A review by allieuofm
Bitter in the Mouth by Monique Truong

3.0

This book was engaging at times, but also boring in parts. It's written backwards, like Memento almost, with the revelations of each character's secrets at the very end of the book. This was an interesting gimmick to employ, but it felt like a gimmick because it wasn't seamlessly woven into the plot. Some events were contrived, but some felt more natural. Thought provoking and insightful in some ways, but needlessly obfuscating in others. A bildungsroman that kind of goes off the rails. If I could give half stars, I'd give it 3.5. Bumped it down to 3 for some overly pedantic phrasing and unnecessary killing off of characters.