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3.57 AVERAGE
3.57 AVERAGE
Rounded up from 2.5 stars.
I see what the author was going for, but it felt a bit repetitive and underdeveloped. It started off promising, but the longer it went on, the more it lost steam. The characters fell flat and the ending was rushed. I didn't understand what the author was trying to convey and felt like she was trying to distract from not having a clear message with big worlds and complicated concepts.
I see what the author was going for, but it felt a bit repetitive and underdeveloped. It started off promising, but the longer it went on, the more it lost steam. The characters fell flat and the ending was rushed. I didn't understand what the author was trying to convey and felt like she was trying to distract from not having a clear message with big worlds and complicated concepts.
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
picked up this for the queer longing and religious tones which ended up very lacking. I feel like it's a stretch to even consider this book as having queer representation and the characters felt flat for a plot that was character-driven. disappointed because the setting seemed promising
Laura would have jumped. She knows that now. She will do anything Virginia asks her to. It is a fact beyond assessment or adjudication; it is a law of nature. It’s not her place to have an opinion on it. She will go where Virginia goes. Virginia will tell her what things mean.
2.25-5 ish
a lot of potential here but i disliked the writing and 90% of the characters were very flat (and not just because of an unreliable narrator) and indistinguishable from one another. the middle part is mostly pretty boring. i also did not like the writing style at all and only liked certain parts (the first page is honestly really good). theres also muddy ideologies and themes and the author that all the characters are in love with or hate never gets fleshed out. also theres barely any wlw romance or yearning :/// agh why didnt i (re)reread the secret history instead. no idea why a lot of people gave this 5/5
2.25-5 ish
a lot of potential here but i disliked the writing and 90% of the characters were very flat (and not just because of an unreliable narrator) and indistinguishable from one another. the middle part is mostly pretty boring. i also did not like the writing style at all and only liked certain parts (the first page is honestly really good). theres also muddy ideologies and themes and the author that all the characters are in love with or hate never gets fleshed out. also theres barely any wlw romance or yearning :/// agh why didnt i (re)reread the secret history instead. no idea why a lot of people gave this 5/5
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I appreciated how this take on dark academia was focused on music instead of literature for the academia part, even while having a specific literature woven heavily throughout. It could have used some editing in the middle where the plot started to lag, but otherwise I enjoyed this.
Prose was at times a bit rough, unpolished. Virginia was not wholly believable as a cult of personality, but I think that Burton succeeds enough in making Virginia real that I didn’t notice too much. Our man character, Laura’s progression and development was excellently mastered. This novel did many things in its discussion of religion, of gender, of America’s fascination with religious fantaticism vs. secular revolution (in general, the novel could be a metaphor for the modern political theatre), the culture and art we obsess over as teenagers, anyway, anyway. Highly recommend. Will be purchasing a hard copy.
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship
Moderate: Eating disorder, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Religious bigotry
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Homophobia, Alcohol, War
dark
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
mysterious
tense
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I think what made this book fail is neither the characters nor the plot have any substance. I never understood why Laura was so obsessed with being world historical, why she was obsessed with Virginia, why the boys were, and why Virginia was like she was. They just were because they just … were. And the absolutely horribly annoying writing style. Every other sentence, I’m sad to say, was written like this. I can’t tell if this book is supposed to be satire or not but it fails either way. The book did not give. It’s only redeeming quality is it’s kinda thriller-y and propulsive so I wanted to keep reading but I kept being disappointed.