Chlorine
Ratings38
Average rating3.6
15
Ratings38
Average rating3.6
In the vein of The Pisces and The Vegetarian, Chlorine is a debut novel that blurs the line between a literary coming-of-age narrative and a dark unsettling horror tale, told from an adult perspective on the trials and tribulations of growing up in a society that puts pressure on young women and their bodies... a powerful, relevant novel of immigration, sapphic longing, and fierce, defiant becoming. Ren Yu is a swimmer. Her daily life starts and ends with the pool. Her teammates are her only friends. Her coach, her guiding light. If she swims well enough, she will be scouted, get a scholarship, go to a good school. Her parents will love her. Her coach will be kind to her. She will have a good life. But these are human concerns. These are the concerns of those confined to land, those with legs. Ren grew up on stories of creatures of the deep, of the oceans and the rivers. Ones that called sailors to their doom. Ones that dragged them down and drowned them. Ones that feasted on their flesh. Ones of the creature that she's always longed to become: mermaid. Ren aches to be in the water. She dreams of the scent of chlorine--the feel of it on her skin. And she will do anything she can to make a life for herself where she can be free. No matter the pain. No matter what anyone else thinks. No matter how much blood she has to spill.
Reviews with the most likes.
i said it before and i'll say it again, idgaf about your swim meet.
omfg. finally!!!!!! i finished this. this was just not for me. i didn't feel connected to the story or the characters. the “plot”, if you can call it that, was so bland. maybe it's just the high school drama/sporting life problems the main character was going through that i just couldn't relate to, but i literally was so bored and could not care less about what was going on. the writing was fine but nothing super unique about the narrative or tone that stood out to me. so yep, it's a 2 from me.
I read this on Libby, and the first 50 pages or so were phenomenal. I have never read something so beautiful and I found myself highlighting so much (which I never do) and just crying. I thought for sure this would be a 5 star and a new all time favorite. It got a little repetitive and I did not like Kathy's perspective. The build up was so good, but I think to call this a horror is super mismarketed.
DNF at 64%
I actually kind of enjoyed the writing at first and though it's kind of dramatic (or maybe really dramatic) but it gave this big impact, but when it's repeated so frequently, it becomes tiring. Also Ren ghosting Cathy and Cathy's letters were the opposite of enjoyment. Ren's narrator made it kind of interesting to listen to but.. I am over it lol also the synopsis talks about blood but menstrual blood and all that was not what I was expecting. TMI
I love that this just went there. Mental illness - perfectly clear lol.
