Reviews

L'ospite by Emma Cline

greysonkoinzan's review against another edition

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3.0

3.5 stars. hm. okay. i’m a little upset.

i really enjoyed reading this book—very entertaining. a solid 30% of this book is the main character, Alex, swimming. idk if it’s a metaphor, but whatever. i didn’t mind it, i liked it i guess.

the shit she gets into is really interesting. however, we get absolutely no closure from anything. what happens to jack? no idea. what happens to dom? no idea. who the fuck is dom even and why does she owe him money and why is she so afraid? no idea. what even happens when she reunites with simon—which is her whole end goal in the book? no IDEA!!

i usually rate books based off of the author’s intention: were they able to effectively convey the plot, the concept, and the broader meaning of writing the book? so i was incredibly disappointed by the end. i think the author wanted to put us in the dark—keep alex as much of a mystery to the reader as she was to all of the other characters. but my qualm is that the elusive backstories that were meant to add depth were so poorly written that they added NOTHING to the character’s value (value as in regard not as in principles). so yeah! it bugged me when nothing came to a conclusion.

overall, an entertaining, and absolutely enraging read. i even liked the main character and rooted for her, but everything else was just poorly developed.

candyms's review against another edition

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reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

kierx's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.0

actually nuts imo that this is a book centered on classism and wealth inequality that has zero (0) mentions of race

totallycontradicting's review against another edition

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3.0

Would have been a 2.5 but I'm rounding up because there are some good turns of phrase. Overall, did not like this book.

sarah_horner's review against another edition

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4.0

After being forced to leave her older boyfriend's beach house, Alex has nowhere to go. For six days she drifts from place to place, leeching off others in exchange for sex and/or companionship... i.e. their unmet desires.

Alex is quite delusional and this really begins to shine through as the novel progresses. Her morals are questionable, but the people she uses to get by aren't blameless either. It's quite fascinating to read how she floats through life leeching off others. She is malleable and able to contort herself to fit into many settings, but this means her sense of self is hazy and undefined.

One huge disappointment for me was the ending, which was left quite ambiguous. After building so much suspense, I was looking for a bigger payoff, but the ambiguity made it feel anti-climatic and unresolved.

Still, though, this is worth the read for those who enjoyed the dizzying suspense of The Girls, which is on display here on a smaller, more subtle scale.

Rating: 3.75/5

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

meganmarg's review against another edition

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3.5

the ending ….

leasttorque's review against another edition

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5.0

Wow. Psychological sociological thrillers don’t get any better than this. What a protagonist. What a mooch. What a user. What a disaster waiting to happen (that’s a sly reference to the ending, which was perfect). What a social commentary, done totally organically.

I have known Alex. I have known Nicholas and stayed in the staff house. I have been to a rich house and its pool house with piles of swimsuits and pool toys. I have been swimming at a private country club. And so on and so on. All glancing views of vastly different and absolutely unappealing ways of life.

Read cover to cover with barely a break.

Whew.

ravensandlace's review against another edition

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3.5

Title: The Guest
Author: Emma Cline
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Format: hardback library book
Series: NA
Star Rating: 3.5 stars

tw: misuse of pain meds, drug use, domestic violence, mention of murdered children, blood, kidnapping (kind of), statutory rape (22 year old sleeps with a 17 year old; 17 year old lied about age), theft, car accident

Two things will always be true: I will read anything Emma Cline writes. And I will always support women's rights and women's wrongs. It is also apparent that I am enjoying reading about incredibly delusional women. Alex has to be one of the most delusional women I’ve read about. And I loved her so much. 

This is a slow, langued book. It takes its time. The book wants you to get to know Alex, as much as she will let you. I felt that Alex knew you were reading about her and she didn’t want you to know her at all. She will open up when she wants to and not a second sooner. 

As for the plot, there is one but there also isn't. It’s really about the one singular goal of Alex’s, which is to get back to Simons. The plot is about how Alex is going to accomplish that goal. She will use people and do whatever is necessary. This is what I meant about supporting women’s wrongs. Alex knows that what she did was wrong and she knows that getting back to Simon is wrong, but she is determined to achieve her goal by any means necessary. And I do mean by any means necessary.  

While I truly enjoyed the book, it started to lose me in the last quarter of it. Things started to happen pretty quickly after things had been going so slowly. It was jarring. We were also getting so much information from Alex after having almost everything withheld. And the information revealed was like oh that’s it? I wish we had gotten more. 

Overall, I still liked and enjoyed this book. The first half was great. Alex is a very complex and extremely morally grey but I enjoyed her so much as a person. I just had a few gripes about the ending and the last quarter of it. Overall, a good book, I just wish it was a little better. But I still love Ema Cline and will read anything she writes and will be needing this as a trophy. 

erinboringstories's review against another edition

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dark tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

veronicamarsstan00's review against another edition

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4.0

im obsessed and could write a whole thesis about the pacing of the last 50 pages