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stephenrotzschthomas's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
A strong collection of almost uniformly dark stories. It's clear that this is some of Keegan's earliest work, though. There is much of the strong writing that sold me so wholly on Foster and Small Things Like These, but her grasp of nuance is still unsettled. Perhaps most difficult to deal with here are the moments where Keegan butts up against racism. Perhaps it is a comment on the narrators in her stories, though I felt the language used only distracted from the stories in question. I've another Keegan collection on my TBR pile, and am hoping these are youthful attempts at edginess that have faded over time.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism
Minor: Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, and Violence
hollyrebecca's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Lyrically written stories that speak to the darkness in humans, their faults and dreams. Each was so well written, but some of these stories will never leave me: Antarctica, The Ginger Rogers Sermon, and Sisters
Content Warnings
Moderate: Pregnancy, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Gaslighting, Grief, Infidelity, Misogyny, and Sexism
Minor: Abortion, Death, Death of parent, Fatphobia, Fire/Fire injury, Child abuse, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Murder, Racial slurs, Rape, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Racism
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