2013: #15 – The Different Girl (Gordon Dahlquist)
Title: The Different Girl
Author: Gordon Dahlquist
Format: ARC Paperback
Pages: 230
Release Date: February 26, 2013
Publisher: Dutton Juvenile
Source: ARC via LibraryThing
Veronika. Caroline. Isobel. Eleanor. One blond, one brunette, one redhead, one with hair black as tar. Four otherwise identical girls who spend their days in sync, tasked to learn. But when May, a very different kind of girl—the lone survivor of a recent shipwreck—suddenly and mysteriously arrives on the island, an unsettling mirror is about to be held up to the life the girls have never before questioned.
Sly and unsettling, Gordon Dahlquist’s timeless and evocative storytelling blurs the lines between contemporary and sci-fi with a story that is sure to linger in readers’ minds long after the final page has been turned.
My thoughts:
This book felt unfinished to me. Though the blurb on the back of the book is correct – it is unsettling. Because the narrator is one of the girls, the tone is very flat and almost devoid of any emotion save confusion. It’s not hard to figure out what the girls are, but why they exist is a question that’s never answered to my satisfaction. I cared about that much more than I cared about May and the drama created by her arrival. If the author wasn’t going to flesh out this world and the situation they were living in, then he should have cut out some of the middle and turned it into a really good short story. Instead, we get a novel with missing pieces.
Available from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | IndieBound | WorldCat
Other reviews:
- “I love that this is a quieter novel about thoughts and characters, without much of a driving forward plot but plenty of food for thought.” — The Book Smugglers
- “There was virtually no action, no romance, no twists, and minimal worldbuilding. If I had a badge for beautiful covers, though, it would definitely earn it, because I adore this cover.” — Presenting Lenore
- “While the novel is not an action-packed read, it does have its moments of suspense and wonder.” — Miss Literati
Probably not for me.
I don’t like things feeling unfinished in a book. It needs to be complete and stand on its own feet. I especially believe that of series books too. psst I LOVE the yellow on this cover. So eye catching
It *is* eye-catching! Really, I think it’s why I requested it in the first place. Though the power button on her ear sort of spoils things a bit.