... a wildly exuberant novel that doesn't shy away from the weirder and more disgusting parts of life. Vacuum in the Dark is a funny and surprisingly sweet book about a young woman who grew up too fast and is trying desperately to reinvent herself ... There are a lot of things to love about Vacuum in the Dark, but the character of Mona... is the main one ... Beagin is a wonderfully funny writer who also happens to tackle serious subjects, which few authors are able to pull off successfully ... the result is a comic novel that's a joy to read but never frivolous or superficial. Beagin is unafraid to take risks, and they all pay off here — Vacuum in the Dark is an excellent book by a writer with a singular voice.
It’s a clever device, supplying Mona with a self-questioning conscience, inner voice of reason, the occasional punch line — a glimpse of the interior life of a character who often appears to be operating on autopilot ... [Mona's story contains] a sort of existential drift to it, a sense that of all the houses to be inhabited and roles to be played and liaisons to be had, none offers much beyond the moment; although the moments — sharply drawn, sexually charged, wry with Mona’s deadpan wit — often suffice.
Inventing situations and conversations that are off-the-charts in both weirdness and relatability, Beagin fashions an enchantingly intriguing main character in unfiltered, warmhearted Mona. This story of a woman embracing life’s what-ifs and her own darkness is a great read-alike for Melissa Broder’s The Pisces (2018).
Beagin’s storytelling runs episodic and almost willfully odd — like a Jim Jarmusch movie dipped in Windex and adobe dust. But there’s light in the darkness too, and some true eccentric soul in her Vacuum.
... sharp, sexy and sad ... Vacuum in the Dark is wacky, wicked and funny on the surface but roiling below with danger and deep seriousness. Beagin’s writing style is breezy and light, and Mona is delightful and witty. This makes for enjoyable reading but ensures that the punches the book packs are hard-driving and always on target ... This is a very good, original and human-hearted novel.
Mona is a tremendously engaging narrator ... Beagin excels at mixing comedy and pathos in a way that dilutes neither ... Beagin secures her position as a new writer to watch.
