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3.95 AVERAGE
3.95 AVERAGE
unexpectedly different from yorgos’ filmic rendition of this & so much more of its meaning generated from uncertainty! that gray uproots bella’s origin story, leaving her infant-body transplantation unconfirmed & even rigidly denied by bella herself in her letters, offers yet another lens to the radical feminist un-doing of social self that the film & the first 3/4 of the text pursued. bella’s self then becomes this fetishized masculine construct according to her husband’s whims and ego indulgence, rather than the unique opportunity of 1. escape from polite society, or , if we’re rolling with the gaslighting punches of the first “narrative,” 2. cognitive maturation after the body.
anyway, this was interesting but not nearly as entrancing without yorgos’ hazy watercolory cyberpunk victorian sets & the unreliable narrator trope added a fun disruptive element to it all
anyway, this was interesting but not nearly as entrancing without yorgos’ hazy watercolory cyberpunk victorian sets & the unreliable narrator trope added a fun disruptive element to it all
challenging
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
“Only bad religions depend on mysteries…truth, beauty, and goodness are not mysterious. They are the commonest, most obvious, most essential facts of life.”
4.5/5
4.5/5
Unreliable narrators allow the reader to come to their own conclusions. Explores women’s choice & social class
cards on the table i hated the lanthimos film when i watched it. thankfully i enjoyed the book much more - i think what lanthimos chose to adapt from the original text wasn't really what made this as interesting as it is, and i think the book benefits from not being laden with the unspoken perspective of the film on bella's development.
the film aside, gray's prose is great fun. the absurd characters, layered meanings exploring empire, scotland, gender, etc. and competing accounts of the events of the book are all wonderfully executed. victoria's reassertion of her own narrative after the successive attempts by blessington, baxter, wedderburn and mccandless to deny her autonomy and any claim to herself elevates it all even further
the film aside, gray's prose is great fun. the absurd characters, layered meanings exploring empire, scotland, gender, etc. and competing accounts of the events of the book are all wonderfully executed. victoria's reassertion of her own narrative after the successive attempts by blessington, baxter, wedderburn and mccandless to deny her autonomy and any claim to herself elevates it all even further
DNF @50%
I don’t think the audiobook was a good option - I kept getting lost and was generally just very confused about what was happening.
The parts describing how Bella came to be just gave me the ick.
I don’t think the audiobook was a good option - I kept getting lost and was generally just very confused about what was happening.
The parts describing how Bella came to be just gave me the ick.