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A review by leonidskies
Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
I wanted this book to prove me wrong about my initial assumptions, truly. I picked it up thinking I was going to hate it (it was selected for my office book club), so at least I was wrong about that.
I'll start with the good: there are lots of interesting, nuanced characters in this book. Genuinely, the strength of those characters carries this book past its weak opening (it takes a little while for the characters to break past their initial shallow first impressions, which I imagine is entirely intentional) to its ending. This is helped by its very readable prose.
The plot left a lot to be desired - it was entirely predictable pretty much from start to finish and nothing really of interest happened; there was certainly no real suspense. The character work was really the only attraction, but not enough of one for me to actively enjoy reading. I also often felt condescended to as a reader by elements of the tone - there's a section at about the 50% mark which specifically complains about fiction readers in a way that's unambiguously addressed to the reader, which killed my willingness to give other misgivings I had with the novel any kind of chance.
The ending was unsatisfying and included one of my least favourite (but ultra specific, so I won't go into detail) tropes. There was a lot going on, so I liked some of it, but it definitely felt rushed. That I'm giving this book this rating at all is entirely due to the fact that the characters are genuinely varied and interestingly crafted, and I probably wouldn't recommend it for any other attribute.
I'll start with the good: there are lots of interesting, nuanced characters in this book. Genuinely, the strength of those characters carries this book past its weak opening (it takes a little while for the characters to break past their initial shallow first impressions, which I imagine is entirely intentional) to its ending. This is helped by its very readable prose.
The plot left a lot to be desired - it was entirely predictable pretty much from start to finish and nothing really of interest happened; there was certainly no real suspense. The character work was really the only attraction, but not enough of one for me to actively enjoy reading. I also often felt condescended to as a reader by elements of the tone - there's a section at about the 50% mark which specifically complains about fiction readers in a way that's unambiguously addressed to the reader, which killed my willingness to give other misgivings I had with the novel any kind of chance.
The ending was unsatisfying and included one of my least favourite (but ultra specific, so I won't go into detail) tropes. There was a lot going on, so I liked some of it, but it definitely felt rushed. That I'm giving this book this rating at all is entirely due to the fact that the characters are genuinely varied and interestingly crafted, and I probably wouldn't recommend it for any other attribute.