northviewlocke 's review for:

Treasure Island!!! by Sara Levine

2.5

challenging dark tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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 Well, that was disappointing. I thought it would be a short read (it’s 177 pages and took me three days), I thought it would be funny. I think it’s supposed to be funny. But it’s a claustrophobic examination of the pitch black soul of one of the worst fictional characters I’ve ever encountered. Most of the novels I’ve read don’t have villains as heinous as this novel’s protagonist. I think Levine is aware of how truly awful her protagonist is; I like the way her family was described, and her mother in particular, and how this explained (without being too obvious) why the protagonist was the way she was. But why Treasure Island? That’s never totally explained. It feels like there’s something incomplete or not fully thought through here. It reminded me a lot of My Year of Rest and Relaxation, but this is a pale shadow, lacking the focus, vision, and humour.