trilobites's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
nati314's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
babyfacedoldsoul's review
3.0
I think I kept wanting to like this book more than I actually enjoyed it. I think it has an amazing message, and a great plot. However, it really needed better editing. I recognize that diction is a thing but sometimes there were small mix ups like this as instead of as this, etc. Also there was a lot of repetition of phrases that sounded cool but didn't really mean anything if you stopped to consider them (such as the continued use of the phrase "ballet of bones in their wrist"). Also the repeated description of landmarks as punctuation marks. I found that often when the plot was starting to get good the author would wax poetic, even in action driven scenes, and I would not be able to tell what happened. for example (mild spoiler) after someone in the group dies the way she described the shock made it seem like several people had died instead of just being frozen in shock. I would love to see this book made into a mini series with a closer look at the script for editing purposes, and if a sequel was written I would read it. Overall though, I was left disappointed by the lost potential of this important book.
annieni's review
3.0
More like a 3.5/5, I enjoyed reading this! The romance scenes between French and Rose were a little awkward for me to sit through so not a 4 for that :/
caroleugenepark's review
5.0
What a powerful read. The writing was poetic and literary, without being inaccessible. The metaphors, the IMAGERY, the references to legends.
Cherie had me writing down so many of her incredible, powerful, flawless words, page after page. This novel had me howling with laughter, crying and emotional the next, hopeful and disappointed another.
And the entire time, all I kept thinking was, this novel so accurately portrays eroticism--not the sexual eroticism of modern times, but "it’s sexuality transformed by the human imagination. It’s the thoughts, dreams, anticipation, unruly impulses, and even painful memories which make up our vast erotic landscapes" (Ester Perel).
Pure genius. So much to unpack, so much analysis, but also so much learning.
Cherie had me writing down so many of her incredible, powerful, flawless words, page after page. This novel had me howling with laughter, crying and emotional the next, hopeful and disappointed another.
And the entire time, all I kept thinking was, this novel so accurately portrays eroticism--not the sexual eroticism of modern times, but "it’s sexuality transformed by the human imagination. It’s the thoughts, dreams, anticipation, unruly impulses, and even painful memories which make up our vast erotic landscapes" (Ester Perel).
Pure genius. So much to unpack, so much analysis, but also so much learning.
flee2454's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0