Reviews with content warning for Adult/minor relationship - Trust Exercise

Reviews tagging 'Adult/minor relationship'

Trust Exercise by Susan Choi

71 reviews

magsthehag's review against another edition

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dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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dylanlouise's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional tense slow-paced

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

3.25

Unlike other readers, I LOVED the first section-thought it was such an honest, perfect portrayal of our teenage years and the theatre training experience. Was super into the creative writing choices and the narration changes but the second and third parts didn't hold my attention. Overall, it was hard to follow and there was just so much graphic sexual assault that I didn't want to keep going but it had some redeeming factors so..

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adriennne's review against another edition

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challenging medium-paced

Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I'm so fucking confused

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emilyinherhead's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

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

4.0

How do I even describe this book? It's written in three sections:

(1) About a group of teens at a performing arts high school, taking drama classes and Feeling Their Feelings.
(2) About a few of those same characters, years later.
(3) About a young woman searching for someone we met in the first section.

It's impossible to say much more about the plot without giving spoilers, so just know that:

• Susan Choi is so freaking smart and the writing is excellent
• If you were a theater (sorry, theatre) kid or attended any sort of performing arts school, the first section will probably really resonate with you
• You will probably be confused at the end and you might go down an internet rabbit hole of reviews and explanations, hoping to understand What Exactly Just Happened To You

But wow, what a novel.

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literaryliaisons's review

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3.0

What a bleak novel, but I can see why it won the National Book Award. Choi's prose is arresting. Overall, I'm glad I read it and will probably be tempted to pick up another novel by Choi in the future for her prose alone, and the boldness of her stylistic decisions.

All in all, I would certainly recommend this novel to others if they enjoy contemporary literary fiction and are comfortable with the content. The three instances of explicit sexual assault in this novel, as well as the child grooming, make it a difficult sell and I would probably lead with this content warning before giving the recommendation. Nevertheless, this novel was compelling, especially the second section and the "complication" of the established narrative that Karen presents. I also very much appreciated the spot-on theatrical details and the unfortunately accurate portrayal of the (few but prevalent) predatory figures that lurk in performing arts spaces.

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