Sad girl fiction at its finest, with dark academia vibes and a queer storyline I loved. I was fascinated by the relationship between Mallory and her much older college professor, and the way Mallory’s desire is both a product of and influence on her life and perspective. This is one of those books where not a lot happens plot wise, but it’s so beautifully written that I didn’t want to put it down.

This book felt so lonely, in the way that many coming-of-age stories ignore. At its core, it's a book about isolation, and how love (and the lack thereof) can give you that isolation and also take it away.

A memorable love story between a college student and professor. The writing style is reminiscent of Sally Rooney. It was a very impressive debut work with lyrical prose and compelling plot.

As I was saying, I had an e-ARC of this book. Something you have to know is that synopsis on Netgalley sometimes are shorter than the ones on Goodreads and retailers websites, especially earlier on. This was the case with this book, the synopsis was shorter and it made it sound more a forbidden romance than a literary fiction book. Moreover, even on Goodreads the synopsis literally says, in the first two lines, “A novel about a young woman's life-altering affair with a much older, married woman”. You’ll excuse me if I thought the affair was going to be the center of the plot, or at least a bit more explored.
What I got instead was a sad girl book, without a real plot. While sometimes I appreciate the “no plot just vibes” kind of stories, the vibes have to be immaculate and this was not the case for me. It was just a boring series of moments in the life of this girl.
I understand wanting to highlight how sometimes lives are just lives and nothing particularly special happens, or how sometimes when you are “miserable”. It’s a word the author abuses, because I think the MC is depressed, but since this is set in the early 2000s and she does not go to therapy (of course she doesn’t), she just wanted to use a different word.
Also, she never says lesbian and it bothered me a lot. It is set in the early 2000s, not in the Middle Ages, for Christ’s sake. I don’t like when authors do this kind of things, I much prefer straightforward terminology and writing, but this is just a me thing.
I did not like the writing style, as you may have gathered, since it was too generic for my taste. I don’t know how else to explain it, but it felt very surface level while trying too hard to be deep and literary. I hated every single moment of my reading experience and I cannot wait to forget all about this book as soon as I am done writing this review.
I did not care for the main character, which lead me to not caring about what happened to her or what had happened to her in the past. She wasn’t an unlikeable character per se, she was just plain and boring and made it really difficult to empathise or even care for her.
The plot wasn’t there, so I really cannot comment on it. What I can say is that I did not like the fact that the book started in the present, then went back for whole chapters to the past, and then just moved on to the future, fastforwarding to four year after the affair and then five years after that, with an epilogue which was, in all honesty, pretty useless and I did not understand the choice. It was all very sudden and the pace was all over the place.
If you usually read this kind of books in which the main character just goes about life, is miserable, doesn’t really do anything of not and nothing really happens, this might be the book for you. If you, like me, wanted to read about an affair and how abuse of power — which is what I thought this was going to deal with, to be honest — in academic contexts is very much a thing and how even women can abuse pupils, maybe skip this one.

I get the feeling that this author was trying to write In a vague and profound way, and while I love this style of writing, this one fell a bit flat. I kept waiting for a very profound and eye-opening conclusion to Mallory’s experience with the woman, but it was very underwhelming and I wish there had been a bit more reflection, internally, on Mallory’s part. She still seemed to be struggling with her experience, even on the very last page with Caroline. There was so much more that she could have said, but perhaps this was the author’s intention. 2.5, rounded up to 3.

I found the simple, spare writing of this story quite hypnotic. Told entirely from Mallory’s POV, a teenage affair with a charismatic unnamed woman, influences her life and choices so entirely, as she embraces her sexuality and finds her path, after the death of her mother. The loneliness of both characters was palpable, and I found Mallory’s naivity and intensity relatable in a nostalgic way. Lovely writing.

I wrote my feedback in the audio version, but I will quickly write here that I really enjoyed this sad, complicated, mysterious novel. I enjoyed the wat Michelle Hart slowly connected the dots for the reader between the infamous "Banker's Mistress" and Jolene/Paris, and incredible resilience of the heroine to survive and survive again.
Well told story, well-developed characters, refreshing diversity of characters.

WE DO WHAT WE DO IN THE DARK is a sapphic coming-of-age novel that touches on grief, love, heartbreak, and isolation. The story follows Mallory, a college freshman who is having an affair with a married, middle-aged professor at her school. Mallory is infatuated with the (unnamed) woman—fascinated by her outlook on life and how effortlessly she can articulate Mallory’s messy thoughts and feelings into words. We follow Mallory from youth to adulthood and see how this defining relationship influences her throughout life. Seeing the world through Mallory’s eyes felt deeply intimate and I was able to relate to her character on many levels. Her loneliness and grief were painfully palpable. This is a poignant read that explores the complexities of relationships and identity. A quiet, bittersweet novel that I think many people will connect with and want to read in one sitting.

Thank you to NetGalley and Riverhead for this ARC.

I love Michelle Hart's prose. This book might be spare, but it cuts deep.

Looking forward to the next one.

We Do What We Do in the Dark skips that very fine line between abstract and realism. It's a queer coming-of-age story that follows Mallory as she comes to terms with her sexuality, the emotionally scarring impacts of the loss of her mother, and navigating life as a socially inept girl.

Mallory was pure, scarred, hurt, and emotionally messy. I enjoyed reading about Mallory's formative years and seeing how she started the illicit affair with her married college professor aka the "woman" and how this molded her as an individual. I think it was quite iconic how the author penned the woman as attractive and alluring to young Mallory, but as she progresses in age and came into her own in the world, she begins to question all she admired. It's a queer version of idolization and the Russian temptress fit the bill perfectly.

The prose of rich, riveting, and deeply moving. The author pens a love story to all the queer girls out there who find themselves lost or confused and I applaud her for this. It is very reminiscent of "call me by your name" but with a sadder edge to it that borders on morbid at times.

I am dismayed to say that while I enjoyed a lot of aspects of this book it felt extremely monotone! Mallory continues on one track and while others may like the neat way everything folded I wanted more! More intrigues, more drama, more earth-shattering self-realizations.

Thank you, Riverhead for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review.

BOOK REVIEW

A dark, reflective account of a coming-of-age story…

📙We Do What We Do in the Dark By Michelle Hart
📙Fiction/Romance
📙 🌟🌟🌟🌟 4 stars

💐Synopsis:
“Mallory is a freshman in college, reeling from her mother's recent death, when she encounters the woman. She sees her for the first time at the university's gym, immediately entranced. Soon, they meet, drawn by an electric tension and shared past wounds; before long, they begin sleeping together in secret. Self-possessed, successful, brilliant, and aloof--the woman is everything Mallory wants...and wants to be. Desiring not only the woman but also the idea of who she is when they're together, Mallory retreats from the rest of the world, solidifying a sense of aloneness that has both haunted and soothed her since childhood and will continue to do so for years even after the affair ends. As an adult, Mallory must decide whether to stay safely in isolation or step fully into the world, to confront what the woman meant to her and how their relationship shaped her, for better or worse.”

💐What I loved:
✔️Hart’s writing is richly layered and meaningful. Beautifully written!
✔️Mallory’s life-altering, delicate, and lonely relationship to the older, married professor that feels devastating at times.
✔️The lovely dance of solitude and connection that the reader feels all throughout the book.

Thank you @netgalley and @riverheadbooks for the e-galley!

This is a quiet and nuanced book with a main character that will get underneath your skin…in a good way. It is a touching look at loneliness, grief, and love.

Mallory is a college student who is in a relationship with her professor. She doesn’t care that her lover has a husband. She doesn’t want to think too much at all. Her mother’s death right before her affair leaves her numb and looking for something to fill the void. The entire book is from Mallory’s perspective, making it such an impactful story. We are completely inside her head for the duration and as the story develops we begin to understand her motivation. Her relationship with her unamed lover is so complicated, messy, and honest.

I read it in one sitting, not just because it is short on pages, but because I was so invested in Mallory. The ending was satisfying in that we finally get to see some peace for Mallory and self acceptance, which is something we all strive for in life, particularly at a young age. This was an unexpected delight.

This isn't normally the genre I read, but I saw it on Net Galley and decided to give it a go, and I'm glad I did. I felt invested in the characters and their stories. I would recommend this book to friends and patrons. Thank you for the digital advanced copy.

The writing is well done but the plot was lacking. None of the characters are very likable but they’re understandable. The ending redeemed this book for me.

Since the invention of Call Me By Your Name, there have been more short stories about the newfound loneliness after a young, power-different relationship [citation needed]. This story seems more common than most - young girl meets older woman, it's inappropriate, nearly cruel, and life alterating. From the very beginning the stakes are clear and Michelle Hart writes with the speed of someone trying to capture their idea before it disappears. And for most of the book the prose catapults the reader through each and every day spent within this affair. However, like most short stories stretched to novellas, there's a break in narrative that stalls rather than illuminates. I'll personally blame the editors of Big Book trying to justify a hardcover purchase for what is essentially a four hour beach read.

We Do What We Do In The Dark is engaging and observant. I do wish it had a little more bite to it once its premise runs its course, but it is fine simply being a reflective account of a coming-of-age story. Michelle Hart is now on the radar.

I'm still developing my thoughts on We Do What We Do. Its light and heavy at the same time. The story of an affair and a coming-of-age; its about grief and children's literature. Really a unique mix.

This is a very literary read and it feels very important and meaningful and all that jazz. Unfortunately, it’s boring. Nothing happens and when something does happen, it happens with the pacing of a cement shoed tortoise. It’s dull.

This novel is spare, and by the rate at which I read it, quite slim. It creates a very full vision of Mallory's life without ever giving us too much detail--part of the appeal is in the white space in this book. I particularly loved the beginning, before Mallory started psychoanalyzing (in too great of detail) her relationship with the woman. What was obviously a very complicated relationship due to power dynamics and loss and timing just existed, and we experienced all that nuance without being outright told the stakes. I found it very impressive, and moving.

I tore through this and I liked it a lot more than I thought I would. There are parts to it that are really unexpectedly moving (like when Mallory and Joseph talk about Friends) and parts that are a little cliché and obvious (the root of Mallory’s attraction to older women is not cloaked in metaphor).

But that doesn’t really matter, because this is a very well-written book, even if it feels a little unfinished. I wanted to know what happened to Hannah, I would’ve liked to know more about the woman, about Ruth, about Mallory’s father. Seeing the world only through Mallory’s eyes became a little tiring. I think this could benefit from other perspectives and a little more length. I also wonder what the artistic choice of calling the woman only “the woman” was for. So she could be anybody, I guess, but she’s very clearly not. I think I wanted to know more about her.

I know I’m seeming negative but I really did like this book. The positive outweighed the negative by a lot. I just could’ve stayed in this world a little longer and wish I knew more about it.

Stark, beautifully written, and so, so clever in the way the story is delivered. I look forward to future work from this author and to purchase a copy of WE DO WHAT WE DO IN THE DARK upon publication for my own collection.