A review by bloomed
My Last Innocent Year by Daisy Alpert Florin

challenging dark reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

I’d wandered into this encounter the way you wander into a dark room: with one hand outstretched, feeling your way as you go, unable to see what’s on the walls or how exactly you might get out.

this is almost the thesis of the book; my last innocent year follows isabel through her last year of college as she fumbles through life, growing up, etc, and all of the mistakes and missteps that come along with that. overall, it really worked for me—i thought she felt really relatable and concrete, and i liked that florin was so willing to deal in shades of gray instead of making everything black and white—but it’s not a story for everyone, since it does get relatively heavy at points! definitely mind the CWs before you read it.

my only real issue with it was in how predictable the resolution to the main conflict was, but even that feels like a nitpicky criticism, since i don’t think it was meant to be a twisty, turny thriller so much as a character study and an examination of girlhood, feminism, and so on.
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