A review by charlottereadsthings
Pretending by Holly Bourne

emotional sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Pretending by Holly Bourne sees a woman called April who struggles to trust men after very bad experiences with them. The reader sees several instances where potential partners view her differently when she aska fir accomodations or starts to open up about past situations. This leads April to imafine a version of herself, known as Gretal, who is the polar opposite of herself: sexy, damage free, says and does whatever men want to make them think they have all the power. She takes this to a whole new level when she makes a dating profile inder the name Gretal and manages to secure a date with an unsuspecting man called Joshua. Only things start to go well
 Too well. 

In the usual way, Holly Bourne expertly crafts an engaging narrative with important socia commentary. Showing through April's job as a charity worker just how widespread sexual violence is in daily life. She tacklea diatresaing topics with care and the way everything was interwoven just had me unable to do anything else but read this book, waiting for the moment where eventually Joshua would learn the truth.

I will be thinkung about this book for a long time.
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