Scan barcode
sleeson's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I don’t know how I wanted to rate this. 2.5ish?? I didn’t like the book but I enjoyed the style of the writing. I mean I must have because I finished this novel rather quickly. Rooney is such a strange writer. I never know how to review her books. Moderate profanity. Moderate sexual content.
Moderate: Cursing, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
sanna_030's review against another edition
emotional
sad
slow-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
2.75
Moderate: Bullying, Drug abuse, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Pregnancy, and Toxic friendship
occasionalreader25's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
As a big Sally Rooney fan, I was quite disappointed after finishing her most recent novel. Eventhough the writing was, as expected, brilliant, I found myself missing the personal thoughts of the protagonists. You could later read them in their Emails to one another, but still it was not the same as in her previous two novels where you truly had the feeling of looking inside the character‘s head which is one of my favorite things about Rooney‘s writing style. I also found the characters and especially the relationship between Felix and Alice flat. Felix was, I think, such a problematic und unlikeable character, which was probably intended, but I still found it quite hard to watch him treating Alice like he did. He made me truly agressive. One thing I found very interesting was how Rooney wrote the sex scenes in this novel. I feel like she really set a focus on the conversation during it. The telephone sex scene was actually one of my favourites, she did such an amazing job with that.
Graphic: Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, and Toxic relationship