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rogankeira's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
2.0
The writing was really atmospheric, but I found the ending rushed, the aspect with Marilyn undeveloped and the focus on Alice's pre-war romantic (adulterous) relationships took away from the interesting aspects of her war and post-war experience.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, and War
Moderate: Child death, Death, and Suicide attempt
justreads93's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
I feel like I got click baited with this book. I thought I was getting a book about Marilyn’s time in Korea during her USO tour told through the perspective of her translator. Instead Marilyn is a side character and really more of a framing device for the main character to tell her harrowing story.
I really don’t know how I feel about the book itself; I think if I had known what I was getting into I would have liked it more. This is a story that is worth telling and worth reading. I feel like I rarely see stories set during the Korean War and this short book was a fascinating character study. But it’s not the book I had wanted to read.
I really don’t know how I feel about the book itself; I think if I had known what I was getting into I would have liked it more. This is a story that is worth telling and worth reading. I feel like I rarely see stories set during the Korean War and this short book was a fascinating character study. But it’s not the book I had wanted to read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Infidelity, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Vomit, Suicide attempt, and War
bilitis's review
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
i thought the author's intent to give a voice to the stories that were lost to the war really came through because there was clearly a lot of love in all of those bits. the actual title has very little relevance to the story as marilyn does come across as an afterthought, but i still thought the idea of drawing a parallel between alice and marilyn, both in appearance and personality, was really interesting even if it came a little short. the book felt really fragmented at times so im not sure if being longer would've helped fix it's shortcomings, but i enjoyed it anyway.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Gun violence, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, Abandonment, War, and Injury/Injury detail
mandkips's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Blood
Moderate: Toxic relationship