Reviews with content warning for Death of parent - Scenes of a Graphic Nature

This has been on my radar since last summer when I saw it at YALC, so when I noticed that the audiobook was on Scribd, I thought I'd give it a go. And it was a really engaging, funny, and yet also heart-wrenching novel. I liked Charlie as a character, even though she was unreliable and disorganised at times. I always appreciate characters whose self-awareness increases as the novel progresses, and I liked this aspect of Charlie; she realises that she's been selfish and flighty at times, as well as bitter over Laura's successes and has, on a number of occasions, made excuses for her lack of ambition and career progress.

I enjoyed the thought-provoking exploration of her friendship with Laura and I thought the way Laura changed over the years (especially after she found out that Charlie is a lesbian) was very realistic to real life. The critique of casual homophobia was very validating and the way the mystery unraveled kept me hooked. The final chapter was melancholic (as expected) and yet also hopeful for a brighter future, and I thought the author struck a really good balance between the two emotions.

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thesapphiccelticbookworm's review against another edition

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dark mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

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

4.75

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bella_cavicchi's review

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dark emotional mysterious fast-paced

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

3.0

I found this a bit of a mixed bag. It holds a strong premise, and I appreciated how Irish history (and the relatable tension between pride and shame over one's country) is woven throughout. But I also thought the execution of the narrative itself fell flat, the pace oftentimes moving too quickly and conveniently for me to appreciate the weight of the story. Likewise, the characters felt more like sketches than fully drawn out -- which is a shame because the foundation is there!

All said, it made for good commute reading :~)

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abigailc0x's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.25

this got better as it went on and so maybe a 3.25
i’m glad in the end you actually find out what happened but i feel as though there were a lot of things just left open and maybe that was the point but idk
i’m glad it got a happy ending but it doesn’t mention certain characters that id have liked to know abou

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nickc777's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

“Who could ever burn this?”

A brilliant example of a book that gets better as it goes on.

From the drive to Clipim, the novel was gripping, exciting and built tension and pace so well. The depiction of small town atmosphere, trauma and queer identity enthralled and I wouldn’t have thought about putting it down.

The first third however I found a little dull and as I read it seemed that this section was considered by writer or editor as necessary exposition rather than a gripping section of the novel. If this section was simply cut entirely, it would be five stars without a doubt.

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