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3.23 AVERAGE
3.23 AVERAGE
I'm a little tired for a review but here goes...
I was intrigued by this book from a review I read on The Novellettes blog. I was interested to see how Palahniuk tackled the point of view of a teenage girl, her coming of age, and a journey of discovery through hell. Unfortunately I wasn't that impressed. I felt Madison was very unrealistic in her use of language and actions. Not sure what time period this book was suppose to take place, but depending on whether she was a teenager of now versus a teenager of the 90s, she was extremely ....flawed (?). On one hand she was very educated and insightful. You got the sense that she was going to learn something monumental during her time in hell, that's what drives you forward in the plot. She uses phrases like "Slutty McSlutser" and similar epithets but you forgive her because she's going to come out at the end an adult, full of insight and wisdom, and profoundly matured, right?
Nope. I'm not sure if Palahniuk did this to ensure a sequel but it was extremely frustrating to watch Madison go through an entire transformation, gain some outstanding insight, and then remain an immature, naive teenager.
I will read Doomed in hopes of Madison becoming the woman I wish her to be.
I was intrigued by this book from a review I read on The Novellettes blog. I was interested to see how Palahniuk tackled the point of view of a teenage girl, her coming of age, and a journey of discovery through hell. Unfortunately I wasn't that impressed. I felt Madison was very unrealistic in her use of language and actions. Not sure what time period this book was suppose to take place, but depending on whether she was a teenager of now versus a teenager of the 90s, she was extremely ....flawed (?). On one hand she was very educated and insightful. You got the sense that she was going to learn something monumental during her time in hell, that's what drives you forward in the plot. She uses phrases like "Slutty McSlutser" and similar epithets but you forgive her because she's going to come out at the end an adult, full of insight and wisdom, and profoundly matured, right?
Nope. I'm not sure if Palahniuk did this to ensure a sequel but it was extremely frustrating to watch Madison go through an entire transformation, gain some outstanding insight, and then remain an immature, naive teenager.
I will read Doomed in hopes of Madison becoming the woman I wish her to be.
Another Palahniuk novel. Outrageous premise? Check. Pop culture references? Check. Catch phrases? Check. Gratuitous obsceneties? Check. Formulaic? Check. Chuck on autopilot.
I probably wouldn't have liked this as much if I had been reading it rather than listening to it. It's entertaining and provides interesting possibilities for theorizing about what damns us to hell. Offers lots of criticism about current popular American culture. It's more of a 3.5 than a 4.
Chuck Palahniuk is a very polarizing author. He's brutal, dark, and doesn't understand the meaning of the word taboo. As such you generally know going into his books (after you've read one or two) whether you're going to like them or not. Personally I tend to like his books, ranging from "generally enjoy" to "absolutely love." This was on the "generally enjoy" end of my Palahniuk spectrum.
This book follows Maddy Spencer, newly arrived to Hell daughter of super famous millionaire parents back on Earth. About half the book follows her in Hell, learning the ropes and taking in the sights, while the other half consists of flashbacks filling in her backstory and culminating in her death. The flashback sections are a bit bland, especially in comparison to the over-the-top descriptions of Hell in the other sections of the book. That said, it's only in the flashback that you actually get any sort of meaningful story arc. While there is one in the Hell chapters it never feels like there are any real stakes or conflict.
In the end, as I said, I enjoyed the book. The arbitrary rules for why you go to Hell is highly entertaining, and the disgusting descriptions of the landscape are gross but fascinating. It's just unfortunate that the characters feel so flat against this setting.
This book follows Maddy Spencer, newly arrived to Hell daughter of super famous millionaire parents back on Earth. About half the book follows her in Hell, learning the ropes and taking in the sights, while the other half consists of flashbacks filling in her backstory and culminating in her death. The flashback sections are a bit bland, especially in comparison to the over-the-top descriptions of Hell in the other sections of the book. That said, it's only in the flashback that you actually get any sort of meaningful story arc. While there is one in the Hell chapters it never feels like there are any real stakes or conflict.
Spoiler
There's also the bizarre "twist" at the end in which it's (maybe?) revealed that Maddy is a fictional construct of Satan's imagination? While it seemed like it should be really important it made absolutely no difference on the story in this book. One assumes it plays a more pivotal role in the sequel, but it seemed like it was supposed to be shocking but simply wasn't.In the end, as I said, I enjoyed the book. The arbitrary rules for why you go to Hell is highly entertaining, and the disgusting descriptions of the landscape are gross but fascinating. It's just unfortunate that the characters feel so flat against this setting.
Not bad. I lost a little interest about 70% of the way through, but managed to keep going and am probably going to read the 2nd book - "Doomed". Much better than the other Palahniuk book I read (don't remember the title, but it was not "Fight Club").
I actually had to quit this book. I just finished reading "We Have Always Lived in the Castle" by Shirley Jackson, and I simply cannot survive two god-awful books in a row.
*2.5* I am generally a fan of Palahniuk's writing, but this one just did not quite hit the mark for me. Things I enjoyed: the description of the landscape of Hell, Archer, the nods to "Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret", the little bit of a twist at the end and a little bit of how Madison's character changes. Things I did not enjoy: characterization (or the lack thereof) of Madison's character and of other secondary characters. I don't think that there was enough character development throughout the book and some of it felt as though it were scooped into the last 40 pages or so. I was annoyed by Madison's constant need to assure the reader that although she is young, she is knowledgeable and it got old fast. I wish that Madison's relationships to those she called her friends and family felt fleshed out, but they didn't.
For me, there was a lot of "I wish" and "I hoped" and not enough "I liked" or "I loved" when it came to reading this.
For me, there was a lot of "I wish" and "I hoped" and not enough "I liked" or "I loved" when it came to reading this.
If this wasn't an audio I would have never finished it. Almost every sentence was comprised of: adjective, adjective, adjective, noun, and poorly chosen expletive.
I'm not even going to bother with Doomed.
I'm not even going to bother with Doomed.
won't be reading the sequel
This was a decent read, but it didn't quite live up to my expectations. While Palahniuk's writing style is engaging and the concept of the story was interesting, the plot felt a bit disjointed and I didn't connect with the characters as much as I hoped I would. Overall, it was an okay book but not one of my favorites by Palahniuk.
This was a decent read, but it didn't quite live up to my expectations. While Palahniuk's writing style is engaging and the concept of the story was interesting, the plot felt a bit disjointed and I didn't connect with the characters as much as I hoped I would. Overall, it was an okay book but not one of my favorites by Palahniuk.