Reviews with content warning for Suicide - Fruta Madura

This book laid bare all the wounds of my own tech startup traumas. You could read this seriously, or with the levity of dark comedy that it's sold as. It's so exact in its descriptions, the desperate conversations, branded swag, agonizing all-hands, diversity metrics (lack thereof), the hostile undertones that erupt eventually. I felt massive anxiety and nausea reading this.

Cassie is a marketing writer at Voyager, a user data startup promising ROI for its customers. She is far from home, not happy in San Francisco, barely affording rent and needing to buy outlet groceries despite being "senior" in a big tech job. Every day is a new nightmare, as she works endless hours and performs, to be told she's not performing. She relies on drugs, and a half-relationship with a chef, who admits he and his girlfriend are trying an open relationship. Throughout her life, she is followed by a black hole that grows and shrinks. She becomes infatuated with black hole research.

Sarah Rose Etter is a talented writer, and doesn't hold back in her relentless descriptions of late-stage capitalism, have and have-nots, sexism, depression, the helplessness and bitterness of an entire generation trying to survive pandemics and a housing crisis.

I had a hard time sorting through the many metaphors being thrown at us -- fruit and seeds, black holes and space, fire and filth, bloody meat, singularity. On top of this, dictionary definitions marked each chapter, which felt oddly campy and a bit of a disservice to the quality of the writing. All of this made for a distracting read, when I really just wanted to sit in the heart of the rage and recollections of our disintegrating narrator.

This is also a cast of horrible people that you'll need to be fine with hating. Even with Cassie, who endures verbal abuse at home and at work, you'll likely become frustrated, and belabored with the self pity displayed on each page.

You should still give this a try if you're okay mentally with a lot of depressing and triggering content, have survived the woman-in-tech experience (weak laugh), and like trippy, unstable narrator reads.

Content Warnings

clairebear23's review against another edition

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3.5

3.5

I second a couple of reviews I've seen about this book: don't read it if you're not in a great place.

**Spoiler**
It's not a happy ending.

Content Warnings

heyitsamandarae's review against another edition

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dark emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Content Warnings

pasadenaellie's review against another edition

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dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

is this a “a surreal journey through our late-capitalist hellscape and
a brilliantly incisive look at the absurdities of modern life,” or is it just what it’s like to live in san francisco?

Content Warnings

page_with_no_i's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

One of the most depressing books I have ever read. But a well-crafted story.

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