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alexaela's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
relaxing
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
could this have been more concise, shorter? yes. could this have been richer, fuller? also, yes. i think the parts where the book lost me were the ones where most of the pages were filled with dialogues and very few insight into our narrator's inner conflict and observations on his fellow associates. the best parts were filled with quotes on various themes, but mostly, rich in character moments and insight into the complex and messed up nature of their personalities and relationships. i hated all of them, yet found them so scarily humane and fragile.
the seeping horror of this ending and epilogue was what i needed most afterBunny's death , glad we got it for Henry's (he deserved it most) . As much as i loved the supsense, intrigue and thrill of not knowing whether they may or may not get caught by someone else, once the body was found ; what i loved best was the slower moments of dread and despair showcased by each characters once faced with the true horror of their actions. Mr Corcoran's wild displays of grief, Julian's cold and cowardly reaction to the truth, Bunny and Henry's dream like apparitions , those moments, are why i'm glad i stuck through the rougher parts of the story.
I disagree with those who thought Richard to be a boring pov. I felt both so deeply attached and repulsed by him, specifically, because i could relate so much with where he came from and how much his way of seeing and going about things would undeniably lead him to the wrong path. he was so obsessed with his own lacking parts that he latched onto those who had what he wanted most selfishly, and looked down on those who unapologetically displayed characteristics of a socio-economic background he despised, even when they were the only ones who ever thought of him as an equal. Richard didn't want to be respected or even loved, he only ever wanted to be desperately needed, and he got just that, from the worst (beautiful) people he could find. i don't think this theme could have been translated as well, through such out of touch characters as the rest of them.
"unreliable pov"? i don't really see how? was he unaware of a lot? yes. was he often blinded by his own jealousy and fear of abandonment, to admit to himself the true nature of others? also, yes. was his ignorance and blindness, to the complex reality lead bare in front him, ever, not incredibly obvious the reader? no. it can only appear unreliable to those who themselves refuse to see the truth. readers are like Julian and Richard, they want to see the best in the make believe characters of their lives, to see the full beauty of theirs, ignoring that what makes them truly beautiful, truly grand, is that these specific moments of humanity, friendship and humour, one loves to see, can also come from deeply rotten individuals. funny, considering, this obsession with perfect displays of pure beauty, is, in fact, the most rotten aspect of this main cast.
nb : i get serious dorian gray vibes from this side of the story.
this is probably my longest review on a book, and yet, i only gave it a 4, why is that? this felt very academic, in a modern classic kind of way. almost higher than thou. definitely not bad to analyse but hard to feel close to, on a first read. i do think that, if i ever chose to do so, this could become a 5 star, after multiple reads. in the meantime : 'I hope you'll excuse me, but I'm late for an appointment.'
ps : this was my first book, fully, read in english. i'm really happy (and proud) to see i could manage it.
the seeping horror of this ending and epilogue was what i needed most after
I disagree with those who thought Richard to be a boring pov. I felt both so deeply attached and repulsed by him, specifically, because i could relate so much with where he came from and how much his way of seeing and going about things would undeniably lead him to the wrong path. he was so obsessed with his own lacking parts that he latched onto those who had what he wanted most selfishly, and looked down on those who unapologetically displayed characteristics of a socio-economic background he despised, even when they were the only ones who ever thought of him as an equal. Richard didn't want to be respected or even loved, he only ever wanted to be desperately needed, and he got just that, from the worst (beautiful) people he could find. i don't think this theme could have been translated as well, through such out of touch characters as the rest of them.
"unreliable pov"? i don't really see how? was he unaware of a lot? yes. was he often blinded by his own jealousy and fear of abandonment, to admit to himself the true nature of others? also, yes. was his ignorance and blindness, to the complex reality lead bare in front him, ever, not incredibly obvious the reader? no. it can only appear unreliable to those who themselves refuse to see the truth. readers are like Julian and Richard, they want to see the best in the make believe characters of their lives, to see the full beauty of theirs, ignoring that what makes them truly beautiful, truly grand, is that these specific moments of humanity, friendship and humour, one loves to see, can also come from deeply rotten individuals. funny, considering, this obsession with perfect displays of pure beauty, is, in fact, the most rotten aspect of this main cast.
nb : i get serious dorian gray vibes from this side of the story.
this is probably my longest review on a book, and yet, i only gave it a 4, why is that? this felt very academic, in a modern classic kind of way. almost higher than thou. definitely not bad to analyse but hard to feel close to, on a first read. i do think that, if i ever chose to do so, this could become a 5 star, after multiple reads. in the meantime : 'I hope you'll excuse me, but I'm late for an appointment.'
ps : this was my first book, fully, read in english. i'm really happy (and proud) to see i could manage it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Incest
Moderate: Homophobia
Minor: Racism and Rape
aidareads's review against another edition
dark
funny
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
this could’ve easily been 200 pages shorter without the plot suffering any major changes. also what the fuck was that (and by “that” i mean the entirety of the second part)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Drug abuse, and Murder
Moderate: Homophobia, Rape, and Suicide
atalea's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
slow-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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Deadnaming, Drug abuse, Violence, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
Moderate: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, Incest, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Blood, Grief, and Murder
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cancer, Eating disorder, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Terminal illness, Forced institutionalization, and Vomit
fmfp's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Drug use, and Murder
Minor: Rape
jsabhi's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder
Minor: Incest, Rape, and Gaslighting
abhea_reads's review against another edition
4.75
I love linguistics so much and this book would get 5 stars if slurs didn't jump scare me every time I started to feel safe again
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cursing, Death, Incest, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Classism
Minor: Rape
jcinf's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Was this a good book? Yes. Did I enjoy it? Not really.
First, it was so long. I would check to see how many pages I read, realize I had only read about 10 pages, and then just feel annoyed at the author for writing so much. (Though it is almost fitting that a pretentious book with pretentious characters be as long and self-absorbed as it was). I could have enjoyed this so much more if it has like 150 less pages.
Then, I didn’t like the characters. I either disliked them or felt neutral about them. So, I couldn’t empathize with any of them, which made it hard for me to enjoy the story.
And (not a spoiler, I promise) why did Richard keep saying he loved these people? I didn’t feel love between anyone. I just felt like they all used each other. Maybe that was the point, I suppose. To illuminate how selfish people can be and to demonstrate how they think they love someone when really their idea of the person is self-serving because it feeds their ego or identity in some way. Maybe I’m not allowing the characters to have depth with that interpretation, but with the nihilistic perspective used throughout the book, I feel like my take is pretty accurate. So it just annoyed me because it didn’t feel self aware.
What I did enjoy was the portrayal of specific people spiraling because of a set of circumstances that just wrecked their mental state. I thought that was psychologically interesting, sort of lol. But that too started to wear on me and I was getting tired of watching these people fall into substance abuse issues.
I also enjoyed the style of writing. Even though it dragged, the author’s writing was fantastic and engaging.
I noticed myself picking this book up to “get through it” rather than to actually enjoy reading it. I kept pushing because this book was so beloved, but in the end I don’t really think I was converted into loving it.
I think I like the idea of dark academia more than I actually like dark academia. Something about reading about academic snobs drives me crazy, no matter how cool the ‘vibes’ are.
List of spoilers with questions I had and/or general commentary:
1. So, let me get this straight, they (minus Richard) all killed a man in some drugged out daze? And somehow Richard figured it out because one of the guys had been out of town for a couple days? And tickets to Greece or whatever? Weird.
2. Incest?! wtf. So strange that came up and then was like never mentioned again. I wondered if I actually read that right, bc it was mentioned so flippantly.
3. Was Henry really wanting to kill Charles, or was that just meant to demonstrate Charles’ unraveling?
4. Henry was a psychopath and we’re just gonna not acknowledge that any further than the one conversation? And then make Charles feel crazy for thinking Henry wanted to kill him? Okay then lol.
5. At least one review said “they all deserved what they got” and now I’m wondering what that reviewer meant. Only one of them actually died as a consequence of his actions. And that was by choice. AND romanticized as well. Not this sad death they made it out to be. I would’ve loved if this book punished the characters more, actually.
6. Oh, and that brief mention of wanting to r*pe Camilla. wtf was that? I know it was meant to illustrate how far gone Richard was to this weird power high. But I really wish the author didn’t include that part. To me, even though it was mentioned briefly, it was disturbing.
7. Did Henry really manipulate Richard into getting involved? Or was that another example of unreliable narration?
I guess I’m still glad I read it? Idk man.
Oh, and I’m not sure why all these reviews mention being deceived at the end. Either I missed something or I had something clocked the whole time. I’m just not sure what that is. Lol
Another thought: was “Bunny” by Mona Awad inspired by this? Brb gonna Google it.
First, it was so long. I would check to see how many pages I read, realize I had only read about 10 pages, and then just feel annoyed at the author for writing so much. (Though it is almost fitting that a pretentious book with pretentious characters be as long and self-absorbed as it was). I could have enjoyed this so much more if it has like 150 less pages.
Then, I didn’t like the characters. I either disliked them or felt neutral about them. So, I couldn’t empathize with any of them, which made it hard for me to enjoy the story.
And (not a spoiler, I promise) why did Richard keep saying he loved these people? I didn’t feel love between anyone. I just felt like they all used each other. Maybe that was the point, I suppose. To illuminate how selfish people can be and to demonstrate how they think they love someone when really their idea of the person is self-serving because it feeds their ego or identity in some way. Maybe I’m not allowing the characters to have depth with that interpretation, but with the nihilistic perspective used throughout the book, I feel like my take is pretty accurate. So it just annoyed me because it didn’t feel self aware.
What I did enjoy was the portrayal of specific people spiraling because of a set of circumstances that just wrecked their mental state. I thought that was psychologically interesting, sort of lol. But that too started to wear on me and I was getting tired of watching these people fall into
I also enjoyed the style of writing. Even though it dragged, the author’s writing was fantastic and engaging.
I noticed myself picking this book up to “get through it” rather than to actually enjoy reading it. I kept pushing because this book was so beloved, but in the end I don’t really think I was converted into loving it.
I think I like the idea of dark academia more than I actually like dark academia. Something about reading about academic snobs drives me crazy, no matter how cool the ‘vibes’ are.
List of spoilers with questions I had and/or general commentary:
2. Incest?! wtf. So strange that came up and then was like never mentioned again. I wondered if I actually read that right, bc it was mentioned so flippantly.
3. Was Henry really wanting to kill Charles, or was that just meant to demonstrate Charles’ unraveling?
4. Henry was a psychopath and we’re just gonna not acknowledge that any further than the one conversation? And then make Charles feel crazy for thinking Henry wanted to kill him? Okay then lol.
5. At least one review said “they all deserved what they got” and now I’m wondering what that reviewer meant. Only one of them actually died as a consequence of his actions. And that was by choice. AND romanticized as well. Not this sad death they made it out to be. I would’ve loved if this book punished the characters more, actually.
6. Oh, and that brief mention of wanting to r*pe Camilla. wtf was that? I know it was meant to illustrate how far gone Richard was to this weird power high. But I really wish the author didn’t include that part. To me, even though it was mentioned briefly, it was disturbing.
7. Did Henry really manipulate Richard into getting involved? Or was that another example of unreliable narration?
I guess I’m still glad I read it? Idk man.
Oh, and I’m not sure why all these reviews mention being deceived at the end. Either I missed something or I had something clocked the whole time. I’m just not sure what that is. Lol
Another thought: was “Bunny” by Mona Awad inspired by this? Brb gonna Google it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Incest, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Rape, Stalking, and Suicide attempt
lizziewesbroom's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Suicide, Violence, Vomit, and Suicide attempt
sunlitridges's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
My rating for this one keeps getting higher and higher bc while it didn't originally seem spectacular to me, I find myself thinking about it in my spare time immediately started re-reading to see if I can pick up on any details I previously missed. Also wonderful descriptions from the author. I'll likely read of few times
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Self harm, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Murder, and Classism
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Domestic abuse, Incest, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, and Stalking