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beetific 's review for:
The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake
by Aimee Bender
I had really high hopes for this book. I'd been meaning to read it for years (I think since like 2012) so I was really excited when I got around to it- the plot seemed so fascinating! Being able to immediately know people's emotions through the food they make? So cool! And when I started reading the book, it seemed like I would really enjoy it. The writing style is absolutely beautiful, and I loved the parts where food were being described. The build up at the beginning was great too- Rose's gift, her mother's sadness, her brother's solitude, etc.- seemed like a great foundation for an interesting novel.
I was so disappointed by the ending, though. It felt unfinished and unresolved and I felt extremely unsatisfied. I like magical realism but I didn't really understand it here...especially with Joseph's entire storyline (wtf???). I felt like I was waiting for an explanation or at least a little bit more of a thorough exploration into the themes, characters, and events of the book and it just never came. I just felt like the book had so much potential (and it was so beautifully written and readable) but it didn't live up to it :(.
I was so disappointed by the ending, though. It felt unfinished and unresolved and I felt extremely unsatisfied. I like magical realism but I didn't really understand it here...especially with Joseph's entire storyline (wtf???). I felt like I was waiting for an explanation or at least a little bit more of a thorough exploration into the themes, characters, and events of the book and it just never came. I just felt like the book had so much potential (and it was so beautifully written and readable) but it didn't live up to it :(.