A review by epellicci
The Power by Naomi Alderman

challenging dark sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

1.5

I found The Power was horrific almost for the sake of it as the book went on, and the plot lacked confidence as the story headed towards its conclusion. The final chapters trail off into an ambiguous and stilted jumble which felt given up on when considering the particular and uncomfortable detail which Alderman went into throughout the rest of the book. The four characters leading the narration lacked dimension, and I found the way that everyone (excluding Tunde) had basically the same goal of political/religious dominance in mind lazy.  As the book progressed, the characters personalities basically all bled into one for me, and at times I forgot whether I was reading from Allie's perspective or Roxy's. A concept with a lot of potential, executed badly. 
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