A review by pollyroth
Nothing Holds Back the Night, by Delphine de Vigan
3.0
I absolutely loved Vigan's [b:Based on a True Story|31451163|Based on a True Story|Delphine de Vigan|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1478215379l/31451163._SY75_.jpg|45870928]. It was clever and insightful, and I think I'll revisit it throughout my life. So naturally, I had to read Nothing Holds Back the Night. This novel details Vigan's family history while still being marketed as fiction. It is undeniable that Vigan's family is interesting–a giant family riddled with suicide, abuse, and mental illness. A sort of morbid curiosity made it impossible to put this book down.
However, I found it hard to connect with the disjointed writing style. While the novel is written linearly, there's a lack of flow between each section. Vigan writes 3-4 paragraphs about an event, and then there's a page break and we're promptly thrown to the next memory. Often, Vigan throws in her own musings about how hard all this is to write which read more like journal entries than necessary pieces of the story.
Overall, I think the subject matter is fascinating, but I'm not sure there was much of a story here.
However, I found it hard to connect with the disjointed writing style. While the novel is written linearly, there's a lack of flow between each section. Vigan writes 3-4 paragraphs about an event, and then there's a page break and we're promptly thrown to the next memory. Often, Vigan throws in her own musings about how hard all this is to write which read more like journal entries than necessary pieces of the story.
Overall, I think the subject matter is fascinating, but I'm not sure there was much of a story here.