A review by joanaprneves
The Lost Daughter by Elena Ferrante

dark emotional funny reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

This book is brutal. It dissects the mind and heart of a confident woman who broke in two when she had her two daughters, never to feel whole again, like all sensible parents. She did two questionable things in her life, one in the past and the other during this vacation at the beach where she fixated on a young mother (the character is a 48 year old woman with two young adult kids). 
The title is incredibly clever as all the characters can be the « lost daughter ». Mothers, grand-daughters, daughters. It hints at the complexity of the main character whose guilt and bitterness takes over during what should be a calm and studious holiday. We find out that

she is of a social background she tried to free herself from, that she grew apart from her histrionic mother who threatened to leave all the time and had no patience, that her second daughter was born when she was building a career that her husband sacrificed mindlessly while building his own, that she grew apart from him too. This is, however, never explained and only unfolds slowly, through a rawness of feeling that leaves the main character over-exposed to the harsh scrutiny she imposed on herself. I wonder if a more distracted male reader will pick up the lithany of frustrations she endured, both self-imposed and societal. A deadly combination. At the end, the game
of projections she plays with the young mother is a dangerous one that pushes her to the limit and destabilizes her. It’s such an honest book, such a vulnerable character that I can hardly believe someone had the guts to explore feminine ambition, frustration and visceral love the way Ferrante has.