_coco_'s reviews
98 reviews

A decent and gripping narrative, though nothing special. The references to art and the format of the story worked well, but honestly it did little to set itself apart from every other cheap thriller, so I don't fully understand the hype. The twist is so beyond overdone in thrillers and was a disappointing end to the book.

This book had a lot of potential with a unique and interesting premise. Unfortunately, it failed on virtually every front and the longer I think about it, the worse it gets. The pacing was poor. There were so many plot points left unresolved. I assume this is to make room for a sequel but if nothing has been achieved throughout the entire book then I don't see the point. So many relationships were unexplored/began or ended abruptly. The constant perspective and time switches could have worked, but were too frequent, making it impossible to get into the flow of reading. I also find the central plot-point highly unbelievable, and struggle to understand the enormous sacrifices made by the protagonist. The idea of 'book-eating' felt simultaneously under-explored and over-explained. I doubt I'd read the sequel and wouldn't recommend this book to anyone.

Fast-paced and exciting to read in the moment but everything else was just bad. The characters were hard to believe, their unusual marriage didn’t really make sense, and the twist at the end undermined everything that had led up to that point. On top of that, I found it hard to believe the drastic measures that were taken given how minor the initial issue was.

An incredibly beautiful and moving piece of writing. I love nothing more than books that hone in on a family, or moment in time, or character and delve into them completely, and The God of Small Things did exactly that. Roy’s writing style is so unique and funny. The exploration of so many little tragedies circling around one great tragedy create a slow but excellent build-up to the end of the novel, where everything seems to fall into despair at once. Definitely not a quick read and not suited for anyone wanting a plot-driven book, but simply such a magnificent read. I will think about this book for a long time to come.

A very solid book. It was sensitive and playful and despite its heavier themes had a lightheartedness offered by the novella’s self-awareness. The different voices and stream-of-consciousness style aided the fragmented structure of the book. I think that the Crow’s perspective was the strongest by far, with every word picked deliberately and used effectively to create a humorous, at times sinister, picturebook-style character. Both the Dad and the Boys’ perspectives were very reflective, capturing the characters’ naivety as well as accidental wisdom. The frequent literary allusions, most notably Ted Hughes’ ‘Crow’, displayed the thought that had gone into the writing. I definitely didn’t grasp every nuanced metaphor but enjoyed nonetheless.

The first half to two-thirds of this book had a lot of potential. I found the technology and politics of the experiment interesting and the protagonist’s attempts to balance culture, family, and safety very endearing. However, it felt like it lost its footing after this, trying to do too much at some times and then ultimately ending too simply with disregard for many of the conflicts introduced at the beginning.

The romance was definitely the main issue of this book. Firstly, it is introduced too early and then only picks up too late in the book, resulting in a weird genre flip from speculative fiction to a general romance novel. Marisol’s struggles and past experiences and attempt to seek asylum in the United States are completely overshadowed by this relationship. It also seems odd to me that Marisol is only shown properly meeting two women her age, and she falls in love with both of them. I think the book would have been much stronger if it focused on Marisol and her family and displayed the damaging nature of being in a romantic relationship borne from deception and exploitation, rather than romanticising it. 

A disappointment as the premise is really interesting but the story just didn’t hold up.

A very fun and fast-paced book with loveable characters and it is clear that so much effort has gone into the book into order to create a detailed and believable world. The format of the book is obviously unique, being told in a series of clipped together interviews, and having such a variety of perspectives is entertaining. The characters definitely fall slightly too neatly into their traits, with an unrealistically small amount of their quirks overlapping, except when necessary for the plot, making them feel much more like characters than people. This doesn’t necessarily draw away from the book, as it is primarily easy entertainment, but it is something I often noticed, especially in characters such as Warren and Eddie. I honestly think the twist towards the end was the biggest let down. It felt gimmicky and unnecessary and retrospectively gave the rest of the book a weirder energy. I completely understand what Jenkins Reid was going for, but I thought the book would have been great without it. Definitely a relaxed, playful read nonetheless that does a decent job at dealing with difficult topics at times. 

An interesting premise with poor execution. I found the writing and foreshadowing clunky at times, particularly in the closing sentences of chapters (a pet peeve of mine), and felt as though the dialogue was often too scripted, making it hard to believe that many of the characters were teenagers. I found the teenaged characters fell into the range of cliche/stereotypes/caricatures, and that it was too obvious that each new addition to the cast were there only to aid the character development of the protagonist.

That being said, the book was fast-paced and kept my attention. The author’s writing style succeeded in reflecting the narrator’s unique understanding of the world, and I particularly appreciated his relationship with Dr Shim, though again he fell a bit into the role of solely existing to advance the narrative.

The ending, for me, felt like a stretch, with too many outlandish and unlikely events occurring in the space of 20 pages, ultimately leaving many of the relationships, plot-points, and questions unfinished/unanswered.

There are just such a huge number of other books that handle neurodiversity in a more nuanced, interesting, and realistic way that this highly-praised book felt like a let down. I would perhaps read some of Sohn’s work in the future if she released another novel, but wouldn’t choose to recommend this particular book to anyone.

As a portrayal of male friendship and growing up, this book greatly succeeds. The friendship is deep and believable and the shift in perspective and dialogue between past and present subtly shows the characters' maturing personalities. The writing is lyrical while still being very accessible, and I felt the pop-culture references aid the narrative, rather than taking away from it - a difficult task as often mentions of songs and movies feel forced, awkward, and out-of-date.

I think that I had hoped the book would be more moving/emotional, and felt as though it fell short. Its length hindered my ability to completely connect with the characters, as every event and moment seemed to come and go too quickly. It seemed as though something was missing to completely tie the book together, though I can't place exactly what.

It certainly left me feeling sombre, pensive, and with a deeper appreciation for those that I love, so it was absolutely a valuable read.

Quite a disappointing read. Porter can clearly write well but the lack of plot doesn’t mesh well with his fragmented style. I really enjoyed the idea of each chapter representing a painting, but felt that this was very surface level.
The motifs felt a little forced and I felt very little emotion by the end of the book, likely because of its length. An interesting idea but poor execution.