A review by orionmerlin
Normal People by Sally Rooney

emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

Characters – 7/10
While Connell and Marianne are compelling, their internal struggles sometimes felt repetitive and frustrating. Rooney clearly excels at character psychology, but I found myself wanting more variety in their development. Connell’s anxiety and Marianne’s self-destructive tendencies are well-drawn, but they cycle through the same emotional patterns without much resolution. Secondary characters like Alan and Rachel felt underdeveloped—one-dimensional antagonists with little complexity. Even Lorraine, one of the stronger supporting characters, was more of a moral compass than a fully fleshed-out person. While I cared about the protagonists, I occasionally wanted to shake them and force them into conversations that could resolve conflicts far sooner.
Atmosphere/Setting – 6/10
The novel’s sense of place is strong but lacks sensory richness. Rooney establishes the divide between small-town Ireland and Dublin effectively, but the descriptions are often too stark. Carricklea’s oppressive, judgmental atmosphere comes across well, yet Dublin, where so much change is supposed to happen, felt oddly muted. I never felt immersed in the physical spaces; instead, the novel focuses so intensely on its characters’ inner lives that the world around them becomes a vague backdrop. This might be intentional, but it left me feeling disconnected at times. Certain key moments—like parties, university classes, and even intimate scenes—felt strangely hollow because the atmosphere was too minimalistic.
Writing Style – 8/10
Rooney’s prose is efficient, but its detached, clinical style didn’t always work for me. The omission of quotation marks, while meant to create intimacy, often made dialogue feel unnecessarily flat. The novel leans heavily on understatement, which sometimes makes the emotional beats land with devastating subtlety—but at other times, it feels like Rooney is deliberately avoiding emotional depth. There were moments when I wanted more stylistic variation, more rhythm in the prose, but the writing remained almost stubbornly restrained. That said, she does have a sharp ear for dialogue, and her ability to convey power dynamics through seemingly mundane conversations is impressive.
Plot – 5/10
The plot is the novel’s weakest aspect. It’s essentially a cycle of miscommunications, poor timing, and self-sabotage. While that does mirror real-life relationships, I felt it grew tedious, especially in the second half. The structure—moving forward in time but revisiting the same issues—became predictable. I kept waiting for the narrative to break free from its loop, but it never really did. The will-they-won’t-they dynamic was gripping at first but ultimately frustrating because so many of their problems could have been solved with basic communication. The ending, too, felt anticlimactic—deliberately unsatisfying in a way that didn’t feel earned.
Intrigue – 7/10
I was engaged, but not consistently. The novel had peaks of emotional intensity that completely absorbed me, but between those moments, it dragged. Connell and Marianne’s dynamic is undoubtedly compelling, but there were long stretches where I felt like I was reading variations of the same scene over and over—an intense conversation, an avoidance, a miscommunication, a moment of longing, rinse and repeat. Their university years, which should have been a space for significant change, felt stagnant. While I remained curious about their fate, I also felt a certain fatigue by the final chapters.
Logic/Relationships – 6/10
Rooney does an excellent job of portraying how class, power, and social expectations shape relationships. However, some of the characters’ choices felt frustratingly avoidable. Marianne’s passivity in abusive relationships, while psychologically believable, wasn’t explored with enough depth beyond “she believes she deserves it.” Connell’s social anxiety, though relatable, felt like an excuse for his poor communication skills rather than something he actively worked to overcome. Their reluctance to express their feelings is realistic but becomes tedious after a while. The novel’s depiction of class divides is insightful, but at times, it felt like an intellectual exercise rather than a fully integrated aspect of the story.
Enjoyment – 6/10
I appreciated Normal People more than I enjoyed it. The novel excels in psychological depth and emotional realism, but its repetitiveness and sparse atmosphere made it feel cold. There were moments of brilliance—Connell’s therapy sessions, certain vulnerable conversations—but I also found it frustratingly detached at times. The constant miscommunication felt like a narrative crutch rather than organic storytelling. I wouldn’t call it an enjoyable read; it’s more of an intellectual and emotional study than a novel that sweeps you away. Would I recommend it? Yes, but with reservations—mainly for those who enjoy slow-burn, introspective fiction. 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings