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3.96 AVERAGE
3.96 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Loved it, like absolutely loved it. Wish I could read it for the first time over and over.
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Gorgeously written story about queer infatuation in pre-Stonewall America. Slower paced with focus on internal dialogue and the conflicting, confusing emotions of first love. Characters are compelling if mysteriously opaque. Plot is thin for first half of the book, strongly character-driven.
I first read this about ten years ago. Somehow it hit me a lot harder this time around...I don't know why.
It's the perfect story, so beautifully and unpretentiously written - one of those books I just want to keep close so I can re-read it whenever I feel like it. A wonderful, wonderful novel. Thanks, Patricia Highsmith (and thanks Cate Blanchett/Rooney Mara for bringing it to live on screen, holy shit).
It's the perfect story, so beautifully and unpretentiously written - one of those books I just want to keep close so I can re-read it whenever I feel like it. A wonderful, wonderful novel. Thanks, Patricia Highsmith (and thanks Cate Blanchett/Rooney Mara for bringing it to live on screen, holy shit).
I couldn’t finish it. It was just too slow and the characters were irritating. I have been wanting to read this for a long while because I loved the Ripley books but this one was a disappointment.
I couldn't give this one a 5 namely because it did get quite slow in several places. Overall, I like what the story was trying to say and did find myself liking the end a lot.
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Beautiful. Much less creepy than Lolita so I wish that wasn’t on the cover.
This was an interesting book. A quiet book. A slow book. But it is a book worthy of being read, not because there is a movie out about it, but because Patricia Highsmith did something amazing in the 1950s. She wrote of a love between two women that was widely published and contains a happy ending for the protagonists. For me, it was really interesting to see how Carol and Therese are treated in the book compared to her Talented Mr. Ripley. Obviously, Carol and Therese are not sociopaths, but the themes of homosexuality in a time when it was dangerous to be so remain the same.
This book grasped hold of me from the start. I felt compelled to keep reading, yet I didn’t want it to end. There was such a great feeling of balance in the writing. One of those rare books that you are glad that you stumbled across and want to share.
I became aware of this book recently because of the release of the movie "Carol" (have not yet seen it). Wonderful writing, and without giving away any spoilers, I'll just say I appreciated the rare acknowledgement of the unspoken power dynamics in a relationship. When one person is more in love than the other, it creates a power imbalance. It was interesting to see the character with "less power" (i.e., more in love, more needy) wrestle with the pros and cons of choosing to be in a relationship simply to be the one less in love and with more power, and what the associated costs and rewards are as a result.