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A review by sarahmsklar8
The Mars Room by Rachel Kushner
2.0
Age at time of reading: 36
Someone lied to Rachel Kushner and told her she could write in a style like Chuck Palahniuk. This book is like a dollar store knock off version of Palahniuk's short-story-compilation-esque novels, with unreliable/unlikeable characters, and stomach turning moments where you question how you got there and why you want to stay. The Kushner version is just a try-hard, "look at me, I'm edgy too" waste of time.
I can't say what it is about Palahniuk's writing that makes you connect with the most horrid of characters (if you've read Haunted, you know what I'm talking about), but everyone is Kushner's The Mars Room just lacks any true dimension. It just wasn't compelling to dive into the "how we got here" moments and interconnected stories. The attempts at provocative anecdotes were a huge miss, and left the reader with the ick instead of the quiet thrill I think was intended.
Someone lied to Rachel Kushner and told her she could write in a style like Chuck Palahniuk. This book is like a dollar store knock off version of Palahniuk's short-story-compilation-esque novels, with unreliable/unlikeable characters, and stomach turning moments where you question how you got there and why you want to stay. The Kushner version is just a try-hard, "look at me, I'm edgy too" waste of time.
I can't say what it is about Palahniuk's writing that makes you connect with the most horrid of characters (if you've read Haunted, you know what I'm talking about), but everyone is Kushner's The Mars Room just lacks any true dimension. It just wasn't compelling to dive into the "how we got here" moments and interconnected stories. The attempts at provocative anecdotes were a huge miss, and left the reader with the ick instead of the quiet thrill I think was intended.