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gumnutcity 's review for:
Seeing Other People
by Diana Reid
funny
lighthearted
reflective
tense
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This second book of Diana Reid's was my first. Sometimes reminiscent of Sally Rooney in that she gets inside of people's heads and sees relationships from an inner and outer viewpoint.
It took me a little while to get into Seeing Other People, which at its surface is a story about several months in the lives of two rather self-absorbed sisters in their early-mid 20s, living and working in the familiar Sydney, Australia.
Despite their closeness as sisters, Eleanor and Charlie Hamor are very different people. Eleanor is straight-laced and follows a "sensible" career trajectory as a business analyst. Charlie, meanwhile, lives a more bohemian existence, a talented actress who's struggling to find work in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, she lives in a fairly chaotic share house with like-minded artistic souls. The book opens with Eleanor reeling from the dramatic end of her longstanding relationship with solicitor Mark after he admitted to misbehaving with a stripper during a stag night with friends. Meanwhile, Eleanor's younger sister Charlie is appearing onstage in an independent theatrical production, which she's hoping will restart her flagging career. She's becoming increasingly infatuated with the play's director, Helen, who also happens to be her housemate.
A series of drunken and drug-fuelled parties and hungover trips to the beach lead to interrelationships between the characters becoming somewhat tangled, bringing Eleanor and Charlie's different approaches to life into a type of conflict they've never had to deal with before. One plotline of deception unfolds throughout the narrative, while another lurks below the surface, hinted at, but not revealed in its entirety until a confrontation late in the book.
As readers, we're presented with a sticky moral conundrum: to what extent should we allow self-actualisation - following our heart's desire - to eclipse our feelings of protectiveness and obligation towards our closest family members?
Pleasantly surprised with this one, a nice easy, light read - perfect for lying on a beach somewhere.
It took me a little while to get into Seeing Other People, which at its surface is a story about several months in the lives of two rather self-absorbed sisters in their early-mid 20s, living and working in the familiar Sydney, Australia.
Despite their closeness as sisters, Eleanor and Charlie Hamor are very different people. Eleanor is straight-laced and follows a "sensible" career trajectory as a business analyst. Charlie, meanwhile, lives a more bohemian existence, a talented actress who's struggling to find work in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, she lives in a fairly chaotic share house with like-minded artistic souls. The book opens with Eleanor reeling from the dramatic end of her longstanding relationship with solicitor Mark after he admitted to misbehaving with a stripper during a stag night with friends. Meanwhile, Eleanor's younger sister Charlie is appearing onstage in an independent theatrical production, which she's hoping will restart her flagging career. She's becoming increasingly infatuated with the play's director, Helen, who also happens to be her housemate.
A series of drunken and drug-fuelled parties and hungover trips to the beach lead to interrelationships between the characters becoming somewhat tangled, bringing Eleanor and Charlie's different approaches to life into a type of conflict they've never had to deal with before. One plotline of deception unfolds throughout the narrative, while another lurks below the surface, hinted at, but not revealed in its entirety until a confrontation late in the book.
As readers, we're presented with a sticky moral conundrum: to what extent should we allow self-actualisation - following our heart's desire - to eclipse our feelings of protectiveness and obligation towards our closest family members?
Pleasantly surprised with this one, a nice easy, light read - perfect for lying on a beach somewhere.