MixedFinancial Times
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https://www.ft.com/content/576a1990-0b63-11e8-8eb7-42f857ea9f09
The book is neither entirely a memoir nor fully a novel, and flounders between both forms. Herra’s raunchy, raspy voice sits uneasily with her conscience — terrible things have happened to her, but she has also committed terrible acts — and too much of the novel is bogged down in back-story about her parents or various lovers ...
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https://www.ft.com/content/576a1990-0b63-11e8-8eb7-42f857ea9f09
At shorter length, and with a less scattered narrative framework, The Woman At 1,000 Degrees could have been more satisfying. If you’re open to novels that are imperfect but disturbing, it is still worthwhile getting to know Herra and her hand-grenade life, and to explore Helgason’s growing oeuvre of rich and highly unusual writings.
