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If you want to read the internal monologue of a narcicistic abelist sexist man [theo] who should absoluetly never work in metal health but, despite his fellon-level creep behavior, inexplicably still holds a clinical licence this is your book. Just imagine holden caulfield (sp. catcher in the rye kid) grew up to be a psychothetapist (or whatever) and also the book was written by an 18 year old boy for his intro to creative writting class.
I honestly thought this was set in like 1910 because mental illness, therapy, and psychiatric care are so inconsistently and unrealistically portrayed. But then, theo`s cell phone rang and i fully closed the book to google the time period. turns out the cell phone wasn't a creative anacronysm. If you read this, i promise you will feel like you`ve smoked too much of the weed Theo claims to be "adicted" to. I honestly felt like i was going to become the reverse oprah of credentialing by the end of this book. "you loose a licence, and you loose a licence, and you..."
The most clinically infuriating part was Alecia had a totally believable presentation of psycosis with negative symptoms until she met Theo and then any semblence of diagnostic cogency was abruptly abandonded in favor of actually impossible behavior. Also at one point the psychiatrist calls her "a borderline". first of all, sir, no person with BPD has ever behaved this way, second "a borderline"? straight to jail.
the art stuff is as criminally incorrect as the psych content.
on a more general note：
Women are only accessories to men in this book. I cant recall one interaction between two women other than an assult between two psych patients because one said that the other (alecia) had a crush on our soon-to-be-unlicenced psychoanalyst, Theo. (and while were here, what even is this man's job? he's not a psychologist or psychoatrist or therapist. maybe he had a licence to begin with? it woulfd explaon a lot).
Actually, the most frusrating part may have been that the author inserted SA that was cliniclally incinsisent and narriatvely irrelevant.
the writing is comically bad. truly and deeply bad.
Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Suicide, Violence
Every character was meticulously crafted, allowing me to dive deep into their psychological complexities. The connections were brilliant, weaving together both the unfolding present and the timelines in such a captivating manner. I was utterly amazed at how seamlessly everything fit together; it wasn’t until the final moments that I realized Alicia Berenson's diary entries and the drama of her husband’s affair were unfolding side by side!
The ending was the cherry on top, tying everything together and revealing the true motivations behind each character’s actions. The intricacies of their psychological states and circumstances were astonishingly well executed! Even before the jaw-dropping twist, I was already in awe of the narrative. And when the twist hit—wow! The fact that Theo had been stalking Alicia all along was a complete shock! Plus, the significance of him leaving the gun on the floor? Genius!
Finding out that Alicia shot her husband herself is such a powerful revelation about her character and mental state. I absolutely loved all the little details and references scattered throughout the early chapters, making this book not just a read, but an exhilarating experience. Chef's kiss!
Minor: Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Infidelity, Self harm, Suicide, Medical content, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Alcohol
Graphic: Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, Murder, Toxic friendship
Moderate: Cursing, Infidelity, Self harm, Violence, Stalking
Minor: Child abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Blood, Car accident, Death of parent, Alcohol
Graphic: Child abuse, Gun violence, Murder
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Gaslighting
Minor: Confinement, Mental illness, Car accident
Graphic: Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Forced institutionalization, Medical trauma, Murder
Moderate: Drug abuse, Drug use, Fatphobia, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Violence, Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Minor: Sexual content
Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Cursing, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Stalking, Car accident, Murder, Gaslighting, Alcohol
Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Medical content, Suicide attempt, Murder, Alcohol
Moderate: Cursing, Domestic abuse, Blood, Car accident, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Body shaming, Fatphobia, Sexual assault, Stalking
Graphic: Self harm, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Murder
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence
Minor: Confinement, Drug abuse, Car accident, Death of parent
Moderate: Cursing, Drug abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Sexual content, Murder
Minor: Child abuse, Death, Suicide attempt, Sexual harassment
Minor: Child abuse, Confinement, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Blood, Stalking, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol