A review by theblushbookworm
I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai

dark mysterious reflective fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This novel took me right out of a reading slump! The writing is fantastic and the novel has a dark academia aesthetic set in a New England boarding school. The main character, ugly duckling turned swan, Bodie Kane is back at her alma mater to teach a mini-mester class on podcasting (if that doesn’t scream private school in the 2020s I don’t know what does). She becomes obsessed with the murder of her former roommate, Thalia Keith, during their senior year at Granby and prompts a student podcast on the subject as she spirals deeper into the case. Bodie narrates the story as though she is telling it to a former teacher of hers at Granby, who she believes is connected to Thalia’s murder. I loved this narration style and am dying to listen to Bodie’s podcasts. In addition, to the student project on Thalia, she became famous for a podcast called Starlet Fever about exploitation of women in film like Judy Garland and Rita Hayworth. The facts about them included in relation to her podcast are a super fun to read addition to the novel. Throughout the novel there is an exploration of the #MeToo movement. I appreciated that Bodie’s thoughts on this are often morally gray, and I thought the discussion overall was incredibly nuanced. I read “I Have Some Questions for You” in two sittings and wish I could read it for the first time again. In the definite marker of an excellent book, when I was reading this novel, the rest of the world was gone, leaving just me, Bodie, and her thoughts. I loved it!