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littlesprite21's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
suvata's review against another edition
4.0
• #ModernMrsDarcy book club pick for March 2023 #MMDBookClub
#StoryGraph: fiction contemporary literary emotional reflective medium-paced
224 pages | first published 2021
Description
Mizuki is a Japanese housewife. She has a hardworking husband, two adorable children, and a beautiful Tokyo apartment. It’s everything a woman could want, yet sometimes she wonders whether she would rather throw herself off the high-rise balcony than spend another evening not talking to her husband and hanging up laundry.
Then, one rainy night, she meets Kiyoshi, a successful restaurateur. In him, she rediscovers freedom, friendship, and the neon, electric pulse of the city she has always loved. But the further she falls into their relationship, the clearer it becomes that she is living two lives—and in the end, we can choose only one.
Funny, provocative, and startlingly honest, Fault Lines is for anyone who has ever looked in the mirror and asked, who am I and how did I get here? A bittersweet love story and a piercing portrait of female identity, it introduces Emily Itami as a debut novelist with astounding resonance and wit.
#StoryGraph: fiction contemporary literary emotional reflective medium-paced
224 pages | first published 2021
Description
Mizuki is a Japanese housewife. She has a hardworking husband, two adorable children, and a beautiful Tokyo apartment. It’s everything a woman could want, yet sometimes she wonders whether she would rather throw herself off the high-rise balcony than spend another evening not talking to her husband and hanging up laundry.
Then, one rainy night, she meets Kiyoshi, a successful restaurateur. In him, she rediscovers freedom, friendship, and the neon, electric pulse of the city she has always loved. But the further she falls into their relationship, the clearer it becomes that she is living two lives—and in the end, we can choose only one.
Funny, provocative, and startlingly honest, Fault Lines is for anyone who has ever looked in the mirror and asked, who am I and how did I get here? A bittersweet love story and a piercing portrait of female identity, it introduces Emily Itami as a debut novelist with astounding resonance and wit.
chelsiemarie1218's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
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
1.25
Audiobook - a comparison of earthquakes and relationships to understand her failing marriage and the desires of a new budding hidden relationship
humblej's review
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
A beautiful perspective on motherhood and societal constraints. Mizuki is funny and relatable, daring. I really enjoyed this look into the Japanese culture.
jesslolsen's review against another edition
4.0
I highlighted so many passages! There were so many different parts to this story that i found relatable on my own journey as a mother of two young children, and I feel like it would be relatable on different levels to any mother at some stage of their parenting too. The joy and love that is there but also the loss of identity and trying to live up to expectations- put on by ourself and by others.
I found the writing so engaging. I have never been to Japan but the writing was so descriptive that I felt like I could have been exploring the streets and cafes too.
This isn’t a long story, so it felt like it finished more abruptly than other typical stories, but I took it as a snapshot in time of Mizuki rather than her full story.
I found the writing so engaging. I have never been to Japan but the writing was so descriptive that I felt like I could have been exploring the streets and cafes too.
This isn’t a long story, so it felt like it finished more abruptly than other typical stories, but I took it as a snapshot in time of Mizuki rather than her full story.
literarycrushes's review against another edition
3.0
Emily Itami’s debut novel, fault lines, is a beautiful story of motherhood, desire, and choices in Tokyo. This novel showcases the contrasts between Japanese and Western cultures, particularly when it comes to the Japanese ideals of how a mother ‘should’ behave. On the surface, Mizuki has it all: two beautiful children and a successful husband. She loves her family, but she feels stifled in her role after having traveled to New York for a few years in her teens and twenties.
After a decade of feeling repressed in Tokyo, she meets a handsome stranger who appears to take her for who she is and the two take up an affair. Itami’s writing was beautiful and smart, and I found myself highlighting many of the passages! A few of the more ‘domestic’ portions tended to run together for me (you certainly don’t have to be a mother to appreciate it, but something about it just didn’t connect for me), but I enjoyed learning more about Japanese culture.
After a decade of feeling repressed in Tokyo, she meets a handsome stranger who appears to take her for who she is and the two take up an affair. Itami’s writing was beautiful and smart, and I found myself highlighting many of the passages! A few of the more ‘domestic’ portions tended to run together for me (you certainly don’t have to be a mother to appreciate it, but something about it just didn’t connect for me), but I enjoyed learning more about Japanese culture.
blumoongirl's review against another edition
4.0
This was an advance copy that I downloaded without knowing anything about the story.
Japanese culture has always fascinated me-refined and understated. Seemingly unassuming. This story is about an affair that occurs as a result of ennui and dissatisfaction with the main character’s life as a wife and stay at home mom. Even the affair is quiet and discreet.
The joy in this novel is in the writing-not so much the story. The plot line is a vehicle for the author’s subtle wit and insightful observations. For those who love to save quotes from books….this is the book for you. There are so many brief but illuminating sentences that will resonate with those who have been married and raised children. I look forward to reading more of the author’s prose.
Japanese culture has always fascinated me-refined and understated. Seemingly unassuming. This story is about an affair that occurs as a result of ennui and dissatisfaction with the main character’s life as a wife and stay at home mom. Even the affair is quiet and discreet.
The joy in this novel is in the writing-not so much the story. The plot line is a vehicle for the author’s subtle wit and insightful observations. For those who love to save quotes from books….this is the book for you. There are so many brief but illuminating sentences that will resonate with those who have been married and raised children. I look forward to reading more of the author’s prose.
readingintothevoid's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
4.5
effortlessly heartbreaking and heartwarming in equal measure.