A review by ldpaige
In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado

challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

3.5

We deserve to have our wrongdoing represented as much as our heroism, because when we refuse wrongdoing as a possibility for a group of people, we refuse their humanity.

Filled to the brim with artistic language and mesmerizing lines, this book surprised me at times, disappointed me at times, but would pull me in just the same as it pulled me out. I believed the hype about this book and wasn't sorely disappointed, but just wasn't amazed in the way I thought I was going to be. Machado bears her heart out on this one, but for me, the narrative just got lost between the excerpts of context and beauty of her lines. I had to listen to the audiobook because I would have felt bad DNF-ing this book. I just wanted to love this book so bad.

If this book was more of a non-fiction look on
domestic abuse between lesbian couples
with her personal experiences woven in between, I would have LOVED this book. That excerpt towards the end about this topic was absolutely brilliant. I enjoyed
the gaslighting
excerpt as well!! She just kept losing me and this book didn't feel as spectacular as advertised.
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