Reviews

Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng

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boastybooks's review against another edition

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challenging dark slow-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

2.0

kiriwho's review against another edition

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3.0

Almost a DNF at 50% but powered through by increasing the speed to x1.5.
*spoilers ahead*

Deep family drama (and generational trauma I suppose) seems to not be my genre since I also felt a little bored with this authors other book, Little Fires Everywhere. I think there were 2 big issues for me. First, I went in completely blind and the beginning chapter
set me up to think this was gonna be a murder mystery, possibly thriller. My mistake.

The first half of the book has almost nothing to do with the death of Lydia and instead focuses on the parents upbringing. All the bullshit they went through as kids etc. This is a generational family drama revoling around the issues of interracial marriage and racism in a small town during the 1960s and 70s, which in itself is actually very interesting and well done. It does a beautiful job of setting up why the parents act as they do and then why they proceed to emotionally scar their children.

However, this brings me to my second issue and that is the characters don't talk to each other. I suppose the title of the book really does nail home the point. They do not tell each other *anything.* One of the biggest plot points is Marilyn choosing to abandon her family without saying a single word. She literally calls them and doesn't say anything while on the phone. The narration doesn't even let you know if she ever even tells them where she went? Everyone just chooses to leave a lot of things unsaid. This may be be realistic I suppose, and again very on point for the title, but as a reader I was just left frustrated.

deirdre16's review against another edition

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emotional sad medium-paced

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

5.0

Devastating and felt like I could only half breathe at times, but unbelievably well written story.

manderzreadz's review against another edition

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4.0

A very lyrical, expressive, and thought provoking novel highlighting the impact relationships, communication (lack of), and expectations have on one’s decisions and ultimately one’s life.
While I thoroughly enjoyed this beautifully written book, I struggled with the tragedy that was Lydia’s life. Seeing very similar parallels between myself and Lydia, I wanted better for her.
Other than that, this book teaches you just how important it is to communicate and see things from other people’s point of view, even if you are meaning well.

danajoy's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.5

Content Warnings

tmsresolute's review against another edition

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4.0

This debut novel was better than her other book that I read, in my opinion. It could have been because it captivated me from the first line. The "dysfunctional" family dynamic drew me in, while I tried to figure out the secrets each member has been keeping from each other while reading. In the end, it was an enjoyable book that had me cry over the final few chapters.
4/5 stars