I just finished this book today and liked it but there were still some things that I felt like we didn’t get enough, and some things we got too much of.
I’ll start with what felt underwhelming for me. The first 30 pages already reveal that Eleanor has burn scars on her face and that she has issues with her mother. I feel like it was common sense to conclude what happened because of how heavily implied it was, so I think it would’ve been so much more impactful if we got all the details about the rest of the things that happened rather than focusing on the big incident with the arson, like all the things that led to that happening.
I know Eleanor briefly mentions that she was a product of SA but by the end of the book I felt like we don’t really know anything about the mother, we don’t know how and why she got pregnant a second time, why she lied so much about her life (other than the fact that she was an abuser and that something was obviously wrong with her). I was left with the feeling that it lacked depth because we only got two short articles about what actually happened and it felt so flat to find out that way. If anything, it would’ve been better if Eleanor came to the realization herself during the therapy sessions which is known to help with repressed memories.
Back to the actual reveal, it felt very sudden and I had to reread the article to see it really said that both the daughter and the mother’s bodies were recovered. It did explain why her mother’s character felt so cartoonishly evil, but again, it felt like it was there for shock value.
There were so many more questions I had that never got revealed (or I didn’t understand the book, who knows). There was the story about Declan that I felt like lacked context too, like yes, we know how they met and everything that happened, but it just felt like it was there for no reason. Who was this Declan guy and how did Eleanor even start dating him? I feel like it was included just to make Eleanor appear even more damaged (it sort of gave me the same feeling as the trauma surrounding Jude in “A Little Life”, for anyone that’s read both).
There are so many things this book did right but so many that I was underwhelmed with. Eleanor’s makeover and the bit in the office by the end, is the take away from it that suddenly her colleagues don’t hate her, despite bullying her like petty high schoolers in the first half of the book? Where did the sudden understanding come from, her taking some time off and returning with smoky eyes?
One thing I loved about the book though was Raymond and Eleanor being nothing more than friends. I was expecting something stupid and predictable to happen, especially during that scene with the wine and them watching a movie, but thankfully it didn’t. Raymond’s connection to Laura felt a bit random, especially calling her high maintenance twice while still hanging around with her, but it also didn’t bother me too much. I liked Raymond.
What were your thoughts on the book? Did any parts feel underwhelming or unexpectedly good? I’m open to hear about anything I might’ve missed that could’ve influenced my opinion.
by cluelessjpg