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3.74 AVERAGE
3.74 AVERAGE
Soft Core by Brittany Newell 4/5š
*out in the US on 4 February 2025*
Okay, I loved this! I honestly was first drawn to the coverāI love it haha
I think my favorite part of this book was the inner voice and feelings of Ruth/Baby/Sunday; especially after the disappearance of Dino when things start to devolve . (Swipe to slide 3 some of the passages I highlighted while reading)
I loved how everyone in the book was humanized, especially when people who work in sex work, often arenāt. This was done without judgement, which was refreshing.
I wish there would have been more around female friendships with Ruthās loneliness and need for a companion. The last third of the book lost me a bit, but I wanted more resolution I think!
Thank you to NetGalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for an advance copy!
CWs:
Drug use and sexual content
Minor: suicidal thoughts (not main character) death of a parent
*out in the US on 4 February 2025*
Okay, I loved this! I honestly was first drawn to the coverāI love it haha
I think my favorite part of this book was the inner voice and feelings of Ruth/Baby/Sunday; especially after the disappearance of Dino when things start to devolve . (Swipe to slide 3 some of the passages I highlighted while reading)
I loved how everyone in the book was humanized, especially when people who work in sex work, often arenāt. This was done without judgement, which was refreshing.
I wish there would have been more around female friendships with Ruthās loneliness and need for a companion. The last third of the book lost me a bit, but I wanted more resolution I think!
Thank you to NetGalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for an advance copy!
CWs:
Drug use and sexual content
Minor: suicidal thoughts (not main character) death of a parent
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, Sexual content
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I loved this book. It read as incredibly honest, sincere, and wholly nonjudgmental. I loved Ruth AKA Baby AKA Miss Sunday. She was incredibly layered and really just wanted to give and recieve love without fear of losing it. Who doesn't!!! The writing style is soooo lush and Newell writes every character with so much dimension and care. The end gets a little too abstract and meandering but it has way too much good to care about a perhaps unstuck landing.
Thank you FSG for sending and Libro.fm for supplying me with the audio. I never had to live without my girl!!!!
Thank you FSG for sending and Libro.fm for supplying me with the audio. I never had to live without my girl!!!!
Ruth is a stripper called baby, sheās living in a shared flat with her drug dealer ex boyfriend dino, when all of a sudden he goes missing. While waiting for Dino to come back to her, she makes a new friend who turns out to be connected to someone she knows.
Iām not 100% sure this book was written for the likes of me. That being said I have thought about it since finishing and for the most part I did enjoy it. Iām just not sure if thatās because itās left so open and I didnāt get the answers I wanted or because itās stuck with me more than I thought it would.
Itās a bit like a fever dream, Iām not sure what was real, what wasnāt, what actually happened and what didnāt.
If you donāt mind a book that leaves everything to your interpretation then you will love this, but for me I need them questions answered.
Iām not 100% sure this book was written for the likes of me. That being said I have thought about it since finishing and for the most part I did enjoy it. Iām just not sure if thatās because itās left so open and I didnāt get the answers I wanted or because itās stuck with me more than I thought it would.
Itās a bit like a fever dream, Iām not sure what was real, what wasnāt, what actually happened and what didnāt.
If you donāt mind a book that leaves everything to your interpretation then you will love this, but for me I need them questions answered.
dark
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Christine Lakin was a perfect choice to narrate this story!
This book is a wild ride. You realize that our narrator is unreliable around 30% in and from that part onward you have to hold on tight. I believe the official description calls this story āsavage and tenderā and those are perfect descriptors.
I also know I tend to love books with stream of consciousness and Babyās mind is a confusing and rich sandbox. I know that this story is not for everyone, but for it is forā itās spectacular. I was more interested to be in her world than I was in the plot, but I was also very interested in how this story was going to conclude. I was not disappointed. It really fit the chaotic nature of the story.
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
challenging
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
4.5āļø
I really didnāt know what to expect when I started to read this book. I had some thoughts that maybe this would play out to be a mystery, but this book was nothing of the sort. Softcore is a look into the life of a sex worker that focuses on the emotions and thoughts of the sex worker rather than the work itself. It is such a detailed story and does an amazing job humanizing all the characters in a setting that people will always dehumanize. While there are some plot points that are present throughout the novel, it is mainly a look inside the characters life and mental health and how the main characters job impacts it.
The audiobook was a great listen, and the tone of the narrator and story really reminded me of the book Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead by Emily Austin. It really felt like you were being told what was happening from the main character herself in the audiobook.
I only wish that the ending was a bit clearer and wrapped up some of the plot points in the book better, but it does make sense with the rest of the story why it ended the way it did.
Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for the advanced audio-copy.
I really didnāt know what to expect when I started to read this book. I had some thoughts that maybe this would play out to be a mystery, but this book was nothing of the sort. Softcore is a look into the life of a sex worker that focuses on the emotions and thoughts of the sex worker rather than the work itself. It is such a detailed story and does an amazing job humanizing all the characters in a setting that people will always dehumanize. While there are some plot points that are present throughout the novel, it is mainly a look inside the characters life and mental health and how the main characters job impacts it.
The audiobook was a great listen, and the tone of the narrator and story really reminded me of the book Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead by Emily Austin. It really felt like you were being told what was happening from the main character herself in the audiobook.
I only wish that the ending was a bit clearer and wrapped up some of the plot points in the book better, but it does make sense with the rest of the story why it ended the way it did.
Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for the advanced audio-copy.
While interesting at first, the plot seemed to get lost along the way. Not sure whattt the point of this was. If a book is going to character driven they need to be much more interesting than Baby was. I kept waiting for something to regrant my attention to keep my interest but it just didnāt come.
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Honestly, I love an unhinged woman book and I don't even mind that there really wasn't a plot, but I think it tried to do too much at once and didn't particularly do a spectacular job at any of the things it was trying to do...
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes