Reviews tagging 'Adult/minor relationship'

Pages for You by Sylvia Brownrigg

5 reviews

gvstyris's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0

It is an old story. One of the oldest. They would not have had to travel so far just to learn it: lust - open, naked lust - must be named and punished. How else can we hope to keep the world in order?
  
There are a couple reasons this novel wasn't for me.

Primarily, the age-gap.  Anne, a 28 year-old teacher's assistant, and Flannery, a 17 year-old college freshman, are at completely different life stages. Their relationship has an uncomfortable and inherent power imbalance reminiscent of Elio/Oliver from Call Me By Your Name. Both stories suffer from their refusal to acknowledge how fundamentally predatory and unhealthy these relationships are, making the older characters (Anne and Oliver) unlikeable and the main plot difficult to root for. I find this 'trope' especially off-putting in LGBT+ romances, given how the community is still hindered by stereotypes of pedophilia and grooming.

On another note, because Brownrigg spoils the novel's ending in the prologue, its plot trajectory is relatively predictable and under-developed. While this is partially a consequence of reading a 2001 novel with 2024 cliches in mind, I would still argue that Brownrigg fails to effectively utilise the spoiler to add depth or surprise. It was just kind of lackluster.

I also wish Brownrigg had properly explored Flannery grappling with her sexuality. As tiresome as it often is to read about queer characters unpacking their internalised homophobia, I was more put-off by how Brownrigg teased Flannery's shame without really considering it. That being said, I did like how Flannery was largely unconcerned with labelling herself. She liked Anne, and that's as far as she was willing to get with it -- for the moment, anyways.

I've given Pages for You two redeeming stars for its unique structure and use of narration. The prologue is also beautifully written, and I was shocked by how specific bits and pieces of Flannery/Anne's queer experience hold true in 2024. I imagine that this book will mean a lot to some people -- it just wasn't my cup of tea.
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abbieh95's review against another edition

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emotional reflective

4.75

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blschuldt's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful 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

3.25

I will say overall I enjoyed reading this book. However, I did have to age Flannery up to 18 in my head to stomach it—I don’t understand why her being legally underage was important, and it just tainted their entire relationship for me. A sad and somewhat predictable end. Despite all this, I really like Brownrigg’s writing style and loved Flannery as a character. I really disliked Anne throughout, but I plan to read the sequel as I’m so curious what will happen. 
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mlebarrow's review against another edition

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

2.5

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awashinfeeling's review against another edition

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

1.75

What a dud. So far, this has been the most disappointing read of 2021. I’m a little shocked that anyone can write over 200 pages without developing either of the two main characters. Flannery and Anne both remain largely unchanged throughout the entirety of the novel and, on top of that, they are completely unlikeable. If you enjoy reading narratives told through the lens of ditzy and naïve 17-year old girls, you may enjoy this book but you will have to be OK with slogging through seemingly endless paragraphs of clichéd writing.

I also could not let go of the fact that Flannery is 17 when she falls in love with Anne, who is 28 btw. Ew! The rub for me is that the novel doesn’t seem to mind this. In one of the chapters the characters actually poke fun at this fact. Anne literally says that it was Flannery, the 17-year- old, who seduced her, which is… well. It made me feel uncomfortable. Flannery and Anne are portrayed as “star-crossed lovers”, “they were never meant to be, how very sad” and that bugged me to no end. 

If you can somehow overlook the adult/minor relationship this book is centered around, you still have to get through the tacky, downright bizarre sex scenes.

All I can say is that this book did not age well. Pages for You might have been edgy and scandalous in the early ‘00s when it came out but now…? Nah. I should have totally DNFed this when doing so first crossed my mind. If you want to read more lesbian fiction, like me, there must be better books out there now.
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