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katienunnery's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, and Toxic friendship
matigiuro's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Death, Drug use, Infertility, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Suicide, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, and Pregnancy
lenka_lenka's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
It doesn’t have much plot, more stream of consciousness as we follow the main character.
Joan is not a likable character but definitely is the star of her own life. She reminds me of Esther from The Bell Jar or the main character of A Year Of Rest And Relaxation.
Her complicated and layered past relationship cast a shadow on all other connections with other people.
Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal death, Body shaming, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
sexpest's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
This book was definitely interesting. I loved a lot of it: the description of some feelings, the dialogue, the sociological thinking sewn in through the fictional text. But there's also a lot I did not like one bit! I found Joan a tough character to root for. I definitely felt sorry for her, especially as more of her childhood was uncovered, but it was hard to really want her to do better because of the lack of information we as the reader had. It felt very shallow and unnuanced. Her hatred for men and patriarchal thinking read very limited, almost like she didn't know exactly how her own actions were hurting her most in connection to the way men treated her (i.e. the concept of "everyday rapes" that women put up with. This was a fascinating concept through a sociological lens, and I wished that Joan had felt more about it than complete resentment for men while still actively participating in it herself without any disdain for herself. And if there was disdain, it would not be as nearly volatile as it was for the male counterpart).
I think this kind of writing for a main character would work if she was presented as more of an angry person rather than quiet and docile. I wanted more emotion from her: she read very flat. Yes she would cry, and yes she would feel rage, but I think I wanted to see those emotions explode rather than just having them. If Joan had been more of a reactive person, it might have made more sense that would later murder someone.
I don't know if I'm simply just reading too much into it, but while this book did bring up a lot of interesting points and theories, I feel as if the feminist lens it was trying to be presented through was not revolutionary, but rather one that was surface-level and easily-digestible (wh*te woman feminism). It made me feel similar to the movie Promising Young Woman at times, with the way that it kind of romanticized payback for systemic, violent misogyny that just ended up with the main character being violated over again (I would rate that movie a fucking zero by the way - do not watch it!)
Again, this isn't to say that it was a bad book. The pacing wasn't too bad and the character descriptions were also very imaginative. I thought it was a cool mystery trying to find out who Joan was "writing" this for, and the end was more satisfying than most of the other ends of chapters throughout.
Another warning for triggers: mentions of child abuse, child sexual assault, rape, death of parents, death of a child, difficult pregnancies. It's definitely not a book that shies away from the realities of a lot if not all, women. I think it could have been more relatable if there wasn't so much going on in it (cheating husbands who kill themselves in front of their mistress in a packed restaurant isn't something that is exactly relatable...). Though I wouldn't recommend it, I don't think I would exactly deter someone from reading it. It just simply wasn't for me!
Graphic: Child abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, and Death of parent
Moderate: Emotional abuse and Suicide attempt
lovelylilelle's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Child death, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Dementia, Grief, Stalking, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
lisa00's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Dementia, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
lily_kruse's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
3.25
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Infertility, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Dementia, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Sexual harassment
sakisreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
Most of the time, I was cross with Joan and her lack of accountability or lack of energy for well, anything? She just felt so blasé and it was frustrating to read, although I think that’s the whole point of her character.
I also get why she would’ve felt the need to try and justify every single one of her actions though…
This one definitely needs content warnings which I’ll include below.
Only 2 out of 5 stars for me this time unfortunately 😫 It was hard to put down at times but also hard to get through, because nobody was in a good place and it felt like there was a need to glamourise that 🥲
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Gore, Infertility, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual assault, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, and Abandonment
boywithtoothache's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Dementia, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Toxic friendship, and Sexual harassment
mzymcmln's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Miscarriage, Sexual assault, and Suicide
Moderate: Blood and Vomit