Reviews with content warning for Toxic relationship - Die Einladung

I’ve really really enjoyed all of Emma Cline’s other books - I’ve read all of them up to date and I’m a person who rarely repeats authors (something about feeling like then I would be missing out on so many other voices… but anyway).
However this book was not for me. I think the character is very well defined and in the middle (about 150 pages in until more or less the end) I really enjoyed it. Even though I did not like Alex, the protagonist (who likes someone so adept at lying?), I was rooting for her at the end. But it took really long to get me interested (I persevered out of stubbornness) at the beginning and I found the ending deeply underwhelming.
Everyone has their own taste, but I would recommend starting with one of her previous books if it’s the first time you are reading Cline! Hope you enjoy whichever one you pick!

Content Warnings

sshabein's review against another edition

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dark sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

One of the most interesting protagonists I've read in awhile.

Content Warnings

lay_kone's review against another edition

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dark tense medium-paced

2.0

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caroisreading's review against another edition

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dark reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

2.75

This is like a Gen Z version of Homer's Odyssey, where we follow a woman named Alex in her 20s through a series of missteps and a troubled cast of strangers, each with their own trauma or threats. Over the course of a few days, she is trying to get back to her boyfriend / sugar daddy, with no transportation or phone or money.

I was stressed reading this, and truly despised everyone in this book. There were out-of-character moments when Emma Cline wrote really thought-provoking commentary on elitism, relationships, abuse and sexism, but they were moments of clarity detached from the mess that was Alex, stumbling through her journey with pain killers, booze, sex and fear. She's running from an abusive man wanting his money back, while running towards her "safest" option, another man who has money, a vicious cycle.

There were lots of references to Alex thinking she was a ghost, as she moved through life as an accessory, never spoken to, and quite literally looked through. She survived by playing these strangers, by blending in, and appealing to them with sex and pleasant company. Race wasn't a factor in this, and I assumed she and everyone around her were white (lots of "blond hair," "Germanic" descriptions), so this made her deception even more frictionless as she entered these social circles.

I closed this book and was like, yep, got it, I'm depressed and slightly annoyed. And I've been here before with other "messed up pretty girl" narratives.

This is worth a read if you want something darker, grimy, reflective of today's imbalanced relationships and wealth disparity.

Content Warnings

auudrey's review against another edition

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challenging dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

Content Warnings

spencerssnow's review against another edition

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dark reflective tense fast-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? Yes

3.5

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