Sedating Elaine

by Dawn Winter

Frances was not looking for a relationship when she met Elaine in a bar. She was, in fact, looking to drown her sorrows in a pint or twelve and nurse a broken heart, shattered by the gorgeous, electric Adrienne. But somehow (it involved a steady stream of beer and weed, as things often did with Frances) Elaine ended up in Frances's bed and never left. Now, faced with mounting pressure from her drug dealer, Dom (and his goon, Betty), Frances comes up with a terrible idea: She asks Elaine to move in with her for real. Unfortunately, this seemingly romantic overture makes Elaine even more sex-crazed and maniacal with love. Frances fears she may never escape the relationship, so, given no choice, she makes the obvious decision: She will sedate Elaine.

A story as enthusiastically madcap and funny as it is smart and emotionally surprising, Sedating Elaine introduces a roster of unforgettable characters and an indelible, wildly exciting new voice in fiction.

Genres: Fiction, Queer, LGBT, Lesbian, Contemporary, Romance, Audiobook

272 pages, Hardcover

First published February 1, 2022

About the author

DAWN WINTER lives in Essex, north of London, and studied English literature at the University of Roehampton. She has held a variety of jobs in prisons, hospices, kitchens, and factories. Sedating Elaine is her first novel.

Reviews

[Sunny Lu · Rating 5 out of 5]

was this book perfect? no. was it a perfect portrait of the loneliness and despair of a queer woman not over her breakup with a beautiful but ephemeral woman, in a relationship with another woman she despised but also couldn't stop committing to long terms plans/having sex with, the unresolved childhood trauma of an absent father and the abandonment of a mother, and the banalities and stress of owing her drug dealer money she doesn't have while working as a dishwasher at an upscale London restaurant and bar with a boss who calls her "Puppy"? YES!!!!! I adored how this novel, following the blueprint of My Year Of Rest and Relaxation (sorry, I know, an overused comp title for sure), gives us a glimpse into the psyche of a highly disturbed, deranged, and unlikeable main character, a young woman on the run from her feelings, constantly chasing what has already been lost while stewing in her unresolved past. I found this novel deeply compelling and written with a level of complexity and attention to detail with enough absurdity (the absurdity inherent to human relationships, whether they be the romantic entanglements you find yourself in or between you and a tired ass doctor you only visit when you're at the height of your crazed eras) and unrealistically neat ending that was still worth the whole wild ride all the way through. I was honestly most disappointed in the fact that none of the gay female characters we see in this book are explicitly lesbians, but no other labels for sexuality are really used for them so honestly whatever, I'm not fully ascribed to the post-modern identity politics etc stuff. anyways this is the perfect mix of the crazy shit about crazy women I'm obsessed with reading about!!! would recommend to the other literary fiction about insane gay women enjoyers out there, but idk how many people would really enjoy this one the way I did lol at least based on the less than spectacular average ratings and reviews

[Kelly (and the Book Boar) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Seeing the paltry 3.26 (!!!!) Goodreads’ rating after taking a looky-look at the synopsis of this one I was sure everyone was just being a hater. Buuuuuuuut now that I’ve read it and am only awarding 3 Stars myself, I get how it came to be.

The problem here is that are actually TWO potentially really solid (talking 4 Star minimum) stories in Sedating Elaine. The first would be the one that coincides with the title. Dear Frances finds herself with vivacious rebound girl Elaine – who, can I just say from the description was 100% . . . .



Frances owes a significant amount of money to her weed dealer so she bites the bullet and asks the wealthy Elaine to move in with her in order to ask her for the dough rather than a loanshark. Immediately upon cohabitation, Frances comes to realize there’s no way she can keep up with Elaine (and that’s in generic energy levels, actual physical activities such as running or her sexual appetite). How to solve the problem? A little sedation and a truly laugh-out-loudable dark comedy.

The other half of the novel is a maudlin tale of Elaine’s inability to move past traumas (sad ones, but thankfully not anything sexual or abusive) that happened when she was a child. She spends as much time as she can at the restaurant job she loves – but is unwilling (or feels undeserving) of moving beyond basic KP duties. She has no real friends (although well liked by her co-workers) and spends all of her time alone except when she is engaging in meaningless sex until she meets the too-goo-to-be-true Adrienne. The writing in this portion is hauntingly beautiful at times.

The problem lies that these two stories do not comingle well. Good news is this was Dawn Winter’s debut novel and she has proven to have some quality writing chops. I’ll definitely be looking for what she comes up with next.

ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

[Emily Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I genuinely had to stop consuming liquids whilst reading this after spitting my tea out at least four times.

This book is so damn funny, I really appreciate having that dry, dark British humour in a sapphic book as it’s something we rarely get. I believe I read this was Winter’s first novel and I was flawed by that because it’s entirely captivating and the pacing was honestly a breeze to read.

Without saying too much this book is an entire rollercoaster ride and it’s an unexpectedly therapeutic read, especially for people like myself with mental health issues who (whilst not a criminal) find a little of themselves in Frances mannerisms and inability to socialise with the general public.

This book was entirely insane in the best possible way.

If you’re looking for an absurd, hilarious read with a side of warmth and extremely questionable morals and choices? Yes this is probably for you.

Think Bridget Jones vibes is Bridget was a morally unhinged sapphic with a drug dealer after her.


Thank you to the publisher for an arc I absolutely loved this one.

My only gripe was maybe some of the repetition in storyline towards the middle of the novel, and that’s being picky.


TW’s (please skip this part if you do not wish to see spoilers as may contain vague ones)




Tw// alcohol/drug abuse, stalking mentions, mentions of death, graphic threats of violence, assault, sexual content.

[gracie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A funny but startlingly real-feeling story of a queer woman who's never learned to live with/accept her grief over anything in her life, from her mother to her father to her relationship. I loved this, my god Frances was such a loser.

[Elijah Benson · Rating 2 out of 5]

A rigorously mediocre book that could moonlight as a bingo sheet for threadbare literary tropes. I found it to be so jam packed with shapeless flashbacks and dialogue that reads like plagiarized self-help exudate that it is little wonder that only one dimensional characters could squeeze through the cracks that constitute a plot. The perfect gift for that bookish someone in your life whom you dislike.

[Vanessa (V.C.) · Rating 1 out of 5]

Am I the only one that is tired of Unhinged queer representation?

I understand what Sedating Elaine was trying to do. It was essentially a sapphic Fleabag. While there's nothing wrong with an unlikeable protagonist, the thing is though is that it only works when said unlikeable protagonist is relatable. Frances was not only unrelatable, but largely and for the most part really annoying. The saving grace of this novel was its interesting premise, but it's constantly interrupted by backstory and flashbacks that paused the plot and stopped the narrative flow. It's one thing if it brought cohesiveness to the story, but since it wasn't developed enough to begin with, all of that backstory and all these flashbacks felt like filler, and even worse, I got an inkling sense that they were a crutch to intentionally justify why Frances is Unhinged the way she is, but with no reason given in the first place as to why we should care about Frances and her mommy issues and abandonment traumas, I was left only wishing for there to be more focus instead on Frances and Elaine and their relationship/dynamic. I thought that was the point of the story, I mean, it's in the title, right? So why all of this stoppage, why so much focus on the past? The primary story was interesting enough to stand on its own two feet and speak for itself and yet for some reason we're bombarded by constant stoppage. Even the dark humor and obnoxious sarcasm didn't work for me because the writing itself also grated on being so indescribably irritating, like it was fine for a few pages and in small doses, but quickly wore thin and overstayed its welcome.

Supposedly, there's supposed to be a heart behind it all, but the "message" felt forced and unearned. It was hard to be emotionally immersed in a novel where it felt like it hinged on backstory/flashback/trauma as a substitute for character development, and where it felt like Frances's habit of doing one worse thing after another and making things worse was only utilized to overcompensate for the reality that Frances is pretty one-dimensional, and how all the characters virtually had no substance aside from yes, more unnecessary backstories! That's not what a cohesive story makes, nor does it make for a comedic, entertaining, or funny read. By the end, it leaves the reader EXHAUSTED as it went on and on for way too long for the story that it was.

I dunno, maybe there's an audience for this, but I'm not one of them and if anything, Sedating Elaine reminds me of how much I'm just oh so bored and tired of the Unhinged Queer Narrative.

[Alicia · Rating 2 out of 5]

This really fell flat for me, and I felt it had so much promise. I didn’t much like Elaine, or Frances, and found the writing annoying, full of fluff and unnecessary descriptors.

[Stay Fetters · Rating 3 out of 5]

"This is the problem when a person makes everyone feel special; it means none of them are special."

Everything about this book screamed out to me and it wouldn't be ignored. It followed me everywhere I went and popped out to scare me until I added this to my book collection. It sounded like everything I have ever wanted in a weird literary fiction book. The promise was there but it kind of missed its mark.

Drug dealers, a sex-crazed lover, and a broken-down main character. Every single one of those things has me anxious with excitement. I was literally bouncing on the balls of my feet. Once I completed this book I just let out a big "huh!" Maybe scratched my head because I didn't think this would end the way it did or lead to where it did. Parts were crazy, some parts were over the top (I loved those the most) while others were just there as filler.

I'm not saying that this was terrible, it just wasn't as good as I thought it was going to be. I did enjoy this one though. This was a decent debut but I think this could have been a lot weirder and slimier. Slimy in a way where you feel uncomfortable. I love things in books that make me feel uncomfortable.

Sedating Elaine had a wild cast of characters that were all enjoyable. They all had really strong personalities and it was easy to read all of their parts. The story was decent but could have been better. Kind of felt let down a bit after this one. It was okay for what it was and I'll definitely read this one again. I'm excited to see where this author takes us next!

[Aaron Anstett · Rating 4 out of 5]

From the outrageous, criminal premise to the often hilarious dialogue, I enjoyed this, clearly more so than others did. The writing is quite good, even sometimes beautiful, and I empathized with the broken protagonist's desperation, if not her solutions. The conclusion/resolution felt a bit too tidy but moved me nonetheless. I look forward to whatever Dawn Winter publishes next.

[Kate O'Shea · Rating 4 out of 5]

I listened to this audio version, brilliantly read by Marisa Calin. It had me snorting with laughter and staring open-mouthed at the action.

I'd never heard of this debut even though it seems to have been out a year. I cannot think why because Dawn Winter definitely has a way with words and a vivid imagination.

Sedating Elaine tells the story of Frances who is a broken-hearted she'll of a woman for more reasons than most. Her mother is "gone", her father has died, her new girlfriend (Elaine) is driving her mad and her ex is constantly on her mind. But to really top things off, she's in deep with Dom the very unfriendly drug dealer whose bill she cannot pay and has promised a visit from the vicious Betty who does agonising things with household objects to those who can't cough up what's owed.

If that doesn't get you interested then maybe I can entice you with the good writing, the honest characterisations and a healthy dose of pathos.

This is not an elegant novel, it's very in-your-face. Thankfully the audio really enhances the words. I really enjoyed listening to it although anyone anywhere near me might not have enjoyed me sniggering away to myself as I listened.

Recommended if you like a debut author whose writing pulls no punches. Thanks to Netgalley (and Bolinda).

[zahraa al lawati · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book tried too hard :|

[Rachel · Rating 2 out of 5]

The premise was good and the writing was often funny but it felt like the author struggled to come up with enough content for a full novel so it dragged on. Also the ending was so cheesy and undeserved

[lexluvsb00ks · Rating 3 out of 5]

i hate my gf final boss

[Anneliese Grassi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nope, no, nada. I am going to go against popular opinion here and say I didn’t really care for this book.

What sounds like a pretty good story line — Francis has a tough upbringing with some serious abandonment issues. After losing the love of her life in a devastating breakup , she fools around a lot until one clingy fling moves in. When she finds out said fling, Elaine, comes from money, Francis tries to get said money out of her to pay her drug dealer the what she owes him. Only Francis just wants some peace and quiet in the meantime, so she decides to drug, or sedate Elaine until she figures out what to do moving forward — falls very flat for me.

Honestly, what I wrote above is the gist of the book, so you don’t need to read the other 257 pages. There is so much filler and rambling that made this one very difficult for me to get through. I think at one point there were 3-4 pages that had no breaks, it was one big long paragraph that didn’t seem to end.

Again, the premise of the book is unique and interesting, there’s no denying that, and if you like all the rambling fluff then this book is for you! Unfortunately, I just didn’t love this one.

[Kelly | hellokorio · Rating 2 out of 5]

[originally posted on instagram.]

Sorry this one is so negative. I'd normally try very hard not to do that, but look right at me. Not in the eyes, I might take that as a challenge. But the eyebrows, that general area.

It's a pass.

I had to know what was up with the banana, and now I know.

This book attempts to do a whole lot and doesn't manage to do anything promised, and I'm genuinely disappointed.

Frances, caught in a situation of her own making, can't think of any solution other than sedating her over the top girlfriend, the titular Elaine, to get some peace & quiet to sort stuff out. This is, of course, absolute using-a-toothbrush-you-found-on-the-sidewalk levels of EXCUSE ME YOU WHAT?, and you'd rightfully expect spiraling hijinx to ensue, but they really just... don't.

Instead, this serves as a limp framework to an even more flaccid series of inexplicable wanderings and morose flashbacks to her childhood, while she alternately mopes on both the last girlfriend & mother who left her.

This book tries to do so much - painting Frances as both unhinged (sedating Elaine) & sympathetic (sad backstory) - but weights a relatively short book down in such boggy writing that there's no space to flesh out any of it to any satisfactory degree, so every bit of what happens feels piecey and unearned.

It's not funny - sedating Elaine doesn't lead to any wild situations other than her mother showing up & then leaving again without issue.

It doesn't break any new emotional ground. Abandonment, identity, guilt, stagnation. Frances certainly isn't meant to be likable, so I don't understand the attempt to make her sympathetic with the flashbacks or justify her flailing with these issues. They're TOO relatable for Frances to be unrelatable. We all deal with feeling those ways and we don't act like this, so it needed more - a lot more. None of the flashbacks are anything particularly devastating, none of her current feelings about them are anything particularly out of proportion or questionable. It's all very average, normal, ground we've been over before.

New peel, same old banana.

One of the more difficult parts to swallow about this book was how hard it seemed to be trying to provide insight into the presented issues, without seeming to realize it wasn't really raising any questions in the first place.

I want very badly to tell you the ending. I was actually semi on board and moving at a good clip for the last 50%, until the final chapter, truly. But the ending was unforgivable.

Trust me. We're best friends.

Ok, bye!
Your new best friend,
🖤Kelly

[Daniella · Rating 1 out of 5]

This flopped for me. How did she owe 2 grand to a weed man :/ how is she affording rent on a 1 bed in London on a KP salary. Where is she getting a cinnamon latte and a double espresso for £3.50. Please, I have so many questions.

[imogen · Rating 5 out of 5]

i picked this up in a bookstore because i liked the font on the spine but i have never in my life been more surprised by an impulse purchase. this book is truly a fantastic feat of excellence. part patrick bateman esque descent into madness, part tender lesbian love story, ‘sedating elaine’ was a wild ride from start to finish. i truly had no idea what was going to happen each time i turned the page and each time i was left flabbergasted at the sheer audacity of our main character frances. i will be thinking about this book forever.

[Terry Taft · Rating 3 out of 5]

Exactly what I needed rn

[ALI · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 stars rounded down. I really enjoyed this, actually; picked the ARC up on a whim from the break room and read it in one sitting. The writing is fantastic, the font choice was great (I don't know why it matters to me, but it does!), and the storyline was hilariously unhinged with just enough emotional, serious moments slipped in to make it altogether heartbreaking.

[Georgi 🌸 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to the author, publisher and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to listen to this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

I honestly don't know how to feel about this book. I mean it was funny with a very dry humour every now and then, but not extremely from my point of view. There were parts that were a bit boring and you were just waiting for the whole action to move further so that maybe it will become more interesting.

I was very curious to see how everything ends for Frances as obviously, she doesn't seem to be the best person. Also, I was intrigued to see how Elaine would react to all that was happening, but until the end, so many things happened.

[Bandit · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you like the idea of books as windows to other people’s minds, hearts and souls and all that – this is the book for you.
It isn’t an easy or easily likable read, but it isn’t meant to be. It certainly doesn’t have an easy or an easily likable protagonist. Oh no, Frances is a garbage fire of a person. And her life is garbage fire.
Abandoned by her mother in childhood, Frances has never gotten past it as an adult. She tries to find substitutes for that sort of love in her relationships, which never work out. For various reasons. Because she wants too much. Because she doesn’t give enough. Because she has a crap taste in people. Because she’s a drunk and a junkie and has no aims, goals, etc.
Frances has been emotionally devastated by a hurricane of a relationship with someone she was madly in love with and now she is rebounding. All over the place. While addling her mind with chemicals.
The former gets her involved with an exuberant, exuberantly loving, chatty, needy, insatiable Elaine. The latter, her habit, gets her on the hook to a local dealer for two grand. Not too much but way more than she has. So her grand plan is to have Elaine (who comes from money and has some) move in with her and give her the two grand as rent.
Elaine is thrilled and does so immediately and suddenly Frances finds her tiny place and her organized life invaded and upended in the most intolerable ways.
Her next grand plan is to…you guess it…sedate Elaine. Just to get a few days of peace and quiet until the money comes through.
To no one surprise but Frances’ her plans go awry and soon she finds herself in more of a mess than ever. Perhaps it’s time to sort out her sh*t once and for all, take out the garbage, put out the fires and try to live a real life? Perhaps. You’ll just have to read and find out.
So yeah, a messy protagonist, a messy life, but the narrative is great, completely immersive, hypnotic almost. Outside of the overdone mommy issues, it works really well on every level due to the strikingly strong character writing. You don’t have to like Frances, but you will follow her story along. It’s like that. And it’s good. I really enjoyed reading this. Recommended.

This and more at https://advancetheplot.weebly.com/

[Kayla TM · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is apparently supposed to be funny: a dry, dark humor. But I didn’t find it that way in any way shape or form. It was an exhausting read, and just awful to be honest. I don’t find how Frances treats Elaine to be anything other than just awful.

Frances is at a loss. She owes quite a bit of money to her drug dealer, her girlfriend Elaine is in love with her even though it was supposed to be just a rebound, and now that Frances has asked Elaine to move in with her she’s completely overwhelmed. But maybe there’s a solution: sedating Elaine.

The characters are so hard to like. Frances is just disgruntled and using Elaine. Elaine seems so blissfully unaware of everything. I hate the way Elaine is described, physically, just over and over and over again. Frances does have a bit of a redemption arc, but I really don’t think she deserves it.

Two stars, it was almost painful to read.

Thanks to the publisher and goodreads for my copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Bianca Rogers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sedating Elaine is a fast paced yet enthralling read. I devoured this book from start to finish in one sitting. Initially I thought Elaine would be the main interest of this story, solely based on the title of the book, but boy was I way off. I quite literally had one of those aha moments when it came full circle of why Dawn chose the title for her debut book.
While there is a lot packed into this tiny book I felt Dawn found a unique way to tackle how complex relationships have become in our current social landscapes as a society. I believe everyone will find a little piece of themselves in Frances which will make this book relatable for most readers.
Thank you to Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review! I cannot wait to see what else in store for Dawn Winter’s future!

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sedating Elaine is a delightfully unhinged romp through romantic debacle, jaw-dropping decisions, and an emotional quagmire of guilt and longing. In this deft debut, Dawn Winters has created a modern, madcap comedy of errors that ultimately offers a touching lesson in forgiveness. Utterly bonkers and as darkly comic as it gets, Sedating Elaine is a brilliant, bingeable read.

[Emily Dunbar · Rating 4 out of 5]

trigger warning to all who have ever been the one that cares more in a relationship LMAOOOO bye

[Kai · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Axelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5!!
tof boekje om te lezen maar niet zo literair hoogstaand fzo!!! ook lesbi maar geen geil gedoe :):

[Katy Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Deeper and more layered that it first appears, funny for a story about sedation, obsession and drug dealers.

Frances has 'fallen' into her relationship with Elaine. She never meant to do more than attempt to forget the love of her life in her bed, but now, somehow, she's not only somehow gained a girlfriend, but one who's moving in with her. And does she even LIKE Elaine?

With mounting drug-debt problems, promising money she doesn't have, there are several days until Elaine's rent money comes through. Rather than suffer her company, incessant sexual demands and even presence until she can pay the debt off and rid herself of this annoying woman, Frances decides she will... sedate her. Drug her into quiet for a few blissful days.

You'll be shaking your head, as I was, reading that. I mean - what can possibly go wrong?

The premise gives Frances the chance to not only set off a totally mad few days in her life, having to cope with the downside of drugs, nosey rich parents and unforgiving dealers, but a few more heartfelt moments, scenes and issues.

Visiting a doctor, looking back at her lost love and relationship, and still further back at her parents and a childhood trauma, the story opens up to become more than the farce it first appeared to be.

I loved the voices created by the audio narrator, Frances comes across and quite young and vulnerable still, Elaine - depending on the viewpoint - can seem sweetly annoying or annoyingly sweet, and there are male voices you forget are being housed inside a woman's throat. It's very well done and a great book to listen to.

Some slightly graphic sex scenes, just to warn you. But a good heartfelt story of facing up to loss, mistakes and the past surprisingly emerges from the initial ridiculous concept. A very entertaining listen.

With thanks to Netgalley for providing a sample audio copy.

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Like Netflix's You but sapphic, with a main character that is (slightly) less sociopathic than Joe. I was impressed by various pieces of this novel, but they failed to come together as a whole in a satisfying way, and some of the plot points were surprisingly cliched and trite. And, while I did feel empathy for Frances as more was revealed about her past, I couldn't quite get over how truly awful she is to Elaine. I enjoy reading about complicated, unlikeable main characters, but for some reason Frances didn't quite do it for me. I think it might have been because I didn't find her quite funny enough to be that unlikeable. I also think that the unhinged/unlikeable main character thing works a bit better with first person narration, and Dawn Winter does a sort of strange third person here, where some of the time it seems as if it is a limited third person narration from the point of view of Frances, and other times it lapses into a sort of omniscient third person, or strangely hops into the POV of a side character. All-in-all, an interesting and compelling read, though I'm not quite sure I enjoyed it a ton. I'm always happy to see sapphic representation, though, and the humor may land better for others, so I would probably still recommend. The best part of the book hands down was Elaine. She is an icon! Justice for Elaine omg

...Honestly now that I'm thinking about it this may have been more like a 2.5 star read for me. And I haven't been able to stop thinking about how much I disliked the descriptions of Elaine's body (tw fatphobia). Still feeling ambivalent though because there were some redeeming qualities in this book and some things to enjoy.

[Riley · Rating 2 out of 5]

Im going to start this by saying that i was heavily mislead into thinking this was going to be a lot darker than it was. I was ubder the impression that Frances was going to end up killing Elaine and this book was going to be her dealing with that??? Not the case at all. Obviously.

That aside, this book still didnt hold up to what it promised itself. Not once did I laugg or find it entertaining. I was actually quite bored throughout the entire thing?
I ended up getting to page 80 then skim-read the rest of it. Kind of wish I had just DNFd instead.

I felt like we were not meant to like Frances at all, based on how absolutely insane and unjustified her actions throughout were. But the entire book kinda set it up for you to end up rooting for her??? And being happy for her when she got her good ending???
Like respectfully, what do you MEAN that Elaine is perfectly okay with Frances and that Frances is suddenly so chill with meeting her mom.

And this is just nitpicky but i really hated how frances ex ended up being this super bad person, and so frances kinda ends up seeming like the good guy in the relationship, even though she literally stalked tf out of her????

I do appreciate the themes the author was trying to discuss and portray, but i find it hard to really dive into them when everything else was so distracting but also so bland? I found this book just incredibly boring and not. Good.