A review by sweetlittleredw
We Need to Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver

dark sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

This book… I enjoy being mentally ground up. I enjoy reading depraved things (tender is the flesh, woom, the troop, etc) but the ending of this book… I didn’t expect Eva to say what she said. When we find out what happened, I literally had to pause and rewind to make sure I heard it right. I knew it was coming; I knew with that final “are you sure you don’t want to say another goodbye” line bad things were on the horizon. I had no idea it was going to be that cruel. 
Character-wise, I could not stand Franklin. He was constantly undermining Eva. Eva, herself, was a grating character especially with how she talked about people. Definitely hated characters. 
Overall, I enjoyed the writing style. I enjoyed that ending because it’ll stick with me for awhile. 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings