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mrsmaryai's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
tense
medium-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse
selenatothemax's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
4.5
neonskylite's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.5
had a very uncomfortable moment when machado was alluding to some of my favourite short stories from her and saying the structure was not experimental but because she was so traumatised and in the thick of abuse she ended up fragmenting
when i got to thechoose your own adventure part i was losing it in the best possible way
when i got to the
a_violentfemme's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
5.0
I cannot believe I put off reading this for as long as i did. I have to be honest, I was put off by the hype but I absolutely was not disappointed.
Machado crafts this memoir in extraordinary ways and I loved the writing style. Fragmented and non-linear, she leans into the gothic horror themes of a haunted house turning it's lens onto domestic abuse between queer women.
Some parts had me gasping in horror and I honestly felt every emotion possible through this.
It really is a must read.
Machado crafts this memoir in extraordinary ways and I loved the writing style. Fragmented and non-linear, she leans into the gothic horror themes of a haunted house turning it's lens onto domestic abuse between queer women.
Some parts had me gasping in horror and I honestly felt every emotion possible through this.
It really is a must read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse
slowmojo00's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 stars
a great memoir that discusses queer abusive relationships, something that is rarely talked about. this book struck a chord with me. I loved Carmen Maria Machado's writing and narration.
a great memoir that discusses queer abusive relationships, something that is rarely talked about. this book struck a chord with me. I loved Carmen Maria Machado's writing and narration.
paigebayliss's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gaslighting, Domestic abuse, and Emotional abuse
mxunsmiley's review against another edition
5.0
A very difficult novel to get through. I really disliked it the first time I read it two years ago. Now, after coming to realizations in my life, I realize why I disliked it so much--it rang very authentically to my experience of abuse both in this specific context and in general, though I don't wholly relate to every incident. The feelings, the doubt, the lingering thought that maybe you're just making it up, and this refusal to acknowledge that relationships between women can absolutely be abusive as well, it all was uncomfortable yet important to put into words.
It does read extremely disjointedly, but as someone familiar with her experience in multiple ways, it mirrors the way you see the world when in this kind of situation and relationship--the helplessness, the horror, the detachment. I think using the second person is ultimately the most effective because you learn to dissociate yourself from the experience eventually, for better or worse.
I also ended up loving the footnotes referencing a folklore encyclopedia. The motif hit the right note for me this time, it just seemed to fit with the horror aspect as when you really think about it, many women in folklore are subject to abject horror, for the entertainment of the masses or chastisement/shaming of women, the latter of which obviously is a big problem when addressing female abuse victims (and the dismissal that female abusers exist).
It's hard for me to be detailed because again, it was difficult for me to get through. I loved Machado's Her Body and Other Parties, so I was aware that she is known for horror, but I hate to say that her most horrifying story was this one, from the structure to the content itself. It's sad to admit that sometimes reality is what is truly the pinnacle of terror, and she captured that perfectly with this.
It does read extremely disjointedly, but as someone familiar with her experience in multiple ways, it mirrors the way you see the world when in this kind of situation and relationship--the helplessness, the horror, the detachment. I think using the second person is ultimately the most effective because you learn to dissociate yourself from the experience eventually, for better or worse.
I also ended up loving the footnotes referencing a folklore encyclopedia. The motif hit the right note for me this time, it just seemed to fit with the horror aspect as when you really think about it, many women in folklore are subject to abject horror, for the entertainment of the masses or chastisement/shaming of women, the latter of which obviously is a big problem when addressing female abuse victims (and the dismissal that female abusers exist).
It's hard for me to be detailed because again, it was difficult for me to get through. I loved Machado's Her Body and Other Parties, so I was aware that she is known for horror, but I hate to say that her most horrifying story was this one, from the structure to the content itself. It's sad to admit that sometimes reality is what is truly the pinnacle of terror, and she captured that perfectly with this.