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A review by katharine_opal
The Blouse by Bastien Vivès
1.0
Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!
Be warned there are spoilers ahead!
So the plot synopsis got me interested in how it described the book. A french college student, bored with life, is gifted with a silk blouse, that is possibly magical. I thought it would be a more adult version of the pants from Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. Wow, I was DEAD WRONG. Everything described in the plot synopsis is not said in the graphic novel itself. If not for having read the synopsis before reading, I wouldn't have described the novel that way at all. Séverine is shown to have a nerdy boyfriend, regular college experience, and babysits as a job. After a mishap with the child who she was babysitting falls ill, and get's sick all over her, the father gives her one of his wife's silk blouses. After wearing the silk blouse out and about, to the park, to college, etc she notices men looking at her more and chatting her up. But, I didn't take this as the blouse being magical. She simply went from wearing baggy shirts and cardigans to wearing a form-fitting blouse that she tucked into slacks. She is shown to be a pretty girl with a larger chest. When you wear form-fitting clothing that shows off your cleavage, men look at you. It's annoying as hell, but that's what happens. But, you also get NO introspective as to why Séverine starts acting how she does! Everything that happens in this story feels completely random. She gets into a man's car after ditching her boyfriend and his friends, but then goes with the random guy who turns out to be a cop to a dinner party, leaves said party to walk home in the rain, gets chased down an alley by two random thugs, and then cop guy finds her and they start making out, and then they sleep together?! There's also a thing with cigarettes that flew right over my head. Maybe it's because I'm not French, but why is it that every time a man asks Séverine if she has a cigarette or a lighter, and she responds "Sorry I don't smoke", they curse at her or stomp off? That baffled me, and it happens multiple times. Séverine also gets angry with her boyfriend for questioning where she's been and why she hasn't answered her phone in 24 hours. She acts like it's ridiculous that he's asking where she went when it's normal to be worried about your girlfriend if they go MIA for twenty-four hours! Also, what the hell is up with how the girl who was being babysat is portrayed at the very beginning and the very end of the novel? Why the HELL did you have this child show her "butterfly" (as the novel puts it) to her babysitter apropos of nothing? Why do you have the child see her Father and Séverine in the middle of coitus on their kitchen table?! There was no reason for that! The bombing scene was COMPLETELY random as well. Why are there suddenly Mulism extremists bombing a train station? The station that Séverine just so happens to be in, cause she made a snap decision to go to her parents. The whole bombing and hospital part only happens for a few pages but it's so bizarre. Minor side note, there was one line that gave me pause in the beginning. Séverine's father says "I felt it was a little spicier than usual, so I added essential oil." about some dish they are eating together. This is a random nitpick, but please don't eat essential oil. Essential oil is not meant for consumption. Also, I have no idea why this is marked as "Romance" on GoodReads. It is VERY much not Romance. Yes, there are multiple sex scenes and weirdly sexual scenes that happen for little to no reason.
This graphic novel was a complete mess. I have no idea what was going on with this story, and frankly, I don't think I want to know.
Be warned there are spoilers ahead!
So the plot synopsis got me interested in how it described the book. A french college student, bored with life, is gifted with a silk blouse, that is possibly magical. I thought it would be a more adult version of the pants from Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. Wow, I was DEAD WRONG. Everything described in the plot synopsis is not said in the graphic novel itself. If not for having read the synopsis before reading, I wouldn't have described the novel that way at all. Séverine is shown to have a nerdy boyfriend, regular college experience, and babysits as a job. After a mishap with the child who she was babysitting falls ill, and get's sick all over her, the father gives her one of his wife's silk blouses. After wearing the silk blouse out and about, to the park, to college, etc she notices men looking at her more and chatting her up. But, I didn't take this as the blouse being magical. She simply went from wearing baggy shirts and cardigans to wearing a form-fitting blouse that she tucked into slacks. She is shown to be a pretty girl with a larger chest. When you wear form-fitting clothing that shows off your cleavage, men look at you. It's annoying as hell, but that's what happens. But, you also get NO introspective as to why Séverine starts acting how she does! Everything that happens in this story feels completely random. She gets into a man's car after ditching her boyfriend and his friends, but then goes with the random guy who turns out to be a cop to a dinner party, leaves said party to walk home in the rain, gets chased down an alley by two random thugs, and then cop guy finds her and they start making out, and then they sleep together?! There's also a thing with cigarettes that flew right over my head. Maybe it's because I'm not French, but why is it that every time a man asks Séverine if she has a cigarette or a lighter, and she responds "Sorry I don't smoke", they curse at her or stomp off? That baffled me, and it happens multiple times. Séverine also gets angry with her boyfriend for questioning where she's been and why she hasn't answered her phone in 24 hours. She acts like it's ridiculous that he's asking where she went when it's normal to be worried about your girlfriend if they go MIA for twenty-four hours! Also, what the hell is up with how the girl who was being babysat is portrayed at the very beginning and the very end of the novel? Why the HELL did you have this child show her "butterfly" (as the novel puts it) to her babysitter apropos of nothing? Why do you have the child see her Father and Séverine in the middle of coitus on their kitchen table?! There was no reason for that! The bombing scene was COMPLETELY random as well. Why are there suddenly Mulism extremists bombing a train station? The station that Séverine just so happens to be in, cause she made a snap decision to go to her parents. The whole bombing and hospital part only happens for a few pages but it's so bizarre. Minor side note, there was one line that gave me pause in the beginning. Séverine's father says "I felt it was a little spicier than usual, so I added essential oil." about some dish they are eating together. This is a random nitpick, but please don't eat essential oil. Essential oil is not meant for consumption. Also, I have no idea why this is marked as "Romance" on GoodReads. It is VERY much not Romance. Yes, there are multiple sex scenes and weirdly sexual scenes that happen for little to no reason.
This graphic novel was a complete mess. I have no idea what was going on with this story, and frankly, I don't think I want to know.