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junglejelly's review
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-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
3.75
Overall I did enjoy the book but it was due to Miller's incredible writing and the variation between the stories.
Otherwise, most of the characters felt too stereotypical to really be fleshed out and likeable characters.
My favourite of the short stories was 'Total' by a mile followed by 'I Want You to Know'
Otherwise, most of the characters felt too stereotypical to really be fleshed out and likeable characters.
My favourite of the short stories was 'Total' by a mile followed by 'I Want You to Know'
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape and Sexual assault
Moderate: Child death and Drug use
Minor: Infidelity, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, and Pregnancy
nicolehm_'s review
4.0
One of the most important things to a short story collection is how well the first story grabs you and this one had me.
The stories ranged from the anxiety of motherhood, to sci-fi that emulates todays conspiracies around the effects of 5G, to the power of language.
Rebecca Miller perfectly balanced beautiful prose with engaging plot lines that leave you pondering over the stories for hours after.
If you enjoyed Cursed Bunny (Bora Chung), Homesick For Another World (Ottessa Moshfegh), or Life Ceremony (Sayaka Murata), I think you will also enjoy this.
The stories ranged from the anxiety of motherhood, to sci-fi that emulates todays conspiracies around the effects of 5G, to the power of language.
Rebecca Miller perfectly balanced beautiful prose with engaging plot lines that leave you pondering over the stories for hours after.
If you enjoyed Cursed Bunny (Bora Chung), Homesick For Another World (Ottessa Moshfegh), or Life Ceremony (Sayaka Murata), I think you will also enjoy this.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Kidnapping
Minor: Drug use
rzh's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
thank you to netgalley and canongate for providing me with a free copy of this collection in exchange for an unbiased review.
this collection was a mixed bag to say the least. my initial impressions with the first few stories was not entirely favourable: i feel like they were trying to have the plot and forward motion of a novel as well as the cinematically detailed vignettes of a short story, eventually succeeding in creating neither. the second story, for example, feels like it wanted to launch into a long-form mystery by the second half, but by that point had already set up the slow pace and evocative setting of a short story: though many short stories end abruptly (and often to great effect): this just read like a half-baked novella. in the third story, too, we are introduced to about six characters in the space of a page, which makes me wonder whether this too was ever conceived as, or indeed could be sensibly conceived as, a short story rather than a novel or novella. however, perhaps as a direct result of my initial underwhelmed reaction to the first few stories, the eponymous story of the collection really took my breath away with how great it was: a sort of dystopian sci-fi story that reminded me of ishiguro's never let me go in its subject matter and margaret atwood in its tone. masterfully written and truly haunting.
the remaining few short stories also really worked. they created carver-esque vignettes of the character's lives that felt self-contained and impressively emotionally resonant for their lack of length. getting to the end of these remaining few stories and realising that miller has such talent in story-weaving and prose made me reflect on whether perhaps i just found the characters in the first few stories too annoying. perhaps. in any case, i'm glad i did keep going with this past the first half, because it was worth it.
this collection was a mixed bag to say the least. my initial impressions with the first few stories was not entirely favourable: i feel like they were trying to have the plot and forward motion of a novel as well as the cinematically detailed vignettes of a short story, eventually succeeding in creating neither. the second story, for example, feels like it wanted to launch into a long-form mystery by the second half, but by that point had already set up the slow pace and evocative setting of a short story: though many short stories end abruptly (and often to great effect): this just read like a half-baked novella. in the third story, too, we are introduced to about six characters in the space of a page, which makes me wonder whether this too was ever conceived as, or indeed could be sensibly conceived as, a short story rather than a novel or novella. however, perhaps as a direct result of my initial underwhelmed reaction to the first few stories, the eponymous story of the collection really took my breath away with how great it was: a sort of dystopian sci-fi story that reminded me of ishiguro's never let me go in its subject matter and margaret atwood in its tone. masterfully written and truly haunting.
the remaining few short stories also really worked. they created carver-esque vignettes of the character's lives that felt self-contained and impressively emotionally resonant for their lack of length. getting to the end of these remaining few stories and realising that miller has such talent in story-weaving and prose made me reflect on whether perhaps i just found the characters in the first few stories too annoying. perhaps. in any case, i'm glad i did keep going with this past the first half, because it was worth it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Rape, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Death, Drug use, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, and Pregnancy