Review by miayukino - Kill Your Darlings

miayukino 's review for:

Kill Your Darlings by Peter Swanson

4.25

dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I couldn’t get into the writing style; I found the continuous literary references to almost feel like satire. However, the formatting of the narrative as a reverse timeline is nearly perfect. I also find the lurking theme of romanticization of killing for love becoming something boring and stressful- in a quotidian and almost administrative way- inventive and exploratory in a way I haven’t read/heard before. The format really supplements this theme because telling it in reverse order facilitates the class arc of plot. There are subtler motifs of the ideas of “destiny” and being “special” or “fated,” as well as the interpretation of life by people obsessed with narrative and poeticism which are interrogated in a way that deftly allows these beliefs to simultaneously earn credence and be debunked. I was hooked.

Content Warnings