A review by cheye13
Luster by Raven Leilani

challenging dark tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This is a beautifully crafted novel. Every element – stynax, diction, plotline, pacing – is perfect and wholly of the piece itself. Which is why it's practically painful to admit that I didn't like it as much as I wanted to. My disappointments can be entirely contributed to my incorrect expectations. It was much darker, heavier, more melancholy than I was necessarily in the mood for or like to read in general.

My critiques, if implimented, would have ruined the book. There was no thread of whimsy to brighten it, which was intentional. The story didn't really kick off until the mid-point, but the depth of the opening was integral. I preferred reading about Rebecca and Akila and wished Eric were less present, but there would be no Rebecca or Akila in Edie's life without Eric.

This novel portrays the tragedy of Edie's reality in the most beautiful way possible, but the portrayal is too faithful to reality for me.
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