Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine

Was really hoping for a 5-star rating as the summary was weirdly representative of my life lol.

At the start, seeing the main character blame others because of her own ignorance was a bit perplexing, but I started enjoying my time once Eleanor's relationship with Raymond had developed a little. The side characters were sweet, and it was nice seeing Eleanor grow and achieve happiness beyond routine and constant control.

My only gripe is with the writing, which is not too bad of a sign for a debut novel. I found it “obvious”, and the characterisation felt constrained and textbook-like. Something that irked me, especially during the Bad Days portion, was the transparency of the author speaking, rather than the character. The deep self-awareness and therapy self-talk were out-of-place. Another odd aspect was the Disney Channel movie-like makeover that transforms Eleanor into trendy and pretty, earning her the respect of her colleagues ...questionable message.

Overall, a calm, endearing story with a couple of writing quirks.