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sibertooth's review against another edition
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Welp. I just stayed up till the middle of the night to finish this, which isn't something I generally do these days.
What's so fun about this book is that it starts out as a bog-standard MFA Dramedy – you know, with the stalled next novel and the awful student stories and all that – and then turns into a thriller while, to all appearances, keeping the MFA Dramedy scope and stakes. It is genuinely tense and gripping to read about this guy worrying that he's bargained away his self-respect and is about to lose his career.
It gets more conventional later on, and I guessed both big twists (the one in the main story and the one in the within-a-story) somewhat in advance, but that's an expected part of the thriller-reading experience, right?
Tone-wise (as opposed to plot-wise), the ending did seem to come out of left field, and that soured things a tiny bit for me. But this is still a heck of a ride.
What's so fun about this book is that it starts out as a bog-standard MFA Dramedy – you know, with the stalled next novel and the awful student stories and all that – and then turns into a thriller while, to all appearances, keeping the MFA Dramedy scope and stakes. It is genuinely tense and gripping to read about this guy worrying that he's bargained away his self-respect and is about to lose his career.
It gets more conventional later on, and I guessed both big twists (the one in the main story and the one in the within-a-story) somewhat in advance, but that's an expected part of the thriller-reading experience, right?
Tone-wise (as opposed to plot-wise), the ending did seem to come out of left field, and that soured things a tiny bit for me. But this is still a heck of a ride.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Stalking, Vomit, Abortion, Addiction, Alcohol, and Suicide
Minor: Sexism, Sexual harassment, and Pregnancy
jaynovara's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Addiction, Child death, Confinement, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Pregnancy, Stalking, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Cancer, Cursing, Drug use, Vomit, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Religious bigotry, and Murder
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