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I saw a review that DNF because they felt like they’d come in to a conversation that had started prior to the book…that was the point. And if they’d only kept reading, they’d have learned that. There was a past between the protagonist and the “you” to whom she was speaking that slowly unfolds throughout the story. This was engrossing, realistic, with one of the most crucial elements in this type of story that so many these days lack: nuance. What’s a several year age gap in physical relationships? It depends on the ages. It depends on the position of both people, their potential to wield power over the other. It depends on the circumstances, the lived experiences of both people. But one constant and most important element, the importance of which does not change is the TRUE ability of both parties to consent. Without that crucial element, there is no appropriate age gap. 16 and 25 is equally as bad as 16 and 35 which is equally as bad as 16 and 45, because one party lacks the true ability to consent, whereas the differences between 22 and 33, 22 and 43, 22 and 53 could be endless or barely any, depending on all of the aforementioned factors, because both parties (under normal circumstances) have the ability to consent.
Onto the writing itself, it was lush and gorgeous. The author’s ability to evoke thought and feeling simultaneously through phrasing and imagery is unrivaled in so many of the recent novels I’ve read in the genre. This wasn’t a particularly suspenseful novel, not the thrilling ride of twists and turns as I typically go for, but the tension was constant and kept me reading. Unlike others who found the conclusion to be unsatisfying, I actually found it to be (on a literary level) the least predictable and most satisfying. ****Mild Spoilers Ahead (mild in that you won’t understand they are spoilers now, but the moment you get to a point in the book where what I’m about to say applies, it will spoil the whole thing for you in about 10 seconds) so only continue reading if you’ve a. decided you don’t want to read/finish the book, b. don’t care about spoilers or c. have already read the book and are looking to see what others thought about it in comparison to your thoughts. Now that I’ve put enough text in between the warning and the actual spoilers so that your eyes don’t accidentally wander down the page just a smidgen too far and accidentally read the spoilers, I’ll continue.*** The book ended in the most realistic way possible.
It would have called for a suspension of disbelief that was inconsistent with the rest of the story if it had ended any other way. Which is why I say that, on a literary level, the ending was satisfying, though on a personal one, very disappointing and sad…but again, such is reality. And the fact that it ended in the most realistic way possible is a testament to why this type of story is important, even in fiction: because change needs to happen before this story could realistically end any other way. Yes, it was fiction, but it was also rife with real world scenarios, even references to real news stories, which is why it unfortunately needed to end the way it did. All was not lost, because it didn’t actually end. There was an understanding that no one gave up, least of all the protagonist and, in fact, the knowledge she brought to light inspired others to pursue justice as well, even those who otherwise had wished to leave it all behind. I was left feeling satisfied in iterary sense, and personally, sad, but hopeful.
