This follow-up has the key strengths of the original, particularly its scabrous satire on upper-middle-class American femininity ... There is a brinkmanship to this kind of satire; it can all too easily cross into misogyny. But while Awad happily annihilates these characters, she seems to get a real kick out of femmeness ... Suffers from a certain sequelitis. It’s baggier than the original. Its metaphors for creativity feel less earned ... Inhabiting their loathsomeness becomes a bit of a chore. This is redeemed, however, when we come to the last voice of the novel ... Awad is here to show us that romantasy can be serious literature, and nothing can really be too camp.
Awad adds another brilliant roast of academia to the shelves, once again unmatched in playful language. Readers will laugh to tears and be fully immersed in this ethereal trip back to Warren.
Her command of acerbic wit and satiric plotlines, talent for characterization, and sharp metacriticism of creative writing programs make her story sing in the way only bleeding tongues, broken hearts, and battle axes can.
Satirical and surrealist ... Awad’s pacing is uneven, but she sticks the landing with a delightfully unexpected and unhinged ending. Her wit, humor, and metafictional prowess are on full display in this prequel, sequel, expanded upside-down revision, or whatever you want to call it. Hilarious, grotesque, and standing slightly in the shadow of its sibling.
