I liked the themes of old vs new, East Germany vs West, communism vs capitalism. The historical backdrop is very fascinating, and those with a more solid understanding of European history might find a lot of hidden meanings in this story.

I had a hard time connecting how the dynamic of the relationship reflects the historical events. But reading some author interviews helped me understand this layered story better.

The no quotation writing isn’t my favorite and I wonder if the writing of some more abusive parts of the relationship could’ve been edited down. I was a bit distressed just reading it