A review by meghjcollins
Fragile Animals by Genevieve Jagger

3.0

Buckle up, this is going to be a weird ranty review, much like this book (not a bad thing!). This book covers themes of guilt, rejection, sexuality, pleasure, disdain and so much more. I struggle to precisely say what i think so, my feelings about this book come in 3 waves:

1st Wave: This book is disorientating, there's no pre-tense and you're thrown into Noelle's consciousness and forced to break through the layers of memories to piece together where we are and what on earth is going on. The themes of Catholicism are strong, with the use of BC/AD being warped to fit the narrative, and Noelles fear and guilt shining through each sentence. 

2nd Wave: This feels like a pot of milk simmering, boiling and spilling over onto the stove. Noelle is really not nice, she's harsh and gritty and I think I really hate her. 

3rd Wave: Smut. Don't get me wrong, sex can be a necessary addition to novels and individuals stories, but I don't like it. The book took a bit of a turn for me when a chapter described sex in such a contrasting way to the rest of the book. It felt as thought the final 3rd of the book was written by several different authors, all trying to fit their own style into one narrative. 

I guess I think that this book made me feel something, which is great, and I did really enjoy most of it, however the final third really let me down. It's a solid book with great themes but just not as amazing as I'd hoped it'd be.