The Great Godden is the story of how a family's summer at their beach house is turned upside down by the arrival of the Godden brothers. This is a story of manipulation and loss of innocence.
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I had predicted a few bits and pieces of the plot, but the rest took me aback and the events that unfolded were slightly unsettling. There was a point towards the end of the book where I went, WHAT?! Perhaps I hadn't expected it to take such a different path. This isn't a romance novel, y'all! At least, I thought it was after reading the blurb.
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Honestly, I'm still thinking about my feelings for this book. I didn't love it but I didn't dislike it either. There were times where I felt that the plot had no real purpose in between, but somehow it led to the unfurling of the events. While Rosoff's writing is phenomenal—I transported myself to the beach house for sure—I didn't relate to any of the characters; not much anyway. Moreover, this book gave me slight Call-Me-By-Your-Name vibes (sexualisation of minors et al).
The chapters were short, which is why I could finish it in a little over a day (yes, I'm a sucker for short chapters)—a great feat for me. I guess that compensates for a lot. Lastly, I was left a tad confused . . .
Thanks for the review copy, @bloomsburyindia