A review by rainb0wreads
My Absolute Darling by Gabriel Tallent

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

1.0

Look man, i try to be so nice when it comes to my reviews, but this is genuinely one of the most disgusting books ive ever read. It’s not even the relationship dynamic between Turtle and her dad that disgusts me, it’s simply the way that the author has written turtle and her experiences. It’s like the guy is trying to romanticize sexual assault and it’s gross. Not only that, but he victimized turtle in a way that tries the take all the blame from her assaulter and make it seem like it’s simply because that’s just how Turtle is. AND (yep I’m still going) the writing is so convoluted. The author writes like he assumes everyone knows exactly what he’s talking about. It feels like a research dump so he could get a load of fancy words in there and feel smarter than everyone. Strangely the writing makes the story feel like it’s geared towards men…which makes the whole conversation EVEN WORSE!! Look, if you’re gonna write about the abuse of a 14 year old girl, please do it right. This book had so much potential, and it touched on a lot of good mental health topics in light of abuse, but it’s still making turtle romanticize her assault which victims DO NOT DO!! I’m honestly shocked this book is so well liked. There are so many problems with it.
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