I really enjoyed this book by Kat Tang, and ripped through it at top speed. The scenes changed frequently enough and the dialogue was snappish enough that it never felt like it was dragging or overdrawn. The chapters and scenes can be brief, but it means that things move along very quickly.

The book isn’t terribly plot driven but that’s okay. If you’re someone who is attracted to very action-centric plots than this may not be the story for you. The story and revelations of this book are shown through the series of vignettes and meetings between the narrator and his clients.

What I loved most about this book is that it shows how ingrained toxic people pleasing and distortion of reality can be for people raised by narcissists. I thought the through line of the relationship between the narrator and his deceased mother was so evident from the start, but only to the reader. I loved how while new information didn’t necessarily flood in as the story progressed, the narrator’s understanding of how his truly dysfunctional childhood colors his understanding of the world.

I think this book could have used a little more of the back story. I think it would have strengthened the feelings of guilt, repayment, and duty that compel the narrator. While there are vague allusions to a somewhat more complicated teenage and young adult era, they are so vague as to almost feel like throw aways at times. The ambiguity I feel like is too great and seems underbaked rather than deliberately vague.

4/5