Review by ryleee - Go as a River

ryleee 's review for:

Go as a River by Shelley Read

3.0

reflective medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

This book is

'Teen Mom' set in 'Where the Crawdads Sing'

. The setting is established well and includes nice imagery of the scenery in rural Colorado, which makes it easy to imagine. The main protagonists are likeable enough, but I wish we had a bit more insight into some of the ancillary characters (Seth, their dad), to want to empathise with them through the series of unfortunate events that befall them towards the end. For example,

I wanted the dad to give us SOMETHING to say that he knew about the baby, and still loved Victoria, and acknowledge his failings as a father since the mum died. But alas, even on his deathbed the man was stoic.

It feels like four stories mashed together, supposedly linked through the impending flooding of Victoria's home town. Because of this, the pacing often lurches forward in places to get through the plot points at the expense of relationship-building between the characters. The ending is wholesome enough, but pretty far-fetched and abrupt.

If you're into internal-monologue-narration, and knowing the protagonist's feelings and experiences intimately, then you will probably enjoy this book!

Content Warnings