Reviews

Split-Level by Sande Boritz Berger

lavenderlazarus's review against another edition

5.0

Split-Level captured my attention because of the way it's written. It's from the point of view of Alex Pearl, a housewife whose relationship with her husband is turbulent at best. Although it is a little slow paced, I didn't mind spending the time with Alex's thoughts. It's extremely well-written. I didn't live through the 70s, but I could vividly picture every moment with the minute details that add just the right amount of description. It has a small number of characters and they leave strong impressions. These are the characters that you get to know deeply and understand on some level, even to the point where you can see what decisions they'll make before it's revealed.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone who wants a peek at a complicated relationship written with beautiful prose. It was a quick read and the ending was extremely satisfying.

lblattttt's review against another edition

4.0

Split-Level is a great exploration of feelings. Wanting to feel more, wanting to feel passion, wanting to feel alive. Alex Pearl is hoping to tap into these feelings in the hey-day of the 70s. This book truly explores what a journey through marriage looks like and how to navigate what happens when you are wanting to try something new. This was a great read and I loved being transported to a time that I did not live through but wish I could have seen firsthand. Genuine and funny, worth the read! Thank you NetGalley!

laurenexploresbooks's review against another edition

4.0

This was a story where at first the main character infuriated me because I wanted so much more for her. Alex has two sweet young girls, but is married to the immature and selfish Donny. Alex feels lost and trapped in her marriage and tries for reconciliation with her husband. Her husband does not take her communication efforts seriously, but what her husband instead pushes is for an open relationship with another couple. The problem is, is that Alex never consents to this arrangement. Alex does not feel like she has any agency to say she feels uncomfortable or to share what she needs regardless of her actual attraction to her pairing with Charlie. The chaos of their life is due to her and Donny’s complete and utter lack of communication and trust. Alex is going through the motions in her life and marriage. I appreciate how Alex grows as a character, and though I spent the majority of the book frustrated I also was rooting for her to find her own strength and voice. This is certainly a book outside of what I normally read, but I was interested in the relationships between Alex and the other characters. I received Split-Level from Netgalley in exchange for my honest feedback.

laurenexploresbooks's review

4.0

This was a story where at first the main character infuriated me because I wanted so much more for her. Alex has two sweet young girls, but is married to the immature and selfish Donny. Alex feels lost and trapped in her marriage and tries for reconciliation with her husband. Her husband does not take her communication efforts seriously, but what her husband instead pushes is for an open relationship with another couple. The problem is, is that Alex never consents to this arrangement. Alex does not feel like she has any agency to say she feels uncomfortable or to share what she needs regardless of her actual attraction to her pairing with Charlie. The chaos of their life is due to her and Donny’s complete and utter lack of communication and trust. Alex is going through the motions in her life and marriage. I appreciate how Alex grows as a character, and though I spent the majority of the book frustrated I also was rooting for her to find her own strength and voice. This is certainly a book outside of what I normally read, but I was interested in the relationships between Alex and the other characters. I received Split-Level from Netgalley in exchange for my honest feedback.

kaylakaotik's review

2.0

I really wanted to enjoy Split-Level. It seems like it would have been a book right up my alley. It's a completely different lifestyle than my own. It's seemingly filled with juicy drama that I'd devour. However, it just didn't work for me.

There's numerous flaws. The book is so slow. Like, slow. I don't mind a slow-building story, but this was just disappointing. On top of that, it wasn't very detailed. I missed so much of the depth (emotion, details, conversations, etc.) that makes a book like this appealing to me. And to top it all off, these characters were just bland. I couldn't bring myself to care about any of them.

I think there was potential here. The premise was interesting. The writing was decently done. If it had been more than a surface level, beachy type read, I think I would have really enjoyed it.

* This book was received from She Writes Press via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. *

melli80's review against another edition

2.0

Thank you to net galley and the publisher for allowing me to read this Arc. However I just couldn’t get into it. It’s not my normal type of read but I wanted to branch out and I’m disappointed that I didn’t enjoy it.. i know it’s about a different time a whole different socioeconomic period but I just couldn’t relate. The main character I found annoying and a little maybe paranoid Also just a bit submissive and dumb. The writing was ok and the flow of the story was good but I just couldn’t connect and after about 55% threw I just felt like if I didn’t finish it would be even more disappointing. So it’s a good story just not for me.

emmareadsanddrinks's review against another edition

2.0

Split-Level by Sande Bortiz Berger is about Alex and Donny Pearl, a young couple in the 1970's. The story is told from Alex's point of view, as she grapples with the thought that there has to be more to marriage. In an effort to change things, her husband Donny suggests they go to a couples retreat. While at the retreat, Donny is given a book on wife swapping, which he suggests they try. As the story unfolds, the reader not only sees how Alex's self worth and image is changed, but also how her view of those around her changes.

This book was difficult to get into and to finish. I found the characters hard to relate to and unlikable. I also did not grow up in the 1970s, and the nostalgia aspect was not there for me. I wanted to yell at Alex many times to dump her husband and take more responsibility over her children. This book needed a little more of a concrete problem, climax, and resolution to speed things along.

The writing style of this book was great. I found that it flowed well, I just didn't love Alex's thoughts and the amount of time the reader was in her head.

I appreciate the opportunity from NetGalley to read and review!

victoria_loves_books's review against another edition

2.0

I truly disliked this book. None of the characters were good people and I hated how weak and extremely naive the main character was. I kept wondering what the story was. It just felt like I was reading an episode of some soap opera

canary20's review against another edition

1.0

Awful. The characters are flat and the whole book is about cheating on your spouse even with permission. It seemed like to me that almost all of the younger generation was sleeping with other spouses and the parents really didn't like it but totally condoned it! I really struggled reading this book and I was hoping for a revelation and it would redeem it self but it didn't for me.

annarella's review against another edition

4.0

A well written book that is full of interesting reflections and with a dysfunctional cast of characters.
Even if I liked the style of writing and the plot I didn't feel connected to any of the characters that were not really likable.
It's an interesting read.
Recommended!
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.