astral.projection commented on caait's update
caait finished a book

The Pisces
Melissa Broder
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astral.projection commented on a post
starts audibook Oh cool! Jeanette’s narrating. Loved her other self narrated book.
hears Jeanette dictate first 3 sentences of audiobook Oh… yeah I’m sure she is glad her mom died before this came out.
astral.projection commented on HowRandom's update
astral.projection commented on LaurasLibraryCard's update
LaurasLibraryCard TBR'd a book

Quicksilver (Fae & Alchemy, #1)
Callie Hart
astral.projection commented on marissa's update
Post from the Peace of Mind: De Tranquillitate Animi forum
in all cases one should be careful in one’s choice of men and see whether they are worthy of our bestowing a part of our life upon them, or whether we shall waste our or time and theirs also: for some even consider us to be in their debt because of our service to them
Ok Seneca baby I didn’t know you were a feminist 💅 bars on bars
astral.projection commented on jordynreads's update
jordynreads started reading...

Cursed Bread
Sophie Mackintosh
astral.projection commented on marissa's update
astral.projection started reading...

American Rapture
C.J. Leede
astral.projection started reading...

Doppelganger: A Trip into the Mirror World
Naomi Klein
astral.projection finished a book

Girl Dinner
Olivie Blake
astral.projection started reading...

The Women
Kristin Hannah
astral.projection commented on marissa's review of Family Drama
Family Drama actually had so many elements that should have worked for me.. complicated family relationships, dual timelines, and a story about a mother living a double life and the ripple effects it leaves behind. However, I struggled a lot and it was hard for me to stay invested. The writing itself is very dense and stylized, and while I can appreciate what it was trying to do, it often felt so embellished that it created distance between me and the characters instead of pulling me closer. The constant timeline (again, something that I absolutely love in books) and POV shifts also made it difficult to stay grounded, and I found myself having difficulties just trying to piece together what was happening. There’s absolutely an audience for this, especially readers who love more experimental, literary family sagas, but for me, it was hard to fully connect, and I finished it feeling more detached than moved.
*Many thanks to Simon & Schuster for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.
astral.projection wrote a review...
Insert the Family Guy "it insists upon itself" meme here There's nothing effortless about Family Drama. While the author is clearly talented, her desire to show off her command of language comes through more than the talent itself. The plot (not that there's much to speak of) tries and fails to create compelling storylines. The characters seem to have rich internality, but it's in the author's voice rather than the characters', and we never really get to know them or what makes them tick.
Multiple grand themes are introduced but never fully explored. The most successful was the mother, Susan's, story of negotiating her life as a young soap opera star in California with her domestic life in New England. The meat of the book revolves around the fallout from her inability to fully commit to either life, but outside of being told her family and friends feel xyz way about Susan, there's no exploration or change to propel the story forward. The story is flat, like a museum exhibition: "A woman wasn't able to have both her dreams and her family. Here were the consequences. Observe".
I'm left feeling like I didn't understand the purpose or what the author was trying to tell us. Yes, it's hard to have it all as a woman. Yes, we are disproportionately forced to choose between personal dreams and domestic fulfillment. Yes, having a partner willing to sacrifice for your dreams makes all the difference in the world. What new are we adding to the conversation?
astral.projection finished a book

Family Drama
Rebecca Fallon