Scan barcode
noragoudie's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
One of my new absolute favorite reads. Francine Prose’s prose (haha!) is unparalleled and I thought the biographical nature of this fiction novel was executed perfectly. I am dying to read more of her work!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Sexism, Injury/Injury detail, and War
Minor: Sexual assault
whyvee's review against another edition
5.0
I loved all the different narrators and trying to piece together what “actually” happened (there’s no way to know, just like with actual history). I loved the exploration of how deep rejection and self loathing can cut especially for butch lesbians. Anyone who has loved a brash butch with the tenderest softest baby heart inside will feel a pang for Lou, and I think Prose did a good job showing the nuances of evil. My only complaint was: not enough lesbians. Basically just Lou and the straight women she slept with, and plenty of gay men. I could tell the author was straight. But I still really enjoyed this book.
alisonhori's review against another edition
5.0
This is really an excellent book....almost but not really non-fiction, told from a bunch of different perspectives..all at least somewhat biased and ranging to the totally unreliable. Engaging story throughout but from a historical perspective, a character perspective and a literary perspective. Excellently written and definitely lots to think about.
libwinnie's review against another edition
3.0
Okay. Too much plot, not enough character development.
chloebella's review against another edition
reflective
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
3.5
I enjoyed this, but felt like it didn’t love up to its potential. It was so. slow. Particularly the first half, and I struggled to continue. Sometimes it was hard to keep up with the multiple storytellers and it felt as though very little actually happened in each chapter. Lots of words with little action.
The story premise itself was fascinating and I appreciated having a variety of characters from different walks of life with different personalities and challenges. I wish the characters were more robust, because they felt pretty surface level/underdeveloped.
rhiannon_ling_'s review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
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
4.5
jimmacsyr's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoyed this book very much. Reading some of the other reviews, it turns out this book is more on the historical side of historical fiction. The changing voices take some time to get used to, but works well.
spinstah's review against another edition
3.0
This was okay. I read this for a book club, and our discussion mostly centered around how the book had a lot of potential that just didn't pan out for us. We felt that the characters were a bit under-developed, and that there was a bit too much setup that didn't really go anywhere. There was also an unreliable narrator aspect to some chapters that a few readers found particularly annoying. Do note that the story is told in chapters of alternating perspective, and in the case of one character his chapters are entirely in the form of letters to his parents, which was perplexing, and added an odd distance to the whole thing.
vkshiro's review against another edition
2.0
Ugh. Another mediocre book in a string of mediocre books (meaning the books I've read lately, not about the author's previous books). I don't really understand what the point of this book was. Not a typical historical fiction...and that's not a compliment.