Reviews with content warning for Abortion - Boy Parts

I feel like everything I'd read/heard before going into this book set this up to be one thing but it was actually a different thing, which is annoying and I wish I'd gone in blind but tbh if i wouldn't have picked this book up if that was the case.

I understand why people link this to American psycho, but I was constantly expecting more action and of that there was very little. It was quite a boring book in places, like when the main character spent loads of time going through her old art stuff and talking about her ex

that turns out to be a pointless bloody storyline that felt like it was going to go somewhere.

I only kept reading because I was waiting for the gore I was promised. I understand the character was supposed to be an unlikable narcissist (which I think was portrayed really well tbh), I disliked her from around 25% in but I really really despised her in the second half of the book (she's a truly vile character) and that was the turning point where I knew the book wasn't going to recover and I wasn't going to enjoy it. This wasn't only because of the character, though it doesnt help if the main character

kills animals for no good reason. It made absolutely no sense why the cat "had to die"

and I feel like the author was doing way too much in trying to create this fabric of a messed up character which she already was without all the extra sprinkles or bollocks, and instead created a lot of threads that just lead nowhere and were kind of pointless.

Yes this is a very dark book... But was it dark for the sake of being dark? Yes there is something to be said about the female protagonist being the dominant, narcissistic, egotistical force and seeing male bodies how men would view women and treating them in the same manner... I'm just not sure this character would have spiralled the way she did?

At times I found myself questioning if the author was OK, still unsure if that's a good or bad thing. If the author isn't a narcissist herself, she did a good job giving the reader an insight into the mind of one as I can imagine narcissists I know having the same trains of thought. The writing style was good but it was a bit weird how chat acronyms slipped into speech and there were a noticeable amount of references about people looking like celebrities I hadn't heard of which took me out of the book as I went to search them (just describe them to me like that's literally what you just did anyway?).

This book is very British, which I loved. Also, the interactions with her mother - I feel like everyone can relate to those interactions somehow.

My expectations were set at more gore, more boy parts and the best friend being an accomplice/side kick. The best friend is nothing of the sort and there was no "big action moment" where the shit hits the fan and the story direction kicks off from there as I was expecting.

Towards the end of the book you really get a sense of why she's spiralling and at the very end, it's much more obvious

she's having some sort of breakdown, (I was wondering halfway through the book if she would be an unreliable narrator and I think Bunny by Mona Awad is much better at this)

but by that point I was just glad the book was over. Hope she rots tbh.

Content Warnings

readingwithgoose's review against another edition

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challenging dark funny fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Content Warnings

maximauve's review against another edition

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dark fast-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

3.0

Content Warnings

erenreads's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-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

4.0

to the halfway point it was a 3 stars

around 75% it became a 4.

and at the end it’s such an easy 5 star book.

i don’t even want to comment on it, it’s disturbing and impactful.

holy fuck.

edit: back down to 4 stars sorry babes

Content Warnings