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justfoxie's review
2.0
This is another one for which I wish you could give half stars - two is probably overly harsh and it isn't quite good enough for three.
I started this book with rather low expectations, but was intrigued by the concept - a woman in high finance in the 1990s and written by a woman. Something I have some personal experience of, though in the present day. As some of the other reviewers have noted, Ms. Campbell really knows her stuff and gets a lot of the details right. However, there is a lot of sensationalism and the characters never really develop any depth. The writing style is very sparse, which at times works really well and at others grates on my nerves.
All in all a not quite satisfying read.
I started this book with rather low expectations, but was intrigued by the concept - a woman in high finance in the 1990s and written by a woman. Something I have some personal experience of, though in the present day. As some of the other reviewers have noted, Ms. Campbell really knows her stuff and gets a lot of the details right. However, there is a lot of sensationalism and the characters never really develop any depth. The writing style is very sparse, which at times works really well and at others grates on my nerves.
All in all a not quite satisfying read.
nomadreader's review
3.0
Originally published at http://nomadreader.blogspot.com)
On the Floor has a fascinating premise: it's set against the Gulf War of 1991 and focuses on a career I know little about: investment banking. I was immediately drawn to Geri as a character. She lives large, plays hard, and works hard. It's clear she can't keep up the pace, but I was looking forward to the journey. While there was much I liked in this novel, the pacing was uneven. Some parts were filled with suspense, while others were dragged down by detail.
I particularly enjoyed Geri's observations (and premonitions) regarding the Gulf War. Knowing both the end of that war and the coming second Gulf War, there were some chilling scenes. It's a slippery slope when the reader knows more about the coming events than the characters. In On the Floor, it mostly worked, but at times the premonitions began to feel heavy handed.
The verdict: A strong setting, intriguing characters and good writing gave this novel all of the elements of success, but together it never quite came together for me. Ultimately, I appreciated what Campbell was trying to tell with this complicated story and setting, but I think she lost focus in unnecessary details too often to truly succeed.
Rating: 3.5 out of 5
On the Floor has a fascinating premise: it's set against the Gulf War of 1991 and focuses on a career I know little about: investment banking. I was immediately drawn to Geri as a character. She lives large, plays hard, and works hard. It's clear she can't keep up the pace, but I was looking forward to the journey. While there was much I liked in this novel, the pacing was uneven. Some parts were filled with suspense, while others were dragged down by detail.
I particularly enjoyed Geri's observations (and premonitions) regarding the Gulf War. Knowing both the end of that war and the coming second Gulf War, there were some chilling scenes. It's a slippery slope when the reader knows more about the coming events than the characters. In On the Floor, it mostly worked, but at times the premonitions began to feel heavy handed.
The verdict: A strong setting, intriguing characters and good writing gave this novel all of the elements of success, but together it never quite came together for me. Ultimately, I appreciated what Campbell was trying to tell with this complicated story and setting, but I think she lost focus in unnecessary details too often to truly succeed.
Rating: 3.5 out of 5
ladyonequestion's review
4.0
I thought this book was quite cleverly written in the way that the author uses the backdrop of the reaction of the world to the first war in Iraq to symbolise the utter destruction happening in the protagonist's life. Geri is a wreck and it's hard to have much sympathy for her, you just want her to pull herself together. None of the characters are that personable, but I think this adds realism to the novel. I liked the ambiguity of the ending and I was glad that it didn't end up being about her starting a life-affirming relationship.
asuiterclarke's review
3.0
On the Floor follows Geri Molloy, a young woman who got started early and quickly rose to the top as a trader for an investment bank in London. She is gutsy, fierce, and happens to be the only trader that one of the richest investors in Hong Kong will speak to. She's also recovering from a horrible breakup and is facing having to move to China to appease her top client.
Campbell clearly knows her topic and writes about the life and energy of an investment bank with an expert hand. It's a new world to me, and that's one of my favorite things about reading books -- being immersed in a new world. As someone who's been through some crappy breakups (haven't we all?), I'm a bit envious of how well she captures the feelings that go along with that. She's excellent at describing physical reactions to emotion:
I felt a lurch somewhere below my ribs and a dizzying drop in temperature as if warm fluids were being drained from my body and replaced by formaldehyde chill.
This is something I constantly try to achieve, but my characters all seem to feel their feels the same way, with twists to the chest or the gut. So, respect.
On the Floor had some great moments, snappy dialogue, interesting characters, and surprising plot points. I would say the last third of the book is actually very powerful, with a back story coming out that I wished would have been more prevalent in the beginning of the book.
However, there was one main problem I had with it: it was such a heavy-hearted book. The lightest part of it took place in the last few pages. Geri is depressed and heartsick for the entire novel, abused both emotionally and professionally by the men she's surrounded by. While this is likely accurate for the time period (the early '90s), it makes for kind of a bummer of a read.
Certainly not a bad book, but as a reader, I almost cared too much for Geri, got frustrated for her as I would for a friend who was wallowing in misery after a rough breakup. The book is about so much more than her failed relationship, but at the end of the day, that's the part that really stuck out for me, and it was difficult to let go in order to see all the other great points about it.
Campbell clearly knows her topic and writes about the life and energy of an investment bank with an expert hand. It's a new world to me, and that's one of my favorite things about reading books -- being immersed in a new world. As someone who's been through some crappy breakups (haven't we all?), I'm a bit envious of how well she captures the feelings that go along with that. She's excellent at describing physical reactions to emotion:
I felt a lurch somewhere below my ribs and a dizzying drop in temperature as if warm fluids were being drained from my body and replaced by formaldehyde chill.
This is something I constantly try to achieve, but my characters all seem to feel their feels the same way, with twists to the chest or the gut. So, respect.
On the Floor had some great moments, snappy dialogue, interesting characters, and surprising plot points. I would say the last third of the book is actually very powerful, with a back story coming out that I wished would have been more prevalent in the beginning of the book.
However, there was one main problem I had with it: it was such a heavy-hearted book. The lightest part of it took place in the last few pages. Geri is depressed and heartsick for the entire novel, abused both emotionally and professionally by the men she's surrounded by. While this is likely accurate for the time period (the early '90s), it makes for kind of a bummer of a read.
Certainly not a bad book, but as a reader, I almost cared too much for Geri, got frustrated for her as I would for a friend who was wallowing in misery after a rough breakup. The book is about so much more than her failed relationship, but at the end of the day, that's the part that really stuck out for me, and it was difficult to let go in order to see all the other great points about it.
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