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sklus's review
3.0
Some parts were really good and some parts I just didn't care for. It's not really a mystery/thriller except that every chapter starts with a few pieces of evidence. Nothing I'm going to write is a spoiler, but if you're planning on reading the book I would stop reading the review here. The first 60% of the book is just a girl describing her life living with her famous mom and her mom's boyfriend. Then the next 39% of the book is her and everyone in her life ignoring problems until the last 1% of the book happens. The climax and ending both happen so quickly that none of it seems satisfying or even plausible. But the protags righteous anger at the men sexualizing her gave me hope for young readers of the future.
gabrielle_erin's review
2.0
I kept waiting for SOMETHING to happen but it just never did. Got to the last couple of chapters and then remembered it was a murder mystery because the rest of the story reads like a boring diary. Pacing was off throughout the whole book.
indigoivee's review
4.0
Absolutely fucking fantastic! I don’t think I’ve ever read a book quite so intriguing and honest and eye opening. I know it’s a YA novel written for girls aged 15-16, but oh my life! Every woman/girl/child should take a minute to read this book.
For fans of Ginny & Georgia, this book might be your next best. In the sense that she is an only child with a rather over the top mother who is only concerned with the ‘next best thing’ which could range from fame, men, drugs or money. Sydney, our protagonist, has lived with the shadow of her mother and her previous foremothers with regards to who and what she is meant to be. Like every summer holiday, she goes to visit her mother after spending her year in her academy school in Seattle. However, this summer is different from the rest as she learns more about her mother and her past, her grandmother and what it means to actually be aware of the world and the cruelness that come with it. Sydney has an eye opening summer when she realised that she unknowingly crossed the line from ‘girl’ to ‘young lady’.
Totally feminist and badass, but also totally creepy and suspense and thrilling! Loved every second of it!
(To be honest it was difficult to choose a favourite quote because Deb Caletti dropped such honest bombs and profound sentences, I practically highlighted everything! Yikes.)
Favourite quote: "But men and women both—we learn about power and powerlessness from our mothers and fathers first, right? And they learn from their mothers and fathers, and so on and so on?
Fix that shit."
For fans of Ginny & Georgia, this book might be your next best. In the sense that she is an only child with a rather over the top mother who is only concerned with the ‘next best thing’ which could range from fame, men, drugs or money. Sydney, our protagonist, has lived with the shadow of her mother and her previous foremothers with regards to who and what she is meant to be. Like every summer holiday, she goes to visit her mother after spending her year in her academy school in Seattle. However, this summer is different from the rest as she learns more about her mother and her past, her grandmother and what it means to actually be aware of the world and the cruelness that come with it. Sydney has an eye opening summer when she realised that she unknowingly crossed the line from ‘girl’ to ‘young lady’.
Totally feminist and badass, but also totally creepy and suspense and thrilling! Loved every second of it!
(To be honest it was difficult to choose a favourite quote because Deb Caletti dropped such honest bombs and profound sentences, I practically highlighted everything! Yikes.)
Favourite quote: "But men and women both—we learn about power and powerlessness from our mothers and fathers first, right? And they learn from their mothers and fathers, and so on and so on?
Fix that shit."
brooklyna's review
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- 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
2.75
anxiouslybooked's review
3.0
I received this eARC through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
Sydney loves her life at school in Seattle, she has an awesome group of friends that she enjoys spending time with as well as her grandmother. But, she flies to LA to spend the summer with her mother who is a “washed up” actress who is very self-centered, naive, and honestly, an absentee parent. However, when she leaves the plane she isn't met by her mother, but rather her mother's boyfriend, Jake. Jake is supposedly a real estate agent and an art dealer, but there are many things about Jake that Sydney “Syd” just doesn’t like. He doesn’t treat her or her mom the way she feels they should be treated and he really makes her uncomfortable. Sydney also begins to find herself and her voice in many ways throughout the novel whether it is through her relationship with the nice young man, Nicco that she meets or whether it is learning to stand up to her mother and Jake.
Personal opinion:
Honestly, this book tried to cover so many things, domestic violence/abuse, a girl finding her voice and working her way into becoming a woman, etc. I personally felt that this book fell flat when it came to being a “thriller”. The mystery/thriller part of the book was kept a mystery until about 93% of the way through the book which was really frustrating to me and did not really make me want to continue reading. I also felt like the mystery in the end was then rushed and not really shown in as much detail as the rest of the entire book.
Sydney loves her life at school in Seattle, she has an awesome group of friends that she enjoys spending time with as well as her grandmother. But, she flies to LA to spend the summer with her mother who is a “washed up” actress who is very self-centered, naive, and honestly, an absentee parent. However, when she leaves the plane she isn't met by her mother, but rather her mother's boyfriend, Jake. Jake is supposedly a real estate agent and an art dealer, but there are many things about Jake that Sydney “Syd” just doesn’t like. He doesn’t treat her or her mom the way she feels they should be treated and he really makes her uncomfortable. Sydney also begins to find herself and her voice in many ways throughout the novel whether it is through her relationship with the nice young man, Nicco that she meets or whether it is learning to stand up to her mother and Jake.
Personal opinion:
Honestly, this book tried to cover so many things, domestic violence/abuse, a girl finding her voice and working her way into becoming a woman, etc. I personally felt that this book fell flat when it came to being a “thriller”. The mystery/thriller part of the book was kept a mystery until about 93% of the way through the book which was really frustrating to me and did not really make me want to continue reading. I also felt like the mystery in the end was then rushed and not really shown in as much detail as the rest of the entire book.
samanthabooks19's review against another edition
4.0
4.5 stars*
I don’t even know where to begin. This book was an extraordinary story that needs to be experienced by all who can. Not only was it an enjoyable and engaging read, but it was impactful. There are some important and profound themes in this book that made it emotional and gripping. Any women who reads this book will be able to connect with the main character, Sydney. The way the author presented Sydney’s story and feelings is how so many of us feel but aren’t able to express. The way some men can make us feel for no outright reason, or how we may be seen or treated like an object and not a person. Sydney’s growth in this book was motivating and moving. The lessons in this book were presented in an effective and stunning way.
I fell in love with the characters and their stories. Even though this book was slow paced, I think it actually worked well. It allowed for a more connected and engaged experience. This book can be classified as a mystery/thriller, but really, the journey was what did me in. The style that this story was presented was unique and powerful for the purpose of this book. It was interesting getting pieces of evidence that would be presented in court after the eventual climax happened. I loved how Sydney was telling us this story after she had already experienced it. It made it feel real. I honestly can’t think of any major flaw in this book. This is a story I wish I could experience for the first time again. I highly recommend!
I don’t even know where to begin. This book was an extraordinary story that needs to be experienced by all who can. Not only was it an enjoyable and engaging read, but it was impactful. There are some important and profound themes in this book that made it emotional and gripping. Any women who reads this book will be able to connect with the main character, Sydney. The way the author presented Sydney’s story and feelings is how so many of us feel but aren’t able to express. The way some men can make us feel for no outright reason, or how we may be seen or treated like an object and not a person. Sydney’s growth in this book was motivating and moving. The lessons in this book were presented in an effective and stunning way.
I fell in love with the characters and their stories. Even though this book was slow paced, I think it actually worked well. It allowed for a more connected and engaged experience. This book can be classified as a mystery/thriller, but really, the journey was what did me in. The style that this story was presented was unique and powerful for the purpose of this book. It was interesting getting pieces of evidence that would be presented in court after the eventual climax happened. I loved how Sydney was telling us this story after she had already experienced it. It made it feel real. I honestly can’t think of any major flaw in this book. This is a story I wish I could experience for the first time again. I highly recommend!
alongreader's review
3.0
This was interesting, but not amazing. I didn't feel connected to the main character; I felt like we got a lot of her backstory in infodumps rather than getting it naturally as the story unfolded. I found myself skimming bits of it, losing attention and putting it down to walk away and do something else.
I did like the twist at the end, and the grandmother, the only character I really liked. This isn't awful, I'll recommend it to people. I just wasn't amazed by it, and I was really hoping to be. It's such an important topic and we need to talk about it more.
girlinthepages's review against another edition
4.0
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.It's no secret that I absolutely ADORED A Heart in a Body in the World by Deb Caletti and it will forever be one of my favorite contemporary novels, so when I heard Deb Caletti was going to be writing a thriller set in San Francisco I clicked that NetGalley request button SO fast. Girl, Unframed proved to be a dark, unsettling story about the burdens of beauty, whether it be regarding artwork or a real, living girl who's appearance is commodified, scrutinized, and weaponized at every turn.
Protagonist Avery is the daughter of a stunning movie star who's clinging to relevancy after being an icon of decades past. Sent to spend the summer in San Francisco with her mother (she's usually away at boarding school), the story proved to be an unsettling coming of age tale as Sydney must recon with the ugly truths around her developing and changing mind and body. Away from the safety of her school and friends, she's in a situation where she's seen as an object that others- from her mom's sketchy boyfriend to even a random construction worker in the neighborhood- feel entitled to comment on and have an opinion about, when Sydney doesn't even know how to feel about her body herself. It's a message that perhaps felt a little heavy handed at times but is overall extremely relevant and unfortunately pervasive. Sydney's agency and sexuality are defined over and over again by the adults in her life much more often than through her own decisions and actions, and yet any harnessing of her own body's agency are instantly slapped with labels such as "dirty" or "out of control." Caletti did a great job balancing Sydney's inner narrative of anger toward these double standards and determination to be the keeper of her body with the unwanted yet unstoppable shame and disgust she feels when inappropriate judgement is passed on her appearance and actions, even from fellow females (such as her mother).
The setting of this story was so well done, and while it was never scary or overtly dangerous, there was a constant current of unease that was woven through the novel, especially in the large, old cliff side manor that Sydney finds herself spending the summer in, eerie both when she's alone or when it's full of the hushed fighting and stretched tension of her mother and boyfriend's tumultuous relationship. The book takes place in San Francisco but shows a different side of the city than many media does, focusing less on the tourist attractions and more on the historic elements that are a throwback to the glamorous and dangerous past of the city, from the Sutro Baths to the Presidio to the City Lights Bookstore. I've been to San Francisco more times than I can count yet I still found that this book surprised me with little nuggets of history and hidden places.
Overall: I went into Girl, Unframed expecting a thriller about the dark world of stolen art dealing, but that really took a backseat to the coming of age story of Sydney, trying to navigate a world that lays claim to her body and identity before she's even sure of who she is yet. Sydney's sense of self develops over the summer while the drama in her home escalates, and the end of the summer ended with a plot twist I didn't see coming. I highly recommend Girl, Unframed for anyone who's looking for a darker, yet achingly raw and realistic coming of age tale of a young woman in the modern age.
Protagonist Avery is the daughter of a stunning movie star who's clinging to relevancy after being an icon of decades past. Sent to spend the summer in San Francisco with her mother (she's usually away at boarding school), the story proved to be an unsettling coming of age tale as Sydney must recon with the ugly truths around her developing and changing mind and body. Away from the safety of her school and friends, she's in a situation where she's seen as an object that others- from her mom's sketchy boyfriend to even a random construction worker in the neighborhood- feel entitled to comment on and have an opinion about, when Sydney doesn't even know how to feel about her body herself. It's a message that perhaps felt a little heavy handed at times but is overall extremely relevant and unfortunately pervasive. Sydney's agency and sexuality are defined over and over again by the adults in her life much more often than through her own decisions and actions, and yet any harnessing of her own body's agency are instantly slapped with labels such as "dirty" or "out of control." Caletti did a great job balancing Sydney's inner narrative of anger toward these double standards and determination to be the keeper of her body with the unwanted yet unstoppable shame and disgust she feels when inappropriate judgement is passed on her appearance and actions, even from fellow females (such as her mother).
The setting of this story was so well done, and while it was never scary or overtly dangerous, there was a constant current of unease that was woven through the novel, especially in the large, old cliff side manor that Sydney finds herself spending the summer in, eerie both when she's alone or when it's full of the hushed fighting and stretched tension of her mother and boyfriend's tumultuous relationship. The book takes place in San Francisco but shows a different side of the city than many media does, focusing less on the tourist attractions and more on the historic elements that are a throwback to the glamorous and dangerous past of the city, from the Sutro Baths to the Presidio to the City Lights Bookstore. I've been to San Francisco more times than I can count yet I still found that this book surprised me with little nuggets of history and hidden places.
Overall: I went into Girl, Unframed expecting a thriller about the dark world of stolen art dealing, but that really took a backseat to the coming of age story of Sydney, trying to navigate a world that lays claim to her body and identity before she's even sure of who she is yet. Sydney's sense of self develops over the summer while the drama in her home escalates, and the end of the summer ended with a plot twist I didn't see coming. I highly recommend Girl, Unframed for anyone who's looking for a darker, yet achingly raw and realistic coming of age tale of a young woman in the modern age.
*A huge thank you to Simon Pulse and NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review!*
This review was originally posted on Girl in the Pages
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