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3.23 AVERAGE
3.23 AVERAGE
The first third definitely shows an author still trying to find her voice, but by the second third the book really picks up narrative pace. There were parallels here for me with Easton Ellis' explorations of disaffection and Narcissism, but would have liked the protagonists own untruths to himself and others to be explored more.
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Dazzling elegiac, a brutal story told with a tender and delicate voice.
It's hard to know where to begin with this novel. When I finished The Incendiaries I wanted to like it so much more than I did. It’s not to say the writing wasn’t good, it was. It just is a different style than I’m used to, which I occasionally like. But in this instance, I missed the feeling of wanting to absorb myself in this book. While it had some deep intrigue moments, the story lines and plot fell a flat. It’s kind of hard to pin point my exact emotions and thoughts about this book. Maybe it’s because I needed more from it and didn’t get it. Who knows.
I've taken a while to process what I thought about this book and I really just feel pretty plain about it. I think the character development could have been stronger because I wanted to know more about them. And it seemed like it was kinda the point to keep a few of the characters elusive, but I think it would have added more importance to their background and story had there been more.
Story line however had me really interested in the beginning! I think cult novels are very interesting. Which may be why I'm so disappointed because I didn't get to read more about the cult or even how they got to the point where it ended. (I don't want to go too in-depth on that because spoilers). For such a short book, I'm not surprised that I feel like I missed out on more.
My 3 star rating is because the writing was weird-cool-interesting-different. And I like different. But I just wasn't thrilled with the overall development of the story line and characters.
I've taken a while to process what I thought about this book and I really just feel pretty plain about it. I think the character development could have been stronger because I wanted to know more about them. And it seemed like it was kinda the point to keep a few of the characters elusive, but I think it would have added more importance to their background and story had there been more.
Story line however had me really interested in the beginning! I think cult novels are very interesting. Which may be why I'm so disappointed because I didn't get to read more about the cult or even how they got to the point where it ended. (I don't want to go too in-depth on that because spoilers). For such a short book, I'm not surprised that I feel like I missed out on more.
My 3 star rating is because the writing was weird-cool-interesting-different. And I like different. But I just wasn't thrilled with the overall development of the story line and characters.
I don’t know. It’s hard for me to like a novel that has so many reprehensible characters. There wasn’t much I could hold on to and connect with, even thought I am a survivor of a cult. I suppose it’s useful to have this story about the self-loathing and twisted logic that can lead one toward a cult. But all in all, I’m left with a feeling of moral depravity and sadness.
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
“Phoebe, oh, I love that girl, people said, but its possible they all just loved their reflected selves.”
challenging
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes