Reviews with content warning for Murder - Styr din plog över de dödas ben

A beautifully written, quirky meandering book. I absolutely loved the main character (except maybe for her interest in Astrology which I mostly skimmed). The prose is gorgeous and I loved her writing style. The characters are wonderfully weird and the plot is downright crazy. I did find that the plot meandered a bit and it was a slower read for me. Overall a wonderful book and I enjoyed the characters so very much.

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breadbummer's review against another edition

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funny mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

Can we please get more books narrated by weird old women??? Because of this type of main character, I don't think I've ever read a book quite like this. I'll admit, it did seem kind of slow to me in some parts but, even at these sections, just like with Duszejko's love of astrology, paying attention to the tiniest details is key to figuring out what's going on. I definitely had my suspicions as the book progressed, but I was still glued to the page when everything was revealed.

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sidekicksam's review against another edition

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funny mysterious reflective fast-paced

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

3.75

Janina Duszjeko lives reclusively, almost at the border of society. She's very much into Astrology, predicts people's future date of deaths based on the location of the planets on the moment of birth, and is generally considered... colourful. When one of her two neighbours dies and the other asks her to help dress him before his body stiffens, she sets in motion a series of peculiar events that affect the people around her..

This book is an interesting character study, with vivid world-building and a witty pen to add a little extra dazzle. The first scene is set in mid-winter Poland, which was such a different vibe from the sunny weather I was reading it in, that I almost DNF'ed it to finish it in the winter time. In the end, I was happy I stayed on this weird ride of a book, because I giggled multiple times at the character of Janina and her quirks. The plot is predictable, but I did really enjoy reading it.

My favourite passage:
It's hard work talking to some people, most often males. I have a Theory about it. With age, many men come down with testosterone autism, the symptoms of which are a gradual decline in social intelligence and capacity for interpersonal communication, as well as a reduced ability to formulate thoughts. The Person beset by this Ailment becomes taciturn and appears to be lost in translation. He develops an interest in various Tools and machinery, and he's drawn to the Second World War and the biographies of famous people, mainly politicians and villains. This capacity to read novels almost entirely vanishes; testosterone autism disturbs the character's psychological understanding. I think Oddball was suffering from this Ailment.

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carojust's review against another edition

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dark funny mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

I'd read Olga Tokarczuk write about paint drying.

This was so much fun -- unreliable narrator, small clues everywhere, small town characters and cozy soups, forest animals and bugs. And as an astrology girlie, I couldn't not enjoy the extensive musings on birth charts and aspects; I knew these parts would lose a lot of people, and that's what's so incredibly ingenious. This all created a mystical world guided by the laws of nature, and our narrator the omniscient and moral light in the cold night.

I really love that this narrator is an older woman, who reminds us constantly how she's dismissed as a lunatic, and largely ignored and forgotten by the community. It's especially brilliant in the unraveling.

I highly recommend this if you are interested in translated fiction, sleuthy mysteries, and really beautiful, intelligent writing.

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welaneyding's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No

4.0

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antimony's review against another edition

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dark slow-paced

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

3.5

the first like. 80? 90?% of this book was sooooo slow and i had a lot of trouble caring about it. possibly this was in part because i have covid. but alas! but the last two chapters were REALLY good & the slowness kinda paid off. i liked janina as a narrator a lot as well, and the conversations about who we pay attention to and who we don't, about justice with regard to animals, etc. this definitely wasn't the right book for Sick Me but i think it easily could be the right book for someone else

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adriennemrn's review against another edition

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funny reflective slow-paced

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

4.0

inspiring old lady ! bitches can do everything !

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suzyq's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

4.5

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