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A review by lilyanajunee
Garden of Earthly Bodies by Sally Oliver
2.0
I had such high hopes for this book. When I found it, it seemed like it was going to be a favorite for me. It started out strong, and I really, really thought I was going to love it. But then it took me a month to get through the rest. Because it was painfully bland.
Marianne is grieving the loss of her younger sister Marie who dies tragically after living with hairy cell leukemia her entire life. In the wake of this grief, Marianne shuts herself off from her career and struggles to process this loss, which physically manifests itself as thick black hairs coursing down her spine. After seeking medical treatment for these strange hairs, she's referred to Nede, a rehabilitation center where Marianne goes to heal. What's supposed to be a peaceful, restorative visit to a serene paradise turns into something more sinister.
Right. So on paper, that sounded like it was up my alley, and I wish it had been. But this was incredibly underwhelming, and the pacing was disappointing. The novel spends entirely too long building up the back story and not enough building out the rest of it. We jump from half of a book that explains Marianne's relationship with her sister Marie and her partner into an abrupt ending that honestly didn't make much sense. I walked away feeling frustrated that I spent my time reading this novel.
This was just really a letdown.
Marianne is grieving the loss of her younger sister Marie who dies tragically after living with hairy cell leukemia her entire life. In the wake of this grief, Marianne shuts herself off from her career and struggles to process this loss, which physically manifests itself as thick black hairs coursing down her spine. After seeking medical treatment for these strange hairs, she's referred to Nede, a rehabilitation center where Marianne goes to heal. What's supposed to be a peaceful, restorative visit to a serene paradise turns into something more sinister.
Right. So on paper, that sounded like it was up my alley, and I wish it had been. But this was incredibly underwhelming, and the pacing was disappointing. The novel spends entirely too long building up the back story and not enough building out the rest of it. We jump from half of a book that explains Marianne's relationship with her sister Marie and her partner into an abrupt ending that honestly didn't make much sense. I walked away feeling frustrated that I spent my time reading this novel.
This was just really a letdown.