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A review by linguisticali
Rupetta by Nike Sulway
4.0
I have some mixed feelings about this one.
It was inventive and unusual, and it had diverse and interesting female characters. The sections with Henri were my favourite, and I absolutely loved the romance that developed between her and Miri. Their love was really at the heart of the book for me.
I also enjoyed the writing style. It was quite beautiful, and some of it was very poetic. One particular part which stood out for me was a page describing Henri's feelings towards Miri, and it's a clash of mixed images that somehow works so well to capture what it feels like to have that overwhelming young, new love.
On the other hand, there was a lot of the book which I found frustrating and difficult to engage with. A big part of this was that I struggled to engage with the fundamental premise - I wasn't really convinced by the worship of Rupetta, which underpinned the greater political context of the story.
I also struggled to follow the story a lot of the time. I never really developed a clear sense of time or place, and I struggled to follow the characters' motivations. I really lost the plot in the last third of the book, and I didn't really feel like the story resolved or went anywhere satisfying.The very ending (with Henri) was comforting, but I didn't have the sense that the larger issues in the plot were really addressed. I didn't feel like there'd been any real change - I don't know if the destruction of the false Rupetta was supposed to signal a shift in the religious and political situation, but it didn't fully answer that for me. The last part of the book felt like a lot of repetitive running away and being caught without any real change taking place.
Some things didn't feel very well explained.It's possible I missed something, but I never clearly understood where Perdita had come from. I never fully grasped the implications of the Penitents' hearts and what it meant for them with respect to aging. Henri's reaction to discovering Miri's secret seemed like an overreaction, and it was particularly hard to make sense of given that we experienced her response before it was totally clear what the secret was - or why it would have such an impact.
I don't know if I can really recommend this book. I'm torn between a 3 and a 4 star rating, but I love books by and about women, and the well-written female characters and their relationships warrant the higher rating for me. It was inventive and really interesting, and while I found it frustrating a lot of the time, there was a lot about it which I did appreciate.
It was inventive and unusual, and it had diverse and interesting female characters. The sections with Henri were my favourite, and I absolutely loved the romance that developed between her and Miri. Their love was really at the heart of the book for me.
I also enjoyed the writing style. It was quite beautiful, and some of it was very poetic. One particular part which stood out for me was a page describing Henri's feelings towards Miri, and it's a clash of mixed images that somehow works so well to capture what it feels like to have that overwhelming young, new love.
I wanted to eat her. Wanted to shell her like a pea. Find her fresh green centre. My whole body was turned inside out. I was a spilled sack of stars. I had no right to be so happy. To walk so completely out of myself and into her.
On the other hand, there was a lot of the book which I found frustrating and difficult to engage with. A big part of this was that I struggled to engage with the fundamental premise - I wasn't really convinced by the worship of Rupetta, which underpinned the greater political context of the story.
I also struggled to follow the story a lot of the time. I never really developed a clear sense of time or place, and I struggled to follow the characters' motivations. I really lost the plot in the last third of the book, and I didn't really feel like the story resolved or went anywhere satisfying.
Some things didn't feel very well explained.
I don't know if I can really recommend this book. I'm torn between a 3 and a 4 star rating, but I love books by and about women, and the well-written female characters and their relationships warrant the higher rating for me. It was inventive and really interesting, and while I found it frustrating a lot of the time, there was a lot about it which I did appreciate.