You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Scan barcode
morganaj18's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
5.0
Graphic: Racial slurs and Suicide
aritacb's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
3.75/5
Short version to spare those who don’t want to read my sleep deprived rambling (writing this at 3 a.m. on my night shift lol): modern Greek tragedy, elite college kids, and Dostoyevsky’s Crime and Punishment vibes. Big themes were the privilege of wealth, moral depravity, and academic elitism.
This isn’t quite what I anticipated. I’m honestly kind of conflicted and will be looking into other people’s thoughts of this novel. Though I enjoyed the overall story, I felt myself wanting more out of it and the ending had me feeling more like this. My impression was that it was meant to be satirical and I felt it wasn’t clearly evident that it was (at least not typical humorous satire)- especially considering the fact that there are overwhelming amount of people who take this book way too seriously and completely ignore the extreme exaggeration.
Readers commonly put these characters that are written to be unlikable, and that are not “morally gray” but as they later discover are utterly depraved, on a pedestal and romanticize them. At the beginning, the narrator describes the group as almost ethereal and academically transcendental but as the plot progresses, you start to see their true colors and the plot dives further into their character flaws. I did however enjoy the transition into their descent and the difference in how they were perceived between the two books - not the characters themselves (definitely not the narrator who annoyed me) but the juxtaposition of their initial and final impressions.
What I also liked about the novel, was Tartt’s beautiful imagery and the story telling. I loved the academic verbiage even though it got annoying when used outside of the campus setting - which I know was intentional so that the characters would be seen as pretentious. I probably most enjoyed the dark academia aesthetic of the first half of the book the most (tangent - which is why I for sure need to read Babel by RF Kuang which is partly inspired by this novel.)
There were parts in the book that were problematic and although they made sense for the plot, they weren’t really necessary. Also, there were some scenes that I felt didn’t add to the overall plot that could have been omitted. Finally, I felt like Camilla’s character wasn’t as developed as the others, maybe because she was the avoidant manic pixie dream girl type but I wanted a bit more of a backstory for her - especially since the narrator was so obsessed with her. These reasons and the fact that the novel wasn’t I expected are why I gave this rating I did.
This book is fantastic for fall but I don’t think it would be everyone’s cup of tea, so I wouldn’t recommend it to everyone. It’s not an easy going read, especially with the plethora of classical academic references and the countless moral dilemmas (this is the main issue) in the book. I’d recommend looking up the trigger warnings.
12/9 edit:
Changing my rating because her writing keeps popping up in my head. It’s truly excellent.
Graphic: Alcoholism, Drug use, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Physical abuse and Racial slurs
Minor: Incest, Rape, and Sexual content
sasquatch_3's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Homophobia, Incest, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual violence, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Bullying, Hate crime, Mental illness, Vomit, Antisemitism, and Injury/Injury detail
camortiz26's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Alcoholism, Biphobia, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Homophobia, Incest, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Violence, Antisemitism, Grief, and Murder
Moderate: Violence, Suicide attempt, and Abandonment
ihearsparksfly's review against another edition
I actually don’t know how far I was in the book cause I was listening to an audio for this book.
Graphic: Racial slurs and Racism
carodunn's review against another edition
- 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
4.75
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Homophobia, Self harm, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Incest, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Sexism, Antisemitism, Islamophobia, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, and Dysphoria
Minor: Sexual violence and Suicidal thoughts
elibrownn's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Death, Drug use, Racism, Suicide, Religious bigotry, and Murder
Moderate: Homophobia, Incest, Mental illness, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Sexual assault, and Suicidal thoughts
sugar_fox's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Drug use, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Murder, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Incest, Infidelity, Racial slurs, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Grief, and Gaslighting
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Misogyny, Blood, Car accident, Suicide attempt, and Outing
raypaws's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Alcohol
Moderate: Addiction, Animal death, Gun violence, Homophobia, Incest, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Domestic abuse, Rape, and Self harm
avignaa's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Homophobia, Incest, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Murder, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Rape