whatdanireads_'s review against another edition
challenging
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, and Domestic abuse
Moderate: Injury/injury detail
Minor: Rape
_becca_reads_'s review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
motherhood, womanhood and everything else you want.
Poetic prose and beautiful lines. Instantly a favourite
mad woman by taylor swift vibes.
Poetic prose and beautiful lines. Instantly a favourite
mad woman by taylor swift vibes.
Graphic: Self harm and Body horror
Moderate: Emotional abuse
Minor: Sexual content, Violence, and Abandonment
paperbackinmybackpack's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
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
4.25
Graphic: Infidelity, Injury/injury detail, Blood, Domestic abuse, and Emotional abuse
blakethebookeater's review against another edition
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This book...was an experience.
It was so short that it didn't overstay its welcome, which I appreciated, but at the same time I wish there had been a little more meat on its bones.
Lucy discovers her husband is cheating on her and in return, he allows her to hurt him three times (hence the title, the vengeful Harpy coming to dole out her justice). And honestly this novel did not get as dark or intense as I wanted it to. There were moments when it came close, but then it shied away; and while the prose was beautiful and concise, it kept me at too much of a distance from the characters that I honestly didn't really care about them at all.
Lucy's thoughts and emotions are what binds this book together, but that's mostly all that's there. The actual events of the book could take place over a 30 min episode of TV, fully contained. And I'd be lying if I didn't say I wanted to see more of the drama, more of the Harpy coming out in Lucy's actions and in that sense I was slightly disappointed. I do feel that this book is worth a read though, because it does have some pretty great passages in it, and is short enough to be read in a single sitting!
It was so short that it didn't overstay its welcome, which I appreciated, but at the same time I wish there had been a little more meat on its bones.
Lucy discovers her husband is cheating on her and in return, he allows her to hurt him three times (hence the title, the vengeful Harpy coming to dole out her justice). And honestly this novel did not get as dark or intense as I wanted it to. There were moments when it came close, but then it shied away; and while the prose was beautiful and concise, it kept me at too much of a distance from the characters that I honestly didn't really care about them at all.
Lucy's thoughts and emotions are what binds this book together, but that's mostly all that's there. The actual events of the book could take place over a 30 min episode of TV, fully contained. And I'd be lying if I didn't say I wanted to see more of the drama, more of the Harpy coming out in Lucy's actions and in that sense I was slightly disappointed. I do feel that this book is worth a read though, because it does have some pretty great passages in it, and is short enough to be read in a single sitting!
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Infidelity, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Blood, Body horror, Domestic abuse, Suicide, Violence, and Eating disorder
Minor: Death of parent and Sexual assault
definebookish's review against another edition
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Trigger warnings for my review, let alone the book itself: violence, abuse, blood, vomit.
A deep purple bruise of a book. Lucy’s husband Jake has an affair with a colleague. In the aftermath, he offers her a means of retribution: she can hurt him three times, physically or otherwise. Obsessed with the harpies of Greek mythology since childhood, Lucy agrees.
I knew this would be an intense read, but I wasn’t quite prepared for its viscerality. Hunter’s prose skates the edge of poetry, sparse and specific and seething. It reminded me a little of Michele Roberts; the blend of contemporary and mythology, the blood-red tang of it, the rustlike aftertaste.
We know from the first chapter that Jake’s third punishment will involve cutting. The first two are equally disturbing, in different ways. So much made me furious on Lucy’s behalf – the way the humiliation of Jake’s infidelity is set at her feet rather than his, the way he makes it clear she’s powerless to make him feel the kind of betrayal he’s inflicted upon her. He’s a smug, casually cruel character, but there’s no satisfaction in seeing him made victim. At times I couldn’t bear reading about it.
The word ‘recommend’ seems irrelevant here. Also the word ‘enjoy’. Writing my thoughts down feels like reviewing the snails at a Michelin-starred restaurant, or the jellied pigeon – they may be objectively exquisite, but I tasted bile. The ending is a little too open for my taste; it felt like petering out, but the rest of it is powerful and intimate and painful. It is exquisite. I didn’t enjoy it. I’d recommend that you make your own mind up.
Graphic: Physical abuse and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Vomit, Blood, and Domestic abuse
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