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hiashleynine's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-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? It's complicated
3.0
I actually don’t know how I feel about this book. It was a very quick read, and a lot of the dialogue between Dorthy and Larry was nicely written and felt profound at times. I think I went into this expecting one thing and was met with something completely different. All I know for certain is FUCK Fred and FUCK Estelle!
This is not a bad book at all, just one I might need to think about a little more to fully gauge how I feel about it…
This is not a bad book at all, just one I might need to think about a little more to fully gauge how I feel about it…
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death and Death
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Pedophilia, Torture, and Murder
savvylit's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
What a novella! Mrs. Caliban is so many things: a romance, a thriller, a feminist fable. Ingalls has managed to pack a heck of a lot of thought-provoking story into this fast-paced little book. Larry's arrival sets Dorothy free from her unsatisfying life. For one, she discovers her own sexual agency. Furthermore, Larry's constant questions about human culture help Dorothy discover the inanity of many societal expectations.
There's so much more that happens in Mrs. Caliban, but that's about all I can say without spoiling the novella. Suffice it to say, I love this book. A short feminist fable with magical realism? My favorite genre! I can't wait to track down more of Ingalls' work.
There's so much more that happens in Mrs. Caliban, but that's about all I can say without spoiling the novella. Suffice it to say, I love this book. A short feminist fable with magical realism? My favorite genre! I can't wait to track down more of Ingalls' work.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Infidelity, Grief, and Murder
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, and Toxic friendship
alishamegan's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Torture, Toxic relationship, Grief, Car accident, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship
blewballoon's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
This book certainly affected me. I was unsettled, disturbed, and upset in the end and it stuck with me for a while. Most of the characters apart from Dorothy are almost comically awful, but not comically enough for it not to be distressing. Even during the parts of the book where pleasant things are occurring, there is a constant undercurrent of tension and dread.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Child death, Death, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Medical trauma, Car accident, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
unroxy's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Car accident
rorikae's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
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
4.25
'Mrs. Caliban' by Rachel Ingalls is an engaging novella that centers on one woman's issues with her marriage and her relationship with a lizard man.
Dorothy and her husband Fred have had a strained relationship ever since they lost their young son and she had a miscarriage. They have drifted apart and Dorothy suspects that her husband is having an affair. One day, she hears a story on the radio about a lizard man that has escaped from a local research facility. Questioning her sanity, Dorothy doesn't think much on it until the lizard man appears in her kitchen in need of help. As Dorothy talks with the lizard man, who she calls Larry, she learns more about his experiences in the research facility and the two start a quiet but caring affair.
If you enjoyed the movie 'The Shape of Water, but wanted more of the relationship between the protagonist and the sea monster and less of the spy plotline, then you really must read 'Mrs. Caliban.' I'm honestly shocked that this wasn't a direct inspiration for 'The Shape of Water' as it has a very similar plot line and explore how we connect to others.
Ingalls does a great job of plopping us squarely into Dorothy's life and then slowly expanding her world through her interactions with her husband, her friend Estelle, and with Larry. There are interweaving plot lines that pop back in and out throughout the story though ultimately, the story centers on Dorothy's relationships and how her grief over the loss of her child and her unraveling relationship with her husband affects those relationships. A lot happens in the story and though we don't get to delve deeply into the characters, I still found myself invested. There is consistent tension between Dorothy hiding Larry in her home and keeping up an affair with him while also hiding this fact from her husband.
The ending was not what I was expecting and given the quieter aspects of the rest of the book, felt almost over the top. I think this would be a good book for a book club as there is a good amount to delve into and unpack about Dorothy's relationships and the interweaving points of the story.
Ultimately, it's an engaging novella that expertly utilizes its speculative aspects to delve into the relationships of the main character.
Dorothy and her husband Fred have had a strained relationship ever since they lost their young son and she had a miscarriage. They have drifted apart and Dorothy suspects that her husband is having an affair. One day, she hears a story on the radio about a lizard man that has escaped from a local research facility. Questioning her sanity, Dorothy doesn't think much on it until the lizard man appears in her kitchen in need of help. As Dorothy talks with the lizard man, who she calls Larry, she learns more about his experiences in the research facility and the two start a quiet but caring affair.
If you enjoyed the movie 'The Shape of Water, but wanted more of the relationship between the protagonist and the sea monster and less of the spy plotline, then you really must read 'Mrs. Caliban.' I'm honestly shocked that this wasn't a direct inspiration for 'The Shape of Water' as it has a very similar plot line and explore how we connect to others.
Ingalls does a great job of plopping us squarely into Dorothy's life and then slowly expanding her world through her interactions with her husband, her friend Estelle, and with Larry. There are interweaving plot lines that pop back in and out throughout the story though ultimately, the story centers on Dorothy's relationships and how her grief over the loss of her child and her unraveling relationship with her husband affects those relationships. A lot happens in the story and though we don't get to delve deeply into the characters, I still found myself invested. There is consistent tension between Dorothy hiding Larry in her home and keeping up an affair with him while also hiding this fact from her husband.
The ending was not what I was expecting and given the quieter aspects of the rest of the book, felt almost over the top. I think this would be a good book for a book club as there is a good amount to delve into and unpack about Dorothy's relationships and the interweaving points of the story.
Ultimately, it's an engaging novella that expertly utilizes its speculative aspects to delve into the relationships of the main character.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Death, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Torture, Grief, and Car accident
msmoth's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death and Death
Minor: Adult/minor relationship
rochelle_reads's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
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
3.0
꧁꧁Book Review꧂꧂
Weird. Funny. Unfinished.
The story follows Dorothy, a housewife in a lifeless marriage who develops a relationship with a frog-like creature that waltzes into her kitchen and eats her salad. After escaping abusive scientists, Dorothy must help him stay hidden while hiding her passions for the the amphibian from her unsuspecting husband by shutting him up in the guest room.
This book was bloody weird. I am still a little bit traumatised if I’m honest. Let’s start with why I actually decided to read this: it was advertised to me as “frogman porn” and colour me intrigued, I thought after reading that blue alien nonsense, how bad could it be? I was wrong. And very wrong.Let’s address the frog in the room. There was no smut. And his name was Larry…Larry the frogman.
I couldn’t take anything about this book seriously. How she described his “large nobly head” and then how attractive she found him, after she made him extra large glasses and a hat to fit his giant head. I’m cracking up as I write this because it’s just so utterly bizarre to hear it aloud but I didn’t laugh when I read it because I had absolutely no idea what was happening. I don’t know if this was intended to be funny but I can’t explain this book to anyone without crying with laughter because it’s so weird.
The writing style was very difficult to follow in places and I found that Ingalls put emphasis and descriptions on strange parts of the narrative, while leaving other important ideas for the reader to put together themselves in a complex way.
Overall, I read this with my friend and I’m glad I did, because I needed to talk through this absolute train wreck by the end. I would absolutely recommend everyone read this because I need to know what you think 😂
Rating: 🐸🐸🐸
Content Warnings
Minor: Adult/minor relationship
angel_kiiss's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Death, Infidelity, Miscarriage, and Sexual content
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, and Car accident
issareads's review against another edition
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Infidelity, and Grief
Minor: Child death, Miscarriage, Torture, and Car accident