Reviews tagging 'Panic attacks/disorders'

Cleopatra and Frankenstein by Coco Mellors

8 reviews

crxwley10's review against another edition

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emotional sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0


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chloewiart's review against another edition

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emotional sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

 
I wasn't expecting to be touched like that by this book. This was a really good surprise. This book put me through a whole range of emotions and I found myself sad, angry and even scared. I like the fact that this book was a collection of life changing moments (some obvious and other more subtle) of different people who could be you or me. 

 

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freyanjani's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

the reviews for this are a mess and so was it. i guess it’s trying to do the whole mediocre people in mediocre situations, human relationships type of reflective story but it just didn’t hit the way it’s supposed to. it’s too long, for one. and the narrative is all over the place, which i usually dont mind, but it just seemed erratic—maybe that’s the whole theme i dont know. lots of the characters are so stereotypical of their race/sexuality, in my opinion, and there were some parts that i think was unnecessary and even a little offensive. 

Spoiler (see: sugar glider)


it got better right at the end and i finally felt the warm, emotional feeling i was supposed to get the whole book. i can appreciate this book, but i don’t love it and it’s such a shame because i REALLY wanted to.

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hannalizzy's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional funny reflective sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

If the song “I’m wearing his boxers/I cry in his bathroom, he turns off the big light” song “Complex” by Katie Gregson-MacLeod from tiktok was a book, this would be it. Or “You’re On Your Own, Kid” by Taylor Swift from Midnights. Or “Moon Song” by Phoebe Bridgers. Take your pick. If any of those songs break you, this book will finish the job 😭❤️‍🩹

Cleopatra and Frankenstein is a literary fiction masterpiece and in-depth character study. It’s the type of book that readers need to put some work into — you learn about the characters passively, by connecting the dots between their dialogue and their actions/behaviors. It’s a book worth annotating because so much is said between the lines. 

Throughout the book you go from loving Cleo and Frank to hating them both, individually and as a couple. They’re messy, flawed, toxic people who bring out the worst in each other, and yet: “when the darkest part of you meets the darkest part of me, it creates light.” 

It’s as beautiful as it is heartbreaking. It’s raw, it’s messy, it’s human. 5/5 stars⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Definitely adult content w/ triggering subjects. Check for content warnings ❤️‍🩹

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inesbnstgry's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • 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

4.5

Definitely don't read this unless you're mentally strong enough to bear it

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ynotlime's review against another edition

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emotional reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5


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neevechristine's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional funny hopeful reflective sad tense slow-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

This took me longer to read than the average book, but the final 100 pages I read in one sitting. In the final 10 pages I was crying and banging the book against my head. It’s gorgeous and heartbreaking and raw. It filled a void I didn’t know existed 

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mbgates's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional medium-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

4.75

when I finished this book, I felt simlarly to the way I felt when i finished normal people. This book made me think about relationships so differently and i really felt like i learned something about human behavior at the end of it. i could not set the book down was so drawn in by the story and felt every emotion. Immediately I wanted to read it again. I really want to give this book 5 stars and do think I will eventually read this book again, which I only do with 5 star reads. The prose was beautiful and the settings were incredible, I felt like I was in New York, France, and Italy. I cried twice in this book, and I haven't cried at a book since My Dark Vanessa last year. The ONLY THING that has brought my rating down from a 5 is I just felt there's too many loose ends at the end. Normally, I'm fine with ambiguous endings, but too many of the characters here just felt...unfinished at the end (Zoe, Quentin, etc). I may eventually get over this feeling but I typically only like to give 5 stars to books that I feel are absolutely perfect.

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