A review by 3ofclubs
Out of Love by Hazel Hayes

emotional hopeful reflective sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

An interesting subversion of the typical romance plot where they don't end up together in the end, but rather they end up breaking up in the beginning... The story is told in reverse chronological order, reviewing the entire history of their relationship, from breaking up for good to their first meeting, and I found it really cool to hear the bits of flashback that essentially act as foreshadowing for what bits of the story we get next. 

I listened to the audiobook version and the narration, by the author herself, was really good too. The prose is very poetic, to the point where I may have found it too flowery for my tastes were I reading the book with my eyes, but hearing the words read aloud was a very pleasant experience, and I found her Irish accent very relaxing as well. 

I did find it a little annoying how the main character doesn't seem to have a name: every time Theo refers to her, he calls her Angel, which could be a name or just a nickname. And while the ambiguity is kinda clever + fun, it feels a little forced at times, with a few situations where it's hard for me to imagine her not introducing herself by name. 

Also, a few things I'm dissatisfied with, 
the details about her ex seem to come out of nowhere in like the last third of the book, how
no one seems to address that she was probably raped by Claudine.
And there were a few other times where it seemed like the narrator had inconsistent opinions (like her feelings on wanting/not wanting kids), almost as though each chapter was actually about a different version of her. I'm sure the inconsistencies were realistic, but it was a little hard for me to follow when exactly she changed.
Overall I'd still recommend it.
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