It is thrilling to read a book that articles with nuance and compassion the way gender impacts every part of our lives.

Whether that’s my want to like the female protagonist which has been engrained in me since I was young, or just the nature of the novel, is yet to be decided. Yes, Mellors’ novel was an instant success, branded ‘hottest book of the year’ by Stylist and an instant Sunday Times Bestseller, which makes it hard to believe that this is in fact her first published novel. i like flawed and unlikeable characters, but there was something about the way it was written here that did not work for me. somehow I have started to wonder if reading has become a kind of obscure self-harm practice I engage in, or if maybe I’m just incredibly sensitive and weak. they're all self-absorbed immature people who cannot empathise with others and cannot think of anybody but themselves.It's the latest in a string of literary fiction pieces that I've read that feel aspirational to that title.

Both clever marketing and a window into the central position of art and mental health in Mellors’ novel. So if a book can grip me where I'm reading the words and actually taking them in rather than having my eyes read the words while my brain thinks of that one time in year seven when a boy I liked said happy birthday to me and I awkwardly said happy birthday back. everybody seems to love eleanor because she is down to earth and funny but to me she was so mediocre.Mellors, in conjunction with the theme of growing up, shows how addiction and success are in the veins of such a place, which is why Cleo struggles so much to find herself. However, with this comes a feeling that the characters which fill the pages in this book, cannot truly be written about in any sort of depth, because there are just too many of them. I actually admire Mellors’ decision to make the central female character, Cleo, the less likeable female – it goes against the grain and subverts most stereotypes.

Cleo’s mum died when she was young and is left with a father who appears to have no personal opinion apart from the one that aligns with his new partner.I think one of the first things that made me fall in love with this book was how New York City wasn't romanticised; it wasn't made to sound like this wonderland where all your dreams come true (more spew). I'm more of a complicated, unconventional, dark, realistic, modern-day kind of romance; where there's turbulence and you're unsure of how it will end and if they should even end up together or not. The book is oddly racist at times, casually throws out slurs for the razzle dazzle factor, and approaches heavy topics [ sexual assault + attempting to end ones life ] only to shock the reader and not fully engage in those dynamics to the level they should be in a book like this. Their romance story isn't based on love at first sight and their marriage isn't created from some cringe high-school love.

But this the story of just two of those people, and I think Mellors did a pretty masterful job of it.deleted my old review because i was senselessly ranting, but i still do think this felt painfully self-indulgent, more so than the works of sally rooney – of which this book has been exhaustively compared to. For all ebook purchases, you will be prompted to create an account or login with your existing HarperCollins username and password. His half-sister Zoe was the greatest actor, his best friend Anders was the greatest art director and amateur soccer player, and Cleo, well, Cleo was the most talented painter, the deepest thinker, the most beautiful woman on earth. The effects of their marriage reverberate out into the lives of their family and friends: Zoe, Frank's ambitious half-sister; Quentin, Cleo's best friend grappling with his sexuality; Eleanor, a new hire at Frank's office; and more. it touched on a lot of things that it failed to explore them in a more meaningful way, so that the important topics became a quirky backdrop for the characters instead.