Reviews with content warning for Vomit - Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead

As someone who struggles with the same things Gilda does, I found this book oddly comforting. Not only that, but it never failed to keep me in suspense!

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orlagal's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? N/A
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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hizz's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I don't know why everyone says this book is funny. It is not. It portrays anxiety and dread quite realistically and the very bleak reality of it. If you have anxiety already, it will give you more of it, but you will also feel seen.

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chrisljm's review

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funny reflective sad fast-paced

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

4.5

Not the most uplifting book but I did find it fascinating and a bit profound. I loved the dry humor and being able to see Gilda's thought process and, while depressing, the very unique way she views the world. I'm filled with a sad sort of empathy for Gilda and the way anxiety impacts her, but I'm also left stunned at the heartbreaking beauty that shines through Emily Austin's prose.

For example, there's one instance in the novel where Gilda recounts how through the difficulty she faces to feel happy, the only recent time she can remember being so is when she watched a movie with her girlfriend. She then proceeds to contemplate the role Catholicism plays in peoples lives, and theorizes that it's a solution to existential dread, how it's comforting to imagine we have loved ones waiting for us afterwards, that there is someone in this life who watches over us and loves us, and that perhaps it gives our lives meaning. But as someone who's queer, "it's ironic that a belief system theoretically created to help me feel safe and meaningful takes away one of the few things that makes me feel like my life is worth living at all."

Another instance occurs on Gilda's 28th birthday where she ruminates just how long she's existed: in days, in months, in the years of other parts of this planetary system. "I read once that women are born with all the eggs that they will ever produce in their life. That means the egg that formed me is as old as my mother. From that perspective, part of me is fifty-one."

Gilda is so introspective, in ways that I am not, and despite being left with this tender sadness, I appreciate that I now have this to reflect on.

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illitervicc's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious reflective relaxing tense medium-paced

Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

in some ways i resonate with gilda, and just as she has mentioned (paraphrased), i will probably forget these moments and specifically reading this book. it wasn't a bad read at all, in fact, there were a handful of moments that had me chuckling. i think if i had read this during the pandemic, i would probably feel more strongly towards this book. some parts of the story i did find myself skimming through because it just seemed repetitive to me, but perhaps those parts are just a depiction of the anxious and obsessive thoughts in mental health challenges that many including myself have experienced. definitely an existential piece, which again i think i would have especially loved to have read this book during the pandemic because i was #going through it. i hope gilda continues treats herself as well as she had treated Flop and that it eventually all works out well between her and eleanor.

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