Reviews with content warning for Panic attacks/disorders - Plain Bad Heroines

I have such a love and hate relationship with this book. I love the writing style and the language, by God, I truly do. I’m also amazed at this book for being my first book with polyamorous characters in it! I’m personally aroace and find it at times very discomforting (a lot of horny-ness), but loved the ending! Sometimes, one of the characters get so fecken annoying and edge-lordy, but I’m glad I decided on reading through. I’d recommend this to people who like long books with hella queerness in it.

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sauvageloup's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious reflective sad tense slow-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

3.0

glad to have read this, because the concept is fresh and interesting, and I need to read more wholly sapphic books. but it tried to do too much and didnt pull it off.
this review on tumblr by flying-elliska has all my thoughts well said:
https://www.tumblr.com/flying-elliska/672822130083233792/and-now-for-sapphic-reads-time-the-sequel-tm?source=share

pros:
- the setting was a fleshed out character in itself and I loved that. the orchard apples, the tower, the orangerie, the beach, etc.
- I liked the story of the original woman, simone, who lived on the land.
- some imagery was definitely creepy and disturbing, especially eating wasps.
- the main characters were interesting, and I liked that they became a poly triad rather than a love triangle.

cons:
- too many characters, too much rambling, too meta, too plotty and just too long.
- I never really got truly creeped out. it just didnt sink deep enough into that and there wasnt enough real danger. the deaths were distant and over fast. didnt feel that sad at any of them.
- more interesting to see more flo and Clara for sure.

a different read for sure and I'm glad I read it, but disappointing and a bit slow too.

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uhhlexiconic's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious slow-paced

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

2.0

More akin to a textbook than a novel, and perhaps twice as long as it needs to be, Plain Bad Heroines pulls every ounce of tension out of its material and and dilutes some of its stronger attributes.

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_bookbug's review against another edition

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dark mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes

4.0

I really enjoyed reading this. I loved the voice of the narrator and getting to know the characters. I also liked how everything is connected. You really should annotate while reading to remember the scenes you think might be important and relevant (because they certainly are)!
But I have to admit that the explanation for everything (most of it?) isn't as satisfying as I hoped. And, ngl, this book didn't have to be 600 pages long. 100-150 pages less would totally do it.

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flamesocks's review against another edition

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dark funny slow-paced

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

3.0

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mallory10100's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense fast-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? No

5.0

oh my god i loved this book so much, what a creative story. i LOVED how gay it was

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thestarlitpage's review against another edition

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dark mysterious reflective medium-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

Thank you so much to William Morrow Books for the gifted review copy!

I usually start reviews with a brief summary of a book’s premise, but the narrator of Plain Bad Heroines sums it up so succinctly with this quote:

“Everything else to come in these pages comprises the story of three heroines from the present and more heroines from the past and how they all collided around Brookhants, and a book, and also a book about Brookhants.”

Harper Harper, Merritt Emmons, and Audrey Wells are brought together by the Hollywood production of Merritt’s book, The Happenings at Brookhants, which tells the story of Clara and Flo—a couple in love who met a tragic end at their girls’ boarding school in 1902. The story jumps back and forth in time between the aftermath of Clara and Flo’s deaths and the present.

Plain Bad Heroines is a haunting and macabre gothic horror story with a richly layered meta-narrative that I couldn’t get enough of. Atmospheric and unsettling, the Brookhants curse seeps through every page. This is one of those reads where a setting has a strong enough presence that it begins to feel like a character in and of itself. It’s also one of those rare reads where I felt invested in each and every characters’ storyline. Every heroine featured was richly developed with a distinct voice. I could have read a full book dedicated to any one of them and yet the interlacing of their stories is what made this book so addicting.

Plain Bad Heroines is my favorite type of read. It's a compelling narrative that stacks stories like nesting dolls, has a lovely way with words, and—if you want to get into the gestalt of the reading experience—the design of the book itself from it's illustrations, end pages and dust jacket design to the color of the cover is complete and utter perfection. It's a book that reminds you that there’s always more to the story. It's creepy enough to churn the stomach and get under the skin (and if you're anything like me, its influence might make its not way into a borderline nightmare with a swarm of yellow jackets) but it's not a scary read.

This is one that I'll definitely be revisiting and adding to my favorites shelf.

I'd recommend this to readers looking for something a little bit dark, readers who like beautifully told stories, and readers who like Gothic horror and stories with curses and haunted places.

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