomas did so well building an eerie, gothic atmosphere and I enjoyed the writing style a lot.
I was loving the setting, all the imagery of the house. The beginning of this book had me thinking this was about to be an enthralling slow burn mystery, but then I hit the 50% mark and nothing was happening... and then the 70% mark and nothing was still happening. Even the ending felt anticlimactic.
There were interesting characters that ended up being not so interesting after chilling with them the entire book through an endless routine of studying, eating, getting drunk, partying, and having sex. It got so repetitive and boring to read about the characters doing the same things every chapter, meanwhile nothing significant is happening to progress the plot. A lot of scenes exist in this book that probably could have been cut out, because they add literally nothing.
Positive side note- Ines and Yaya's friendship was my favorite thing in this book.
Also I wanna let it be known that this is advertised as an "infused tale of literary suspense" and it is NOT that. The suspense is very light to nonexistent. Even the "mystery" of this book, the whole plasm thing, was always very painfully vague every time it was brought up. I read the ending and I still feel confused about what plasm is and whats the purpose ?? This book ends with a lot left unanswered and I was not a fan.
With the intriguing setting, characters, and a secret mystery surrounding a secluded school THIS HAD SO MUCH POTENTIAL TO BE AMAZING. I'm disappointed it wasn't what I hoped it would be.
All that being said, this is a debut and I loved the writing, so I'm curious to see what this author writes next. I wouldn't confidently recommend this book to anyone, but if you're someone that likes heavily character driven stories with little plot, you could possibly enjoy this one.
honnari_hannya's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 Stars
An odd book, not quite what I expected. I think that pitching this as "dark academia" isn't necessarily the right way to find the audience for this book, as it is decidedly stranger than that.
On its surface, CATHERINE HOUSE has all the hallmarks of a dark academia book a la The Secret History. There is a mysterious, claustrophobic boarding school that takes in gifted (if pretentious) students as part of a mysterious curriculum supposed to help them achieve their fullest potential. Students are given a full ride—free tuition, room, board, food, and expenses—on the condition that they stay completely ensconced in Catherine for three years, engaging in no contact with the outside world. It is the perfect place to disappear, and that's exactly what Ines is looking to do. However, as she delves deeper into the eccentricities of Catherine House life, she begins to have more questions about the strange subject at the heart of the school's project—a substance called Plasm.
There is a Kafka-esque quality to this novel, in that it wallows (again, if pretentiously so) in its own ennui. The book moves slowly through the three years of Ines' time at the school, with little to no differentiation between the years save for the periodic exams and festivals and testing periods that cycle through each semester. The reader, like the students at Catherine House, never really gets clarity into the inner workings of the school—not its subjects, its purpose, or its teachers. This is a book that leaves you with more questions than answers, with a very open ending that could either point to hope or despair.
I enjoyed it for the most part. A lot of it worked for me, but some of it didn't—particularly the way we really didn't spend much time figuring out what they were learning. Because we see the story through Ines' eyes, we only get fleeting glimpses of her studies as she mindlessly attends classes and regurgitates lessons to pass exams, and more focus on the parties and conversations she has with her friends. I think a little more of the former could have been a really interesting contrast to the latter, so we can see exactly how the school attempts to "reframe" the minds of these students—and why, exactly, it isn't working for Inez (or is working too well). I know some had an issue with the opaqueness of what Plasm and the "New Materials" study really is, but I didn't necessarily mind that.
Fans of Vita Nostra by the Dyachenkos or Murakami's weirder novels, like 1Q84 or Kafka on the Shore, would probably enjoy this and find a lot of things to mull over.
An odd book, not quite what I expected. I think that pitching this as "dark academia" isn't necessarily the right way to find the audience for this book, as it is decidedly stranger than that.
On its surface, CATHERINE HOUSE has all the hallmarks of a dark academia book a la The Secret History. There is a mysterious, claustrophobic boarding school that takes in gifted (if pretentious) students as part of a mysterious curriculum supposed to help them achieve their fullest potential. Students are given a full ride—free tuition, room, board, food, and expenses—on the condition that they stay completely ensconced in Catherine for three years, engaging in no contact with the outside world. It is the perfect place to disappear, and that's exactly what Ines is looking to do. However, as she delves deeper into the eccentricities of Catherine House life, she begins to have more questions about the strange subject at the heart of the school's project—a substance called Plasm.
There is a Kafka-esque quality to this novel, in that it wallows (again, if pretentiously so) in its own ennui. The book moves slowly through the three years of Ines' time at the school, with little to no differentiation between the years save for the periodic exams and festivals and testing periods that cycle through each semester. The reader, like the students at Catherine House, never really gets clarity into the inner workings of the school—not its subjects, its purpose, or its teachers. This is a book that leaves you with more questions than answers, with a very open ending that could either point to hope or despair.
I enjoyed it for the most part. A lot of it worked for me, but some of it didn't—particularly the way we really didn't spend much time figuring out what they were learning. Because we see the story through Ines' eyes, we only get fleeting glimpses of her studies as she mindlessly attends classes and regurgitates lessons to pass exams, and more focus on the parties and conversations she has with her friends. I think a little more of the former could have been a really interesting contrast to the latter, so we can see exactly how the school attempts to "reframe" the minds of these students—and why, exactly, it isn't working for Inez (or is working too well). I know some had an issue with the opaqueness of what Plasm and the "New Materials" study really is, but I didn't necessarily mind that.
Fans of Vita Nostra by the Dyachenkos or Murakami's weirder novels, like 1Q84 or Kafka on the Shore, would probably enjoy this and find a lot of things to mull over.
just_alyx's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
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? It's complicated
4.5
nitterbug's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
shanhautman's review against another edition
Plot just didn’t go anywhere. Story was very slow moving and I felt like themes were repeated without progress or character development. I was really intrigued by the premise.
kishma_'s review against another edition
80% in and i... i can't finish it...i'm bored. Just not for me.
dodosbookcorner's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
seymone's review against another edition
4.0
Very interesting characters study - set on a higher learning campus, where there is a nefarious experiment taking place and the students are the experimental group. I really enjoy dark academia.