Cleopatra and Frankenstein
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- Create Date：2022-02-14 14:16:39
- Update Date：2025-09-23
- Status：finish
- Author：Coco Mellors
- ISBN：B099M96WQR
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Summary
NYU MFA graduate Coco Mellors's CLEOPATRA AND FRANKENSTEIN， a portrait of a brief marriage between a painter and an advertising executive， dealing with themes of mental health， addiction， maturity， and the joys and challenges of marriage， to Grace McNamee at Bloomsbury， for publication in winter 2022。
Reviews
KtotheC
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This book snuck up on me。 At the beginning I felt there was something smug about it。 Once I realised that the writer understood that Cleo and Frank aren't the most interesting characters she's given us and when the scenes started to have real emotional depth and not just 'cool New York city character' vibes I was more invested。 The ending felt quietly profound。 I loved how the story flipped when we got inside each new character's mind。 I loved Eleanor most of all。 This book snuck up on me。 At the beginning I felt there was something smug about it。 Once I realised that the writer understood that Cleo and Frank aren't the most interesting characters she's given us and when the scenes started to have real emotional depth and not just 'cool New York city character' vibes I was more invested。 The ending felt quietly profound。 I loved how the story flipped when we got inside each new character's mind。 I loved Eleanor most of all。 。。。more
a
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dnf 40%
Pauline
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4。5 Stars
˗ˏˋ saoudia！ ˎˊ˗
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this book is for the hot girlies。
Jaclyn
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There were so many red flags here that I cannot quite believe how much I loved this book。 But love it I did and I think that all comes down to voice and Mellors’s incredible talent。 She won me over by playing with my heart， breaking it and then mending it （I forgive her the oft-used kintsugi metaphor）。 This is Cleo and Frank’s in love/out of love story but Mellors fills it with the voices of those nearest and dearest to them。 At times it’s heartbreakingly sad， at times it’s witty and clever and There were so many red flags here that I cannot quite believe how much I loved this book。 But love it I did and I think that all comes down to voice and Mellors’s incredible talent。 She won me over by playing with my heart， breaking it and then mending it （I forgive her the oft-used kintsugi metaphor）。 This is Cleo and Frank’s in love/out of love story but Mellors fills it with the voices of those nearest and dearest to them。 At times it’s heartbreakingly sad， at times it’s witty and clever and funny， much like life。 It’s fresh and full of energy without relying on sentimentality and that is where the magic happens。 There will undoubtably be comparisons to Rooney and that’s completely fair。 。。。more
Brandi
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[3 Stars]I'm just going to list my thoughts on this book here:1。 All the characters kinda sucked a little。 This didn't detract from my reading experience， but it certainly didn't add anything either2。 The ending left a lot to be desired。 I felt like multiple plot lines （specifically Zoe's and Quentin's） were left unfinished3。 The writing was fine but I couldn't figure out why Eleanor's sections were written so differently than everyone else's4。 Mellors really knows how to write dialogue。 That wa [3 Stars]I'm just going to list my thoughts on this book here:1。 All the characters kinda sucked a little。 This didn't detract from my reading experience， but it certainly didn't add anything either2。 The ending left a lot to be desired。 I felt like multiple plot lines （specifically Zoe's and Quentin's） were left unfinished3。 The writing was fine but I couldn't figure out why Eleanor's sections were written so differently than everyone else's4。 Mellors really knows how to write dialogue。 That was definitely my favorite aspect of this story。 I loved all the witty one-liners and clever back + forth， which added some joy into an otherwise very sad bookplease check contact warnings for this one。 Alcohol use + abuse， drug use + abuse， suicide ideation + suicide attempt， death of a parent， emotional + physical abuse， death of an animal， and probably a couple more I'm missingIf you like a good character study with little to no plot， and you can handle the content warnings， this might be one for you。 But be braced to be sad basically the entire time 。。。more
Allie
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modern， brilliant and very rooneyesque in my opinion。 it was interesting getting to read cleo and frank’s ups and down not just as a married couple but also an individual。 this was one of my highly anticipated reads and while i’m happy with how content this whole book was for me， there too were some parts that was draggy and completely me threw me off the excitement ride a little but nevertheless， stunning writing by coco mellors。 definitely will be reading anything she decides to put out in the modern， brilliant and very rooneyesque in my opinion。 it was interesting getting to read cleo and frank’s ups and down not just as a married couple but also an individual。 this was one of my highly anticipated reads and while i’m happy with how content this whole book was for me， there too were some parts that was draggy and completely me threw me off the excitement ride a little but nevertheless， stunning writing by coco mellors。 definitely will be reading anything she decides to put out in the future。 cleopatra and frankenstein will definitely be something that i’ll re-read again some time soon。 。。。more
HQ
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actually， first of all， i have no clue how this is compared to sally rooney？？？？？ like。。。。other than。。。。。。。it was written by a white woman？？？？？？？ zoe and eleanor were the only characters i found somewhat interesting， i didn't think anything about cleo felt like it made sense and maybe that was the point， the santiago chapters felt really off to me？ especially bc he was my third favourite but it didn't seem like。。。it was supposed to read that way？ everything about anders was so。。。。what's the point actually， first of all， i have no clue how this is compared to sally rooney？？？？？ like。。。。other than。。。。。。。it was written by a white woman？？？？？？？ zoe and eleanor were the only characters i found somewhat interesting， i didn't think anything about cleo felt like it made sense and maybe that was the point， the santiago chapters felt really off to me？ especially bc he was my third favourite but it didn't seem like。。。it was supposed to read that way？ everything about anders was so。。。。what's the point？ the plot with quentine just seemed。。。。。really outside of the rest of the book in a way that didn't add anything or make sense？ like he's just [redacted] now？？？？？ i did like the way that eleanor's chapters were written differently。 i REALLY wish zoe was more fleshed out and given more time though i did think her relationship with frank was somewhat sweet and kind of interesting。 i think a lot of the last eleanor part were sooooo heavy handed with symbolism and meaning but she was so sweet and funny i wasn't THAT bothered but frank。。。。。just。 why？ and the ending is like。。。。。。。。。。。fine？ i hate like 90% of endings of books so that doesn't REALLY mean anything， but the focus felt so off for the entire book， like each chapter SHOULD'VE been focused on someone else than who it was but i can't pinpoint why？ i guess this is the longest """review""" i've typed here so i guess it made me feel something and i guess that is the point but god i am BEGGING people to stop saying books are similar to sally rooney just because a white woman wrote about women lol 。。。more
TC
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Recommended。Review posted at Tzer Island book blog:https://www。tzerisland。com/bookblog/2。。。 Recommended。Review posted at Tzer Island book blog:https://www。tzerisland。com/bookblog/2。。。 。。。more
Miki Jacobs
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Cleo meets Frank when she decides to leave a party early。。 She is in her mid twenties and he is much older。。 Her visa is running out and she has to decide what to do， but meeting Frank changes everything。The story guides us through their relationship， not just from their perspective， but also from other involved parties。 Their freewheeling drug addled friends， the ad people and the artists。This wasn't my normal genre of book， but it grew on me and I needed to know what happened。It's an interesti Cleo meets Frank when she decides to leave a party early。。 She is in her mid twenties and he is much older。。 Her visa is running out and she has to decide what to do， but meeting Frank changes everything。The story guides us through their relationship， not just from their perspective， but also from other involved parties。 Their freewheeling drug addled friends， the ad people and the artists。This wasn't my normal genre of book， but it grew on me and I needed to know what happened。It's an interesting book to read if you're interested in human nature。 。。。more
charly
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5 gigantic and well deserved stars！ what an absolute gem of a book- i can’t believe it’s a debut！！！ ready for more coco mellors …。 IMMEDIATELY
emma
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the very idea of cleopatra and frankenstein。。。think of what they could accomplish。couple goals（thanks to the publisher for the copy）
Rhonda Lomazow
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A fast impulsive marriage a very young girl an older man。A first accidental meeting leading to a fast marriage。The reaction of their friends was so interesting engaging I was drawn in to their lives。So well written characters that come alive really well written。
Sarah Tebb
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A truly great debut！ Personally I prefer flawed and mostly unlikeable characters as it reflects reality more - the insecure and artistic Cleo and the impulsive Frank embark on a love story that makes no sense yet had me racing through the pages。 All the mess and hard truths about love and relationships laid bare for you to carefully pick through。 Clever dialogue and non-hollywood endings allow this book to take you along the pangs of adulthood in an extremely relatable way。
Guillermo Perez
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COOL and SEXY contemporary fictionFrank and Cleo meet at a New Years party and start a whirlwind romance that leads to a quick marriage with （expected） catastrophic results。 This story was multi-layered and a lot of the characters， though unlikeable， were super cool and very now-it made me want to know them。 They live the kinds of lives that make you wonder exactly how it works but oddly enough it does。 I enjoyed the writing style of this book and while it hasn't been my all-time favorite read I COOL and SEXY contemporary fictionFrank and Cleo meet at a New Years party and start a whirlwind romance that leads to a quick marriage with （expected） catastrophic results。 This story was multi-layered and a lot of the characters， though unlikeable， were super cool and very now-it made me want to know them。 They live the kinds of lives that make you wonder exactly how it works but oddly enough it does。 I enjoyed the writing style of this book and while it hasn't been my all-time favorite read I think the themes and plot of this book were very now。 READ THIS if you like Sally Rooney and shows like GIRLS。PS there is a character in here that was named Zoe who I kept picturing as Zoe Kravitz， 。。。more
Jamie Klingler
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Just finished it and want to send it to a man I may have loved， one of my best friends and a friend I have lost touch with。 It is an incredible， gripping， but kind look at the cycles of our loves and addictions， including those addictions to love。 It's an early contender for my book of the year。 I was totally enthralled。 Just finished it and want to send it to a man I may have loved， one of my best friends and a friend I have lost touch with。 It is an incredible， gripping， but kind look at the cycles of our loves and addictions， including those addictions to love。 It's an early contender for my book of the year。 I was totally enthralled。 。。。more
Grace Jagger
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‘And it was a performance， her face。 He felt instinctively that he could watch it for hours。’Cleo is a struggling artist at the end of her student visa figuring out her next steps。 One New Years Eve she runs into Frank， an older man in marketing with more money than sense。 He makes her an offer that seems to good to be true， he’ll marry Cleo so she can stay and paint whatever she desires。 The whirlwind romance moves far too quickly for either of them to keep up。 We follow Cleo， Frank and some of ‘And it was a performance， her face。 He felt instinctively that he could watch it for hours。’Cleo is a struggling artist at the end of her student visa figuring out her next steps。 One New Years Eve she runs into Frank， an older man in marketing with more money than sense。 He makes her an offer that seems to good to be true， he’ll marry Cleo so she can stay and paint whatever she desires。 The whirlwind romance moves far too quickly for either of them to keep up。 We follow Cleo， Frank and some of their family and friends over turbulent times as the drink and drugs of New York threaten to ruin anyone and everyone。 I can already tell this is going to get very mixed reviews。 I thoroughly enjoyed this book and thought it was a strong debut。 As a reader， I adore unlikeable characters and here I was blessed with a whole book full of them！ These people were awful， truly some of the most unloveable characters I’ve read。 The drinking， the drugs， the narcissism， the arguments - it was a mess and I loved reading it！If you enjoyed ‘Conversations With Friends’ by Sally Rooney or ‘My Year of Rest and Relaxation’ by Ottessa Moshfegh then I think you’ll enjoy this book！ I could see this book getting a Fleabag-esque adaptation that I would like to watch as I think this story would play out even better on a screen！✨Thank you to the author， publisher and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for review！ ✨ 。。。more
Becks
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This was an odd reading experience for me。 I enjoyed the writing style， it definitely has echoes of a Sally Rooney type – dislike comparing current authors but I thought of this a lot while reading it。 I didn't like the main characters at all but I felt like I got their motiviations and the bubble they're in。 But then there's this whole cast of supporting characters。 Ones that we follow for far too long to stay engaged but never find out enough about to be worth it。 Unfortunately that really put This was an odd reading experience for me。 I enjoyed the writing style， it definitely has echoes of a Sally Rooney type – dislike comparing current authors but I thought of this a lot while reading it。 I didn't like the main characters at all but I felt like I got their motiviations and the bubble they're in。 But then there's this whole cast of supporting characters。 Ones that we follow for far too long to stay engaged but never find out enough about to be worth it。 Unfortunately that really put a damper on the book for me and about halfway through I started having to skim these pieces because otherwise it would become a DNF。 Nevertheless I would try something by the same author again because some parts were fantastic。 The characters are a bit love to hate， but it's interesting to go along with them。 It's ostensibly a love story that feels less full of love than it does moments of passion followed by moments of disgust or irritation。 It had me thinking about relationship dynamics and I enjoyed the challenge of it。 So all in all， I'm not sure where I come down on enjoyment yet but I'll definitely remember it。 。。。more
CC
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Cleopatra and Frankenstein is （eventually） a tender book about human relationships across all spectrums。 Maybe I am skewing as fucked up as these characters because a lot of what the author had to say resonated with me now and then， via these fucked up people。 I think what I found most disappointing is the very broad strokes they are painted in， because sadly very little is later filled in。 Spoilers。I found it hard to invest in the idea of Frank and Eleanor because to me their relationship just Cleopatra and Frankenstein is （eventually） a tender book about human relationships across all spectrums。 Maybe I am skewing as fucked up as these characters because a lot of what the author had to say resonated with me now and then， via these fucked up people。 I think what I found most disappointing is the very broad strokes they are painted in， because sadly very little is later filled in。 Spoilers。I found it hard to invest in the idea of Frank and Eleanor because to me their relationship just reads as the same honeymoon infatuation that he and Cleo enjoy at the beginning of the book。 We are led to believe it's serious this time because he's six months sober。 Zoe lucks out on her first go as a sex worker with the best daddy ever， has her first orgasm and becomes a sort of sex therapist？ Quentin's gender awakenings are reduced to a corset worn in public but then he gets hooked on meth and is never seen again。 I think the writing shows that Mellors is capable of more， so I hope to see it in future endeavours because I didn't hate this book as much as other reviewers seem to。 。。。more
Bryony Indecisive Reader
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‘“Wanker，” said Cleo and took a bite。 “You’re in America now，” Frank said。 “Here， I’m just an asshole。”’CW: Drug use， drinking， alcoholism， gender dysphoria， graphic sex scenes， emotional cheating， physical cheating， marriage unfaithfulness， depression， death of parent （remembered）， animal neglect， animal deathI’m not usually a contemporary book reader， and even less regularly a literary fiction person。 But something about the blurb of this really appealed to me， so I thought I’d try it。I liked… ‘“Wanker，” said Cleo and took a bite。 “You’re in America now，” Frank said。 “Here， I’m just an asshole。”’CW: Drug use， drinking， alcoholism， gender dysphoria， graphic sex scenes， emotional cheating， physical cheating， marriage unfaithfulness， depression， death of parent （remembered）， animal neglect， animal deathI’m not usually a contemporary book reader， and even less regularly a literary fiction person。 But something about the blurb of this really appealed to me， so I thought I’d try it。I liked… maybe the first 30%。 Although the characters weren’t necessarily all likeable， some of them were interesting – the side characters more so to me than the main characters。 I enjoyed the characters that explored their sexuality and their identity， and I liked some of the writing。But then we just hit one chapter， one character， and for me it started to go downhill。 There were stirrings of cheating which made me uncomfortable – only emotional at the start， but it was the physical cheating that pushed me to DNF。 There’s also not quite animal abuse but animal neglect and I just didn’t like it。 I stopped wanting to pick it up because I was enjoying it and started to only pick it up to finish it， so I DNFd it to read a book I’m actually excited for。 I’m kind of disappointed because I did enjoy the start， but I also know I shouldn’t be entirely surprised because， like I said， I stepped out my comfort zone with this one anyway。（DNF at 57%） 。。。more
Gemma
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I am so impressed by this debut novel and found it very moving， witty and clever in its observations of relationships and friendships。The story is centered around Cleo and Frank who meet and have an instant romantic connection which leads to marriage very quickly。 We follow the many highs and lows in their marriage and the challenges they face together and individually， from the 20 year age gap between them， Frank's drink problem and Cleo's struggles with loneliness and mental health。 The narrat I am so impressed by this debut novel and found it very moving， witty and clever in its observations of relationships and friendships。The story is centered around Cleo and Frank who meet and have an instant romantic connection which leads to marriage very quickly。 We follow the many highs and lows in their marriage and the challenges they face together and individually， from the 20 year age gap between them， Frank's drink problem and Cleo's struggles with loneliness and mental health。 The narrative occasionally moves away from Cleo and Frank and focuses on a friend or family member whose connection to the couple has an impact on their life or outlook。 While it took me a while to realise the significance and bigger picture of these plot threads， the author did a fantastic job of weaving them all together to give us a broader perspective and enabling us to see the central couple through different lenses。 The book is an honest and open examination of the complexities of relationships and how two people coming together can change the lives of those around them too。 I loved the depth and uniqueness of the characters and felt fully invested in their journeys from the beginning。 I think Coco Mellors is an author to watch out for if her debut novel is anything to go by。 Thank you to Netgalley and 4th Estate for the ARC。 。。。more
Leah
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a really sad story with very boring and unlikeable main characters。 picked it up bc of the cover and title， as well as having heard it being compared to Conversations with Friends which i loved。 BUT it was really dragging so i DNF at 50%。 cleo had such a boring storyline and frank was not interesting enough for all these hot young women to be into him🤚 also the straight older problematic man with young artsy woman is just tired。 i did enjoy the writing style though， and would’ve read an entire b a really sad story with very boring and unlikeable main characters。 picked it up bc of the cover and title， as well as having heard it being compared to Conversations with Friends which i loved。 BUT it was really dragging so i DNF at 50%。 cleo had such a boring storyline and frank was not interesting enough for all these hot young women to be into him🤚 also the straight older problematic man with young artsy woman is just tired。 i did enjoy the writing style though， and would’ve read an entire book about quentin tho🫖 。。。more
BookBagDC
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This is a story about unexpected paths。 Cleo， a 24 year-old British expat who left England to come to New York to study painting， and Frank， a 40-something advertising executive， meet in an elevator on New Year's Eve。 They are drawn to each other and， after a short time， get married。 Their impulsive union at first seems magical， and Cleo and Frank are both amazed to have found just what they needed at just the right time。 Soon， however， their marriage changes the direction of not just their l This is a story about unexpected paths。 Cleo， a 24 year-old British expat who left England to come to New York to study painting， and Frank， a 40-something advertising executive， meet in an elevator on New Year's Eve。 They are drawn to each other and， after a short time， get married。 Their impulsive union at first seems magical， and Cleo and Frank are both amazed to have found just what they needed at just the right time。 Soon， however， their marriage changes the direction of not just their lives but the lives of those in their friends， family， and co-workers， in ways they could have never expected。 The book alternates between the perspectives of Cleo， Frank， several of their closest friends， Frank's sister， and Frank’s new co-worker， showing how， in this time of isolation and interconnection， the choices of two individuals can so strongly reverberate through everyone in their orbit。 This was a very interesting read。 I appreciated so many aspects of the narrative， which resonated particularly strongly at this moment in time -- the desperation for connection even when you are surrounded by people; the divergence and convergence of different generations' experience in the modern time; and the distance between what we imagine will make us happy and what we actually need。 The book also offered a nuanced examination of the complexity of navigating the push and pull among romantic， family， and friend relationships。 Strongly recommended！ 。。。more
Sam
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This book was magical from start to finish。 From the first sentence you’re completely invested in the characters， intrigued by their lives， hopeful for their futures。 You’re sad when they’re sad， angry when they’re angry， happy when they’re elated， confused when they’re unsure。 It was the most profoundly human reading experience I’ve had in a good， long while。 What a beautiful triumph of words—what a beautiful triumph of the human soul。
Jeatherhane Reads
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Cleo， 24， and 40ish Frank meet in an elevator on New Year's eve。 Their conversation includes this exchange:"Pussy，" said Frank quickly。 "Is my bag。"。。。"And you？""My bag？ Dick。" She laughed， then tilted her head to consider this further。 "Maybe with a side bag of pussy。 But just a small one。 Like one of those little clutches you wear to the opera。""Frank nodded。 "An evening purse of pussy。""Exactly。 As opposed to， like， a duffle bag of dick。""A portemanteau of penis。""A carry-all of cock。""A back Cleo， 24， and 40ish Frank meet in an elevator on New Year's eve。 Their conversation includes this exchange:"Pussy，" said Frank quickly。 "Is my bag。"。。。"And you？""My bag？ Dick。" She laughed， then tilted her head to consider this further。 "Maybe with a side bag of pussy。 But just a small one。 Like one of those little clutches you wear to the opera。""Frank nodded。 "An evening purse of pussy。""Exactly。 As opposed to， like， a duffle bag of dick。""A portemanteau of penis。""A carry-all of cock。""A backpack of boners。"This is on page 8， and that's where I stopped reading。 No mater how good the rest of the book is， I will never get past this。 If reading about strangers discussing pussy and dick is your bag， you might like this book。 It's not my bag。 。。。more
Lejla Hodzic
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3。5 stars rounded upSummary: Frankenstein is the monster and it’s repeated multiple times throughout the book， but in a self-destructive way， Cleopatra is too。Frank and Cleo meet at a chance encounter and charm each other into marriage。 Frank has abundance where Cleo has grown used to being left in want。 And unlike the classic romance novel you would expect， this is the tale of their undoing。 Told from their perspectives and at times those of their family and friends， the novel breaks down the t 3。5 stars rounded upSummary: Frankenstein is the monster and it’s repeated multiple times throughout the book， but in a self-destructive way， Cleopatra is too。Frank and Cleo meet at a chance encounter and charm each other into marriage。 Frank has abundance where Cleo has grown used to being left in want。 And unlike the classic romance novel you would expect， this is the tale of their undoing。 Told from their perspectives and at times those of their family and friends， the novel breaks down the trials of communication， temptation， and struggle to maintain your identity while growing into a relationship。Review: The book is the literary version of modern art painting。 Eye-catching and has an air of artistic beauty but also undertones of what am I looking at？ If you can get past the first 30% you will love it。Very avant-garde feel。 Openly referencing sexual topics， behaviors， and events。 While they were far from pointless it was just too abundant for my reading taste。 Liberal in its discussions on gender， identity， sex， feminism， attraction。The characters were archetypes of what real people try to personify themselves as。 I want to love it， but you can’t love something without acknowledging its shortcomings。 The more you read the more you grow to love the title and how they fit the characters。Read if:you want to critically think about modern values， ideas， and societal behaviourslove reading about characters you hatehave the time to let the story unfold 。。。more
Meike
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I was here to celebrate this debut （great title！ great cover！）， but alas， I had to stop reading at 51 % percent because I just couldn't bear it anymore， and I hardly DNF books。 On New Year’s Eve 2006， 24-year-old British artist Cleo meets Frank， a wealthy 40-something advertising executive in New York City。 First romance， then turbulance ensues， as Cleo's artistic ambitions do not develop as expected and Frank drinks quite a lot。 Both protagonists are largely unsympathetic， which wouldn't be a p I was here to celebrate this debut （great title！ great cover！）， but alas， I had to stop reading at 51 % percent because I just couldn't bear it anymore， and I hardly DNF books。 On New Year’s Eve 2006， 24-year-old British artist Cleo meets Frank， a wealthy 40-something advertising executive in New York City。 First romance， then turbulance ensues， as Cleo's artistic ambitions do not develop as expected and Frank drinks quite a lot。 Both protagonists are largely unsympathetic， which wouldn't be a problem （when it comes to writers like Ottessa Moshfegh， it's the whole appeal） if they were interesting。 Needless to say， they are not: Wayward Cleo flexes with the fact that her husband pays， Frank lives his life like he's collecting stories he can tell at drug-fuelled parties （which should also show that this is clearly not an effort in the vein of Sally Rooney， the politics are fundamentally different and here， feminism mainly features as a rhetorical gimmick）。 The text jumped the shark for me when， apparently to illustrate peak quirkiness， Frank impulsively buys an animal from an obviously shady animal trader， he and Cleo think it's super funny to cluelessly purchase such a creature and to keep it in their apartment although it's forbidden in the whole city and they don't know how to provide for its needs， and then neglect it。 These people are assholes （maybe assholes with a trauma， but that's no excuse）， but the way these animal cruelty passages are written， it seems like the writer disagrees and thinks that Cleo and Frank are。。。bohemians？And then there is a whole cast of family and friends that are broadly described， although they hardly add to the main storyline and remain equally cliched: The mean stepmom， the jealous sister， the gay best friend。。。*siiiigh*。 It's a cast right out of a 90's sitcom。 And the text is way， way too long， there is not enough plot or depth to support this many pages。 The lives of all of these people， their feelings and the events they attend feel stale， like déjà-vus。 I wish I could have loved this more。 。。。more
Susan Hampson
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This debut novel had me hypnotised from early on。 Firstly I was intrigued by the title。 Was Cleopatra the beauty I envisaged and Frankenstein the monster， who was impossible to love。 Cleo wasn’t just young in years she was immature， impulsive， reckless， and in need of a green card。 Frank， twenty years older， is successful in his career， but a full-blown alcoholic that should have given up wild parties long ago。The pair were drawn to each other， both needing something at that moment in time。 Fran This debut novel had me hypnotised from early on。 Firstly I was intrigued by the title。 Was Cleopatra the beauty I envisaged and Frankenstein the monster， who was impossible to love。 Cleo wasn’t just young in years she was immature， impulsive， reckless， and in need of a green card。 Frank， twenty years older， is successful in his career， but a full-blown alcoholic that should have given up wild parties long ago。The pair were drawn to each other， both needing something at that moment in time。 Frank was too set in his ways， and Cleo was too immature to deal with his needs， let alone her own。 They were thrown together in a whirlwind of parties and wild living， but they were worlds apart， with friends that had nothing in common。This story just seemed to play out in my mind as I read it， each character alive and taking on their role trying to find a different missing link that neither of them fit。 I wanted this to work， but the toxic relationship that it was， was destroying them。 When you live your life making choices just to hurt your partner， then you simply aren’t living。 I couldn’t leave it alone。 It is a fabulous debut。I wish to thank Net Galley and the publisher for a copy of this book that I have reviewed honestly。 。。。more
Chloe Newman
，
an absolute masterpiece， RTC—« when the darkest part of you meets the darkest part of me， it creates light。 » well， where do I even begin with my new favourite book？ I genuinely think I hit the jackpot and unsure how any book is going to top this one in 2022。 like everyone else on bookstagram at the moment， I read and adored Cleopatra & Frankenstein。 Mellors crafted an array of characters I still think about now， our titular characters， Zoe， Eleanor， Santiago… I haven’t been this enthralled with an absolute masterpiece， RTC—« when the darkest part of you meets the darkest part of me， it creates light。 » well， where do I even begin with my new favourite book？ I genuinely think I hit the jackpot and unsure how any book is going to top this one in 2022。 like everyone else on bookstagram at the moment， I read and adored Cleopatra & Frankenstein。 Mellors crafted an array of characters I still think about now， our titular characters， Zoe， Eleanor， Santiago… I haven’t been this enthralled with a story for a very long time。 the story opens with our titular characters Cleo and Frank meeting at a New Year’s Eve party。 Cleo in her mid twenties， Frank in his forties form an unlikely relationship and then get married。 from then on we follow their marriage through multiple perspectives of the people in their lives， Frank’s sister， Cleo’s best friend which ends up forming a complete， beautiful and tragic picture of our story。 I don’t want to say much more as I have to admit I went into this pretty blind， but my goodness @cocomellors is an author to watch out for and I can’t wait to see what she writes next。 add this to your TBR immediately， it’s out 17th February 💙thank you @4thestate for my proof copy。 。。。more
rebecca
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