domsbookden’s review of Yesteryear > Likes and Comments
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you ate with this
Incredible review, actually tackling the problem with “tradwife” content and conservatism
You hit the nail on the head. It touts challenging concepts and promptly abandons them.
Perfectly said!! While I actually gave this book 4 stars because i found it entertaining and engaging, I agree with the points you made. I couldn't quite articulate the issues I had with the book or the character, but you were on point and explained it perfectly!
Thanks for this review! You said exactly what I could not myself articulate. I feel the same way as the previous commenter. I enjoyed the book and gave it 4 stars, but it was lacking in depth in all the ways you said.
I finished the novel today and came here to read reviews and sort my thoughts. Your review touches on a lot of things I find unsettling about this novel. While it was very entertaining, there isn’t a take away. It’s unclear to me what the author wanted to leave us with. I’m listening to the episode about the book on her podcast, Diabolical Lies. It’s filling in some of the gaps.
An intellectual review of this poorly written garbage - thank you !
I agree. It touches on too much and too little at the same time and I’m feeling a little “Natalie in 1805” aka gaslight and crazy by how many 5 star reviews it is getting. It is really exciting in the last 20% especially if you’re not expecting it/aren’t an avid reader, but just because something is exciting doesn’t make it a well written GOOD book.
I hope Anne Hathaway fills in the blanks and does a better job with it in her future adaptation!
Fantastic review, articulated perfectly the half-formed thoughts I had about why I found it ultimately disatisfying.
Excellent review, you put this into words much better than I did!
Brilliant analysis of why this book left all its promise unfulfilled. A deeply unsatisfying read for me, and wish I'd DNFed.
So glad I read this (including spoilers) to save me from wasting my time!
Excellent excellent review , oh my god . I just finished reading and I 1000% agree .
Holy crap i just read it and THOUGHT THE SAME THING and was just too emotionally drained to properly review it!!! This review wins. It wins hard.
Thank you so much for this review cause now I can take it off my TBR lol
I wish I could repost a review. This is exactly how I felt.
Excellent review. I am struggling with a rating because the ending was interesting… but it really lost me when she just was given 5 million dollars by FIL and bought a 500 acre ranch sight unseen online. I felt there were too many loose ends that were never tied up as well.
This is an amazing review - I felt there was a lot missing from this book but couldn't figure out what it was until I read your review. I feel the exact same way!
Fantastic review, and the phrase "thematically hesitant" is outstanding. But you really could have included a spoiler header...
Thanks for helping me in my decision to dnf!!
This review made me want to follow for all your thoughts! Brilliant analysis
This review shows a depth of thought and skill so sadly lacking in this book! Thanks so much for this (and for reading the whole thing, which I’m not going to do because about 100 pages in I felt as you do, but didn’t articulate it as well to myself). Aside from your larger thematic points, the book is sloppy and glib at the language level with a number of misused words—a character looks “shameful” when clearly what is meant is “ashamed” or using the phrase “manic pixie dream girl” as shorthand. Just lazy. I found myself over and over thinking of Octavia Butler’s Kindred which so skillfully uses the time travel conceit to illuminate issues of race (and is super compelling besides). The fact that this book is getting taken seriously and held up as cogent satire is depressing. And it doesn’t work as simple entertainment either. I was not entertained. Thanks again for this!
Brilliant review! I’m so impressed. I really appreciate reading your review as, although I had some different critiques (& some similar), this was two stars for me as well.
Thank you for articulating everything I detested about this book! 2 stars for me.
Your review is very good! I was thinking I could doomscroll on trad wife influencers and get the same effect in the end.
I’m still thinking about this one. It definitely missed some opportunities.. but I didn’t see the MC as a victim. It felt like listening to the internal dialogue of someone in deep cognitive dissonance and living in a hypocrisy she refuses to acknowledge. The simultaneous personal misery and sanctimonious judgement of others rings so true to me having grown up in this culture. She’s not a victim. She foolishly refuses reflection, accountability and personal growth at every turn. She blames and projects and spiritually “bypasses” her way through life. That level of internal incongruity will split someone down the middle. I saw her as a tragic figure, but not a victim. The book was definitely uneven, but still worth reading in my opinion
This is the best review I’ve read of this book.
Ok , I just finished this book . I stayed with it because it was intriguing enough for me to want to understand what was happening and I’m glad to say the end tied it up for me however it took a long time to get there and when I finished it I thought “what the hell just happened “. It’s definitely thought provoking but I don’t imagine I’ll think about it for too long .
I did actually really enjoy Yesteryear, but I agree with absolutely everything you so eloquently put to words. This for me was a highly entertaining above average poolside read…where as it could have been a modern masterpiece.
EXACTLY. thank you for writing the perfect review that articulated why I felt left wanting (much) more.
I really appreciate this review. I enjoyed Natalie's journey to becoming an influencer and I thought it offered a good exploration of the ways someone with a very conservative upbringing might struggle with their desire to step into something a bit more modern only to find it difficult and uncomfortable. Considering the ways society's insistence on Natalie's ignorance only made her double down on her conservative ways was a meaningful thought exercise for me and I also enjoyed exploring the ways her path was laid out for her by followers demanding more. But, the "flashback" part of things was confusing and complicated for me. Natalie didn't miss her kids or her family, she just missed the ease of this former life and because we are made to feel she was trapped there, the reader doesn't have the opportunity to grapple with the real reason she is in this place, which is that she made an intentional move toward that life to save face and hide when she was called to task. This would be more redemptive way to show some character growth-instead we're made to wonder what could have possibly happened to this poor woman-was it a stalker, is she on a reality tv show she doesn't remember signing up for, has she really traveled to the past? I would have much rather seen her live in her reality with full awareness that she'd dug herself deep into a hole-in fact, when we hear about the positive elements of this new life when she truly surrenders to it, her different sexual experience with her husband and her engagement with Maeve, it feels like this might actually be better than the pretend farm life with all of the luxury. Only at the end, do we see the extent to which she has harmed her children through all of this, but we still never see Natalie or Caleb take any accountability for it
Great review and spot on. I admit the premise is so intriguing yet it missed something. And your review captured it. I would have preferred the satire, or having Natalie more in control of her empire and a manipulator, or time traveling. Not the psychological break, weak-willed person we got. Totally missed the mark with the excellent premise.
What an EXCELLENT review. Agree 100%, and this one sentence sums up my feelings perfectly: "For a story built on such a rich and provocative idea, the gaps are too great, too relevant, and too important for me to ignore." I have no doubt the studio "writing by committee" has everything do do with it - the development process cravenly pulled all the teeth out of a book that the author clearly has the talent to have done better by.
EXACTLY! You took the words right out of my mouth and said them better than I ever could’ve! Thank you!!!!
The best review I've read so far! Well said!
loved your review and completely agree, although i did enjoy the book. the last part's twist really makes it less impactful
took the words out of my mouth. EXACTLY what i felt! well said!
Your review was on point, well articulated and the best overall commentary I have seen on this book. Thanks for the time and effort you put into the review. You reflected, in a much better way that I would have been able , the problems I had with the novel and my reaction to it.
I’m 50% into the book, might DNF it so decided to read this review despite spoilers! And it is absolutely on point!! Completely mirrors what I’ve been feeling! There is a dire lack of exploration on so many important points that you’ve penned down so wonderfully that I almost felt validated for my thoughts on the book after reading your review!
Feel the same way! You hit the nail on the head with this!
Great review! I wanted so badly to DNF, but I rarely do that, and with 8 hours invested, I kept on. It never improved for me. (At least I've got my book for the "influencer" prompt in my Popsugar Reading Challenge, so there's that).
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Apr 07, 2026 01:16PM
you ate with this
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Incredible review, actually tackling the problem with “tradwife” content and conservatism
You hit the nail on the head. It touts challenging concepts and promptly abandons them.
Perfectly said!! While I actually gave this book 4 stars because i found it entertaining and engaging, I agree with the points you made. I couldn't quite articulate the issues I had with the book or the character, but you were on point and explained it perfectly!
Thanks for this review! You said exactly what I could not myself articulate. I feel the same way as the previous commenter. I enjoyed the book and gave it 4 stars, but it was lacking in depth in all the ways you said.
I finished the novel today and came here to read reviews and sort my thoughts. Your review touches on a lot of things I find unsettling about this novel. While it was very entertaining, there isn’t a take away. It’s unclear to me what the author wanted to leave us with. I’m listening to the episode about the book on her podcast, Diabolical Lies. It’s filling in some of the gaps.
An intellectual review of this poorly written garbage - thank you !
I agree. It touches on too much and too little at the same time and I’m feeling a little “Natalie in 1805” aka gaslight and crazy by how many 5 star reviews it is getting. It is really exciting in the last 20% especially if you’re not expecting it/aren’t an avid reader, but just because something is exciting doesn’t make it a well written GOOD book.
I hope Anne Hathaway fills in the blanks and does a better job with it in her future adaptation!
Fantastic review, articulated perfectly the half-formed thoughts I had about why I found it ultimately disatisfying.
Excellent review, you put this into words much better than I did!
Brilliant analysis of why this book left all its promise unfulfilled. A deeply unsatisfying read for me, and wish I'd DNFed.
So glad I read this (including spoilers) to save me from wasting my time!
Excellent excellent review , oh my god . I just finished reading and I 1000% agree .
Holy crap i just read it and THOUGHT THE SAME THING and was just too emotionally drained to properly review it!!! This review wins. It wins hard.
Thank you so much for this review cause now I can take it off my TBR lol
I wish I could repost a review. This is exactly how I felt.
Excellent review. I am struggling with a rating because the ending was interesting… but it really lost me when she just was given 5 million dollars by FIL and bought a 500 acre ranch sight unseen online. I felt there were too many loose ends that were never tied up as well.
This is an amazing review - I felt there was a lot missing from this book but couldn't figure out what it was until I read your review. I feel the exact same way!
Fantastic review, and the phrase "thematically hesitant" is outstanding. But you really could have included a spoiler header...
Thanks for helping me in my decision to dnf!!
This review made me want to follow for all your thoughts! Brilliant analysis
This review shows a depth of thought and skill so sadly lacking in this book! Thanks so much for this (and for reading the whole thing, which I’m not going to do because about 100 pages in I felt as you do, but didn’t articulate it as well to myself). Aside from your larger thematic points, the book is sloppy and glib at the language level with a number of misused words—a character looks “shameful” when clearly what is meant is “ashamed” or using the phrase “manic pixie dream girl” as shorthand. Just lazy. I found myself over and over thinking of Octavia Butler’s Kindred which so skillfully uses the time travel conceit to illuminate issues of race (and is super compelling besides). The fact that this book is getting taken seriously and held up as cogent satire is depressing. And it doesn’t work as simple entertainment either. I was not entertained. Thanks again for this!
Brilliant review! I’m so impressed. I really appreciate reading your review as, although I had some different critiques (& some similar), this was two stars for me as well.
Thank you for articulating everything I detested about this book! 2 stars for me.
Your review is very good! I was thinking I could doomscroll on trad wife influencers and get the same effect in the end.
I’m still thinking about this one. It definitely missed some opportunities.. but I didn’t see the MC as a victim. It felt like listening to the internal dialogue of someone in deep cognitive dissonance and living in a hypocrisy she refuses to acknowledge. The simultaneous personal misery and sanctimonious judgement of others rings so true to me having grown up in this culture. She’s not a victim. She foolishly refuses reflection, accountability and personal growth at every turn. She blames and projects and spiritually “bypasses” her way through life. That level of internal incongruity will split someone down the middle. I saw her as a tragic figure, but not a victim. The book was definitely uneven, but still worth reading in my opinion
This is the best review I’ve read of this book.
Ok , I just finished this book . I stayed with it because it was intriguing enough for me to want to understand what was happening and I’m glad to say the end tied it up for me however it took a long time to get there and when I finished it I thought “what the hell just happened “. It’s definitely thought provoking but I don’t imagine I’ll think about it for too long .
I did actually really enjoy Yesteryear, but I agree with absolutely everything you so eloquently put to words. This for me was a highly entertaining above average poolside read…where as it could have been a modern masterpiece.
EXACTLY. thank you for writing the perfect review that articulated why I felt left wanting (much) more.
I really appreciate this review. I enjoyed Natalie's journey to becoming an influencer and I thought it offered a good exploration of the ways someone with a very conservative upbringing might struggle with their desire to step into something a bit more modern only to find it difficult and uncomfortable. Considering the ways society's insistence on Natalie's ignorance only made her double down on her conservative ways was a meaningful thought exercise for me and I also enjoyed exploring the ways her path was laid out for her by followers demanding more. But, the "flashback" part of things was confusing and complicated for me. Natalie didn't miss her kids or her family, she just missed the ease of this former life and because we are made to feel she was trapped there, the reader doesn't have the opportunity to grapple with the real reason she is in this place, which is that she made an intentional move toward that life to save face and hide when she was called to task. This would be more redemptive way to show some character growth-instead we're made to wonder what could have possibly happened to this poor woman-was it a stalker, is she on a reality tv show she doesn't remember signing up for, has she really traveled to the past? I would have much rather seen her live in her reality with full awareness that she'd dug herself deep into a hole-in fact, when we hear about the positive elements of this new life when she truly surrenders to it, her different sexual experience with her husband and her engagement with Maeve, it feels like this might actually be better than the pretend farm life with all of the luxury. Only at the end, do we see the extent to which she has harmed her children through all of this, but we still never see Natalie or Caleb take any accountability for it
Great review and spot on. I admit the premise is so intriguing yet it missed something. And your review captured it. I would have preferred the satire, or having Natalie more in control of her empire and a manipulator, or time traveling. Not the psychological break, weak-willed person we got. Totally missed the mark with the excellent premise.
What an EXCELLENT review. Agree 100%, and this one sentence sums up my feelings perfectly: "For a story built on such a rich and provocative idea, the gaps are too great, too relevant, and too important for me to ignore." I have no doubt the studio "writing by committee" has everything do do with it - the development process cravenly pulled all the teeth out of a book that the author clearly has the talent to have done better by.
EXACTLY! You took the words right out of my mouth and said them better than I ever could’ve! Thank you!!!!
The best review I've read so far! Well said!
loved your review and completely agree, although i did enjoy the book. the last part's twist really makes it less impactful
took the words out of my mouth. EXACTLY what i felt! well said!
Your review was on point, well articulated and the best overall commentary I have seen on this book. Thanks for the time and effort you put into the review. You reflected, in a much better way that I would have been able , the problems I had with the novel and my reaction to it.
I’m 50% into the book, might DNF it so decided to read this review despite spoilers! And it is absolutely on point!! Completely mirrors what I’ve been feeling! There is a dire lack of exploration on so many important points that you’ve penned down so wonderfully that I almost felt validated for my thoughts on the book after reading your review!
Feel the same way! You hit the nail on the head with this!
Great review! I wanted so badly to DNF, but I rarely do that, and with 8 hours invested, I kept on. It never improved for me. (At least I've got my book for the "influencer" prompt in my Popsugar Reading Challenge, so there's that).
