Reviews with content warning for Violence - The Harpy

Megan Hunter writes absolutely beautiful and compelling prose. All two and a half stars belong to the high quality of Hunter's words. Also, the concept of this book? So enticing. If I see the words "dark fairytale" and "female rage" used to describe a book, it's an insta-read. Unfortunately, though, the execution of The Harpy let me down. There is a whole lot of build-up in this book, all working towards an ending that I found frankly disappointing. Without spoiling too much, Lucy only rarely harnesses her rage. Not only that, but magical realism is another insta-read descriptor of mine that was used by reviewers to describe The Harpy. Honestly, I would barely categorize this as magical realism. There is literally ONE scene that could be described in that way.

How would I summarize this book? Beautifully written but ultimately a lackluster portrait of a sad woman in a sad marriage.

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conflictheory's review against another edition

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reflective medium-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

3.5

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leilapulaski's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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toffishay's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-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? It's complicated

3.5

I felt so much for the main character. You are really pulled into her internal world and its very emotionally turbulent. It was pretty intense, but was also more sad too and really explored a woman in a difficult marriage and trapped in her life. The ending went in a direction that I didn't expect too.

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jordancherise's review against another edition

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dark emotional slow-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

3.75

Slim, dark novel of female rage and maternal angst. Magical realism, open ended conclusion.

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blakethebookeater's review against another edition

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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!

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