I am in love with the ever-present duality of Lenù and Lila. Lenù's narration is so focused on the difference in quality of life between herself and Lila; this coupled with her belief that to excel in life necessitates Lila to fail in life, every chapter feels like a constant struggle between the women, even when the narration does not explicitly point it out as so. "Her's was a life in motion, mine was stopped." 

Lenù and Lila both use each other as tools. Lenù uses Lila to conceptualise herself without inhibitions, herself with talents, herself with ambitions. Lila uses Lenù to conceptualise her life if she had made the right choices in her youth. “ What fucking use has it been for me to imagine that you would enjoy a wonderful life for me, too.” They live vicariously through each other, but neither derives any joy from the life of the other, only pain and jealousy. 

It’s interesting, that not only in the role that feminism has to play in this novel an important one, but that the novel incorporates aspects of first, second, and third wave feminism. Lenù’s rejection of traditional motherhood at the finale of the novel, leaving her husband and children behind, offers a striking end to the novel. 

It was a wonderful book, if a little tedious at parts. 

Even more rich than its predecessor, I absolutely devoured this novel. All of the characters feel so real and so raw, but Lenù and Lila are the pinnacle of the well-written characters. Lenù's jealousy of Lila feels so deeply personal to me, especially in Lenù's feelings that everything special about her is distilled from Lila's essence. Her feelings of inadequacy are so relatable to a young woman of her same age. Lila's inability to feel content with her situation is tragic and understandable at the same time. Her stubbornness and refusal to settle or to compromise make her a frustrating character, yet at the same time make her real. There's something deeply poetic about the relationship between Lenù and Lila, in the jealousy that both girls feel for the other, that neither can be happy unless they feel that they are better than the other, and yet neither can be happy while the other is suffering. Overall, I just adore the writing, particularly in the characters.

One of those “read it because of a tiktok” romance novels. It’s fine as just a fluffy, mindless read, but it doesn’t deliver anything deeper. Ryann, even though she’s the protagonist, is barely a character. She doesn’t have friends, doesn’t have interests, and I’m not certain that we ever even learn what she’s majoring in, despite the fact that the novel is set at a college. 

LOVE! The setting and characters are so rich that you can picture everything happening right in front of you. All of the descriptions just captivated me and transported me straight to Naples. The relationship between Lenù and Lila is so complex and so vividly female, even in childhood. Lenu’s narration, even in the times when she is biased or unreliable, is captivating. 

The smut was really good. Everything else was subpar - especially the worldbuilding.

Delightful black comedy. The set of characters is so interesting and unique, each with an opinionated narration, while Amedeo / Ahmed's narration in between is like a clear beam of light shining through the cracks.

Written like a love letter to feminine power, I found this book deeply empowering while also being a genuinely fun read!

Saraya was an incredibly compelling protagonist. Her narration was part of the reason that I just couldn't seem to put down the book. Every time I found myself pushing for just one more chapter.

The twist in Chapter 39 drove me crazy! I was so excited for it! Of course I knew there had to be a loophole to the marriage contract - Saraya was never going to marry Daxian, the arrogant a-hole. I'll have to reread the beginning of the novel again to see if I can find the exact line the foreshadowed it, but when Saraya was first going through the betrothal ceremony and Drake arrived (fashionably) late I was convinced that the humans had faulty information and Drake was actually the eldest prince that Saraya was to marry. When that didn't end up happening at that point in the book I was disappointed but I expected some sort of loophole. I was incredibly excited to learn that not only was I correct that Drake is the real eldest prince (AKA Saraya's real fiancé) but that Drake knew (at one point, at least) and had been trying to see her when he was just a child (which is so cute, I can just imagine tiny-Drake wanting to meet his little human fiancée). Anyways, all that to say I adored the twist!

I don't know when the sequel comes out but I do know I'll be first in line to read it!

Knox and Naomi are truly the most dramatic people I've ever met in my life and I love it. The whole town of Knockemout is just delightfully ridiculous. 

It was fine for a light, fluffy read, but I do think I would have preferred if it leaned into the Soulmate aspect of it a little more. Enemies to lovers combined with the Soulmate trope would have been dramatic enough, but the author had to ruin it for me by revealing that they weren't actually Soulmates. What's the point of incorporating this lengthy Soulmate-mechanic into the worldbuilding if the author isn't going to write one couple that gets together after being matched? The underuse of the Soulmate trope was kind of a letdown to me. I mean, the average reader probably didn't pick this up because they hate the idea of Soulmates. The use of that word in the title has me expecting to see at least one happy Soulmate couple.

I loath the narrator so much and yet I can't help but love her too. Knowing that the narrator has all of the opportunities and resources for a perfect life while she spends the length of the novel miserable makes her suffering so cathartic. My interpretation of the novel is that the narrator deserved to suffer, as a penance for her inability to see beyond herself. I loved the ending, how she drugged herself up and locked herself away. In a way I felt some sense of forgiveness towards the narrator, and in that way, when she emerged, I almost felt reborn too.