You know when Mercedes Iman Diamond said "opulenceeeee, you own everythingggg!" while voguing across the RuPaul soundstage - this book is that.

The overt prose has already coped a lot of heat, but I'm here to put my stake in the ground and say.. I liked it! It felt stylistically extravagent and gaudy, and fit right in with the story being told. I fully understand the copious critique that it felt about as subtle as a sledgehammer; similies and metaphors are over-explained and the audience is hand-held the entire way, but I'm here for it. Because, despite all that being true, the story still holds a ton of lurking symbolism that unveils connections within the layers of narrative that is not immediately obvious. I bet there is so much that is missed by a reader during their first read through, and that, to me, is the mark of a well-crafted novel.

Overlaying the historic French Revolution upon an industrial setting made the story feel inventive and smart. The author's choice to interplay class dynamics with the devilish main characters created a toxic yet entertaining narrative where you want to root for Marie and Sadie, but equally you really don't.

My only critique is that rather than the story developing from the characters themselves, they instead felt a little pigeon-holed to fit into the shape of the story.

Nevertheless, I enjoyed the increasingly nail-biting choices and feverish rise in tension that escalates into a slightly bizarre yet boisterously captivating story.