Easy, quick, cutesy summer read. Felt very "I'm fifteen and have a crush .... or two" or in Belly's case three ;) It is very much so a simple romance book for teenagers, it's not challenging, the characters aren't particularly deep, Belly can be annoying - but I didn't really care. It doesn't need to be, I'm not the target audience. And it was fun to read! Bring back teenage summers, where it feels endless, full of firsts, where everything is The Most Important Thing Ever. Would recommend, just be light hearted about it :)

I think my enjoyment of Bunny was hindered by the way it was sold to me as a horror fantasy novel.

While the book certainly contains horror fantasy, it is used moreso as a tool to explore the themes of the novel - female friendship, class divides, arts college elitism, writing, mental health. I simply expected a deeper dive into the fantastical horror world than what was given, for instance more akin to eg. Christina Henry's works, which I do think Awad is capable of. In chapter 15, we are fully in the throws of the bunny-verse. There's no sense of who is talking, what action is done by whom, it's mind bending, confusing, and slightly horrifying. I loved it! But from then on the novel felt too grounded in reality. Having had a taste for the absurdity Mona Awad is capable of creating, I was left hungry for more, but I never got it.

This is not to say this is a bad novel. In fact, I think it is quite brilliant. The scences where Samantha, longing for female friendship and inclusion, interacts with the Bunnies are so poignant and realistic. The underlying messages and emotions in the interactions between the girls feel so true to life, especially when poor Jonah stands clueless to what's really happening.

The commentary provided on elitist college arts degrees was also very enjoyable and humorous. The open interpretation for the story and ending also provides an interesting angle - is this truly a horror fantasy world, where the girls are creating life-like darlings? Did Samatha fall into the Bunny Cult that is actually responsible for the violence in the area (with the Darlings being real people, and samatha being drugged)? Is Samatha schizophrenic, with her writing being lost when the Bunnies start giving her medication?

Bunny is a great book, but I was still left wanting more. I couldn't help but feel that it was lacklustre compared to what was promised, and the potential it had. That being said, I'll still be giving the second book ("We Love You, Bunny) a chance when it's released.