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A review by saroz162
The End of Mr. Y by Scarlett Thomas
2.0
This was a fascinating premise for a book that simply became less and less pleasant to read. The science-fantasy aspects remained interesting, and I managed to get used to the constant name-dropping of philosophers and theorists (in fact, the book made me want to become better acquainted with Jacques Derrida). What I couldn't get beyond was the extremely unlikable protagonist, Ariel, who also narrates the book in first person.
I suspect that Thomas' motivations in making her lead so damaged was to suggest that she has "nothing left to lose," which allows Thomas to justify some pretty extreme actions as the book goes on. But there's nothing to even invite you to identify with Ariel's point of view; instead, she's just cynical, bitter, and hard from the moment we meet her. Worse, you're left reading the story of a deeply self-destructive individual who routinely serves herself up for violent sex with self-absorbed men, apparently only to motivate the ever-increasing "tailspin" of the plot - and frankly, that's not what I meant to sign up for with a mind-bending fantasy novel. It just feels so unnecessary; it has almost no bearing at all on the SF/F aspects of the story, and there are other, more subtle ways to bring a sympathetic character to desperation. It's been a few weeks since I finished the book, and I'm still at a loss as to why Thomas chose this method. It left me feeling - well, icky - and as a result, a novel of otherwise interesting world-building will remain unrevisited (and in fact, I plan to get rid of my copy).
I suspect that Thomas' motivations in making her lead so damaged was to suggest that she has "nothing left to lose," which allows Thomas to justify some pretty extreme actions as the book goes on. But there's nothing to even invite you to identify with Ariel's point of view; instead, she's just cynical, bitter, and hard from the moment we meet her. Worse, you're left reading the story of a deeply self-destructive individual who routinely serves herself up for violent sex with self-absorbed men, apparently only to motivate the ever-increasing "tailspin" of the plot - and frankly, that's not what I meant to sign up for with a mind-bending fantasy novel. It just feels so unnecessary; it has almost no bearing at all on the SF/F aspects of the story, and there are other, more subtle ways to bring a sympathetic character to desperation. It's been a few weeks since I finished the book, and I'm still at a loss as to why Thomas chose this method. It left me feeling - well, icky - and as a result, a novel of otherwise interesting world-building will remain unrevisited (and in fact, I plan to get rid of my copy).