Reviews

Hot Little Hands: Fiction by Abigail Ulman

ejhurl22's review against another edition

5.0

I read the first chapter in a bookstore then when I finally started it August 3rd I ended up staying up all
Night and finished the book. Was so good!

bellehealey's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective medium-paced

4.0

bianca89279's review against another edition

3.0

I'm afraid Hot Little Hands goes into the meah category.

I saw the blurb and the fact that it was about girls and young women, so I thought it'd really appeal to me. Unfortunately, the stories had no impact on me, I didn't connect with the characters, and worst of all, I didn't care about them. Given that the majority of the stories are dark, I should have been much more affected.

To be honest, even the writing didn't impress me that much.

So, I'm sorry to say, 'Hot Little Hands' just felt cold and clammy.

I've received this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

taniemaree's review against another edition

3.0

A good debut from an Australian author, albeit a bit overdone. Good to see some more local talent.

mizpurplest's review against another edition

3.0

Some of these stories I really loved; some went places I wasn't prepared for; and some were just strange. It took me a really long time to finish this collection, which is only partially the book's fault, but it meant that I spent a while thinking that I'd missed the connections between some of the stories when there actually doesn't seem to be one. Too bad, since I think some of them would have been stronger with a tie to the larger story arch. But I did enjoy this for the most part, and would pass it along to a curious reader.

desterman's review against another edition

2.0

Like many short story collections some of the stories in 'Hot Little Hands' are better than others. Centred on young women on the precipice of change and loss of innocence, unfortunately I found few of these sang. Some of the stories were too long and became dull. The only real stand out was the slow building tension and shocking conclusion of 'Warm Ups'.

gaillimh8's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful medium-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

3.5

abbichuuu's review against another edition

2.0

I feel bad, but I really didn't enjoy this. Two of the stories made me feel sick: because of the subject matter, because of what was said and what was left unsaid. And they've stayed with me a bit, so that's a testament to the writing skill, I guess. And the writing is very realistic. But I found most of it quite tedious and lacking anything of interest or insight. I ended up just trying to get through the book because I chose it for my challenge.

lifeinpoetry's review against another edition

4.0

The last story is exceptional. Tense and less distant than the others.

1mpossiblealice's review against another edition

2.5

I'd had this book on my shelves for years, since it was published, and thought that I'd bought it on a whim but wasn't sure how good it would be. At the start I was pleasantly surprised, I thought the first couple of stories were good, and four out of the first three. As the book went on I was less interested in the later stories, and skimmed through much of the last one. Three of the stories involved the same character called Claire and I really didn't care about her. It's a shame because had they continued on the level of the first 2, it would have been a 3.5-4 star book, but overall I'd say 2.5 stars maybe. Some of the stories I just wasn't sure what the point of them were, or they were dull. Probably not one I'll keep despite finding a few of them really good.