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A review by tej_reads
Antiquity by Hanna Johansson
3.25
Antiquity is a queer Lolita story, following an unnamed narrator in her mid thirties as she becomes obsessed with Olga, aged fifteen the daughter of an older artist named Helena. The story takes place on the Greek Island of Ermoupoli, where the narrator joins Helena.
The devolution of the narrator as she looses herself to her obsession and becomes all consumed by her insecurities. The narrator is self deprecating from the start by as the story moves along her sense of self worth is completely obliterated.
The writing is lovely and there are quotes that I found myself reflecting on. The later of the novel was a hard and uncomfortable read so I do warn you before reading.
The devolution of the narrator as she looses herself to her obsession and becomes all consumed by her insecurities. The narrator is self deprecating from the start by as the story moves along her sense of self worth is completely obliterated.
The writing is lovely and there are quotes that I found myself reflecting on. The later of the novel was a hard and uncomfortable read so I do warn you before reading.
Time wasn't logical. A span of time that felt, back then, in the beginning, like several weeks, was in fact just a few days. A span of time that felt, later, like a few days or even less, only a few brief moments, was in fact unfolding for much longer than that, enormous expanses of time that I greedily swallowed and demanded more of, which I couldn't get enough of, which I didn't want to end, which I wanted to stretch and become forever.
Antiquity has been compared to a female Call Me By Your Name and Lolita, therefore the themes can be divisive so be mindful of that before reading. The behaviour is not condoned or promoted.
Thank you to Johansson, Scribe UK and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.