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itstheesilvie's review
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Drug use, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Sexual content, Blood, Body horror, Toxic relationship, Gore, Infidelity, and Toxic friendship
kelkelkelkelly's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
The story is like if White Lotus read a bunch of queer theory, spent 50+ hours on lesbian TikTok engaging in discourse, then declared it could be the voice of a generation. It’s hyper-niche - I think the only people who could get through it are upper middle class queers in major metropolitan areas of North America. The references are so specific and trend driven that it already feels dated to read, and will probably be illegible in ten years.
The POV character Sasha is deeply unlikable, self-obsessed, manipulative, performative, controlling, and vain. The other characters are all thinly drawn, and it’s hard to tell if that’s to underscore Sasha’s self-obsession or bad writing. Lou, the only character of colour, is a particularly egregious example of this, seeming to be mostly ignored in the story as though the author couldn’t decide what to do with them, or otherwise demonstrating by omission that Sasha doesn’t care about anything she can’t fuck, control, or hate.
The novel is an uncomfortably frank look at how power works in queer social dynamics, albeit a very narrow sampling of the highly wealthy, mostly cis, and butch/femme conforming. It depicts the ways femme identity can be weaponized to conceal manipulation and controlling behaviour, brushed off as games and “high femme camp antics”, and insisting that if you don’t get you simply must not be smart enough. The book misapplies therapy speak and queer theory citations constantly, blurring the line between critique and asinine nonsense.
In all this, it’s impossible to tell if this was the author’s intent or if she’s just done a sloppy job at writing a complicated character. Either way, it gets points for originality and entertainment value.
Graphic: Fatphobia, Classism, Sexual content, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Infidelity, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Excrement
Explicit kink contentirenemarie's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Graphic: Body horror, Torture, Toxic relationship, and Sexual content
Moderate: Infidelity, Alcohol, and Drug use
Minor: Excrement
m_onalisaa's review
- Loveable characters? Yes
0.25
Graphic: Infidelity, Lesbophobia, Bullying, Sexual content, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Cursing, Abandonment, Body shaming, Medical content, Blood, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Biphobia, Sexual violence, Body horror, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Drug use, and Toxic relationship
icmcmx's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
0.25
It's like the writer took the most absurd things she could think of & threw them together in this grotesque mess of words.
This is not being queer. Please don't think that this is it.
Also would love to call the RSPCA for that poor dug.
Graphic: Antisemitism, Body shaming, Drug use, Sexual content, Torture, Ableism, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Biphobia, Classism, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Medical content, Infidelity, Lesbophobia, Medical trauma, Sexual violence, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship
britt_zonnebloempit's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
0.25
As a lesbian, this book is full of the most fucked up bullshit I have ever read in my entire life. There is so fucking much wrong with these characters. I'm pretty sure Sasha has about a million personality disorders that she refuses to acknowledge and get help for, instead behaving like the most toxic ass bitch I have ever read about in my entire life.
And then that fucking livestream between Jesse and Darcy? For fucks sake, if I could somehow erase these images from my fucking brain I would give just about ANYTHING. I did NOT need to read that. At all.
Also, a list of the extensive and healthy meals the dog gets from her owners:
- eye goop from her own eyes
- eye goop from her owners' eyes
- diabetic cat food
- a raw meatball (with herbs)
- a meatball baked in sauce
- leftovers from a plate
Not once did I see them give Vivienne dog food. Not. Once.
And then there is the constant, blatant fatphobia. Not just towards the women, no, towards the DOG too. Jesus fucking Christ.
Idk where this author got all these ridiculous ideas, but again, as a lesbian, none of this shit is true for most of the lesbians I know. Literally none of it.
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Fatphobia, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Injury/Injury detail, Dysphoria, Gore, Infidelity, Sexual content, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Rape, Toxic relationship, and Transphobia
ukponge's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Infidelity
preciouslittleingenue's review
1.5
I truly wish I had DNF’d it but I got to the point where once I got to the graphic nasty shit, it’s like…well now I might as well finish because how can it get worse?
Thankfully it didn’t. But it’s not like the ending was worth it. Apparently this novel started as a collection of essays unpacking the “high femme antics” frequently mentioned throughout, and I wish it had stayed that way. That concept and the idea of tying it to The Green Necklace was very intriguing to me and held a lot of truth. The rest of the book…? Could’ve done without it.
Whenever I read (or watch for that matter) something especially disturbing, my mind immediately goes “well, sure it’s fiction, but a real person had to come up with this for it to exist…” and I just can’t fathom how anybody’s brain goes to these places. The “performance” was frankly disgusting. I sat in my car driving with a horrid grimace on my face the entire time and felt sick to my stomach. Just. Why. God. Why. What on EARTH was the point of ANY of that? What was the point of this WHOLE BOOK? I get that the point was that they’re all unlikeable. And like, if that was it, fine. But it also was just DISGUSTING. All the disgust and the hatred of the characters only for it to go absolutely nowhere. Disappointing af. Waste of time doesn’t even feel strong enough to say because it not only felt like a waste but ALSO sickened me. Ugh.
Graphic: Blood and Gore
Moderate: Infidelity
the_lesbrarian's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Sexual content, Body horror, and Gore
Moderate: Gaslighting, Infidelity, Dysphoria, Emotional abuse, and Medical content
Minor: Sexual violence
geo81's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Graphic: Body horror, Toxic relationship, Sexual content, and Infidelity
Moderate: Toxic friendship, Drug use, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, and Biphobia
Minor: Excrement