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3.88 AVERAGE
3.88 AVERAGE
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
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:
No
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
3.5⭐️ rounding up -- this lyrical exploration of gender in the context of the Greek myth is exquisite, yet wanders for a while in the middle half.
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual assault
emotional
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Perhaps I just had low expectations or maybe it’s just unlikely that I wouldn’t enjoy a sensual, sapphic retelling of a Greek love story. The tale is also peppered with (not the most complex, but thought inspiring) feminist and queer concepts; primarily about gender identity, women’s desire, and the systems of men’s entitlement to pleasure and ownership of women.
Often the prose felt a little too much like forced poeticism, but once I accepted it, it was easy to embrace and provided many beautiful lines.
I was just bored. Maybe it's a me problem.
challenging
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
An attempt was made but it just does not hit the mark. I liked the idea of a sapphic Eros and Psyche reimagining and was excited to read this, but it was a challenge to finish. Everything is just too long. The first 1/3rd is just trauma dumping. The middle is too much of nothing. The last 1/3rd does pick up and the majority of the plot plays out, which only partially redeemed it. Some of the changes were clever, I will give it that.
The writing is both nebulous and tedious. Some passages are profound, but the entire book reads like forced poeticism. The themes of the cruelty of men, the exclusion of society, the power of love and the harm of envy (especially amongst fellow women)are important, but the author hits you over the head with them instead of truly melding it into the narrative.
Overall, I was disappointed.
The writing is both nebulous and tedious. Some passages are profound, but the entire book reads like forced poeticism. The themes of the cruelty of men, the exclusion of society, the power of love and the harm of envy (especially amongst fellow women)are important, but the author hits you over the head with them instead of truly melding it into the narrative.
Overall, I was disappointed.
adventurous
emotional
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I loved the book and thought it was written beautifully. It's great if you like books that are character driven, but may not be your thing if you need a clear plot to move things along. I give it a soft 4 stars, but the last 50 pages started to drag.