wordssearched 's review for:

Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney

3.0

dark emotional fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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As much as I loved Normal People, I had only moderate expectations for this one based on what others had told me about it, and sure enough this read like an undeveloped idea that could only get published on the coattails of a much better and more popular first effort. I love Rooney's fascination with smart but emotionally unstable young adults. The ones populating this story, however, didn't always feel like fully thought out characters. Frances in particular but basically everyone in this book acted on motivations that were difficult to pin down. It isn't that the characters were unlikable—never a prerequisite for a good story—but that they all seemed to be acting on random impulse. The result being that there was no story, that nobody gets anywhere. A lot happens but nothing does. 

I didn't dislike the book. Like Normal People, I had a hard time putting it down. In the end, though, it feels a little half-baked.