A review by victoriabot
Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman

4.0

Every once in a while, after I've chewed my way through space battles, wizard detectives, vampire cults, time loop mysteries, and lesbian necromancers, I need a bit of break. Often it's something like "The Idiot" where the plot would have clearly been improved by the protagonist being a vampire who killed her ex-boyfriend. Other times, that something super normal is this book. And this book isn't the most inventive or twisty tale, but damn, is it a delightful character and relationship study. This is an absolute treat to consume as an audiobook. Eleanor is so fully formed as a character, and her friendship with Raymond was something I clung to as much as she eventually did. You feel so much for these characters that you can forget they are normal Muggles who work in an office that is in regular old Scotland with no wizard councils or haunted houses. I will say the reveal of her family history is well telegraphed and feels earned when the reader gets to it. It was understandably alluded to in her word choices and the dialogue with another character.

I just want to take a brief aside and say even normal Scotland is basically a fantasy to this American reader. Characters are able to take a multi-month leave of absence for mental health and be accepted by the entire office, their boss, and be paid! What fictional universe is this healthcare system and what wardrobe do I have to climb in to enter it?