Review by maggi3 -- Looking Glass Friends by E L Neve

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maggi3
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Review by maggi3 -- Looking Glass Friends by E L Neve

Post by maggi3 »

[Following is a volunteer review of "Looking Glass Friends" by E L Neve.]
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3 out of 4 stars
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There’s an often-quoted line from Wuthering Heights that says, “Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same.” This quote is a perfect description of Ellie and Neil, the two main characters of Looking Glass Friends by E L Neve. The pair meet when the bakery Neil works at runs out of cream puffs, and he decides to give Ellie the secret stash he had been saving for his wife. In return, she gives him her favorite book. What neither one of them knows is that the book will spark a conversation that will change everything. They are intellectual soulmates, exchanging emails and occasionally phone calls where they have spirited discussions. How will Ellie’s husband react to her “friendship” with this new man? What will happen with their son Johnny? Will Ellie and Neil choose happiness over comfort, love over stability?

I desperately wanted to give Looking Glass Friends a perfect score. Out of all the books I have reviewed on here, this one is my favorite. This is mostly due to the author’s incredible writing style. She is able to weave beautiful metaphors seamlessly with literary references and philosophical conversations without any hint of pretension. Others have likened this work to poetry, and I have to agree. From literally the first ten pages, the author had me enthralled by the story, and I never lost that enthusiasm. This was the first book in a long time that was hard for me to put down. When I wasn’t reading it, I was thinking about the conversations between Ellie and Neil and forming my own thoughts about the topics. I rarely reread books, but this one made me want to read it again the second I finished.

I want to clear up something for readers who may have the same doubts about Looking Glass Friends that I did. This is not a book about cheating, at least in the physical sense. There are certainly mentions of infidelity, along with sexual assault and suicide, so if those are topics you are sensitive to, you may want to avoid this one. However, this is a story about pure love overall. Ellie and Neil don’t even see each other in person for a majority of the book, communicating mostly through email. Whether or not their conversations cross the line into cheating is up to interpretation. They understand what the consequences of choosing each other will be, and they are careful not to be hasty in their decision. As someone who believes there is very rarely, if ever, a reason for cheating, I was relieved by this aspect of the story.

There is one concern that I have with this book, though. When we first meet Neil, he has a gun in his mouth and is seriously considering pulling the trigger. However, the thought of Ellie, who is a stranger to him at this time, keeps him from doing so. I had no problem with this, as it seemed that Neil was just looking for a reason, however small, to keep living. What I do have a problem with is how Neil is fine after he meets Ellie. With one book and a few conversations, Neil’s depression and suicidal thoughts seem to disappear. When he and Ellie are on good terms, there is barely any mention of his mental health. Even when they are not speaking, she is the thing that keeps him from going back to that darkness. This is romantic in theory, but it seems unrealistic. While I do not believe this was the author’s intent, I think it could perpetuate the idea that you can “cure” someone’s mental illness or suicidal thoughts by simply loving them, which is not true.

Because of this and an unfortunate number of errors in the text, I am giving Looking Glass Friends 3 out of 4 stars. The only other criticism I have is that the ending seemed a bit cliché, and I wish it had tied up a few more things, such as the relationship between Ellie and her husband. Besides that, I loved this story, and I feel that giving it anything under 3 stars would be a disservice to potential readers. I like love stories, but I tend to avoid many of them because they feel bland or generic. Looking Glass Friends is neither of these things. It is truly unique, thought-provoking, and overall a great read.

I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a bit of a philosophical romance novel. The romantics reading this will be pleased to hear that Neil and Ellie’s conversations were based on real love letters. Younger readers will want to avoid this one since there is sexual content. Book lovers, of which there should be plenty on this site, should enjoy the fact that the pair first bonds over Atlas Shrugged, though you do not need to have read this book to understand their conversations. Lastly, I would recommend Looking Glass Friends to lovers of poetry, both because of the author’s poetic style of writing and the numerous references to poems throughout the story.

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Post by Lindsey Klaus »

I have very similar feelings to you. I usually avoid romances because they tend to sacrifice everything else for the sake of that romance, which isn't very realistic or healthy (such as characters giving up jobs or, like you said here, they magically cure a chemical imbalance in their brain through romance; which can be a dangerous lesson to younger readers or readers who don't know a lot about mental health). I especially feel an aversion to cheating narratives. But I also recognize that it's escapism, and there are times where I just have to say screw it and read anyway. Sometimes a good romance just hits the spot, even when it has some content I'm not a fan of.

That all being said, this actually sounds really well written with compelling characters. I really love your review and how much emotion you put into it. I can feel for the characters. This is a really well-written review and it definitely made me want to check out the book, as my main reservation with it - like you said yourself - was that I was afraid it'd be a cheating narrative.
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Post by maggi3 »

Lindsey Klaus wrote: 05 Aug 2019, 14:19 I have very similar feelings to you. I usually avoid romances because they tend to sacrifice everything else for the sake of that romance, which isn't very realistic or healthy (such as characters giving up jobs or, like you said here, they magically cure a chemical imbalance in their brain through romance; which can be a dangerous lesson to younger readers or readers who don't know a lot about mental health). I especially feel an aversion to cheating narratives. But I also recognize that it's escapism, and there are times where I just have to say screw it and read anyway. Sometimes a good romance just hits the spot, even when it has some content I'm not a fan of.

That all being said, this actually sounds really well written with compelling characters. I really love your review and how much emotion you put into it. I can feel for the characters. This is a really well-written review and it definitely made me want to check out the book, as my main reservation with it - like you said yourself - was that I was afraid it'd be a cheating narrative.
There’s definitely a theme of sacrifice, though not in the typical sense. I’ve seen some others who were upset by the emotional cheating aspect, but I thought it was handled in a very mature way. The story doesn’t glamorize it at all, which was important to me. I hope you enjoy the story if you read it. Thank you for your kind words and for commenting!
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Post by Tomah »

From the bit I've read of this novel I really resonated with Neil's state of mind that reminded me of my own darkest hours, so it's a shame his mental health isn't properly addressed later on. Granted, depression is complicated and different for each person, so Neil's scenario isn't necessarily impossible, but I can see how this depiction might come across as shallow. That said, it's good to know the rest of the novel is great, so I'll definitely get around to finishing it soon. Thanks for the review!
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Post by maggi3 »

Tomah wrote: 05 Aug 2019, 19:43 From the bit I've read of this novel I really resonated with Neil's state of mind that reminded me of my own darkest hours, so it's a shame his mental health isn't properly addressed later on. Granted, depression is complicated and different for each person, so Neil's scenario isn't necessarily impossible, but I can see how this depiction might come across as shallow. That said, it's good to know the rest of the novel is great, so I'll definitely get around to finishing it soon. Thanks for the review!
I agree. I’ve been reading a lot about and noticing a trend toward romanticizing mental illness, which is why I was concerned about the message people who hadn’t dealt with or didn’t know a lot about mental illness would get from the story. I hope you enjoy the rest of the book. Thanks for commenting!
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Post by Wyland »

I like the prospect of meeting an intellectual soulmate so I may want to read this. thanks for the enjoyable review.
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Post by maggi3 »

Wyland wrote: 06 Aug 2019, 06:22 I like the prospect of meeting an intellectual soulmate so I may want to read this. thanks for the enjoyable review.
Thanks for commenting!
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Post by Ngozi Onyibor »

The book seems like a fascinating story judging by your review. I'm averse to cheating narratives, it's good to know that the book doesn't glamorize it.
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Post by maggi3 »

Michelle Fred wrote: 07 Aug 2019, 11:22 The book seems like a fascinating story judging by your review. I'm averse to cheating narratives, it's good to know that the book doesn't glamorize it.
The book definitely shows the hardships and consequences of Ellie and Neil’s relationship, especially how it affects their marriages. This aspect seemed realistic and far from glamorized to me. Thanks for commenting!
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Post by Erin Dydek »

I was wondering about the "cheating" aspect of this book as well. Thanks for clearing that up. It's also good to know that this is a philosophical romance that will be more thought-proking than a typical romance novel. I'm curious to check it out myself. Thanks for the honest review!
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Post by Wambui-nj »

Sounds like a very interesting and enjoyable book. I will check it out. Thanks for the great review.
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Post by maggi3 »

Everydayadventure15 wrote: 08 Aug 2019, 12:43 I was wondering about the "cheating" aspect of this book as well. Thanks for clearing that up. It's also good to know that this is a philosophical romance that will be more thought-proking than a typical romance novel. I'm curious to check it out myself. Thanks for the honest review!
I hope you enjoy it if you end up reading it. Thanks for the comment!
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maggi3
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Post by maggi3 »

Wambui-nj wrote: 08 Aug 2019, 13:42 Sounds like a very interesting and enjoyable book. I will check it out. Thanks for the great review.
I hope you enjoy it. Thanks for commenting!
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Post by sarahmarlowe »

"While I do not believe this was the author’s intent, I think it could perpetuate the idea that you can “cure” someone’s mental illness or suicidal thoughts by simply loving them, which is not true."

Great point! I'm so glad that you realized that this is how it looked in the book; it needed to be said. Thanks for the thorough review!
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Post by maggi3 »

sarahmarlowe wrote: 11 Aug 2019, 14:31 "While I do not believe this was the author’s intent, I think it could perpetuate the idea that you can “cure” someone’s mental illness or suicidal thoughts by simply loving them, which is not true."

Great point! I'm so glad that you realized that this is how it looked in the book; it needed to be said. Thanks for the thorough review!
I’m usually on the lookout for these problems, especially in romance novels. It’s an unfortunate trope that I hope becomes less prominent in these stories. Thanks for the comment!
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