novelesque_life's review against another edition
3.0
RATING: 3 STARS
2020; Hamish Hamilton/Penguin Random House Canada
How a Woman Becomes a Lake is a slow burn mystery, that is heavier on literature side than mystery. If you are looking for a pop-suspense, I would skip this one. Celona is a beautiful writer, and the story is at times lyrical, but I was finding it hard to concentrate on what was happening at times. The story sometimes veers too much in the lyrical side. I did enjoy the complex realistic characters, but it is a book I would reread or recommend readily so that is why I rated it just three stars.
***I received a complimentary copy of this ebook from the publisher through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.***
2020; Hamish Hamilton/Penguin Random House Canada
How a Woman Becomes a Lake is a slow burn mystery, that is heavier on literature side than mystery. If you are looking for a pop-suspense, I would skip this one. Celona is a beautiful writer, and the story is at times lyrical, but I was finding it hard to concentrate on what was happening at times. The story sometimes veers too much in the lyrical side. I did enjoy the complex realistic characters, but it is a book I would reread or recommend readily so that is why I rated it just three stars.
***I received a complimentary copy of this ebook from the publisher through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.***
jnobrien21's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Grief
Moderate: Child abuse
Minor: Alcohol
challe232's review against another edition
4.0
This is about two couples and two children and how their choices impact the rest of their lives. I don't want to spoil anything but I really liked how it touched on life and death, and it all came together at the end. That made it 4 stars for me. The female characters Vera and Evelina were really great characters and I didn't want the novel to end so soon, I liked it enough that I wanted to know more and for it to keep going.
Thanks to Penguin Random House and the author.
4/5 stars
Thanks to Penguin Random House and the author.
4/5 stars
melodyriggs's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
3.0
This is beautifully written but a slow build with a mostly predictable ending. Denny’s grief was real and raw. I wasn’t a fan of the chapters featuring Vera’s perspective though.
darshang07's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-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
nbkemp's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book was a challenging read at times, but I loved how the story unfolded and once I was a few chapters in I didn't want to stop. The stories were heartbreakingly realistic.
Could have done without the chapters from Vera's perspective, especially after the first one, but they weren't a huge component of the book so I didn't mind it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, and Grief
siobhanward's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
2.0
This one was kind of a miss for me. I found that nothing happened in the first 70 pages and then so many of the remaining pages were devoted to Leo abusing or neglecting his kids. I know that it was actually a really small part of the book, but so little happened in other parts that it seemed like the only thing happening.
The idea was cool and I liked the intertwined plots, but this just wasn't a book for me.
The idea was cool and I liked the intertwined plots, but this just wasn't a book for me.
sonireads's review against another edition
4.0
What an appropriate title.
This book follows Jesse, a young boy from a broken home, who is physically abused by his father. He lives in fear but still can't help but instigate the violence. He has a lot of strong emotions for such a young boy, and a lot of rage in his heart. On New Years day, he is at a park waiting for his father, a woman disappears, and we spend the rest of the book finding out what happened and why it happened.
Celona writes beautifully, it's almost poetic. She makes the reader feel deeply what she is trying to express. There are a lot of spiritual undertones in this book, like what happens when somebody dies? When someone is born? What happens to the soul?
There are also a lot of dark themes, death, suicide, abuse, just to name a few. What happens when people experience these kinds of traumatic events?
I recommend this book for someone who enjoys mystery or books about life and reality that we sometimes face.
Thank you to Penguin Random House Canada and NetGalley for the eGalley. All opinions expressed are my own.
This book follows Jesse, a young boy from a broken home, who is physically abused by his father. He lives in fear but still can't help but instigate the violence. He has a lot of strong emotions for such a young boy, and a lot of rage in his heart. On New Years day, he is at a park waiting for his father, a woman disappears, and we spend the rest of the book finding out what happened and why it happened.
Celona writes beautifully, it's almost poetic. She makes the reader feel deeply what she is trying to express. There are a lot of spiritual undertones in this book, like what happens when somebody dies? When someone is born? What happens to the soul?
There are also a lot of dark themes, death, suicide, abuse, just to name a few. What happens when people experience these kinds of traumatic events?
I recommend this book for someone who enjoys mystery or books about life and reality that we sometimes face.
Thank you to Penguin Random House Canada and NetGalley for the eGalley. All opinions expressed are my own.
emaynard97's review against another edition
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? Yes
5.0