trekkifulshay 's review for:

The Price of Salt, or Carol by Patricia Highsmith

3.5

emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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For the first half of the book I kept wondering if unreliable narrator was the intent. It meandered all over the place and seemed disjointed. So many weird things that didn't seem to make sense. Then I couldn't understand why Therese kept going back to Carol. So many red flags. Maybe it was because this has been the source of her awakening IDK. Therese  constantly walking on eggshells to avoid Carol's moods or mean comments. I do wonder if  Therese  being so young was part of the appeal for Carol because IDK if a grown person sure of themselves would have put up with her long enough to get to the road trip.
I wanted to give up on this book but it's a classic and so I gave it more chances than I normally would. Thankfully the last third of the book saved the rest. We learn why Carol is acting the way she is even if IMO that doesn't explain it away. The ending was satisfying.