A review by applesodaperson
Eileen by Ottessa Moshfegh

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

3.5

I kind of don’t know how to feel about this book. I liked it and didn’t like it at the same time. The thing this book did really well was having a deeply unlikeable main character that is somehow still likeable to read about. Like seriously Eileen is downright gross and disgusting. And also creepy. She’s a stalker and very unhygienic. She also has an eating disorder, which I do think the book handled well and wasn’t unnecessary graphic with. But yeah she is just a weird person with a lot of weird beliefs and unrealistic expectations. She also is straight up delusional. Like she believes that her crush is secretly in love with her, and that Rebecca thinks she is her bff after hanging out once.
My biggest problem with this book is that there was too much exposition. It just went on and on and I kept waiting for things to speed up and for the plot to happen. And then the conflict happens so fast and was resolved within a chapter. It felt a bit like the book just wanted to be a character study, which is fine, but it also wanted to add a plot structure.
Another thing is that I think the retrospective format was not super necessary. It just reveals the mystery of the ending too soon, which got rid of some suspense. Because the reader knows that no matter what happens, Eileen survives and grows old.
Read a personal copy.
Expand filter menu Content Warnings