A review by rpanny
Astrid Sees All by Natalie Standiford

4.0

As a lover of NY lit, particularly from the '80s I was excited about Astrid Sees All. While it did hit that nostalgia spot, I found some of the story a little surface-level. Phoebe goes through a lot over the course of the book, but I found her relationship with (and subsequent obsession to pay back) Ivan felt forced and didn't resonate emotionally with the book. Her relationship with Carmen was far more interesting, and I appreciate that Standiford didn't take the cheap route of queer baiting Phoebe's feelings for her. The steady increase of missing girls, with Phoebe's downward spiral and her dread about Carmen's disappearance lead to a satisfying - if stomach turning - climax.

While I enjoyed, and was at times captivated by, Standiford's novel - I felt like there was a lot of emotional depth yet to be mined.