Rating: ☆☆☆

After finding out that her husband, Jake, has been having an affair, Lucy is devastated and desperate for revenge. To even the score, Lucy makes a deal with Jake. She will be able to hurt him three times - he doesn't know when or how, and he can't prevent it.

This started off so well for me. All about female rage, vengeance and despair, this was a feminist novel about all the hardships women face as both a wife and a mother. One thing I thought was really interesting, was how it presented female suffering as generational, as something that is passed down from woman to woman, almost through biology. Lucy was born with this anger inside of her, every woman is.

'I used to imagine her anger as a parasite that lived in her stomach, that passed through the wall of her womb to my mother, who passed it to me.'

I really like that concept. It created a bleak and dismal tone, which I often adore in books. But I also loved that it shows how women have been struggling with the same issues for generations. And we should be angry with the patriarchal world that we live in, which refuses to change.

Anyway, the first 2/3 of the book dealt with similar topics and discussions and ideologies as the ones mentioned above. But the last third of the book stepped in a really bizarre direction, that I don't think was necessary? Throughout the story, we learn that our protagonist, Lucy, had an obsession with Harpies. Part woman, part bird- Harpies are Greek Mythological beings that known to be punishers of human avarice and greed. Adopting almost a magical realism feel, the last third of the book brings The Harpies to life. And I just found it to be the most weird/abnormal choice for the novel? I think this story definitely should've stuck with being a feminist thriller, and left The Harpies as metaphors in the text.

For example,

Spoiler

Lucy is obsessed with the concept of Harpies - she's studying them and learning everything there is to know about them. Lucy's attempts to understand The Harpy, is an attempt to understand herself. Women are "supposed" (insert eyeroll) to be forgiving and kind and understanding, but Lucy is burning with rage and anger. Because she's never conformed to the idealised standard of womanhood, Lucy searches for herself in The Harpies, these fierce mythological creatures, whose purpose it is to punish men. She sees herself in them, which is why she's so fascinated. I think the author should've left it at that, rather than have Lucy TURN INTO a Harpy at the end. I'm sorry, I just think it's weird and it didn't work for me.

I will say, I felt ALL the emotions the author wanted the readers to feel. I hated Jake for his selfishness. I felt devastated for Lucy - for this woman who's had an awful upbringing, been betrayed by her other half and still has to pretend everything's okay for her children's sake. It was definitely moving and impactful. I just did not vibe with the ending at all.


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