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A review by kaylyncatherine
Death in Her Hands by Ottessa Moshfegh
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.5
Your typical tale of an unraveling mind. It is that of a an unreliable narrator lost in a world she’s creating—to such extent she knows not real from her imagination and the reader is just as befuddled as she.
Death in Her Hands tells the story of a widower, Vesta Gul, who moves across the country to a poor New England town with her dog after the death of her husband. She finds a cryptic note in the woods telling of a woman’s death. Vesta sets forth to solve the mystery, but she gets entangled in her fictionalized versions of the victim and the suspects. Through her delusions we see her lament the life she lived prior to her husband’s passing. His voice echoes in her mind throughout, criticizing her every move.
This morbid novel is a long stream of consciousness that for me, fell a bit flat. There were certainly some creepy portions, and passages that made me pity Vesta and fear a future resembling the married life she led. But all in all, I was bored. I felt as trapped in Vesta’s mind as Vesta was. And the writing felt a bit desperate at times. I will concede that maybe this was purposeful. Either way, it earned a shoulder shrug from me.
This is my first Moshfegh and I’m not super impressed. Someday I’ll pick up My Year…but probably not for a while if it’s another deeply character-driven novel.
Death in Her Hands tells the story of a widower, Vesta Gul, who moves across the country to a poor New England town with her dog after the death of her husband. She finds a cryptic note in the woods telling of a woman’s death. Vesta sets forth to solve the mystery, but she gets entangled in her fictionalized versions of the victim and the suspects. Through her delusions we see her lament the life she lived prior to her husband’s passing. His voice echoes in her mind throughout, criticizing her every move.
This morbid novel is a long stream of consciousness that for me, fell a bit flat. There were certainly some creepy portions, and passages that made me pity Vesta and fear a future resembling the married life she led. But all in all, I was bored. I felt as trapped in Vesta’s mind as Vesta was. And the writing felt a bit desperate at times. I will concede that maybe this was purposeful. Either way, it earned a shoulder shrug from me.
This is my first Moshfegh and I’m not super impressed. Someday I’ll pick up My Year…but probably not for a while if it’s another deeply character-driven novel.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death, Emotional abuse, and Fatphobia
Minor: Infidelity