Scan barcode
holliewong's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
thulsiprabakaran's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
This is a tender and moving read, but I didn’t feel that the focus on Elio and Oliver was as prominent as is depicted in the synopsis. I found it quite tiring to try and figure out who the protagonist was in each section of the book, especially in the first one as it wasn’t always clear who the narrator was.
alicetheplanet's review against another edition
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.5
Do you ever find yourself unable to finish a book?
That's what happened to me with "Find me". I wanted to love this book so badly and had such high expectations for it, given I loved "Call Me By Your Name" and loved Andre Aciman's writing style but it just fell short. At first, I really liked Samuel and saw many ways his character could go but becoming obsessed with some girl half his age that he's known for 24 hours is not one of them and frankly, I find it kind've gross. Andre made Samuel a little pathetic and creepy in my opinion. Especially after it is revealed that his ex-wife is loving life in Milan with someone age-appropriate, it makes Samuel's decisions all the more uncomfortable.
Moving on, Andre makes Elio weird too, and frankly ruined him to me. Elio feels needy and lonely, which are not bad things but his going after someone double his age is unnecessary, especially after all the backlash about the age gap in CMBYN. Elio could have been written to be independent and strong but he leaves an aftertaste of broken adolescence and longing, and too much of it to be honest. As if he never got over Oliver, which is fine but he never dealt with his emotions so he's just sad and hard to look (read) at. Like the person at the party, you avoid it because he gets uncomfortably sad every time they drink.
Lastly, I didn't bother reading on after Elios's part because I was so grossed out over the age gaps and obsession in the book. I don't believe books have to be realistic at all, as I love Harry Potter and others like it, but this book trying to invoke emotion the way it did with CMBYN doesn't come close because of how unrealistic it is. How likely is it that Samuel and Elio will both end up falling in love or becoming unhealthily obsessed with people 30 years older or younger within 24 hours? The book did not give proper time to feel the emotions it is trying to invoke either, everything went so quickly, and there were no other things going on in the book besides the relationships so it's not like it was very interesting outside of the age gap. Really it just felt like they were so lonely that they would get with anyone who had something slightly interesting to say.
I'm sorry if this is really harsh but it was not for me at all. I hope all of you liked it way more than I did!
That's what happened to me with "Find me". I wanted to love this book so badly and had such high expectations for it, given I loved "Call Me By Your Name" and loved Andre Aciman's writing style but it just fell short. At first, I really liked Samuel and saw many ways his character could go but becoming obsessed with some girl half his age that he's known for 24 hours is not one of them and frankly, I find it kind've gross. Andre made Samuel a little pathetic and creepy in my opinion. Especially after it is revealed that his ex-wife is loving life in Milan with someone age-appropriate, it makes Samuel's decisions all the more uncomfortable.
Moving on, Andre makes Elio weird too, and frankly ruined him to me. Elio feels needy and lonely, which are not bad things but his going after someone double his age is unnecessary, especially after all the backlash about the age gap in CMBYN. Elio could have been written to be independent and strong but he leaves an aftertaste of broken adolescence and longing, and too much of it to be honest. As if he never got over Oliver, which is fine but he never dealt with his emotions so he's just sad and hard to look (read) at. Like the person at the party, you avoid it because he gets uncomfortably sad every time they drink.
Lastly, I didn't bother reading on after Elios's part because I was so grossed out over the age gaps and obsession in the book. I don't believe books have to be realistic at all, as I love Harry Potter and others like it, but this book trying to invoke emotion the way it did with CMBYN doesn't come close because of how unrealistic it is. How likely is it that Samuel and Elio will both end up falling in love or becoming unhealthily obsessed with people 30 years older or younger within 24 hours? The book did not give proper time to feel the emotions it is trying to invoke either, everything went so quickly, and there were no other things going on in the book besides the relationships so it's not like it was very interesting outside of the age gap. Really it just felt like they were so lonely that they would get with anyone who had something slightly interesting to say.
I'm sorry if this is really harsh but it was not for me at all. I hope all of you liked it way more than I did!
littlewhiterabbitreads's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
0.25
guacamolejoe's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
chumwhat's review against another edition
hopeful
reflective
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? It's complicated
3.25
dedempsey's review against another edition
2.0
I respect not cashing in on total fan service and writing the sequel everyone was expecting, but this alternative left me confused. We spent half the novel with Elio’s father, witnessing his whirlwind romance with a ~much younger~ woman, as we’re repeatedly reminded. This whole section served as set up for a split second at the end of the book, and I think the time spent on the page was out of proportion. I adored Elio’s father in Call Me By Your Name, so I was saddened by how disappointing I found this part of the novel.
I much preferred the rest of the book - Elio and Oliver’s parts - though I still found some of it confusing. Why do we keep harping on relationships with large age gaps? We never really seemed to reach a conclusion on this theme... There were also themes of Judaism, World War II, and a bit of a “musical mystery” thrown in, but again, I felt like they weren’t fleshed out and were just sort of left there. The musical mystery could’ve been its own book I think, but instead I’m not really sure what happened.
And then at the end, we got our reunion, and I thoroughly enjoyed it, but I was left thinking, if this is where we were headed anyway, why so rushed? Why so few pages spent with our main characters?
Aciman’s writing is undeniably beautiful, and that’s what kept me reading until the end. But in hindsight, I still don’t think I have fully formed my thoughts and feelings on the plot. I’m glad I read it but I’m left unsatisfied.
I much preferred the rest of the book - Elio and Oliver’s parts - though I still found some of it confusing. Why do we keep harping on relationships with large age gaps? We never really seemed to reach a conclusion on this theme... There were also themes of Judaism, World War II, and a bit of a “musical mystery” thrown in, but again, I felt like they weren’t fleshed out and were just sort of left there. The musical mystery could’ve been its own book I think, but instead I’m not really sure what happened.
And then at the end, we got our reunion, and I thoroughly enjoyed it, but I was left thinking, if this is where we were headed anyway, why so rushed? Why so few pages spent with our main characters?
Aciman’s writing is undeniably beautiful, and that’s what kept me reading until the end. But in hindsight, I still don’t think I have fully formed my thoughts and feelings on the plot. I’m glad I read it but I’m left unsatisfied.
vilma12345's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
2.5
ahmedaminea's review against another edition
1.0
Definitely DNFed after the first part. The whole romance was uninteresting, creepy and forced. This definitely was one of the worst books i've ever read.