Reviews with content warning for Suicide - Girl Friends

Every single one of Holly Bourne's adult novels have given me a minor existential crisis, and Girl Friends is no different.

It follows Fern, who has found some slightly accidental viral fame for sharing her experiences with mental illness, who after a ten year estrangement comes face to face with her best friend from her teenage years Jessica. The novel then takes us between the present, as Fern struggles to grapple with Jessica's arrival in her life and the years of the early 00s and Fern and Jessica's original friendship, leading to the point where the girls stop speaking.

Bourne is great at writing about the contemporary female experience and Girl Friends is no different. Fern's insecurities may feel irrational but also recognisable, as does Jessica's behaviour. Bourne's descriptions of the early 00s also felt painfully familiar, from the pop culture references to the grim way that 'lad culture' was accepted and enabled by teenage girls desperate to be recognised. This is a novel that looks at how misogyny creeps into relationships between young men and women, and how it can be a barrier to recognise how things really are.

The only thing that felt false to me is that there needed to be a 'reveal' about Jessica's motivations, given Fern's career and academic interests I would have expected her to be more able to understand the rationale behind the behaviour of those around her. However, this is a great contemporary read and I'll be first to pick up Bourne's next adult novel.

Content Warnings

jenicatreads's review against another edition

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challenging dark sad tense fast-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? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

helloits_jen's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad fast-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

5.0

Content Warnings

jazzy_t's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad 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

4.5

Wow.

Great book, could be a massive eye opener for some people to see how messed up the world is for women. I generally wish the characters well even though they aren't real! Really great book, I felt I was there in Fern's mind.

The book had been slowly building to the climax, but then I felt the ending was kinda rushed. But still I really enjoyed it.

The list of all the things expected/happen to women in the last chapter was emotional, and powerful. And like Fern and Jessica we can make the world a better place!

(Lots of triggers so read list before reading!!)

Content Warnings