A review by nytephoenyx
The Rosie Effect by Graeme Simsion

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

3.0

While I didn't entirely dislike the book, I find myself agreeing with other reviewers who say THE ROSIE EFFECT is a bit contrived. The situations Don finds himself in are really serious, and the ease at which he gets out of them are improbable enough to break the suspension of disbelief. Don isn't "quirky", he's neurodivergent (assumed but never stated on the autism spectrum), and in that context, a lot of his actions make sense. It astounds me how so many of the sticky situations he gets in are a direct result of the people around him to claim to know him best failing to communicate in a considerate way.

Rosie, too, is a huge problem. She's the center of the largest conflict in the story and her behaviors are completely unprecedented. Her character - so rounded and exuberant in the first book - has got one-dimensional for the singular purpose of driving the new conflict. It's a bad look, and again, realistically, doesn't work.

If the question is as simple as "was I entertained?" then the answer is "yes, I was". But despite that, I didn't really believe the book, the behaviors of the characters, the central problem, or the original resolution.

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