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em_jay's review against another edition
4.0
Sweet Lamb of Heaven is a very interesting book. The story developed nicely and the pages kept turning with interesting characters, twists and surprises. The story left me with unanswered questions - and I'd like to know more! I wonder if there will be a follow up? A nice summertime read. I'd recommend it to someone who likes a suspense story with a bit of eclecticism.
vanillafire's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
szeglin's review against another edition
5.0
I received an ARC of this book through a Goodreads giveaway.
Sweet Lamb of Heaven is a slow burn of a book. I found myself becoming more pulled into the story the further along I got, reading faster and faster until I was staying up late to finish it last night.
It's an epistolary novel; the story is presented as a text document that Anna, the protagonist, keeps on her laptop. We know only what she knows, and discover as she discovers. Her relationship with her daughter Lena feels very genuine and well-established, as is her growing dislike of her husband Ned, who she is hiding from. Ned is a cipher of what we fear all politicians are--emotionally hollow beings whose appealing characteristics or beliefs are carefully engineered to resonate with their constituents.
And the people at the motel have their own mysteries, too. They're all linked in a way that they don't completely understand. We get to know them through Anna's eyes, which is to say incompletely and a bit at a time. This sense of discovery also felt very true to life.
At first the two threads of the story seemed very distinct from each other, but slowly they converge, as we knew they must, building to the climax of the book.
I really, really enjoyed reading this book. Much more than I thought I would, actually. Well done, Lydia Millet!
Sweet Lamb of Heaven is a slow burn of a book. I found myself becoming more pulled into the story the further along I got, reading faster and faster until I was staying up late to finish it last night.
It's an epistolary novel; the story is presented as a text document that Anna, the protagonist, keeps on her laptop. We know only what she knows, and discover as she discovers. Her relationship with her daughter Lena feels very genuine and well-established, as is her growing dislike of her husband Ned, who she is hiding from. Ned is a cipher of what we fear all politicians are--emotionally hollow beings whose appealing characteristics or beliefs are carefully engineered to resonate with their constituents.
And the people at the motel have their own mysteries, too. They're all linked in a way that they don't completely understand. We get to know them through Anna's eyes, which is to say incompletely and a bit at a time. This sense of discovery also felt very true to life.
At first the two threads of the story seemed very distinct from each other, but slowly they converge, as we knew they must, building to the climax of the book.
I really, really enjoyed reading this book. Much more than I thought I would, actually. Well done, Lydia Millet!
keithlafountaine's review against another edition
3.0
A very disjointed experience. It's hard to say how I feel about this book because there are aspects of it that really worked for me, but they are hidden amidst a lot of passages that don't. It reads very much like a diary (which makes sense in the context of the story), but because of that I never quite knew what was happening within the plot. There is a certain subplot for example that is left unexplained, and while it should feel eerie and discomforting, I was mostly left confused and discombobulated.
Maybe that was the author's intent, and if so she did her job because that's absolutely how I felt.
Maybe that was the author's intent, and if so she did her job because that's absolutely how I felt.
showlola's review against another edition
4.0
This book is so strange. Never would have picked this up without the Rooster, but I'm glad I did. I'm not sure if you had to have grown up steeped in Revelation lore like I did to fully appreciate this, but it was really fun.
a_small_rock's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Stalking, Domestic abuse, and Child abuse
mhall's review against another edition
3.0
Sweet Lamb of Heaven is both a psychological suspense story with an unreliable narrator, and an exploration of the nature of language and communication and the world, and the way language steps in and replaces the world and reality with a representation, and separates people? I'm not sure I get it, but when I was reading it I felt like I got it.
The story follows a woman and her young daughter, who are in hiding from the woman's husband. They have left Alaska and made it to a small rundown motel in Maine. The woman experienced a weird period of auditory hallucinations several years ago, starting when her daughter was born. The voice she heard stopped when her daughter started to speak. What was it? Psychological, medical, or something else? It's the off season and the motel is mostly deserted.
The woman's husband is described in sociopathic terms - he was content to just cohabitate with his wife indifferently, and to let her leave him without following, but now he's decided to run for state office, and he's taken up with a bunch of conservative politicians and adopted their beliefs. Since he's charismatic and handsome, there are thoughts of a national political career, and now he wants to present an image of the perfect family man, and is willing to go to any lengths to get his wife and daughter back so everything will look perfect to voters.
I think this has low ratings on Goodreads because the description of a psychological thriller doesn't encompass the weirdness of it. I liked it.
The story follows a woman and her young daughter, who are in hiding from the woman's husband. They have left Alaska and made it to a small rundown motel in Maine. The woman experienced a weird period of auditory hallucinations several years ago, starting when her daughter was born. The voice she heard stopped when her daughter started to speak. What was it? Psychological, medical, or something else? It's the off season and the motel is mostly deserted.
The woman's husband is described in sociopathic terms - he was content to just cohabitate with his wife indifferently, and to let her leave him without following, but now he's decided to run for state office, and he's taken up with a bunch of conservative politicians and adopted their beliefs. Since he's charismatic and handsome, there are thoughts of a national political career, and now he wants to present an image of the perfect family man, and is willing to go to any lengths to get his wife and daughter back so everything will look perfect to voters.
I think this has low ratings on Goodreads because the description of a psychological thriller doesn't encompass the weirdness of it. I liked it.
d3nim_diva's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
4.0
alexkerner's review against another edition
1.0
I have never given 1 star before but wow I hated this. It had the potential of being a captivating political thriller and descends into paranormal subplots that just didn't jive with the main plot thrust. The writing is dull, the protagonist is frustrating and the plot turns the author relies on are unbelievable that it is impossible to remain engaged. Do not read this!