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A review by laurapoet
Matrix by Lauren Groff
3.0
*3.5 stars*
This was my first foray into Lauren Groff's novels (I've read and loved her short stories). This book is full of Groff's drop dead gorgeous writing. She brings to life the strange beauty and grittiness of medieval life in an abbey in a way that is both subtle and immersive. The main character Marie was probably my favorite part of this book - she is a force to be reckoned with, and I LOVE reading about historical women who are able to rise above the constraints of their time. Also I love love loved the artful weaving of mysticism and Christianity in this book, the commentary on cycles of time, the simultaneously idyllic and claustrophobic atmosphere of the abbey.
All of that being said, there was something about the structure of this book that fell flat for me. We follow Marie over the course of her lifetime, so not much time is spent dwelling on individual events. Not only this, but many of the core relationships in the book didn't feel fully fleshed out, especially a relationship that was supposed to be the driving force behind many of Marie's actions. Instead they were kind of skimmed over in service of the greater themes, which worked on some levels, but made it difficult to be fully invested in the characters.
Overall, I came to this book for the beautiful writing, and definitely got what I was looking for, even if the structure was looser than I would have liked. I definitely want to pick up Lauren Groffs other novels and see how they compare, because they all seem wildly different!
This was my first foray into Lauren Groff's novels (I've read and loved her short stories). This book is full of Groff's drop dead gorgeous writing. She brings to life the strange beauty and grittiness of medieval life in an abbey in a way that is both subtle and immersive. The main character Marie was probably my favorite part of this book - she is a force to be reckoned with, and I LOVE reading about historical women who are able to rise above the constraints of their time. Also I love love loved the artful weaving of mysticism and Christianity in this book, the commentary on cycles of time, the simultaneously idyllic and claustrophobic atmosphere of the abbey.
All of that being said, there was something about the structure of this book that fell flat for me. We follow Marie over the course of her lifetime, so not much time is spent dwelling on individual events. Not only this, but many of the core relationships in the book didn't feel fully fleshed out, especially a relationship that was supposed to be the driving force behind many of Marie's actions. Instead they were kind of skimmed over in service of the greater themes, which worked on some levels, but made it difficult to be fully invested in the characters.
Overall, I came to this book for the beautiful writing, and definitely got what I was looking for, even if the structure was looser than I would have liked. I definitely want to pick up Lauren Groffs other novels and see how they compare, because they all seem wildly different!