Paige

this is the first Sanderson novel I’ve read that I really felt like I could put down and walk away from at almost any point in time. after reading much of his other work, it feels obvious this is his earlier writing. you can catch glimpses of ideas and tropes he fleshes out and nails in other stories but was only just starting to grasp here. largely, the pacing of this novel was the hardest for me to get over. the first 60% felt painfully slow and the action of parts 2 and 3 felt too glossed over. the story was nice but execution wasn’t my favorite.

I loved Jennette McCurdy’s autobiography and was enraptured with the way she wrote - sarcastic, dark, sharp, almost teasing. She writes very similarly in Half His Age, but instead of reminding me of Lolita or My Dark Vanessa because of the content, I found myself relating it more to Ottessa Moshfegh - there is no one who knows how to write an unlikable woman more than her. I find it refreshing to read novels that are grittier and maybe a bit more disturbing. instead of “I can’t believe anyone would write something like this” i’m shocked thinking “I can’t believe she actually admitted to having these thoughts and put them on paper for us all to see”. sometimes it’s fun peeling back the curtain and seeing what strange, graphic things we can come up with. this novel scratched that weird itch for me