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bionicwalker's review
4.0
Copied from my review on Audible
There is a massive gap between people who enjoy surrealist horror and the people who listen to Audible Originals. I should be surprised but I'm not.
I can understand not fully grasping everything that is being done here but failing to acknowledge aspects of genre and style that are very evident throughout is a failure on you, the reader, not the writer unfortunately.
But enough slandering the reviews on here.
I liked the way the story used envy and aspiration as the protagonist's downfall and how Helen and Patti's house, despite being their home, is a site of decay, completely alienating, symbolic of the inability to truly admire someone without experiencing some kind of disappointment when you realise how underwhelming and unpleasantly human they are. This is all compounded by the rejection she is experiencing from someone richer and whiter than she is, depicted through various kinds of body horror, death and psychosis.
A much better story than people on here would have you believe.
There is a massive gap between people who enjoy surrealist horror and the people who listen to Audible Originals. I should be surprised but I'm not.
I can understand not fully grasping everything that is being done here but failing to acknowledge aspects of genre and style that are very evident throughout is a failure on you, the reader, not the writer unfortunately.
But enough slandering the reviews on here.
I liked the way the story used envy and aspiration as the protagonist's downfall and how Helen and Patti's house, despite being their home, is a site of decay, completely alienating, symbolic of the inability to truly admire someone without experiencing some kind of disappointment when you realise how underwhelming and unpleasantly human they are. This is all compounded by the rejection she is experiencing from someone richer and whiter than she is, depicted through various kinds of body horror, death and psychosis.
A much better story than people on here would have you believe.
whatchareadingheather's review
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.0
Ooof. Plotless/overly open-ended books are very much not my thing, but the narration was great at least.
ellekaie's review
3.0
2.5 stars.
Listened to this twice. I was 90% inattentive on my first go because I was mulling over work. Kudos to the narrator because her voice didn't distract me from my thoughts; it served its purpose at the time where I only needed an audiobook as a background noise.
Decided to give it another go because I was intrigued to figure out the story (On my first try, I was already listening near the end of it). However, I still didn't understand what happened despite giving 100% attention now.
Was the man Patty's father? Whose car was that at the end? Why didn't her mom hear her?
Listened to this twice. I was 90% inattentive on my first go because I was mulling over work. Kudos to the narrator because her voice didn't distract me from my thoughts; it served its purpose at the time where I only needed an audiobook as a background noise.
Decided to give it another go because I was intrigued to figure out the story (On my first try, I was already listening near the end of it). However, I still didn't understand what happened despite giving 100% attention now.
Was the man Patty's father? Whose car was that at the end? Why didn't her mom hear her?
friedatweehuysen's review
3.0
I'm left extremely confused as to what this book is all about. The end I can't decide if there was stuff in the AC or what. Or does the MC have a disability? It is well-written and read.
emilymatthys's review
1.0
Oh my. This was just not good at all. I’ll start off by saying I absolutely love a plotless book and usually adore when poets turn to writing novels. However, this wasn’t a book without a plot for the purpose of a deep character study or to explore a situation/dynamic in a more full way. This was just silly.
It is terribly terribly written, for starters. This doesn’t have the usual flair that generally comes from a poet turning author. In fact, the writing was very shallow, flat, and rather juvenile. The author was also the narrator and I can’t say if this made it worse or better, but I can assure you the narration was atrocious. So monotone and boring. Again, very flat.
I rarely feel that any time spent reading is truly a waste as I can almost always grow or learn in some capacity. Unfortunately, this is one of those rare times as, all in all, this was just a complete waste - of time, energy, and brain space.
It is terribly terribly written, for starters. This doesn’t have the usual flair that generally comes from a poet turning author. In fact, the writing was very shallow, flat, and rather juvenile. The author was also the narrator and I can’t say if this made it worse or better, but I can assure you the narration was atrocious. So monotone and boring. Again, very flat.
I rarely feel that any time spent reading is truly a waste as I can almost always grow or learn in some capacity. Unfortunately, this is one of those rare times as, all in all, this was just a complete waste - of time, energy, and brain space.
delfunia's review
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.25
falonwillow's review
2.0
i love melissa but this lowkey didn’t do it for me. it made me feel like the movie the lodge honestly. i like open endings but this ending was more vacant than italy in spring. i like to be able to at least make a guess at what happened and i feel like this didn’t give me that option. idk maybe i would feel different if i could read it physically.
booksbysoph's review
2.0
This gothic-inspired novella / extended short story feels a bit pointless. The text is lyrical and engaging, but nothing really happens and the story doesn’t really go anywhere. The end feels so sudden that I almost thought I missed something.