jennykeery's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
chiara_stanic's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
foggy_rosamund's review against another edition
5.0
This was a book I returned to again and again as a teenager, and when I reread it as an adult, I'm always surprised by how well the story and prose hold up. The diary of an unnamed narrator, during a year at a boarding school during the 1970s, the narrative is framed by a prologue and afterward written by her older self. The older self looks back on the diary and sees it as the work of an unhinged narcissist, but the reader, having read the diary, challenges that perspective. We never know if the narrator is psychotic or if her fellow student, Ernessa, really is a vampire, or if both things are true. I think this ambivalence is what makes the novel so engaging and so subtle: just at the narrator doesn't know who she can trust, or even if she can trust herself, the reader also picks up on the hints and clues but doesn't know if she has all the facts. It also gives the narrator a space rarely allowed to young women: a place for uncertainty and for anger and dread. I love sense the autonomy and complexity given to the narrator by the text, and the space the reader has to experience the chilling events as they unfold. This book has so many elements that I love: the hyper-intelligent narrator, obsessed with books, the space for the sexual and emotional longing of young women, as well as the exploration of the supernatural and vampires in the context of grief and trauma. What makes this book so special to me is its ambiguous relationship with perceived reality, and its questioning of how we can interpret our past selves and our own perspectives. It's also a beautiful and subtle portrayal of how it feels to be a young woman who is in thrall to the expectations of society around her, and of grief, betrayal and self-discovery. Every time I read it, I find it exciting, and discover new elements to the story.
Review from 2017:
This is one of those books that I reread and return to regularly. It's an amazing exploration of a young woman, and one that shaped my thinking for years after I first read it. The unnamed narrator is fiercely intelligent and isolated, as she struggles with her own deteriorating mental health and her certainty that her best friend is under the sway of a vampire. I love how Klein brings novels and myths about the vampire and supernatural within the story, and her narrative is rich in details about the literature that shapes the narrator's mind-set, as well as her relationship with the other young women. This book would not have universal appeal, but when approached in the right frame of mind, it's unforgettable.
Review from 2017:
This is one of those books that I reread and return to regularly. It's an amazing exploration of a young woman, and one that shaped my thinking for years after I first read it. The unnamed narrator is fiercely intelligent and isolated, as she struggles with her own deteriorating mental health and her certainty that her best friend is under the sway of a vampire. I love how Klein brings novels and myths about the vampire and supernatural within the story, and her narrative is rich in details about the literature that shapes the narrator's mind-set, as well as her relationship with the other young women. This book would not have universal appeal, but when approached in the right frame of mind, it's unforgettable.
dangmandude's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
kajh23's review against another edition
4.0
Creepy fun. I picked this book up because on the cover the Kirkus Review says it’s “A chilling debut, in the best gothic style...” and it is.
Written as the diary of a young girl at boarding school, “The Moth Diaries” describes her life, friendships, teachers and what happens to all of them when a strange new student enters the picture. On one level it is the story of adolescence. The protagonist talks about her best friend, Lucy, and their increasingly estranged relationship, about other girls and their quirky sometimes dangerous behavior, and about her parents, a poet father dead by suicide and a mother still coming to terms with grief.
On the other hand, it is a departure into gothic superstition. Through some creepy discoveries, the protagonist comes to believe the new girl, Ernessa, is in some sense a vampire. Her best friend Lucy first becomes distant then descends into a strange illness. Another girl dies after, perhaps, getting too close to Ernessa’s secret. There is a gruesome killing of a teacher’s pet. Add to this the strange everyday things about Ernessa like not eating and a smelly room, and the protagonist creates a fairly good case for her vampire hunting crusade.
However, when introduced to the handsome young English teacher’s reading requirement, “Dracula”, and taking into account the already fragile and unbalanced nature of an adolescent girl’s mind, the reader is never quite sure.
A good beach read - i.e. in the daylight, with lots of people around, and warm sunny weather.
Written as the diary of a young girl at boarding school, “The Moth Diaries” describes her life, friendships, teachers and what happens to all of them when a strange new student enters the picture. On one level it is the story of adolescence. The protagonist talks about her best friend, Lucy, and their increasingly estranged relationship, about other girls and their quirky sometimes dangerous behavior, and about her parents, a poet father dead by suicide and a mother still coming to terms with grief.
On the other hand, it is a departure into gothic superstition. Through some creepy discoveries, the protagonist comes to believe the new girl, Ernessa, is in some sense a vampire. Her best friend Lucy first becomes distant then descends into a strange illness. Another girl dies after, perhaps, getting too close to Ernessa’s secret. There is a gruesome killing of a teacher’s pet. Add to this the strange everyday things about Ernessa like not eating and a smelly room, and the protagonist creates a fairly good case for her vampire hunting crusade.
However, when introduced to the handsome young English teacher’s reading requirement, “Dracula”, and taking into account the already fragile and unbalanced nature of an adolescent girl’s mind, the reader is never quite sure.
A good beach read - i.e. in the daylight, with lots of people around, and warm sunny weather.
erikawastaken's review against another edition
4.0
Pros:
* Epistolary style
* Unreliable narrator
* Gothic horror - think "Turn of The Screw"
* Beautiful prose
Cons:
* Slow build
* Unresolved story points (i.e. Mr Davies)
Because this is the journal of an unreliable narrator who is slowing going crazy, you never really know what has or has not happened.
But you also get beautiful sentences like, "The girl was self-absorbed, but she was also excruciatingly alive, as if had been born without skin."
* Epistolary style
* Unreliable narrator
* Gothic horror - think "Turn of The Screw"
* Beautiful prose
Cons:
* Slow build
* Unresolved story points (i.e. Mr Davies)
Because this is the journal of an unreliable narrator who is slowing going crazy, you never really know what has or has not happened.
But you also get beautiful sentences like, "The girl was self-absorbed, but she was also excruciatingly alive, as if had been born without skin."
avery_05's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
daydreamlover's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
my word was this an intense read we are slowly watching the MC devolve into psychosis and much of it is left up in the air as to whether it happened or not. i loved the characters and atmosphere as it feels like a real school with real ppl who live in it
suzannnn's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
dieciseisl's review against another edition
1.0
Que libro más raro. Sigo pensando en la trama y demás y lo leí el sábado...