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eleanor_rose22's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
A surreal look at the contemporary literary world; the writing is excellent, visceral and visual, and Mona is an interesting, misanthropic, troubled character. But I spent most of this book feeling on the fringes of a conversation I didn’t understand- maybe I’m just not smart enough for Writers™️, or interested in their pretentious philosophical nonsense. The ending tho really packed a punch, the blurring of reality in a sort of apocalyptic rapture, I just wish there’d been more of That intensity throughout!
manjotkaur's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
i feel like i didn’t really “get it” or care until the last fourth of the book sadly
kelliebell's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
snowiceblackfruit77's review against another edition
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Body shaming, Cursing, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
amelielucy's review against another edition
4.0
This book is fucking hilarious and smart, I love it!
I found it hard to get into at first because it gets really wordy whenever one of the writer characters in the book delivers their speeches (and I’ll admit I’m not smart enough for most of them) but it’s so interesting. And to see what they choose to reveal to the bigger writing world and in private was also extremely interesting.
You go through pages of really well written philosophical takes on translation, culture, language, politics etc. and then as a reward you get the strangest, cuntiest interactions from Mona. For example one of my favourite lines:
“Her feminist values weren’t located in her brain stem, so she never experienced any visceral reactions in their name-but she couldn’t stand to be in the same place as that Beckettian cock for a second longer.’
I think it’s just iconic that Oloixarac can shift from such smart observations to using hashtags ironically and describing sex in the most grotesquely weird way I’ve seen in a while. Very strange, almost magical at times but mostly just really clever. Excited to reread this in the future when I might understand the literary references a bit more.
I found it hard to get into at first because it gets really wordy whenever one of the writer characters in the book delivers their speeches (and I’ll admit I’m not smart enough for most of them) but it’s so interesting. And to see what they choose to reveal to the bigger writing world and in private was also extremely interesting.
You go through pages of really well written philosophical takes on translation, culture, language, politics etc. and then as a reward you get the strangest, cuntiest interactions from Mona. For example one of my favourite lines:
“Her feminist values weren’t located in her brain stem, so she never experienced any visceral reactions in their name-but she couldn’t stand to be in the same place as that Beckettian cock for a second longer.’
I think it’s just iconic that Oloixarac can shift from such smart observations to using hashtags ironically and describing sex in the most grotesquely weird way I’ve seen in a while. Very strange, almost magical at times but mostly just really clever. Excited to reread this in the future when I might understand the literary references a bit more.
briannasix's review against another edition
This one was not for me. Seemed to drag for such a tiny read
chels14's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
hotpinkinthenight's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
I took issue with the pacing in this book, and a lot of it went over my head, but there is something strangely enigmatic about it that won’t let me rate it anything less than 3 stars.