I simply cannot!! Bookmarked so many pages with such fantastic quotes, and i loved the inner dialogue of the unnamed narrator. Having the narrator as an anonymous character was also so so fascinating; one can connect with her on an extremely deep level, despite not knowing one of the most basic features about her. But i think she would want it that way idk

I usually find myself frustrated when books with female protagonists reduce them to secondary characters in their own stories—where the entire narrative revolves around a man, leaving the heroine with little depth, purpose, or development. Acts of Desperation isn’t that. While, on the surface, it may seem as though the protagonist is defined by her obsession with a man, a closer look reveals that the story is really about her—her emotions, perceptions, actions, and the way she experiences herself through the lens of others. It’s not just about attractiveness, but how every behavior she engages in shapes how she’s seen and, in turn, how she sees herself. There’s a depth to her that’s explored fully—good, bad, and everything in between—and it develops continuously, never stagnating or flattening into cliché. Importantly, she isn’t consumed by this one relationship; she reflects on many things that go beyond the man she’s with.

From the first page, I was hooked. There was no waiting around for things to “get good” or feeling like the book was padded with unnecessary content to hit a word count. The pacing is perfect, and there wasn’t a single moment I felt bored. It’s the kind of novel I know I’ll return to again and again. I’m already halfway through, with 53 bookmarks—far more than my usual 12 by the end of most books—and I can’t stop underlining lines because nearly every other sentence feels insightful, quotable, or beautifully constructed.

This book also offers one of the most nuanced portrayals I’ve ever read of a relationship involving someone with borderline traits, particularly in a dynamic with a narcissist. There’s no romanticizing or over-dramatizing these issues. The toxicity is somewhat more subtle at first, unraveling slowly and realistically, mirroring how people often become “stuck” in unhealthy or controlling relationships. Both characters feel complex from the beginning—there’s no /instant/ villain, just two flawed people whose dynamics shift in unsettling ways over time.

Moreover, Acts of Desperation touches on heavy, painful topics, but without resorting to shock value. The exploration of suffering feels genuine, never performative or gratuitous. The writing itself is extraordinary—unlike anything I’ve encountered before. Every sentence feels deliberate and powerful, creating a rhythm that’s hypnotic.

I don’t know why everyone says this reminds them of Sally Rooney… just because it take place in Dublin? Lol.

I think it’s deeper and more poetic. Very raw and honest and relatable in the same way as My Year of Rest and Relaxation. Relatable as in the issues she faces as a woman, disturbing in the way of her character and her plight. 4.5/5

Just a horrifying but depressingly realistic portrayal of a woman living for the male gaze

Just realized you never learn the narrator’s name, lol. Ultimately I felt very sorry for her but also recognized her neediness in myself as a 17 year old girl. Felt like the ending was extremely rushed and she doesn’t fully address the trauma leading up to that point.

thank god that’s over. Great, and then bad, and then weird, and then a little too nice. But Nolan’s prose flows poetically and can be wonderfully evocative when not exceptionally navel gazing.

Title hits the nail right on the head; she’s the poster child of self-depreciation.

Was begging this girl to STAND UP the entire time