Reviews with content warning for Pregnancy - The Heart's Invisible Furies

This book has made me feel so many emotions that it took me a while to collect my thoughts and write a review. I'm absolutely blown away by John Boyne's writing style. Somehow, the story is one of the funniest pieces of writing I've read recently and simultaneously absolutely heartbreaking.

We, the reader, follow the protagonist Cyril Avery through his entire life in several parts separated by seven-year time skips. I loved that structure and think it was very well executed. The way everything that happens in Cyril's life seems interconnected, and some people remain constant during all stages, while unrealistic, made for a very engaging read. I honestly would not have thought I'd rate this book a solid five stars after the first half because some characters' atrocious actions seemed to be explained away with too little discussion for my liking. However, I was pleasantly surprised that the latter chapters addressed every issue and tied up Cyril's life story so well that I wouldn't change anything about it.

This also made for very realistic character development for Cyril and the other characters. Cyril's internal monologue changes and grows with him. Still, he maintains a very distinctive style. He describes his life's story with so much wit and humor that I laughed out loud several times. Literally.

Some plot points and most of the dialogue seem entirely unrealistic. However, I found that I had a better experience with the novel overall after I accepted that Cyril might not be the most reliable narrator and the events were simply told through his eyes. For example, both Cyril and Julian's obsession with sex from an extremely young age seemed extremely disturbing and not at all funny to me, but given the trajectory of Cyril's life and the role his own sexuality colored almost every aspect of the first few decades of his life, it kind of makes sense that he would fixate on and exaggerate these parts of his early life.

My favorite part, as much as I loved Cyril's journey, remained the first one. I thought having Cyril narrate his mother's story despite not being born at the time was a very interesting narrative choice. I would totally read an entire novel told in that way.

In conclusion, this one goes firmly on my list of recommendations! It touched some very deep emotions in me and managed to make me laugh on the way.

Content Warnings

fromthekiwigirl35's review

Go to review page

This had so much happen within those 55 pages. Too violent, too much intense situations. Graphic. Not an enjoyable read.
Couldn't find the joy in reading such content.

Content Warnings

savheath's review

Go to review page

challenging emotional inspiring reflective 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? It's complicated

4.5

Content Warnings

freydawreviews's review

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Content Warnings

ae_world's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

“It's as if she understood completely the condition of loneliness and how it undermines us all, forcing us to make choices that we know are wrong for us.” Cyril as narrator about Alice

Content Warnings

brichneyfloss's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional funny hopeful inspiring sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

More...