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The Bombshell
Revolution has never looked so good...
Corsica, 1993. As a sun-drenched Mediterranean summer heads into full swing, beautiful and brash seventeen-year-old Séverine Guimard is counting down the days until graduation, dreaming of stardom while smoking cigarettes and seducing boys in her class to pass the time. The pampered French-American daughter of a politician, Séverine knows she's destined for bigger things.
That is, until three masked men emerge from an idling car, tear her from her bike, duct tape her mouth and wrists, and take her somewhere hidden from prying eyes. While her parents try to negotiate for her release, Séverine finds herself beginning to sympathise with the political motivations of her captors, and becoming attracted to the group's charismatic leader, Bruno.
What follows is a summer of passion and terror, careening toward an inevitable, explosive conclusion, as Séverine steps into the biggest role of her life...
Corsica, 1993. As a sun-drenched Mediterranean summer heads into full swing, beautiful and brash seventeen-year-old Séverine Guimard is counting down the days until graduation, dreaming of stardom while smoking cigarettes and seducing boys in her class to pass the time. The pampered French-American daughter of a politician, Séverine knows she's destined for bigger things.
That is, until three masked men emerge from an idling car, tear her from her bike, duct tape her mouth and wrists, and take her somewhere hidden from prying eyes. While her parents try to negotiate for her release, Séverine finds herself beginning to sympathise with the political motivations of her captors, and becoming attracted to the group's charismatic leader, Bruno.
What follows is a summer of passion and terror, careening toward an inevitable, explosive conclusion, as Séverine steps into the biggest role of her life...
529 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 27, 2025
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April 24, 2025let teenagers do a little progressively motivated domestic terrorism as a treat
March 30, 2025
the best dangerous-boredom-of-teenage-girls novel since megan abbott was good, and it's better than that because the danger is allowing and in fact encouraging teenage girls to firebomb the walmart. a little bit of elena ferrante in the mix but, like, imagine the psychological problems elena ferrante's girls would have if they were french. somehow an extremely effective eric rohmer pastiche in the written word?? a book that will look you in the eye and tell you it's the same kind of communist as you (threat, implication, heckle). séverine is a girl of all time.
June 17, 2025
4.25💫
let bored teenagers join a revolution and start creating bombs. what could go wrong?
that basically sums up this book, but it was also so much more. i loved the plot of this book- rich daughter born into a political family gets kidnapped for ransom, but ends up joining their cause and wreaks havoc. severine was so bold, scandelous, and had so many drastic ideas that mostly went over smoothly. her comrades were the brothers she never had- but i cant say all of them were like brothers because then that would be incest LOL. severine new the power she had as an attractive female and used it to her advantage to seduce them into getting what she wanted. she never assumed she would fall in love with a boy and their cause- but hey, we love an element of surprise in our lives. i love how the author humanizes these so called "terrorists" (the comrades) by giving insight into their lives, their past, and overall showing how normal these boys are. these characters are not terrorists, just people wanting to draw attention to the injustice they face.
the chapters are pretty long, so I did move to the audiobook about halfway through, and im so glad i did! I think the narration was very well done.
I definitely recommend this book if you are looking to try something out of your normal reading genres! i love a messy, scandelous, chaotic book!
may botm🩷
let bored teenagers join a revolution and start creating bombs. what could go wrong?
that basically sums up this book, but it was also so much more. i loved the plot of this book- rich daughter born into a political family gets kidnapped for ransom, but ends up joining their cause and wreaks havoc. severine was so bold, scandelous, and had so many drastic ideas that mostly went over smoothly. her comrades were the brothers she never had- but i cant say all of them were like brothers because then that would be incest LOL. severine new the power she had as an attractive female and used it to her advantage to seduce them into getting what she wanted. she never assumed she would fall in love with a boy and their cause- but hey, we love an element of surprise in our lives. i love how the author humanizes these so called "terrorists" (the comrades) by giving insight into their lives, their past, and overall showing how normal these boys are. these characters are not terrorists, just people wanting to draw attention to the injustice they face.
the chapters are pretty long, so I did move to the audiobook about halfway through, and im so glad i did! I think the narration was very well done.
I definitely recommend this book if you are looking to try something out of your normal reading genres! i love a messy, scandelous, chaotic book!
may botm🩷
May 10, 2025
The Summer I Turned Into a Domestic Terrorist*
*but like a good guy terrorist ok!!
*but like a good guy terrorist ok!!
June 6, 2025
It believes it is Bonnie and Clyde, but it's actually just another Stockholm syndrome fantasy, like so many others, because the characters are so one-dimensional. I think the author believes that agreeing with the politics of the aggressor somehow makes the relationship between the captor and the abducted acceptable. It doesn’t.
June 12, 2025
Those of us of a certain age well remember Patty Hearst’s kidnapping in 1974. And how she was pictured with a gun in her hands during a bank robbery. Was it Stockholm Syndrome or was she just afraid? In The Bombshell, another rich young woman is kidnapped. It’s 1993 in Corsica, and three young men want their island’s independence from France. But the author doesn’t make the reader guess if Severine has truly become radicalized. If anything, she becomes the face of the separatist movement.
Severine is only 17 when she’s kidnapped. But she’s got a “presence”. She has dreams, big dreams, of being a famous actress married to a big director. But under her new reality, she finds a different way to make herself known. Yet, she’s still SO young. She has no understanding of the consequences of her actions. She’s not some likeable ingenue. She’s very self-centered. She’s also caught up in the whole first love thing. She’s a fully fleshed out character, and she is the reason I was so engaged with the first half of the book.
That said, this is an uneven book. I loved what it had to say about youthful idealism. But it also dragged at times. I would have also liked more of a feel for the political fight between Corsica and France.
The book takes a sharp turn for the second half and I was much less interested in this half. Other than getting an idea of Severine as an adult, it added nothing to the story for me.
I listened to this and Imani Jade Powers did a decent job as the narrator.
Severine is only 17 when she’s kidnapped. But she’s got a “presence”. She has dreams, big dreams, of being a famous actress married to a big director. But under her new reality, she finds a different way to make herself known. Yet, she’s still SO young. She has no understanding of the consequences of her actions. She’s not some likeable ingenue. She’s very self-centered. She’s also caught up in the whole first love thing. She’s a fully fleshed out character, and she is the reason I was so engaged with the first half of the book.
That said, this is an uneven book. I loved what it had to say about youthful idealism. But it also dragged at times. I would have also liked more of a feel for the political fight between Corsica and France.
The book takes a sharp turn for the second half and I was much less interested in this half. Other than getting an idea of Severine as an adult, it added nothing to the story for me.
I listened to this and Imani Jade Powers did a decent job as the narrator.
May 20, 2025
Listen, all the Fanon in the world and liberation theory can’t distract from how icky the central romance makes me feel. Even in the latest chapters they still try to play it up as “it was fated! See? The French are so much more gray area around age gaps?!” I literally lost all respect for the fact that Séverine is literally not finished with her bac exams and this guy is a high school teacher. Sure, he’s not methuselah, but he knows better AND he kidnapped her. LITERALLY. Sometimes it seems as if the author acknowledges this is a gross pairing, but then ultimately it seems like she makes a lot of excuses.
The book also really, REALLY wants you to know that this is a SEXY SEXY teen. So fuckable. Hot enough to take over a revolution and control it using the dicks of the other cell members as a joystick. We can’t be reminded enough that she hasn’t just read and understood Marx, she also is so unspeakably hot that literally every male character can’t help but stop themselves boi-oi-oing cartoon character style at her beauty (in spite of her massive schnoz.)
In spite of the deeply sexy teens and the adult men that want to bang them, I did enjoy this book. Maybe it’s some kind of francophilic pleasure at the descriptions of a sun-dappled Mediterranean isle and the lush greenery. I loved the way that food was rendered in such beautiful detail. It’s a really gorgeous sensory experience of a warm, beautiful summer of reckless youth.
3/5 but realistically closer to a 2.75/5.
The book also really, REALLY wants you to know that this is a SEXY SEXY teen. So fuckable. Hot enough to take over a revolution and control it using the dicks of the other cell members as a joystick. We can’t be reminded enough that she hasn’t just read and understood Marx, she also is so unspeakably hot that literally every male character can’t help but stop themselves boi-oi-oing cartoon character style at her beauty (in spite of her massive schnoz.)
In spite of the deeply sexy teens and the adult men that want to bang them, I did enjoy this book. Maybe it’s some kind of francophilic pleasure at the descriptions of a sun-dappled Mediterranean isle and the lush greenery. I loved the way that food was rendered in such beautiful detail. It’s a really gorgeous sensory experience of a warm, beautiful summer of reckless youth.
3/5 but realistically closer to a 2.75/5.
May 23, 2025
Girlboss, gaslight, gatekeep, perform acts of terrorism under the guise of social activism but really for the attention of a man almost twice your age
November 30, 2024
A truly dazzling novel I was fortunate enough to have early access to — mind your business re: how — and which I am eager to place into the hands of many come next year. The protagonist, Severine, is one of the most deftly-drawn characters I’d read in some time; she is as memorable and as compelling as the protagonists of recent novels by Tess Gunty and Emma Cline.
You’ll want to get yourself a copy of this one in late May!
You’ll want to get yourself a copy of this one in late May!
May 8, 2025
If One Direction released Stockholm Syndrome in 1993 instead of 2014.
There’s so much I want to say about this book because I absolutely loved it and it explored a lot of themes I’m interested in, but I’ll try to not go on a tangent. In the summer of 1993, in Corsica, an island off the coast of France, Sérevine is kidnapped by three guys in a revolutionary group for independence who initially use her as a bargaining chip to force the state to release their comrade and political prisoner. About a month in, Sérevine, having read a number of books from famous revolutionaries, finds herself joining the group with her kidnappers, Bruno, Tittu, and Petru. Sérevine begins to fall in love with Bruno (who’s that shadow holding me hostage, I’ve been here for days), but this is when her intentions become cloudy. Is she doing this because she genuinely believes in it, or does the want the attention and acceptance that comes with Bruno’s love? This is when things start to get murky, and really good.
Sérevine has always known she wanted to move to Los Angeles and be an actor, doted on by the masses. She quickly learns through subtle manipulation of the men around her that by releasing videos defending the groups position on state violence for independence, that she can get fame and recognition, both good and bad. The question then becomes does she turn to this work because of wanting to change the system, even from her bourgeoise position in society which has insulated her from all evil in the world (partially perpetrated by her politician father), or does she truly believe what she’s reading and the cause she’s fighting for? One person’s terrorist is another’s freedom fighter.
Things start to pick up as the summer goes on, giving Sérevine the fame she wants, even if it’s at a price. What happens when it becomes too much? I really loved how the book explored her time in the revolutionary group and what her true intentions were. She’s morally gray and you want to dislike her, but I love a young woman who can boss men around and bend them to her will.
There’s so much I want to say about this book because I absolutely loved it and it explored a lot of themes I’m interested in, but I’ll try to not go on a tangent. In the summer of 1993, in Corsica, an island off the coast of France, Sérevine is kidnapped by three guys in a revolutionary group for independence who initially use her as a bargaining chip to force the state to release their comrade and political prisoner. About a month in, Sérevine, having read a number of books from famous revolutionaries, finds herself joining the group with her kidnappers, Bruno, Tittu, and Petru. Sérevine begins to fall in love with Bruno (who’s that shadow holding me hostage, I’ve been here for days), but this is when her intentions become cloudy. Is she doing this because she genuinely believes in it, or does the want the attention and acceptance that comes with Bruno’s love? This is when things start to get murky, and really good.
Sérevine has always known she wanted to move to Los Angeles and be an actor, doted on by the masses. She quickly learns through subtle manipulation of the men around her that by releasing videos defending the groups position on state violence for independence, that she can get fame and recognition, both good and bad. The question then becomes does she turn to this work because of wanting to change the system, even from her bourgeoise position in society which has insulated her from all evil in the world (partially perpetrated by her politician father), or does she truly believe what she’s reading and the cause she’s fighting for? One person’s terrorist is another’s freedom fighter.
Things start to pick up as the summer goes on, giving Sérevine the fame she wants, even if it’s at a price. What happens when it becomes too much? I really loved how the book explored her time in the revolutionary group and what her true intentions were. She’s morally gray and you want to dislike her, but I love a young woman who can boss men around and bend them to her will.
September 6, 2025
noooo help they got me in the end oh no wait i was so into it ahhhhh
May 17, 2025
I’m glad it’s over?
May 13, 2025
It is 1993- Severine is a spoiled and beautiful 17 year old girl, the daughter of a French politician father and American poet mother. She uses her beauty to feel in control over boys, and doesn’t see the purpose of going to a university, she wants to go to Hollywood and become an actress. She lives in Corsica but hates it, she felt more at home when they lived in Paris.
Then one night she is kidnapped by Corsican radicals fighting for independence. Her kidnappers are harsh and cruel to her, but she is sure she will go home soon once her parents pay the ransom.
She does not go home soon.
The rest of the book she essentially develops Stockholm syndrome and becomes a part of the revolution.
An intriguing story, and Severine is a great character. She has good lines and it is easy to see her motivations and her froth over time. In execution, the story is lacking, for a few reasons. There is not enough character development of the group of revolutionaries, it is easy to mix them up. Also- I did not at all find that I understood the emotional component of what they were trying to accomplish, their cause. I really wanted to know why they were fighting and why they believed they were right. They talked a lot about injustice but I didn’t understand what it was. Maybe if someone had a more thorough knowledge of history this was understood, but for me, I kept wanting to connect with their cause as Severine did.
Then one night she is kidnapped by Corsican radicals fighting for independence. Her kidnappers are harsh and cruel to her, but she is sure she will go home soon once her parents pay the ransom.
She does not go home soon.
The rest of the book she essentially develops Stockholm syndrome and becomes a part of the revolution.
An intriguing story, and Severine is a great character. She has good lines and it is easy to see her motivations and her froth over time. In execution, the story is lacking, for a few reasons. There is not enough character development of the group of revolutionaries, it is easy to mix them up. Also- I did not at all find that I understood the emotional component of what they were trying to accomplish, their cause. I really wanted to know why they were fighting and why they believed they were right. They talked a lot about injustice but I didn’t understand what it was. Maybe if someone had a more thorough knowledge of history this was understood, but for me, I kept wanting to connect with their cause as Severine did.
May 30, 2025
and to piss me off even more at the very last chapter this grown woman takes a hit out a vape
June 18, 2025
This is a VERY interesting book. The ideas here are big and bold and brash. It is not some easy breezy political thriller or something—it’s simple writing but the book as a whole asks a lot from the reader (maybe a little too much) still though, seeing past the slumps and slogs and questionable motivations in this book—it has something extremely fresh about it. It’s got the spark. Something in me would love to read this same story written by some masterclass novelist, but that feels cheap to say. Really, I’m just thrilled to see an author tackle such a big idea of a book and pull it off this well. I’ll be begging for an early copy of her next novel.
March 9, 2025
Some gorgeous scenery and palpable drama in the early going, nicely paired with an ironic take on the protagonist’s faux-revolutionary self-regard. The third act, though, reads almost as shallow and flat as the main character, with little sense of culpability or consequence.
May 25, 2025
4.5 ⭐️
I saw a review that said “let teenagers do a little progressively motivated domestic terrorism as a treat” and i’d be lying if I said that didn’t motivate me to pick up this book. i really enjoyed this story, I think it had really good commentary about liberation, colonialism, sovereignty, and capitalism. as someone who has studied this stuff in my international law classes it was fun reading a more fictional account of it.
this was written really well and, while it took me a long time to read, i was hooked from page 1. sometimes i felt like it was too long but then when it ended i needed more.
I saw a review that said “let teenagers do a little progressively motivated domestic terrorism as a treat” and i’d be lying if I said that didn’t motivate me to pick up this book. i really enjoyed this story, I think it had really good commentary about liberation, colonialism, sovereignty, and capitalism. as someone who has studied this stuff in my international law classes it was fun reading a more fictional account of it.
this was written really well and, while it took me a long time to read, i was hooked from page 1. sometimes i felt like it was too long but then when it ended i needed more.
May 29, 2025
The plot as a whole was interesting, but there were parts in this book that I felt a little bored and were hard to get through. I thought Séverine was unlikable. This bourgeoisie 18 year old that joins the revolution more for her own wishing to have fame and popularity and to do what she wants rather than what the revolution was really for. I know she did want to bring freedom to Corsica, but that fame and Bruno seemed to be more important. Then she was able to use her rich and powerful parents to help her escape into a new identity without much consequence. I can see why people would enjoy this book, but for me it was so-so.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 30, 2025
A far cry from the deep dive of Doris Lessing's THE GOOD TERRORIST, wonderfully plotted, but too often unbelievable. If spoiled rich kids were as easily seduced into political extremism as Ms. Farr depicts, the enclaves of the 1% would be rife with Kardashi-clones wreaking havoc with AK's.
May 29, 2025
I had such high hopes for this book when I read the plot but man, what a disappointment. The author’s writing is beautiful, but the characters are so unlikeable, especially the FMC. It’s unfortunate that a book about revolution was SO focused on the characters and their sex lives that the bigger picture (the entire revolution and their cause) pretty much gets lost. Not to mention you should have some understanding of French before reading this, of which I have zero. If I didn’t have the inability to not finish a book, this would have absolutely been a DNF for me.
June 21, 2025
if Stockholm Syndrome by One Direction had nepotism and a little terrorism, as a treat.
An incredible debut!
update: I had to change my review because I'm still thinking about this book a month later
An incredible debut!
update: I had to change my review because I'm still thinking about this book a month later
August 19, 2025
Please add to this your tbr before summer ends! As soon as I finished this I immediately wished I could scrub the story from my mind and start it all over again.
In 1993 Séverine guimard, the daughter of a French politician and American heiress, is kidnapped by a militant faction of Corsican nationalists as part of a highly charged hostage negotiation. Not long after Séverine manages to hijack the movement herself, charting the group through unchartered and impulsive missions.
A compelling, unpredictable coming of age story set against a high stakes political ploy that unravels before it even begins.
The author skillfully conveys the ways that the twin idealisms of youth and radical politics produce a dialect that is neither fully devastation nor triumph. She exposes the gray areas of life in all their grandiose, unsavory, and mundane manifestations.
In 1993 Séverine guimard, the daughter of a French politician and American heiress, is kidnapped by a militant faction of Corsican nationalists as part of a highly charged hostage negotiation. Not long after Séverine manages to hijack the movement herself, charting the group through unchartered and impulsive missions.
A compelling, unpredictable coming of age story set against a high stakes political ploy that unravels before it even begins.
The author skillfully conveys the ways that the twin idealisms of youth and radical politics produce a dialect that is neither fully devastation nor triumph. She exposes the gray areas of life in all their grandiose, unsavory, and mundane manifestations.
July 9, 2025
This is a perfect summer read - think Creation Lake but then a bit simpler.
Severine Guimard is 17 - precocious, arrogant and wanting nothing else than to become a movie star - when she is kidnapped by Corsican independentists.
I coincidentally read this in the week the criminal who helped inspire 'Stockholm syndrome' theory died. Which is what happens to Severine, and things quickly spiral out of control.
The writing is pretty good, things are kept light and breezy, and it's important not to be too critical of the plot or the emotions of the main characters.
Works perfectly on audio.
3,5 rounded up
Severine Guimard is 17 - precocious, arrogant and wanting nothing else than to become a movie star - when she is kidnapped by Corsican independentists.
I coincidentally read this in the week the criminal who helped inspire 'Stockholm syndrome' theory died. Which is what happens to Severine, and things quickly spiral out of control.
The writing is pretty good, things are kept light and breezy, and it's important not to be too critical of the plot or the emotions of the main characters.
Works perfectly on audio.
3,5 rounded up
March 16, 2025
This read like a cult classic movie, with such vivid characters and settings. Séverine was such an interesting and well written character to center the story around. Her ability to wrap men around her finger was fascinating to read about, especially how she was able to essentially spin her own kidnapping into a political revolution. I found some of the political talks a little repetitive, but overall I really felt the heat and violence of the revolution.
The third act of the novel was particularly well written. Séverine’s struggle to understand her younger self, her relationship with Bruno and her daughter’s life was such a clever addition to this story. Farr could have ended the book with her escape to America, but by providing the reader with a glimpse into the life she built for herself, we were able to truly understand who she was despite her explosive teenage summer. A stand out, impressive and sizzling story.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for kindly providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review. #TheBombshell #NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
The third act of the novel was particularly well written. Séverine’s struggle to understand her younger self, her relationship with Bruno and her daughter’s life was such a clever addition to this story. Farr could have ended the book with her escape to America, but by providing the reader with a glimpse into the life she built for herself, we were able to truly understand who she was despite her explosive teenage summer. A stand out, impressive and sizzling story.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for kindly providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review. #TheBombshell #NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
June 28, 2025
Thank you Viking for an ARC.
Why are we romanticizing pedophilia in the big 2025??? There's only a tiny bit of acknowledgment of the relationship being creepy considering the girl is a minor AND it's basically stockholm sydrome on top of it🤢. Not nearly enough critiquing and way too much romanticizing for my personal taste.
Even ignoring that the characters felt so one dimensional. I couldn't connect to any of them. A lot of the plot just seemed really ridiculous and unrealistic. I tried to like this but honestly should've just dnfed.
Why are we romanticizing pedophilia in the big 2025??? There's only a tiny bit of acknowledgment of the relationship being creepy considering the girl is a minor AND it's basically stockholm sydrome on top of it🤢. Not nearly enough critiquing and way too much romanticizing for my personal taste.
Even ignoring that the characters felt so one dimensional. I couldn't connect to any of them. A lot of the plot just seemed really ridiculous and unrealistic. I tried to like this but honestly should've just dnfed.
April 14, 2025
Thank you so much to Atlantic books & NetGalley for the ARC
2.5 stars!
The way this started off, I really liked it. But as I carried on reading I felt like this just wasn't for me. It's well written and would honestly make a great series where you can see everything unpack and witness things better as reading it felt sometimes repetitive.
Clearly its been a hit with other readers but just not for me.
2.5 stars!
The way this started off, I really liked it. But as I carried on reading I felt like this just wasn't for me. It's well written and would honestly make a great series where you can see everything unpack and witness things better as reading it felt sometimes repetitive.
Clearly its been a hit with other readers but just not for me.
October 7, 2025
GOD i love to read a BOOK!!!!!
June 26, 2025
the makings of a cult classic.
kinetic and unforgettable. farr balances ruminations on colonialism and revolution with an unflinching portrait of youthful transformation — heady and reckless in its early days, maturing into something a little wiser, sadder and softer by the end.
kinetic and unforgettable. farr balances ruminations on colonialism and revolution with an unflinching portrait of youthful transformation — heady and reckless in its early days, maturing into something a little wiser, sadder and softer by the end.
June 9, 2025
REQUIRED READING!!
I read this in October and I’m still just obsessed with it as I was then (…if not more). Following a French teenager on the island of Corsica who is kidnapped for ransom by a trio rebels fighting for Corsican independence, this novel is SO cinematic and so so wonderful. Dangerously confident (perhaps to a fault), Séverine is one of my favorite female characters of all time. We need more Séverines in literature!!!
4.5! Adored.
I read this in October and I’m still just obsessed with it as I was then (…if not more). Following a French teenager on the island of Corsica who is kidnapped for ransom by a trio rebels fighting for Corsican independence, this novel is SO cinematic and so so wonderful. Dangerously confident (perhaps to a fault), Séverine is one of my favorite female characters of all time. We need more Séverines in literature!!!
4.5! Adored.
August 4, 2025
More later, but for now, condolences to myself for finishing this book.
——
Later: Look, I don’t care that severine is deeply unlikeable or that her relationship with Bruno is inappropriate. Good literature has no obligation to give us moral characters. The problem here is this wasn’t good literature. And my issue isn’t immorality, it’s poor writing. Pacing, character development, plot - all over the place.
There is SO MUCH telling (oh Tittu is such a good friend! Oh severine’s communiques are SO SEXY AND POWERFUL, it galvanized the MASSES! oh petru LOVES HER because she is just SO SPECIAL. All her ideas are just ACCEPTED by these MEN because she’s some kind of secret revolutionary genius) but very little showing.
The character development especially is very weak. How does Severine go from being a vapid high schooler to fully comprehending a dense text like Fanon? Why does she actually join the group? It’s all very jarring and while the author tries to explain it, it’s heavy handed and clumsy. Severine is basically a manic pixie revolutionary.
Also the LA epilogue is….entirely too long and desperately needed an editor (do we care that Petra wanted to bang the taxi driver who helped her move?). Without giving away spoilers, this whole plot was unbearably trite. I did not want to finish this book and I mostly finished it out of spite.
——
Later: Look, I don’t care that severine is deeply unlikeable or that her relationship with Bruno is inappropriate. Good literature has no obligation to give us moral characters. The problem here is this wasn’t good literature. And my issue isn’t immorality, it’s poor writing. Pacing, character development, plot - all over the place.
There is SO MUCH telling (oh Tittu is such a good friend! Oh severine’s communiques are SO SEXY AND POWERFUL, it galvanized the MASSES! oh petru LOVES HER because she is just SO SPECIAL. All her ideas are just ACCEPTED by these MEN because she’s some kind of secret revolutionary genius) but very little showing.
The character development especially is very weak. How does Severine go from being a vapid high schooler to fully comprehending a dense text like Fanon? Why does she actually join the group? It’s all very jarring and while the author tries to explain it, it’s heavy handed and clumsy. Severine is basically a manic pixie revolutionary.
Also the LA epilogue is….entirely too long and desperately needed an editor (do we care that Petra wanted to bang the taxi driver who helped her move?). Without giving away spoilers, this whole plot was unbearably trite. I did not want to finish this book and I mostly finished it out of spite.
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