saskiahill's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
The story is 'clever', but the writing is really dense, and you're kept in the dark for so long about how various threads connect that it starts to feel like you're just reading a series of separate stories, which all have very different styles. It feels like a book written to show the author's intelligence rather than to satisfy a reader - it's a bit jarring, a bit moving, a bit intriguing, and it feels like there's some sort of lesson buried very deep, but overall it doesn't quite achieve any of these things. I kept with it because I wanted it to come together
Spoiler
but the ending is unsatisfying, and the subject matter of abuse feels really unjustified - why introduce such a traumatic storyline just to make it irrelevant?
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Adult/minor relationship, Sexual assault, Slavery, Sexual harassment, Physical abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Incest, Grief, Gore, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Abandonment, Violence, Toxic relationship, Classism, Pedophilia, Eating disorder, Death, Blood, Murder, Kidnapping, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, and Pregnancy
Minor: Excrement, Vomit, and War
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