This novel was more of a slow burn, so it took me a while to be drawn in. The characters were satisfyingly complicated and messy and the heavy themes were handled well. I also appreciated that Saskia was allowed to break out of the box of "good survivor."

There was just something that didn't quite work for me... maybe the heavy handed writing style and a lot of suspended disbelief required from the reader? Something just didn't quite come together for me leaving the story a bit flat. I liked Kapelke-Dale's other novel, The Ballerinas, better.

Please be mindful of the trigger warnings before reading this book!

This is my second book by the author and I appreciated the fact that this is faster in pace & the flashbacks were done well. I wasn’t the biggest fan of Saskia, our female MC but that may have been intentional? Either way the way the abuse was revealed was sad and she didn’t deserve that. Yet, the author highlights what happens when children aren’t always watched over or children think they need to grow up when they don’t need too. It definitely was 100% not her fault though. The ending felt a little too wrapped up to me but otherwise a decent book. 

Because I previewed and enjoyed Rachel Kapelke-Dale’s The Ballerinas last year, I was invited to read her upcoming novel The Ingenue as well. Unfortunately, my ability to fully appreciate The Ingenue was affected by the fact that I’ve a few too many books recently where women are mentally, physically, emotionally, and sexually abused, most often by the men in their lives. As was the case in The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna, the description for The Ingenue couched things in vague-enough language that it isn’t really a bait-and-switch but it also isn’t clear how much of the story is going to focus on some form of sexual abuse. And the central character’s gradual shift in how she understands and views that crucial relationship from her past is a key part of her journey so I also understand why it was approached that way, but given the nature of that relationship and how triggering/upsetting it can be, I feel like the description should at least have a reference to Lolita or something – alluding to it being set post #MeToo is simply not enough for the nature of the “complicated history” at the center of the story. Looking beyond my personal disappointment that it wasn’t the story I was hoping it would be, The Ingenue is very effective in its depiction of how those who’ve been manipulated and abused can narrativize their experience in ways that help protect themselves. And as with The Ballerinas, the ending may not be entirely realistic, but it’s probably more satisfying because of that.

Saskia Kreis was blindsided by her mother’s death. It wasn’t particularly sudden but her mother didn’t want her to know about her diagnosis and concealed it from her. Another unexpected blow comes when Saskia and her father learn that their large family estate was left, not to Saskia but to one of her mother’s colleagues, Patrick. In trying to untangle the web of her mother’s intentions and deciding to fight the will that would see her family’s legacy given away, Saskia must confront the painful truths of her past relationship with Patrick as well as the complicated relationship she had with her mother. Questions of agency, legacy, and obligation weave a net that threatens to trap Saskia as a version of herself that she isn’t sure she wants to be. She’ll have to make up her mind before others make the decision for her.

For the rest of my review, please visit my blog: https://wp.me/pUEx4-1fF

Thank you Netgalley for providing a digital ARC.

The Ingenue is a slow-paced revenge thriller about reliving and addressing trauma. Normally I prefer books that move more quickly, but the pacing of this was perfect for the story. I also loved the way the fairy tales started each chapter, which I think added some lightness to a rather dark read.
 
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