Reviews tagging 'Panic attacks/disorders'

My Sweet Girl by Amanda Jayatissa

5 reviews

cath_reads_books's review

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challenging dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced
  • 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

4.25

This was a wild ride! I think it’s my favorite of Amanda Jayatissa’s so far. 

The story follows Paloma, a Sri Lankan orphan, who is adopted by the Evans couple and moved to the United States. There’s clearly something in Paloma’s past that haunts her; she has a terrible relationship with her adoptive parents, she drinks on medication that have interactions with alcohol, and she doesn’t seem to have any real friends. She also judges every person she comes across extremely harshly, as though she’s the best person on the planet, when in reality she’s an absolute asshole. She’s also extremely manipulative and conniving, and will do anything to keep herself in a good position. I found myself wondering many times if she was legitimately a psychopath. 

The book goes back-and-forth between telling the story of present day Paloma and young Paloma living at the Sri Lankan orphanage.
As I continued to hear more of the experiences about the orphanage, I started to suspect that Paloma wasn’t really Paloma at all, but instead was a close childhood friend posing as her to get their shot at a better life. By the end of the book I found out that this was absolutely the case. 

What I didn’t expect was that the real Paloma was still alive and had planned on elaborate revenge scheme to try to take her place back from the pretender. The REAL Paloma was even more insane than the pretend one too, and layered on her own schemes to make the pretend Paloma look unhinged. The last few chapters of this book were beyond intense, and I had no idea which Paloma I was actually reading about for a while there. The last chapter had me grinning ear to ear when I figured it out.


4.25 of 5 stars from me! Top-notch writing with an insane cat and mouse game between two psychopaths lol. 

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cc_shelflove's review

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dark tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This is a book that I am going to be thinking about for a while. Paloma is a 30-year-old woman who was adopted at a young age from a Sri Lankan orphanage to the idyllic Californian family. Her dream would finally be fulfilled. She would come to America and live a life better than she could have ever imagined. Told in alternating timelines, the reader gets glimpses of Paloma's current dealings in California and her life at the orphanage. One thing the reader finds out quickly, though: Paloma is fucking nuts. The woman is batshit crazy! She is even more unhinged than Yellowface's June Hayward. I was hooked from the first chapter as she mixed an alcoholic beverage with her prescription medication. Sounds like a good idea, right? Bad things begin happening to those around Paloma, she thinks she has stalkers, she tries to dodge her therapist... the list goes on and on. She was a train wreck that I could not look away from. Did someone really follow her from Sri Lanka to seek revenge all these years later, or is Paloma simply losing it?

I will admit that in reading this book, I identified reasons why it might not be for everyone. We cannot believe much of Paloma's recollections due to her drinking habits (think The Girl on the Train). I personally love an unreliable narrator! 🥃 Additionally, the word 'fuck' appears seemingly on every page. This did not take away from the story for me, but I know it could be bothersome to some. If you want to read about a chick who swears a lot and loses her marbles, pick this up. The ending was soooooooooooooo worth it. 🤯

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kyrstin_p1989's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

The plot of this book is compelling and finding out what happened in Sri Lanka that led Paloma to the life she has in California drove my desire to keep reading. That said, Paloma is very, very unlikeable. So detestable that had it not been for an intriguing plot, I probably wouldn’t have finished the book. She treats everyone like garbage and is only concerned about herself. There is no growth or change over the course of the novel. She’s just mean. The twists and turns of the novel do, in some ways, make up for the faults of the protagonist though. All in all, it was a fun read that kept me on my toes. 

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thedrolldiaries's review

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dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Ooo this was a good one! A dark, sinister, Sri Lankan-inspired twist on
Jane Eyre
!

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ohhthehorrors's review

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5


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