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A review by ashesmann
The Glass Forest by Cynthia Swanson
2.0
A lot of these thrillers don't just feel the same. They are the same. I'm not saying the plot was lifted from another's pages, but I found it somewhat familiar.
Right away it's way more sexual than I am comfortable with. I know a lot of books use sexual tension to add to the mysterious feeling, but that bothers me. Isn't it sad and weird that what happens between two married adults can seem so creepy? Nothing out of the ordinary, but still creepy. Is it because we are primed, knowing something is going to be happening? Or is the author that good at telegraphing there's something wrong without telling you straight out.
Right away Angie and Paul are gross. You can see the much older man manipulating a young woman. The author was a little heavy handed with people expressing their surprise that she's not in high school. We get it...he's sick. Like, really really.
I feel like if the genders of Silja and Henry were switched, everyone would be hoping for the conclusion that happened. I am absolutely NOT saying it's okay to kill your spouse, I AM saying no one would be bothered if the rolls were reversed. If Silja was the one so damaged by war and physical injury she no longer wants to be touched. If Silja was the one who couldn't face going out to work and instead was a devoted caregiver to their daughter, housekeeper, gourmet chef. Taking on rebuilding a house and trying to do so in a way that brought her husband pleasure. If she did all those things, even if she couldn't be sexually intimate we would expect her to be cared for. If Henry was the one who demanded sex of his returning damaged spouse even though they made it clear they couldn't, if Henry constantly told Silja her contributions weren't enough because she wasn't working outside the home, if Henry made unilateral decisions, if Henry began an affair and impregnated his mistress, if Henry introduced Ruby to his mistress and pretended they were a little family...if the roles were reversed, would you want Silja to push Henry down the stairs? I'm not saying Henry was totally stable, but he was often emasculated, obviously traumatized, and put down. They both were pretty awful. Henry apparently has some mysterious childhood trauma that made him who he was, what was Silja's deal?
Right away it's way more sexual than I am comfortable with. I know a lot of books use sexual tension to add to the mysterious feeling, but that bothers me. Isn't it sad and weird that what happens between two married adults can seem so creepy? Nothing out of the ordinary, but still creepy. Is it because we are primed, knowing something is going to be happening? Or is the author that good at telegraphing there's something wrong without telling you straight out.
Right away Angie and Paul are gross. You can see the much older man manipulating a young woman. The author was a little heavy handed with people expressing their surprise that she's not in high school. We get it...he's sick. Like, really really.
I feel like if the genders of Silja and Henry were switched, everyone would be hoping for the conclusion that happened. I am absolutely NOT saying it's okay to kill your spouse, I AM saying no one would be bothered if the rolls were reversed. If Silja was the one so damaged by war and physical injury she no longer wants to be touched. If Silja was the one who couldn't face going out to work and instead was a devoted caregiver to their daughter, housekeeper, gourmet chef. Taking on rebuilding a house and trying to do so in a way that brought her husband pleasure. If she did all those things, even if she couldn't be sexually intimate we would expect her to be cared for. If Henry was the one who demanded sex of his returning damaged spouse even though they made it clear they couldn't, if Henry constantly told Silja her contributions weren't enough because she wasn't working outside the home, if Henry made unilateral decisions, if Henry began an affair and impregnated his mistress, if Henry introduced Ruby to his mistress and pretended they were a little family...if the roles were reversed, would you want Silja to push Henry down the stairs? I'm not saying Henry was totally stable, but he was often emasculated, obviously traumatized, and put down. They both were pretty awful. Henry apparently has some mysterious childhood trauma that made him who he was, what was Silja's deal?