Reviews

Patricia Wants to Cuddle by Samantha Allen

tiashas's review against another edition

dark funny fast-paced

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

3.25

it’s not meant to be taken seriously and if you don’t you’ll have a good time with the book. 

yellowswagger's review against another edition

3.0

2.2 Rounding up. This book is lauded as a “one of a kind queer horror comedy,” and in some ways I see how that statement is true- but that also doesn’t mean the book is good. I think I expected more queer representation beyond love letters from side characters and “The Bachelor” knock off show contestants kissing each other on a dare. Every character in this book is a horrible person and it feels like the lesson isn’t about growth, but rather that being self aware of your crappy behavior leads to a longer life. There is so much senseless and gory violence that I certainly didn’t read as comedic in any sense and the women this book centers around are so catty throughout the entire story, and not in a way that’s entertaining, but in a way that feels stereotypical and reductive. Maybe it was a commentary on “The Bachelor” type reality shows and their contestants/producers, but it felt like it was written by someone who just doesn’t like women. The reason I rounded up to ⭐️⭐️⭐️ is because of who ended up “winning.” Spoiler alert- it’s not the reader.

beccalove's review against another edition

dark lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

4.0

leahhslibrary_'s review against another edition

dark funny mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

greeniewood's review against another edition

dark funny mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.75

A dream world where being a lesbian is in itself a survival tactic and heteronormativity will get you mauled by a she-beast. Funnily gruesome, darkly humorous.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Death, Car accident, Blood, and Violence

sudsyy_'s review against another edition

adventurous dark funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

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

3.5

e_oneita's review against another edition

4.0

It's challenging to review this without spoiling, so I'll give a Russian doll of "spoils". My first, non-spoiled part of the review is that the blurb that this is "viciously funny" is possibly the most accurate descriptor of the book. I laughed out loud during pretty much every paragraph, and was having such a great time that I genuinely couldn't stop turning the pages and finished the book in one night. I had only read Samantha Allen's more sober, investigative Real Queer America, so it was a welcome surprise to find that she can also write explosive fiction with so much humor and style. Now on to spoilers.

Spoiler

It might be a good idea for this book to come with a CW, because there is graphic body horror, e.g. dismemberment, bludgeoning, etc. It was all the more shocking considering the light-hearted wit that characterized the first 70% of the novel or so, and the kind and generally balanced way Allen tackled the foibles and follies of the characters. This is the only reason I brought the novel down a star- the rest of it had been so enjoyable, but the end turned brutal.

Spoiler

After coming to understand and love the characters, nearly all of them died in truly viscous ways. I understand why Allen chose to go that route (a meta-commentary on smashing apart the heteronormativity of American institutions like The Bachelor), but I think it would have been possible to keep at least some of the characters who are brutally killed alive. For instance, there's a truly touching scene between two of the feuding contestants at the end of the novel, but in my opinion this was ruined by the following paragraph describing those characters' gory dismemberment/deaths- it would have been more touching/poetic if they made it out alive and became firm friends after their ordeal. A recent article in Vice outlined how the true legacy of the Bachelor is the friendships contestants make with each other, and it would have been more powerful had Allen kept that legacy intact, with at least one example of friendship surviving the horror(s) thrown at them.

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In sum, this book is a genuine page-turner and a showcase of Allen's incredible talent, but (without spoiling) I would recommend readers follow the novel up with something else a little more light-hearted.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me an ARC in return for an honest review!

alantztrier'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? Yes

5.0

linzjayy's review against another edition

dark funny

3.0

IDK I had a fun time reading it but it wasn’t a hard-hitter for me. I think reading this following Babel did this book a bit of a disservice but also I just didn’t connect with the characters that much and I didn’t particularly like any of them? I did have a fun time though and I would recommend. Definitely weird asfuck though 

physical 

mouse42's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny 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

3.5