This was not a great book in my opinion. This is the second Neil Gaiman book I've read and the first one I read I only gave 2 stars. I just don't believe that this author is for me. I'll stick to the movie from here on out.

TL;DR - boring, self-conscious, disjointed.

My least favorite part of a book is usually the beginning - there's typically a warm-up period and I expect to power through the first 50 pages or so while the story takes roots. The "aha, we're really in the story now" moment never happened for this one. Each chapter and plot point (if you can even call the disparate happenings and musings of this diverse cast of characters plot points) left me wondering: why?

The story is propelled by huge, dark, complex themes - suicide, depression, addiction, loss of self in relationship, gender and sexual identity, the necessity of vulnerability in human connection - but it never fully dives into any of these topics. It skims the surface without letting us explore the character's inner world, taking the emotionality of what could have been tear-jerking moments.

Cleo is the least interesting character, yet we spend so much time with and around her. I wanted more Quinten, I wanted to know what drove Frank to drink, I wanted to know why Anders was so avoidant and couldn't have a deep, healthy relationship with a woman. Without exploring their psyches, I couldn't feel invested. I didn't care if Frank got sober. I didn't care if Cleo's artistic career took off.

In terms of writing style, Mellors crafts smooth, readable prose. My biggest stylistic gripe is the "shoving in your face" of symbolism and imagery which I expect more in commercial fiction.
Take for example a character mending a broken pot using the Japanese art of kintsugi, where "the mended pot becomes more beautiful than before it was broken." The scene happens after a difficult death of a loved one, where everyone is feeling sad and broken. We get what you're doing here, Mellors. But just in case we didn't...

"People are like this too, you know. We break. We put ourselves back together. The cracks are the best part. You don't have to hide them."
"You really believe that?"
"Mm-hm. Believe it. See it in you."

Anyway, I'm off to read a page-turning thriller to stave off the reading slump. Proceed with caution.