Reviews

I can see why some people love this book. However, it’s just not my type of book. I struggled to get into it until about 2/3 of the way through. It’s very wordy, which again I know some people like, but there were times where I wanted to take out my editing pen and strike words and phrases that were unnecessary and/or redundant. To be fair, I’d give the last third or so of the book 3 stars because I enjoyed it and it seemed to pick up a little bit.

nixreadsbooks's review against another edition

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reflective medium-paced

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

3.5

kmallon's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

dorothy_goodwin's review against another edition

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emotional medium-paced

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

4.25

lesleyo's review against another edition

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medium-paced

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

4.5

cartogram's review against another edition

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dark reflective medium-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

3.75

broro117's review against another edition

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I started this book in March 2023. It's now nearly June 2024, and although I've occasionally mustered the will to trudge through a few more pages of this book over the past 15 months, today my last little bit of will to continue finally evaporated.

As much as I know there's no shame in DNFing and that life is too short to force yourself to finish a book you're not enjoying, I'd heard enough good things from people whose opinions I trust that I thought I had to eventually find something I liked about this… right? Well, that never happened. In fact, I disliked this book nearly as much as I dislike its godawful cover.

But maybe "dislike" is the wrong word. It's more like there was just nothing to like. Despite there being approximately a million characters (none of whom I could keep straight), every single one of them feels cold and totally devoid of charm. I couldn't connect to them at all because they didn't ring true as human beings. I didn't like spending time in this world one bit, which is truly an impressive feat, as Italy has been the #1 destination on my bucket list for years now. Ferrante managed to cast a bleak shadow with no redeeming qualities over a country I adore.

Normally when I've gone a month or two without picking up a certain book, I'll quickly skim over what I've read to get myself back up to speed. But I never did that with this book because I didn't want to spend any more time with it than I had to, and as it turns out, I'm not actually obligated to spend any time with it at all.

Now excuse me while I spend the evening watching The Lizzie McGuire Movie and Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy to restore some of what this book tarnished.

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