Scan barcode
alanagrace7's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Mental illness, Rape, Gun violence, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Sexual violence, Pedophilia, Drug abuse, and Alcoholism
Moderate: Death of parent and Fatphobia
art3miis's review against another edition
dark
slow-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? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Fatphobia, Eating disorder, and Alcoholism
alexandra13's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Eileen is filthy, and dark. Moshfegh's main character is a nobody who spends far too long living with her alcoholic father, pining over the hot woman in town who just showed up. I love the way Mosfegh writes, and how she creates dark pits for characters. But the discussion of themes such as incest and pedophilia can feel heavy handed at times, which is in line with Eileen's deplorable character, but it is very uncomfortable.
However, I don't believe Eileen's future in a beautiful house, in a beautiful town. I will give Moshfegh the benefit of the doubt and say that it is Eileen's unreliable narration, and desperation in making the reader believe that she turns into Rebecca after moving to New York, but I doubt it. The narration that describes her future feels disconnected from Eileen's past in a way that is impossible.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Incest, Pedophilia, and Rape
Moderate: Fatphobia, Stalking, and Lesbophobia
gralicia's review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.0
So... I love Moshfegh's stories and writing style, but her persistent fatphobia is really unacceptable. It appears in every one of her books and really shows (and encourages) disdain towards fat people.
I'm done. I hope she can do better in her next book. I'm sick of her fatphobic comments (that add nothing to her stories, but severely cheapen them) and I won't be reading any more of her stories unless she makes a change. It's so disappointing.
I'm done. I hope she can do better in her next book. I'm sick of her fatphobic comments (that add nothing to her stories, but severely cheapen them) and I won't be reading any more of her stories unless she makes a change. It's so disappointing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, and Sexual content
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Body shaming, Fatphobia, and Addiction
lilyvs's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Incest, Pedophilia, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Rape, and Fatphobia
annasorr's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-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
3.75
Eileen is full of writing that is beautiful, tense, strange, and scary. I enjoyed getting to know Eileen and her world and deeply related to Eileen’s lack of self-assuredness. The novel’s narrator, Eileen’s older self, turns this narrative from a self-indulgent thriller to a well-paced, mysterious puzzle of the past. As this is Moshfegh’s first novel, it lacks some of the polish that her later writing has, but it’s still very much worth a read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Incest, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Abandonment, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Blood, Fatphobia, Mental illness, Excrement, Forced institutionalization, Body shaming, Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Rape, Sexual assault, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Eating disorder, Drug abuse, Gaslighting, Misogyny, Murder, Addiction, Grief, Vomit, and Violence
misssleepy's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I listened to this book after listening to My Year of Rest and Relaxation.
Eileen was a slow burn. It was mostly vibes, the plot doesn’t actually start until the last probably 30% of the book. Because of this, I think at times this book felt a little boring. I couldn’t really figure out what it was building towards.
I was actually starting to guess that the big reveal was that Rebecca was a pedo, so I was oddly relieved that she was quite the opposite. I don’t really know how I feel about the ending though. Did Rita deserve was happened to her? Idk, it’s complicated. Her confession was sad. She seemed almost dumb and naive, like she didn’t really understand the impact of her action (and lack of action). I kind of wonder if she truly died, I assume she did from carbon monoxide poisoning but this is a chance for her survival.
Again. Moshfegh presents a narrator that at times I loved and at times hated. She does a good job of writing characters that are deeply flawed by their pasts but still choose to victims to their circumstances. Eileen could have left at any point and spent a lot of time contemplating leaving, but it took necessity to get her to act.
Eileen was such a gross character. Her choices were questionable throughout the story. Her self-consciousness and self hatred were visceral. Her behavior was so strange but still kind of mundane. I liked being in the mind of such an unsettled person, though at times I was completely grossed out by her. I think the grossness is what made her as a character so believable and human.
It was easy to see why Eileen was so captivated by Rebecca. I couldn’t really tell if Rebecca was playing Eileen all along, I like to believe that was something genuine between them. I can’t wait to see Ann Hathaway’s interpretation in the movie.
Tbh I was really hoping for a but if romance between them.
Overall, I did like the book and was satisfied with it. I wish it would’ve captivated me a bit earlier on than it did.
Eileen’s reflections at the end were some of my favorite passages of the novel. I will leave this quote below, which demonstrates the growth of Eileen as she reflects on her life as a much older woman:
“Here is how I spend my days now. I live in a beautiful place. I sleep in a beautiful bed, I eat beautiful food. I go for walks through beautiful places. I care for people deeply. At night, my bed is full of love because I alone am in it. I cry easily from pain and pleasure and I don’t apologize for that. In the mornings I step outside and am thankful for another day. It took me many years to arrive at such a life.”
While this novel covers a few short days, they are the most meaningful of this woman’s life. We see glimpses of how these days and the events at occurred within them transformed the trajectory of her life. It still leaves a bit of mystery.
Overall, a very atmospheric, gross, and weird tale of the choices that change a woman’s life. Who is to say if it was for better or worse, but I think that Eileen would argue for the better.
Eileen was a slow burn. It was mostly vibes, the plot doesn’t actually start until the last probably 30% of the book. Because of this, I think at times this book felt a little boring. I couldn’t really figure out what it was building towards.
I was actually starting to guess that the big reveal was that Rebecca was a pedo, so I was oddly relieved that she was quite the opposite. I don’t really know how I feel about the ending though. Did Rita deserve was happened to her? Idk, it’s complicated. Her confession was sad. She seemed almost dumb and naive, like she didn’t really understand the impact of her action (and lack of action). I kind of wonder if she truly died, I assume she did from carbon monoxide poisoning but this is a chance for her survival.
Again. Moshfegh presents a narrator that at times I loved and at times hated. She does a good job of writing characters that are deeply flawed by their pasts but still choose to victims to their circumstances. Eileen could have left at any point and spent a lot of time contemplating leaving, but it took necessity to get her to act.
Eileen was such a gross character. Her choices were questionable throughout the story. Her self-consciousness and self hatred were visceral. Her behavior was so strange but still kind of mundane. I liked being in the mind of such an unsettled person, though at times I was completely grossed out by her. I think the grossness is what made her as a character so believable and human.
It was easy to see why Eileen was so captivated by Rebecca. I couldn’t really tell if Rebecca was playing Eileen all along, I like to believe that was something genuine between them. I can’t wait to see Ann Hathaway’s interpretation in the movie.
Tbh I was really hoping for a but if romance between them.
Overall, I did like the book and was satisfied with it. I wish it would’ve captivated me a bit earlier on than it did.
Eileen’s reflections at the end were some of my favorite passages of the novel. I will leave this quote below, which demonstrates the growth of Eileen as she reflects on her life as a much older woman:
“Here is how I spend my days now. I live in a beautiful place. I sleep in a beautiful bed, I eat beautiful food. I go for walks through beautiful places. I care for people deeply. At night, my bed is full of love because I alone am in it. I cry easily from pain and pleasure and I don’t apologize for that. In the mornings I step outside and am thankful for another day. It took me many years to arrive at such a life.”
While this novel covers a few short days, they are the most meaningful of this woman’s life. We see glimpses of how these days and the events at occurred within them transformed the trajectory of her life. It still leaves a bit of mystery.
Overall, a very atmospheric, gross, and weird tale of the choices that change a woman’s life. Who is to say if it was for better or worse, but I think that Eileen would argue for the better.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Vomit
Moderate: Fatphobia and Murder
h0tb1tch's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Fatphobia, Eating disorder, Child abuse, and Alcoholism
sierrainstitches's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.0
I don’t know. Every once in a while Eileen would say something super relatable, and then she’d follow that up with something really weird and fucked up. It felt like this was just written to see how weird it could be while remaining cool, except that it wasn’t cool. Def not my fav from Ottessa
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder, Rape, Fatphobia, and Vomit
Moderate: Pedophilia
mccalab's review
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism
Moderate: Child abuse, Incest, Rape, Pedophilia, and Confinement
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Fatphobia, Murder, and Vomit