A review by starryeved
An Untamed State by Roxane Gay

3.0

I would never forget that sound, the empty whisper of soft hands preparing to do hard things.

Regardless of what you have been through, this book will hit you differently. It is a book about a kidnapping, about horrific violence and rape and physical abuse, about PTSD, about politics and race and so much more.

An Untamed State is a lot to handle. It is forlorn, unflinching, blunt and grim. It is an open wound that stings even when untouched. It is gritty, filled with unspeakable things, but Roxane Gay also manages to make it so incredibly absorbing and compelling through different voices that while you would expect to see this flow of writing style in rom-coms or other light-hearted novels and not a dreadful page-turner like this, you are immersed in the story.

I don't know what else I can say, but I understand completely the hype over Gay's writing. Her writing is simple and sharp, and depicts PTSD and Mireille's thoughts and feelings so well that I felt scraped raw and open on the inside just reading this. A very good read; the highest of three stars.