A review by booklywookly
My Men by Victoria Kielland

3.0

Review by Prateek - @BooklyWookly on Instagram

My Men is based on the true story of Belle Gunness, a Norwegian immigrant who murdered 14 men in America in the early 20th century.

We follow 17-year-old Belle as she works on a Norwegian farm and develops feelings for the son of the landlord. Both engage in an illicit relationship with a power dynamic that is graphically out of balance. When he discovers Belle is pregnant, he violently kicks her in the stomach, killing the unborn child with it. The foundation for all that happens around Belle is laid by this incident. She isn’t the same woman anymore.

It's a very original book and has this freshness in portraying the inner life of a female serial killer without becoming a scandalous pulp. Its lyrical language conveys the intensity and feverishness of the protagonist’s mind - It's claustrophic in there. It explores the effects of trauma and abuse on one’s psyche, the role of gender in shaping one’s identity, the twisted nature of love and desire, and the conflict between morality and religion, and how they can be used to justify violence. You witness a character’s slow descent from pure innocence to madness and insanity.

Don’t go in expecting a true crime thriller. This is not a faithful retelling, but rather an empathetic portrayal of a woman who was driven by desire, loneliness, revenge, and religious fanaticism. The novel is more concerned with exploring the psychological and emotional aspects of a female serial killer, and reflects the inner thoughts and feelings of Belle, who often confuses reality and fantasy. Absolutely doesn’t justify the crimes she committed, let’s be clear about that.

What turned me off was its excessive use of figurative and elliptical expressions. Way too poetic, literary, and just exhaustingly overwritten. Too descriptive. Corpse-white skin (fine). Butter-yellow light (what?). Urine-colored eyes (what the hell??)

Overall, the book is a challenging read, and will appeal to those who enjoy dark and poetic novels that delve into psyche of a complex and troubled character. There are graphic (poetic, not crude) and disturbing scenes of abuse. The first whole chapter is an artsy description of a daily sadomasochistic sexual act.