A review by jesswhiteside
Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I didn’t really realise until later, but I found the beginning of the book less enjoyable and a little stilted - you have to wait a bit for the pace to kick off, for the writing to develop and to find yourself really falling into the characters and the story. The entirety of the middle/rest of the book though, I found myself hooked into, attached to the characters completely and drawn along at Rooney’s whim, falling into the story and where it took me. I felt as though I couldn’t look away from the words on the page, I needed to read Frances’ thoughts and words and feelings. I loved a lot about this book, and I’m unsure how I feel about the ending. I don’t hate it, and I like what it says about humanity and relationships and the book’s characters in some ways, but I’m not yet sure how I feel beyond that. I haven’t finished Normal People as I had to pause reading it to prioritise my library books, but although I loved the story of Marianne and Connell, I think I like Rooney’s writing in Conversations with Friends far more than in Normal People. I think I love this a lot.
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