I literally just finished the book a mere seconds ago and don’t know how to feel- it ended as swiftly as it started. Was tossing up between 1 star rating to 5 star rating, it kept moving all through out; settled on a 3.5 star rating.
The writing sucks you in and the pacing/chapters are written in a somewhat monthly timeline where it involves anyone’s POV Cleo, Frank, Quentin, Zoe, Santiago, Anders and Eleanor. Everyone has baggage and it’s like watching a train wreck of a movie that sucks you in even when the plot is non- existent.
This book is a definition of NO PLOT JUST VIBES. And mind you, it wasn’t all good vibes. The two MCs are toxic to each other and to themselves, personalities most of the times where pretentious with a lot of woke undertones. Nonetheless, I have underlying masochist tendencies and like to experience painful conversations and dialogues of entitled, privileged, pretentious people.
With that said, two of the characters that had great character development much early on was Santiago and Eleanor.
Such an interesting book for a debut novel, read in acknowledgments that this was a 7 year labour of love. Definitely looking forward to her future works.
Let me know what you guys thought ?
by revenge_l0bster
6 Comments
I felt exactly the same way when I finished it. The story just wasn’t there. The characters were epically unlikable, but I just kept wanting to see where it was going to go.
But you’re dead solid correct, all vibe, no plot. AND I liked it. I ended up as a 4 star because it was very good in spite of all weirdness.
I read the “no plot just vibes” when I scanned this upon staring the book (I like to get a general understanding of what people think of a book I’m picking up) and it stayed with me throughout my reading.
I agree that the plot was light, and it definitely was more vibes, but the vibes were not always fun nor were they inviting. It felt like watching an episode of “and just like that” where I’m watching privileged people get to be superior even in their inferiority.
I did enjoy the Elenor chapters the best. She felt the most grounded and realized character. Although it felt like the author was using that negative Jewish trope of the Jewish woman who isn’t beautiful in order to contrast her to Cleo and ground Elenor as more realistic or achievable.
I have picked it for my local book club. I think everyone else is going to hate me for it (far more sex and drugs than we’ve ever read before-oops), but I really liked it. I don’t think it was perfect, but it encapsulated that early 2000s vibe for me- I can imagine that warehouse party playing Fischerspooner.
I wanted another chapter from both Quentin’s and Zoe’s perspective. I think everyone changed along the way, some for better, some for worse.
I just finished this book and was scanning through the community to see how everyone else perceived this book. As expected, the opinions are quite divided. I personally enjoyed this book. Maybe because I am quite a Sex and the City fan! I was also relieved that this book was not just a typical romance novel or that it didn’t try to romanticize the relationship between the 2 MCs. For me, there was a clear power imbalance between them. Nonetheless, I do get your points that many characters are quite privileged and pretentious. However, I still felt some sort of sympathy towards them – except for Anders.
Does anyone recall what neighbourhood Frank’s apartment was in?
Anyone else feel the violent fantasy moment from Anders followed by Cleo’s SH episode were oddly unfitting? It didn’t seem characterized well and as a reader, it went 0-100 after reading about 200 pages of the book. ?
Obviously, we haven’t read Anders POV up until that point, only knowing that he has a very problematic sexual life and view of women. So, maybe I was just taken aback by how revealing the scene was of his fantasies.
But Cleo’s episode, I felt was unnecessary. Not because SH isn’t a serious issue or can describe a character’s turmoil but that in this characterization, it almost felt befitting of mental illness romanticization. Cleo comes off as this ‘tortured artist’ in that sense. But as a reader, it felt like Mellors wrote that in as a last minute attempt to real in how egregious her circumstances are and her attempts to interpet it in a harmful way. I hope that doesn’t come across as though I’m not being empathetic but the psychology of it wasn’t executed well. It read as 2014 Tumblr Girl and not as if she was already suffering with SH.