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A review by bibliorey
Vladimir by Julia May Jonas
4.0
an interesting dive into the question of a woman’s morality in this dark and cynical tale that is vladimir.
this is my second time picking the book up after dnf-ing it the first time around as i wasn’t in the right headspace to fully consume the story yet at the time, but this time around has proven to be successful as i am more “prepared” to dive into the story if you could say so.
i saw a review by roxane gay that i think describes my direct thoughts towards the book and that is the premise doesn’t really give what it was supposed to be giving. we were told so much of the narrator’s obsession towards vladimir and yet there wasn’t much that expresses that side of the story in this book. it’s more so focused on the narrator’s question into her own morality, her fantasies that have been blurred by the lines of her reality, and the decisions that she have made throughout her entire life.
i was captivated by julia may jonas’s writing especially on the parts where the narrator was questioning the notion of something because to me personally, it slowly made me spiraled into an existential dread there for a second and made ME question my own life and that i think is such powerful writing.
i would say this book reminded me of my dark vanessa for its centred theme (cw: sexual assault) but in the pov of other parties apart from the two involved in the situation. the people who surrounded the offender/victim. the people connected to them, related to them, etc. how one truth that comes out could destroy everything. not just for them but also for the people around them as well.
i admit that i was a bit disappointed that the narrator’s obsession towards vladimir is not much explored as said in the book. but it was still quite a good read nevertheless and i would definitely recommend this one to those who have been eyeing it but feeling reluctant to pick it up due to its themes. just be mindful of the content warnings!
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this is my second time picking the book up after dnf-ing it the first time around as i wasn’t in the right headspace to fully consume the story yet at the time, but this time around has proven to be successful as i am more “prepared” to dive into the story if you could say so.
i saw a review by roxane gay that i think describes my direct thoughts towards the book and that is the premise doesn’t really give what it was supposed to be giving. we were told so much of the narrator’s obsession towards vladimir and yet there wasn’t much that expresses that side of the story in this book. it’s more so focused on the narrator’s question into her own morality, her fantasies that have been blurred by the lines of her reality, and the decisions that she have made throughout her entire life.
i was captivated by julia may jonas’s writing especially on the parts where the narrator was questioning the notion of something because to me personally, it slowly made me spiraled into an existential dread there for a second and made ME question my own life and that i think is such powerful writing.
i would say this book reminded me of my dark vanessa for its centred theme (cw: sexual assault) but in the pov of other parties apart from the two involved in the situation. the people who surrounded the offender/victim. the people connected to them, related to them, etc. how one truth that comes out could destroy everything. not just for them but also for the people around them as well.
i admit that i was a bit disappointed that the narrator’s obsession towards vladimir is not much explored as said in the book. but it was still quite a good read nevertheless and i would definitely recommend this one to those who have been eyeing it but feeling reluctant to pick it up due to its themes. just be mindful of the content warnings!
twitter ☆ instagram ☆ youtube