A review by hannahmcjean
Sweetlust: Stories by Asja Bakić

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

3.0

I have quite conflicting views on this story collection, though my impression is positive overall.

My main concern is with how sexuality and eroticism was explored in a lot of these stories - sometimes in interesting ways, but at other times in ways that felt pointless or even detracted from the rest of the story. At worst, I felt that sexual violence was often handled poorly. In particular, I really did not like the story ‘Mama’ (1⭐️ for sure) - I don’t know what it was trying to say but I honestly wish I hadn’t read it.

At its best these stories were odd, creative and rather absorbing. I was always pulled to turn the page. My favourite is probably the first one, ‘1998’, and I also really enjoyed the last story, ‘The Sorrows of Young Lotte’.

Overall, I found the first half of this collection more interesting and entertaining, with the second half (except for the final story) being quite disappointing.

It’s hard to rate the full collection because my enjoyment of each story varied a lot, but if I calculate the average of my individual ratings it comes to: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Expand filter menu Content Warnings