I was hooked from the beginning of the book (although it then did drag by the middle). I liked Edie as a messy character who seemed to know her flaws but also be so unaware a times. It was odd that she supplanted herself into the middle of a marriage for so many reasons. One because she was sleeping with the husband (the wife knew - it was an open marriage). And two, because they are white and she is black, but they adopted a black daughter that they don't know how to parent. So they invite Edie into their home to help their daughter be black?

While I understand parts of this book are meant to shed light on racism (and they do), other parts seemed just odd. Why did the wife invite Edie into their home? Why did the husband hide the fact that he was sleeping with her if it was an open marriage?

I didn't love this book, but I didn't hate it.

Though I loved Leilani’s use of language and the overall story of Edie’s life, I wanted a more coherent or maybe just a more involved plot. I will definitely pick up whatever she writes next though!

I liked this book, but man oh man were there some tough moments. I appreciated that, though. I think this book was pretty close to worth the hype for a summer read and was certainly timely. I definitely appreciated that this was an #ownvoices title.

This book was so good. It moved along so quickly, and the lead character had so many different layers to them. I was intrigued by all the different interactions with the mom, and especially how it all wrapped up in the end.

Not for me. I found the main character very confusing, mostly unlikeable, and her story just... odd. For most people this seems to be a "love it or hate it" book and unfortunately I'm in the latter category.

Finished this book this past weekend and it’s taken me a couple of days to let it really sink in. It’s a look into the life of a Black woman in her twenties who’s incredibly lonely and directionless, who enters a relationship with a much older, married white man and his wife. There’s lots to unpack - racism, sexism, struggles with identity and self-worth. It’s raw, uncomfortable, and so, so messy. And the tension! There’s so much tension, especially between Edie (our main character) and the wife. The writing itself may not be everyone’s taste (it’s very “stream-of-consciousness” with lots of metaphors), I struggled a bit with it tbh, but in the end I think it works.

I understand why this book is so well loved. There were moments when a line was so good that I just wanted to stop and savor it. However in general - the writing style wasn’t for me. It felt like every line had been rewritten to a point where the style was screaming “look at what I’m doing” instead of sitting back and letting the story be told. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the advance reading copy.

The genre of a woman being her messy self is a recent one, but what Leilani does it take that genre, and elevates it to another novel. She asks you to imagine, what it means to figure yourself out when you do not have anything to fall back on? Can one even afford the luxury? On the way she sprinkles in with nuances weaving in questions of race, matrimony and what it means to be truly human.

This book definitely set itself apart. It was a unique story that didn’t quite work for me. Great character development and very real dialogue. Just went most of the way with the brakes on.

Edie is young, and trying to make her way in New York. She works in publishing, but what she really wants is to move to the art department. She wants stability, a sense of normalcy, she wants…something else.

She starts seeing a man she met online, who is 23 years older than her, and married (in an open relationship). Their relationship is complex and messy, and doesn’t become any more straightforward when Edie loses her job and ends up moving in with Eric and his family. And, well, you’ll just need to read this for yourself.

This book is lyrical, real, complex, and raw. It’s dark and gritty, but there’s some comedy in there at times too. Somehow this book both punched me in the face and also lulled me into an almost meditative state. It felt like more of an experience than just a book, and I’m amazed that this is the author’s debut novel. It also made me super glad I’m no longer in my twenties, yikes.

I don’t think I’ve done an adequate job of telling you all the reasons why you should pick this one up, but you should.

The ending of this book turned it from a 4 star to a solid 3. I felt like there was no closure and that the author just stopped in the middle of writing. While the writing was super literary, it still felt accessible, if not a little quirky. There were a lot of heavy themes here that felt halfway explored, and I wanted a little more from the author on.

Would definitely read the next from the author.

2.5 rounded up
I honestly don't know what to write for this book. The author would often spend so much time waxing poetic that sentences turned into whole paragraphs and I forgot what the point was. The only character I was really interested in was Akila the adopted daughter. By the end of the book all the characters remained unchanged. All this to say unfortunately Luster did not work for me.

Luster is just my kind of book. It’s quirky, introspective, and just the right pace. It also has a voyeur feel to it as you get to dive into an open marriage through the main character’s involvement with the husband. There’s some really awkward scenarios that made me cringe in a good kind of way. I felt invested enough to be emotionally affected and also intrigued enough to keep reading.

It's embarrassing, but I did not read this book! I'm sorry, but time just kind of got away from me. I'll be better about it in the future.

I'm really stumped about how to rate this book. I liked it, but I didn't always like it at the same time. The writing was fresh and beautiful and I was compelled to keep reading, but I think the writing style was just a little too raw for my taste, which is more a personal preference than anything else. This is a character study, so the plot pacing sometimes felt a little bizarre, but as the plot isn't the driving force of the novel that was okay. It is a super fast read, I was a little surprised by how quickly I got through it. I definitely would recommend it to anyone who enjoys character-driven novels, or novels that are a little different than the mainstream.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my copy of this book.

I wanted to love this but just could not get into it. The writing style just did not mesh with me well and I had to put it down

This is a terrifyingly good book; utterly insane that it's a DEBUT book, as sharp and brilliant and uncompromising as it is. Leilani's prose is propulsive and startlingly memorable, reinventing itself and leaning into the dangers and desire lurking in the corners of rooms, in our heads, in our loneliness(es). This is just so, so good—I devoured it in a single night. A writer whose career I will definitely now follow compulsively for new releases! Gifted this book to a bunch of people and every single person loved it.

A promising debut. . Edie ‘s promiscuity has caught up with her and she is fired from her publishing job. At 23, with a university degree, she tried working a number of low level jobs, but homelessness is looming. Edie goes to live with her boyfriend Eric, his wife Rebecca, and their 12 year old adopted African American daughter. This is a weird book, but life is weird, and Leilani writes a darkly entertaining observation of race, and White privilege.

Raven Leilani’s Luster was one of my most anticipated books of Fall 2020. I had such high expectations and wanted to love it. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. I found myself bored and unable to connect with Edie. She was self-destructive and cold and I just didn’t care about her story. The only chapter I found myself invested in was the final chapter, but that seemed to come out of nowhere and then tied things up quickly. I look forward to seeing what the author writes next.

Thank you to FSG and NetGalley for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

I am def the minority. Creepy, gross, uncomfortable. But maybe that was the point.. I tried a few times to turn my view around but it was for naught...I guess I am too old for this crap