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suahbe's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
stellamcvey's review
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
A bizarre book but when don’t I like reading about women in unsettling situations
lelia_t's review against another edition
4.0
I loved this book - so glad to have found Rachel Cusk. There’s Lucky Jim type humor as Stella gets herself into ridiculous situations, plus some Jane Eyre and The Secret Garden, with gothic, fairy tale, elements like “the creature.” The book also seemed deceptively simple and I kept wondering how much to trust Stella’s impressions. But I really enjoyed Cusk’s exploration of what happens if a woman has backed herself into an identity that looks fine from the outside but doesn’t truly suit her - and how uncomfortable it is to strip away the old self to become more authentic.
jorunw's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
averagereadin's review
dark
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
storygrace's review against another edition
4.25
It’s been a while since I’ve read literature like this and I loved it. The writing was great, at times I did find myself skimming through large paragraphs but that is more a flaw of me than the book. I LOVED the main character, Stella, she was great. Her mind and way of thinking was hilarious and reminded me so much of The Bell Jar.
mmw2024's review against another edition
3.0
very weird book, made me very stressed, but kept my interest
redbearreads's review against another edition
4.0
A wonderful farce, and similar to the Brontë sisters writing. I needed this. I needed lack of character development. Adorable.