Reviews with content warning for Mental illness - Bunny

I probably would not have picked this up had I known what genre of horror it was (as I usually find them pretty problematic) but here I am. It’s going to take me quite some time to unravel my thoughts because my head is still spinning from this fever dream. I recently read The Secret History so it was a lot of fun to see the homage paid to the classic throughout this book. And it’s really interesting seeing Reddit threads of other readers interpretation on her work.

Content Warnings

codecat's review against another edition

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challenging dark funny mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

Content Warnings

august_18's review against another edition

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dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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sil_che_legge's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Content Warnings

erebus53's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

This a story of art-school unlike any I have read. It is set at Warren, a campus that has a reputation for pushing the boundaries of conceptual art while also having an underground reputation as not being a safe place to be alone at night.

The writing is poetic, weird, fanciful, evocative, and conveys a sense of claustrophobic, existential dread that could easily be described as paranoid schizophrenic. Cthulhu is mentioned more than once; whether the narrator is reliable or not, is your call.

A lot of the discomforting tone of the book is tapping deep into common stressors. Our main character Samantha is forced into group work (the horror!) with a clique of rich and sheltered young women who are completely self-involved, and codependent. She nicknames them "the Bunnies" because they use the term Bunny as an affectionate pet term for each other. This stifling environment is ruled over by an abusive tutor (treated as a mentor and carer) who is continually encouraging them to get uncomfortable and use their pain in their art.

I haven't read a story set in a school with a more real feeling of loneliness, insecurity, and anxiety.. and I have read a lot of YA authors. The girls derive their strength from subjugating their individuality, becoming a hive mind that is as oppressive as it is inclusive. To be accepted one must pay a great price, and even those on the inside are continually being torn down by the narcissistic cycle of love-bombing, gas-lighting, and passive/aggressive negativity. Every interaction feels invasively vulnerable. Every interaction feels like a trap.

The town around the campus feels barren. Although there are opulent houses, there are certain parts of town that are derelict. Samantha finds herself moving out of her stifling p*ss-yellow apartment, in a building full of people with mental illnesses, into a derelict building. She lives with an aloof gothic-punk girl who she attends tango class with, and who carries a hip-flask labelled "drink me". The Alice In Wonderland theme is riffed on, quite a bit. Their relationship is almost homo-erotic, but asexually so.

The Othering in this story is next level. Girls moon over fantasy boys who are often dead superstars like James Dean, or characters from Greek myth. They are made fantasy by being utterly unreal, un-attainable, and fetishised through being exotic or not even speaking English. I only realise this after noticing the sexualisation of the tutor who speaks with a Scottish accent. It's like they are so starved for stimulation, and yet so terrified of reality that they need to create abstracted lust. There is no vulnerability with a partner who isn't really a person, bunny.

Content Warnings

hannahbailey's review against another edition

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challenging dark funny mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Unsure how to review this tbh, it's pretty mind-boggling. Enjoyed the setting and the MC, did get a bit unnerved towards the end which I suppose is the intent! I think this genre is just not for me, it's hard for me to fully appreciate or grasp lol. I can see why people love it but I finished it thinking wow! That was unpleasant. Not great for a gal who reads for escapism. Very very cleverly written though!

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malorykiyomi's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional funny inspiring mysterious reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I had no real clue what I was getting into when I picked this book and if I'm being honest, I can't say I know much better now that I've finished it.

Told from the perspective of an unreliable narrator, themes of belonging and self-discovery are explored in a bizarre and unsettling ways that somehow deeply resonante with the readers. Awad's use of prose to reflect the state of mind of Samantha and her relationship with the Bunnies is seamless and engulfing. The subtle foreshadowing to plot development made what was an otherwise chaotic unfolding of events feel less like a suckered punch and more like the twisting of a knife.

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lynxpardinus's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense

4.0

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