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teresalee's review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I found this very difficult to read. None of the characters was particularly likeable and the writing style meant I had to reread entire paragraphs frequently to understand what was happening. Perhaps it's a matter of not understanding cultural norms?
maryquigley's review against another edition
challenging
dark
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Caoilinn Hughes' prose is so divine and her characters are so unlikeable at times. There's a discomfort in reading this book not unlike listening to an interesting piece of music that feels discordant and fascinating at once.
Gael Foess is one of the coldest characters I've come across in a long time. It's like she's trying to love but trying to understand it from an alien perspective, an alien with a steel heart. It's unsurprising since she was raised by a mother who happily admits that having children was her husband's idea, that it would look good if he decided to run for office! Gael's heart is only outfrozen by her father's. Jarlath represents what it takes to get to the top on the backs of others, callousness that holds your gaze shamelessly as it crushes you underfoot. Gael learned her craft from the best.
If Gael and Jarlath represent the cold, business side of things then I suppose Guthrie and Sive represent those left in the wake of the quest for power. Even if Gael tries to bring them along with her, she really is using their talents as stepping stones for her own ends.
I found the Occupy movement chapters sort of shoehorned in to be honest, and I'm not sure the Gael we are presented with would really feel the need to spend so much time there, or risk so much. I'm not sure what her motivations were supposed to be there, but it didn't fit with the rest of the story for me in a narrative sense, only a symbolic one.
In general, even though Gael as a character isn't enjoyable in herself, and the feeling as you read is discomfort rather than enjoyment, the writing is so stellar that the whole experience of the book is very enjoyable, if that makes sense. It also sent me down a Deleuze and Guattari rabbit hole for which I'm eternally grateful. (Guattari - Guthrie, coincidence? Probably not)
Gael Foess is one of the coldest characters I've come across in a long time. It's like she's trying to love but trying to understand it from an alien perspective, an alien with a steel heart. It's unsurprising since she was raised by a mother who happily admits that having children was her husband's idea, that it would look good if he decided to run for office! Gael's heart is only outfrozen by her father's. Jarlath represents what it takes to get to the top on the backs of others, callousness that holds your gaze shamelessly as it crushes you underfoot. Gael learned her craft from the best.
If Gael and Jarlath represent the cold, business side of things then I suppose Guthrie and Sive represent those left in the wake of the quest for power. Even if Gael tries to bring them along with her, she really is using their talents as stepping stones for her own ends.
I found the Occupy movement chapters sort of shoehorned in to be honest, and I'm not sure the Gael we are presented with would really feel the need to spend so much time there, or risk so much. I'm not sure what her motivations were supposed to be there, but it didn't fit with the rest of the story for me in a narrative sense, only a symbolic one.
In general, even though Gael as a character isn't enjoyable in herself, and the feeling as you read is discomfort rather than enjoyment, the writing is so stellar that the whole experience of the book is very enjoyable, if that makes sense. It also sent me down a Deleuze and Guattari rabbit hole for which I'm eternally grateful. (Guattari - Guthrie, coincidence? Probably not)
wormytoby's review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This book is beautifully written and I highly recommend it. I struggled with it because I don’t tend to enjoy books whose main characters I don’t resonate with, which was the case with this book. That’s very much a me issue, though, so don’t let it hold you back!
pavonini's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Absolutely loved the main character, she leapt off the page. The whole book went in unexpected directions. Would recommend.
Content Warnings
Minor: Violence
literallyelza's review against another edition
Love the writting style but I just got a bit bored of the story. I will pick up her 2nd novel though for sure!
sidselgchr's review against another edition
2.0
Listned to this, read by the author.
This was a strange, angry, sort of blind stubMle through the life and tribulations of an irish girl, growing up in the late aughts, early tens. It was well written and the character study of GayLe,the brother, father, mother were all rich and textured, but sort of lacking.
It's first person narrative, so we don't know more than G knows, and her naivite becomes a main character in this novel. It's poetic and her luck seems a little magical from time to time.
It seems more like the fantasical over the top stories you tell someone you want to impress at a party. There's is a hint of irreality about the whole thing, despite it being anchored in specific years, specific world news, the iraq war, the financial crisis, occopy wallstreet.
It's a very self obsessed novel, G being a very uncompromising character. She's hot and cold, always calculating, always trying to find the most profitable way out for herself, without ever considering anyone else's feelings. She assumes everyone wants what she wants, that everyone craves the same cold success. She has a very hard time seeing other people as real, as having feelings and being as complicated as her. As not just being background characters in her story, but their own beings.
It comes across very unsettling sometimes, but also sort of fresh and new to let a female character be that selfish, that driven.
This was a strange, angry, sort of blind stubMle through the life and tribulations of an irish girl, growing up in the late aughts, early tens. It was well written and the character study of GayLe,the brother, father, mother were all rich and textured, but sort of lacking.
It's first person narrative, so we don't know more than G knows, and her naivite becomes a main character in this novel. It's poetic and her luck seems a little magical from time to time.
It seems more like the fantasical over the top stories you tell someone you want to impress at a party. There's is a hint of irreality about the whole thing, despite it being anchored in specific years, specific world news, the iraq war, the financial crisis, occopy wallstreet.
It's a very self obsessed novel, G being a very uncompromising character. She's hot and cold, always calculating, always trying to find the most profitable way out for herself, without ever considering anyone else's feelings. She assumes everyone wants what she wants, that everyone craves the same cold success. She has a very hard time seeing other people as real, as having feelings and being as complicated as her. As not just being background characters in her story, but their own beings.
It comes across very unsettling sometimes, but also sort of fresh and new to let a female character be that selfish, that driven.
katymm's review against another edition
4.0
This is a wonderful literary debut from Caoilinn Hughes. I was fascinated by the calculating, duplicitous protagonist Gael Foess, even if her escapades from Dublin to New York strained at the borders of believability. Gael's constant scheming stressed me out, but I was fully absorbed in her world. Orchid & the Wasp is a character-driven novel that asks important questions about family, relationships, and love. My only main issue with it is that I wasn't a fan of the Occupy Wall Street plotline that appears about 3/4 of the way through the book -- it seemed pointless and meandering.
p.s. I hated Guthrie.
p.s. I hated Guthrie.
bec54321's review against another edition
4.0
3.75 rounded up. This is a fascinating book that exists entirely in reaction to the crash of ’08 and the swift demise of Ireland’s Celtic Tiger economy. It's something of a cultural artefact in that sense. I thought it was a really exciting if at times challenging debut.
The novel tells the story of a jaded young woman who feels the injustices of the world so deeply that she responds by doubling down on gaming the system, by hook or by crook. As a reader you witness the diabolical, borderline nihilistic way she navigates through a series of increasingly absurd situations of her own reckless design. Any evidence of Gael’s dormant humanity is directed towards her younger brother, the titular orchid to her wasp.
This book packs a lot in and I do wish the earlier chapters had been tighter and the pacing more consistent, but as a debut it’s very impressive. Caoilinn Hughes’ contemporaries cite her wit and craft with reverence, which is how I became aware of her. I have to agree with them.
The novel tells the story of a jaded young woman who feels the injustices of the world so deeply that she responds by doubling down on gaming the system, by hook or by crook. As a reader you witness the diabolical, borderline nihilistic way she navigates through a series of increasingly absurd situations of her own reckless design. Any evidence of Gael’s dormant humanity is directed towards her younger brother, the titular orchid to her wasp.
This book packs a lot in and I do wish the earlier chapters had been tighter and the pacing more consistent, but as a debut it’s very impressive. Caoilinn Hughes’ contemporaries cite her wit and craft with reverence, which is how I became aware of her. I have to agree with them.
sarahc3319's review against another edition
1.0
Did not finish. I got 60% through, then completely lost interest, then lost access to my e-book and have no intention of trying to find a hard copy. I hated the protagonist. I was lost in the middle, trying to figure out the whats and whys.