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A review by paperiot
The Lost Girl by Sangu Mandanna
3.0
(As reviewed on Paper Riot.)
The Lost Girl by Sangu Mandanna is, in many ways, an exceptional book. The writing is exceptionally beautiful. Every character is exceptionally well-written. The concept is exceptionally unique. But while all of these aspects impressed me, I don't think that this book will be particularly memorable to me in the future. Especially in the third part, I felt like there was something missing. Nevertheless, this book is very different and beautiful in it's own way, and I would definitely recommend it. Apparently I have a lot of things to say about why this book is wonderful, so let's get to that part.
My favorite thing, along with the concept, would have to be the characters. Eva was a character I could easily understand and one that felt very real to me. She spends her life trying to copy another girl, but Eva is not as calm as Amarra. She was not "just an echo" either. I really liked being inside her head. My favorite side character would have to be Lekha. Or Nikhil. Or Sasha. Or... (just kidding). I think you can tell how good a book is by how well-written the side characters are, and in this case, they were really good. I would have liked to see Ray and Sean developed better, and maybe Eva's friendship with Lekha as well. But overall, this was a part of the story that I really enjoyed.
And then there is the concept, which was different and very detailed. In The Lost Girl, people are afraid to lose their loved ones, and pay for echoes to be made. An echo, like Eva, is a copy of another person, ready to take over when that person dies. A bit strange, like Frankenstein, on which it was based, and a bit morbid, with the Weavers stitching together bodies. The Lost Girl makes you wonder about what it means to be alive, and whether cheating death is the right choice (and if it's really our choice to make). From the perspective of an endearing protagonist, Mandanna addresses these questions in the calm way with which she writes, and this makes the impact even bigger.
Sangu Mandanna has a way with words. Her prose is enchanting in a quiet way. There are no prominent metaphors or excessive words, and yet this book felt a bit like poetry. But it was not just the writing that was quietly beautiful: the whole story, including dialogue and action scenes, had a calm feel to it. So while the last part of this book didn't impress me as much as the rest of the story and there was just something that didn't feel quite right to me, I thoroughly enjoyed it. I was moved by Eva's journey and this book definitely made an impression on me. I found the overall tone of this story to be quite bittersweet and maybe this is why I'm undecided about my feelings. But I do think that this book is one of a kind.
The Lost Girl by Sangu Mandanna is, in many ways, an exceptional book. The writing is exceptionally beautiful. Every character is exceptionally well-written. The concept is exceptionally unique. But while all of these aspects impressed me, I don't think that this book will be particularly memorable to me in the future. Especially in the third part, I felt like there was something missing. Nevertheless, this book is very different and beautiful in it's own way, and I would definitely recommend it. Apparently I have a lot of things to say about why this book is wonderful, so let's get to that part.
My favorite thing, along with the concept, would have to be the characters. Eva was a character I could easily understand and one that felt very real to me. She spends her life trying to copy another girl, but Eva is not as calm as Amarra. She was not "just an echo" either. I really liked being inside her head. My favorite side character would have to be Lekha. Or Nikhil. Or Sasha. Or... (just kidding). I think you can tell how good a book is by how well-written the side characters are, and in this case, they were really good. I would have liked to see Ray and Sean developed better, and maybe Eva's friendship with Lekha as well. But overall, this was a part of the story that I really enjoyed.
And then there is the concept, which was different and very detailed. In The Lost Girl, people are afraid to lose their loved ones, and pay for echoes to be made. An echo, like Eva, is a copy of another person, ready to take over when that person dies. A bit strange, like Frankenstein, on which it was based, and a bit morbid, with the Weavers stitching together bodies. The Lost Girl makes you wonder about what it means to be alive, and whether cheating death is the right choice (and if it's really our choice to make). From the perspective of an endearing protagonist, Mandanna addresses these questions in the calm way with which she writes, and this makes the impact even bigger.
Sangu Mandanna has a way with words. Her prose is enchanting in a quiet way. There are no prominent metaphors or excessive words, and yet this book felt a bit like poetry. But it was not just the writing that was quietly beautiful: the whole story, including dialogue and action scenes, had a calm feel to it. So while the last part of this book didn't impress me as much as the rest of the story and there was just something that didn't feel quite right to me, I thoroughly enjoyed it. I was moved by Eva's journey and this book definitely made an impression on me. I found the overall tone of this story to be quite bittersweet and maybe this is why I'm undecided about my feelings. But I do think that this book is one of a kind.