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kellyreadingbooks's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I can completely see why this book isn’t for everyone. And honestly, after reading this book I can see how I’m not everyone’s cup of tea either, and come to find more peace with it. This book is brilliant and addictive. It’s almost this dystopian world of weddings- brides have gotten crazy doing “charms” for their weddings to bring their marriages longevity like sacrificing rabbits and carrying sage and garlic bouquets down the aisle. Robin is a queer badass professor writing a dissertation on this craze when she’s asking to be maid of honor for her “basic bitch” PSL loving best friend Ellie from high school. Besides this strange movement of the government out to endorse weddings and increase the population being an intriguing plot point, I loved Robin. I loved the messiness of her strong opinions and boundary crossing for the things she believes in. She’s such a real and fascinating character to follow. I related so much to her not being able to let things go and harboring repressed emotions for years. This is a book about female friendship and toxicity that can follow it. It’s about societal expectations and gender politics. Beginning this book, everything is so black and white through Robins eyes and then we slowly as a reader follow along Robin seeing how everything is in fact, gray. This is definitely an atypical thriller that is so much more than the premise.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death and Toxic friendship
Minor: Drug use, Hate crime, Homophobia, Racism, Medical trauma, and Death of parent
jkneebone's review
dark
emotional
funny
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
3.0
The premise for this one is pretty straightforward: queer, partnered, and anti-marriage gender studies PhD student Robin agrees to be the maid of honor for her best friend Ellie, despite the fact that they have seriously grown apart from each other at 34. As teens and in their early twenties, the two were completely intertwined, but Ellie is obsessed with climbing “the ladder” - marriage, house, kids - which Robin openly disdains. Still, she agrees to be MOH for old times sake and is quickly freaked by the lengths that Ellie will go to in order to ensure her marriage is a success - specifically the wedding “charms” which have come into popularity that Ellie wants to try.
I think my enjoyment of this book was tempered by the fact that I misunderstood what the premise of the story would be. It is an absurdist novel, which I didn’t know going into it - the world of the story mostly resembles ours, except with a heavier slant towards the traditional marriage and family values set; it is publicly acceptable to count down until women become “rotten” aka too old to marry - and the plot is mainly skewering the wedding industry, not our societal focus on romantic relationships above all else (what I was personally hoping for!). So, take my review with a grain of salt - I imagine that had my expectations been more accurate, I would have liked this better. That being said, I did enjoy the critique of the wedding industry, and I liked that our MC and narrator, Robin, was clearly flawed, and became aware of those flaws throughout the course of the book - her issues were clear to readers earlier on, but it was cool to see her realize some of her pitfalls herself. I also liked the variety of characters that filled out the rest of the bridal party - the politically inconsistent mom of three, the gay man who’s more invested in marriage than the protagonist, and the hippie-dipper but weirdly insightful yoga teacher. Robin and Ellie’s friendship was also interesting to read about, if pushing the bounds of believability for me, but maybe I’ve just not had a friendship like that.
All in all, this is a short and interesting read which will definitely get you thinking - just be aware going into it that it’s absurdist so you aren’t caught off guard like I was!
I think my enjoyment of this book was tempered by the fact that I misunderstood what the premise of the story would be. It is an absurdist novel, which I didn’t know going into it - the world of the story mostly resembles ours, except with a heavier slant towards the traditional marriage and family values set; it is publicly acceptable to count down until women become “rotten” aka too old to marry - and the plot is mainly skewering the wedding industry, not our societal focus on romantic relationships above all else (what I was personally hoping for!). So, take my review with a grain of salt - I imagine that had my expectations been more accurate, I would have liked this better. That being said, I did enjoy the critique of the wedding industry, and I liked that our MC and narrator, Robin, was clearly flawed, and became aware of those flaws throughout the course of the book - her issues were clear to readers earlier on, but it was cool to see her realize some of her pitfalls herself. I also liked the variety of characters that filled out the rest of the bridal party - the politically inconsistent mom of three, the gay man who’s more invested in marriage than the protagonist, and the hippie-dipper but weirdly insightful yoga teacher. Robin and Ellie’s friendship was also interesting to read about, if pushing the bounds of believability for me, but maybe I’ve just not had a friendship like that.
All in all, this is a short and interesting read which will definitely get you thinking - just be aware going into it that it’s absurdist so you aren’t caught off guard like I was!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Murder, and Alcohol
fluffy1st's review
dark
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Vomit
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, and Death of parent
lozinja's review
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death and Violence
jenmcvay's review
challenging
dark
funny
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Toxic relationship, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Death of parent
jessamichellexo's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
This book honestly makes me want to strangle the author. The one dimensional personalities of Robin & Ellie are so, so infuriating it isn't even funny. The writing is absolutely sloppy & insensitive on so many different levels. Literally the only thing I liked about this book is the cover. 😤
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Homophobia, and Gaslighting
Minor: Death of parent
caseythereader's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Cancer, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Gun violence, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
cheyanndow's review
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty and Animal death
cdubiel's review
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I listened to the audiobook generously provided to me by Libro.fm. I started listening to this book because reviews on here said that it "went in a weird direction." I am all for weird. And yes, it does get that way, but for me it made a lot of sense. I won't spoil anything. Basically, this is a send-up of the wedding industry, but I also loved the unexpected turns in both character and story.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty and Animal death
pey333's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Emotional abuse, Death of parent, Murder, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Confinement, Sexism, and Alcohol
Minor: Abortion and Cultural appropriation