Reviews with content warning for Rape - Atonement

Like many others have said in their reviews, the beginning pace of the book is sluggish just like the heat wave that takes up much of the first part. Once the crime has been comitted the book picks up and is at it's best when highlighting Robbie, Cecilia, and Briony's own jobs and efforts during the war.

The ending is definitely frustrating, but not all together a complete surprise. Much of Briony's viewpoints throughout the book are infuriating for one reason or another, and the epilogue was just another point on the list of why that is so. I found the way McEwan wrote Briony's thoughts and character to be one of the more intriguing points of the book but I still hate her.

Overall a good book in terms of prose and descriptions of WWII, but I would not recommend it to those who are looking for a satisfying romance that is all tied up at the end. I think I came in with expectations of a really satisfying romance after hearing so much about the movie, but was left wanting for more closure to Robbie and Cecilia's story which is why I rate it 3 stars.

Spoilers below!

After learning that the whole reunion between Robbie and Cecilia at the end was fabricated I was so so mad! Especially when Briony has the nerve to say that their story will only continue on as her characters and even proclaims Robbie and Cecilia as her lovers. The whole epilogue section unraveled any sympathy I had been starting to feel for Briony, as she proved herself a coward until the end, too scared to right the wrongs of her younger self.

I feel like it also calls into question the whole main theme of the novel. Briony never actually atones for what she did in any meaningful way, and instead continues to live on with the fantasies inside her head. In the end, she really never changed or grew from what she did when she was younger. Adult Briony has the capacity to make a mistake/crime of that severity all over again tbh.

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annylein's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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jmkendall0218's review against another edition

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challenging reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
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

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lily_eames's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

3.5

I went into this book with high hopes and the goal of being of virtuous and reading the book before watching the movie. I have to say, it was a tough read. It’s written in an extremely, almost painfully detailed style and it is incredibly slow paced. I definitely almost DNF’ed during the war chapters. However, I really enjoyed the first part of the book and was absolutely heartbroken by the end. Briony hater for life!

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bvrealis's review against another edition

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challenging emotional inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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sophie42's review against another edition

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challenging mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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daffodilcherry's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

3.5

Read as part of The reading challenge book: reread a classic you hated in highschool. I had to watch the movie in highschool and hated the titular "atonement" as insincere and self-serving,

and I'm vindicated that that was the point of view of Briony all along.

So the final chapter was incredibly vindicating, as this differed slightly from the movie. I think the multiple perspectives were well handled, if a bit slow at times.

The narration by Josephine Bailey was delightful, she was amazing at changing her voice for character dialogue. My only gripe about this audio book was that the book was segmented by seemingly random paragraphs, instead of chapters or more logical sections, which made it a little difficult to find a good place to stop.

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isabeldel's review against another edition

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challenging emotional mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

3.5

I felt like I had to push through this book, but I think it was because of my mindset at the time of reading. Beautifully written and lived up to my expectations from previously watching the movie.

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