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thegirlwhoreadsbooks13's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Adult/minor relationship, and Blood
sofiajearally's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
I don't know where to start when I have to talk about this book, but let's give it a shot!
I want to start by pointing out how gorgeous Tess Gunty's writing is! It sometimes might be over-flourished for some readers but it was mind-blowing for me. Besides, she can really change her style to fit the characters or the setting of the scenes, which makes the writing never boring.
However, I struggled to get through the first quarter of the book and ended up reading it over the course of several months. Both because life happened so I couldn't read much but also because I felt that the story dragged on and on and on. In fact, I felt like there was no story because of the multiple storylines that added up to nothing. That is, until the chapter Variables (the girls that get it, get it). Suddenly, I couldn't put the book down. Then there were a few good chapters until the rise to the climax but I was a bit less invested.
So, when I finished it, I didn't really know what to think. Did I like it? I wasn't sure, beside that chapter. But I knew I wanted to skim it in order to annotate it because of the superb writing. When doing that, it hit me, I understood some of the author's choices way better in terms of storylines and realized it all came together by the end of the book. However, I stand by the fact that some things could have been cut off or shortened to make the whole more coherent and cohesive.
So, if like me you struggle at the beginning, please try to persevere for your own sake, it's really worth it!
To finish, I want to talk about Blandine's character. I didn't like her at first. But as the story went by and especially when I went back to annotate the book, I understood what had happened: she's seen by every character as this I'm-not-like-other-girls type of girl/manic pixie dream girl, and I fell for it too! But when you pay attention when it's her POV, she's just a girl. A teenage girl. Sure she can seem a bit weird but first off, she's traumatized and second, who's never had specific interests others deemed as weird as a teenager or wanted to dye their hair? She's actually very relatable, like when she plucks her leg hairs thinking of all the other things she could be doing instead, or the whole story with James (he's an ass and I hate him more and more by the way). So yeah, go Blandine!
I want to start by pointing out how gorgeous Tess Gunty's writing is! It sometimes might be over-flourished for some readers but it was mind-blowing for me. Besides, she can really change her style to fit the characters or the setting of the scenes, which makes the writing never boring.
However, I struggled to get through the first quarter of the book and ended up reading it over the course of several months. Both because life happened so I couldn't read much but also because I felt that the story dragged on and on and on. In fact, I felt like there was no story because of the multiple storylines that added up to nothing. That is, until the chapter Variables (the girls that get it, get it). Suddenly, I couldn't put the book down. Then there were a few good chapters until the rise to the climax but I was a bit less invested.
So, when I finished it, I didn't really know what to think. Did I like it? I wasn't sure, beside that chapter. But I knew I wanted to skim it in order to annotate it because of the superb writing. When doing that, it hit me, I understood some of the author's choices way better in terms of storylines and realized it all came together by the end of the book. However, I stand by the fact that some things could have been cut off or shortened to make the whole more coherent and cohesive.
So, if like me you struggle at the beginning, please try to persevere for your own sake, it's really worth it!
To finish, I want to talk about Blandine's character. I didn't like her at first. But as the story went by and especially when I went back to annotate the book, I understood what had happened: she's seen by every character as this I'm-not-like-other-girls type of girl/manic pixie dream girl, and I fell for it too! But when you pay attention when it's her POV, she's just a girl. A teenage girl. Sure she can seem a bit weird but first off, she's traumatized and second, who's never had specific interests others deemed as weird as a teenager or wanted to dye their hair? She's actually very relatable, like when she plucks her leg hairs thinking of all the other things she could be doing instead, or the whole story with James (he's an ass and I hate him more and more by the way). So yeah, go Blandine!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Violence, Animal death, Infidelity, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Blood and Gore
Minor: Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Drug use, and Medical content
auudrey's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Adult/minor relationship, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Excrement, Mental illness, Animal death, and Sexual content
mklein319's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Adult/minor relationship, Sexual assault, Bullying, Classism, Infidelity, and Mental illness
Moderate: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Blood, Child abuse, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
books_withblooms's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Suicidal thoughts, Death, Alcohol, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Infidelity, and Mental illness
carlyellefsen's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use and Adult/minor relationship
theresaclare's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty and Animal death
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship
abbyb23's review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
slow-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? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death, Animal death, and Adult/minor relationship
Moderate: Infidelity
Minor: Addiction
Overall, it’s an intense book with a significant amount of gore.stveit22's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
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
Wow. This was fantastic. A beautiful story of how you can feel so alone in the world, and have no idea that every person around you deals with similar feelings and emotions and traumas. How your neighbors are strangers, but live lives that aren’t so far from your own. A “coming of age” story of people who even in their 60’s don’t feel they have it all figured out yet. A story of people just trying to live, and love, and hate, and find peace in turmoil, trying to find where they fit in the world without becoming a part of things they despise. It’s beautifully written, quirky, poetic, deep, raw, and true. I loved this a thousand times more than I thought I would. Absolutely wonderful.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Injury/Injury detail, and Mental illness
veeples's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
At times, this book can feel like a bit of a slog to get through. The writing is pretty, but the pieces feel a bit too disconnected and figuring out how they fit together doesn’t always yield a totally satisfying conclusion. However, there are nuggets of painfully sincere and beautiful displays of vulnerability and humanity that are enjoyable. I’m sad to see I felt most fond of the adult characters and their inner lives over the central girl who is a teenager; her plight is not uninteresting nor unrelatable, but I just found I liked the other minor characters a little more.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Adult/minor relationship
Minor: Sexual content