After reading 20%, I had to dnf. This one was so very slow for me and I couldn’t get into it. I am still looking forward to reading Bunny, but this one wasn’t for me.

I really enjoyed Mona Awad's Rouge. Her books are always such a ride and this was no different. I found the premise very intriguing and timely. The mother-daughter was exceptionally complicated, but realistic and relatable.

I really loved this one and the resolution was surprisingly touching.

Mona Awad’s writing is absolutely captivating, there is nothing I love more than diving into her stories. Rouge in particular was an absolute joy, as it features themes of loss, beauty, and an absurdly familiar sense of self-indulgence. Thank you to NetGalley for sending Rouge my way! I enjoyed the ARC so much I had to buy myself a physical copy!

This was an unfortunate DNF for me. I love Bunny by Mona Awad and this just felt like a completely different writing style. I could not get into the story at all.

This was a different vibe than past Mona Awad novels, but I loved it all the same. This story brings to light the negative consequences of being obsessed with perfection, and the ways in which our trauma can impact our self-worth. Highly recommend.

This was a surprising read with a wildly alluring concept. I’ve only ever read Bunny by Mona Awad but her literary style rings true and is creepier than ever. (In a good way!)

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon Element for providing me with an ARC.

This book is the first in a while to have an extreme emotional effect on me. I finished reading it a while ago, but have sat on it because I wasn't sure how to review it. I read this entire book in one night - I stayed up until 3a.m. to finish it and cried for a good while after that. Was not expecting to be crying over jellyfish in 2023, but now I can say that I did.

There's something about Awad's writing in this book that's beautifully poetic and haunting while, at times, also strangely comforting. Awad masterfully depicts themes centering around the cultish reality of the beauty industry as well as grief, and she digs deeper into the effects of these things - how they effect the perceptions and relationships we have with ourselves, but also the perceptions and relationships we have with others.

I could go on with my own experience of reading this book, but I think it's better if you experience it for yourself. Looking back, this is one of the most memorable books that I read in 2023.

At the end of the day, I don't think this author and I quite gel. This book was weird for weird's sake in my opinion, but I do think it has a perfect reader. That reader is not me. I like to at least understand the threads of the plot while I'm reading and I was lost throughout.

This was EXCELLENT, and I'm so relieved because after loving Bunny as much as I did, I was worried Mona Awad wouldn't be able to grab me with the same ferocity and weirdness that she did with that one. If you loved that one, you'll love this - it's got the same weird vibes, almost dream-like but rooted in reality. I love books about difficult mother/daughter relationships and Mirabelle's trouble with her mother were definitely up my alley. This one did have a few moments where I was like "WHAT?", but in a good way! I loved it and will continue to pick up & read anything Awad writes.

I will read anything Mona Awad writes. This was a beautiful, dark, gothic fairy tale of a book. The ending was perfect.

I had such a hard time getting into this book. I was a huge fan of Bunny and All's Well by Awad but this one fell flat for me. I didn't really care much for the characters or plot but Awad always does something special with each of her books so I'm still excited to see what she comes up with next.

This was weird. Just plain weird. And I loved it. A total fever dream in classic Mona awad style. She just can’t miss

Apologies for how late this is getting to you Marketing Team (right?). Life got horrendously hectic but I'm incredibly honored and appreciative for this opportunity

The review:

I will be reviewing this book with the same level of seriousness as my Letterboxd/Goodreads reviews.

Mona Awad is an evil genius. She has settled on her brand of crazy and I think it really has solidified in Rouge. it's one of those books that you'd only like if you liked the author's previous books and I mean that in the most complimentary way possible. She's literally carving out her own audience, her very own niche in the literary canon. Quite forcefully and quite strangely.

The only fault I have is that the middle got kind of repetitive in terms of the conversations the characters were having, the scenes kind of cycling through the same scenario, but all in all, had a killer ending like all of Awad's books -- the final act being the literary equivalent of the Big Bang. Scathing commentary on the beauty community an Western ideals of beauty, genuinely made me uncomfortable and my jaw agape, skin crawlies, all the good feelings that come with reading a Mona Awad novel.

Thank you endlessly to Simon and Schuster and Netgalley for granting me access to this sacred ARC and for putting up with my lateness. ❤️

I thought it would be impossible to rival Awad's "Bunny," but this one did it for me. I've done a lot of diving into horror this year, and this one was one of the only books that actually scared me. It wasn't even the premise and much as the writing--the tone and atmosphere of this book had me thinking about it in the shower, looking over my shoulder. Mona Awad has definitely entered my "I will read anything this author writes" list with this one.

I had very few 5 star reads this year. This was one!

Awad takes on the beauty industry, fairy tale retellings, and grieving in this one. Still well written, but I did not enjoy as much as the last two novels she published. The ending, in particular, though, was very well done.

Well this was not what I expected… the lucid parts were interesting and I found myself wanting to know what would happen to Belle. The author expertly created many moments of pure confusion and chaos which I had to admire but did not necessarily enjoy reading.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of Rouge.

I love this author's novel ideas; they're sinister, creepy with horror elements and I'm always up for a creepy story.

The thing is I'm not a fan of the author's writing style. I couldn't get through Bunny despite all the rave reviews.

But I still wanted to give the author a try and the premise of Rouge was creepy intriguing.

I think the author's writing style isn't for me.

I love the premise of Rouge, and I liked the horror elements, the mirror, the not so subtle digs at how much our society praises beauty and young and how far people would go to stop the aging process.

There were scenes and descriptions that made me pat my own face, think about my own beauty rituals (am I doing enough or too much?) and how much these rituals are OCD related, that it gives people a sense of control when engaging in these multilayered routines.

The Tom Cruise element was bizarre; at first I didn't get it, wondered if the author chose Tom Cruise because he's the biggest celebrity ever and the most known to most people, but these vignettes were too bizarre to be relatable or understandable.

I think it would have worked better if this figure was Belle's father or someone from her past. I wondered if Belle and Noelle had a shared mental illness.

Maybe I'm not smart enough to understand the story.

The premise had real potential and I enjoyed the creepy undertones but I'm not a fan of the author's writing style.

This was a very dreamy, surreal book that went on for a little too long for my taste. I wish the horror elements at play were cranked up a little more, but it mostly read as a mystery. I loved the Tom Cruise character. For a more compelling take on the horrors of the beauty industry, I’d recommend “Natural Beauty” by Ling Ling Huang.

I think I would have enjoyed this a lot more had I not just read Black Sheep by Rachel Harrison. They are both suuuuper similar to one another. But as a Beauty and the Beast retelling, I think this was a good one, tho I have not read many adult retellings so it might just be the novelty. Overall it was an interesting reading experience, it held my interest despite the fact that I had the gist of how the story would wind up, which normally would be a big turn off for me, but in this case I was invested but there was enough unknown to keep me at the tip of my seat.

3.5. A fun niche read that would appeal to a certain audience: goth girls, disney adults, fairy tell lovers!

As usual, Awad is a master genre-mixer. Magical realism, horror, supernatural, contemporary; you name it, <I>Rouge</I> has it!

The comparisons to <I>Bunny</I> can’t be helped, due to both novels heavily featuring a cult. I was thrilled about this because Awad narrates depersonalization and memory loss like no other. Awad gets readers lost along with the narrator, and the prose takes on a foamy quality that quickly slips away. Both novels had me equally entranced, but I am also happy to report that is where the similarities in these novels end. <I>Rouge</I> stands completely on its own two feet.

Our protagonist Belle returns home for her mother’s funeral, an event that quickly forces her demons to surface. Throughout the novel, she stands off with deeply ingrained euro-centric beauty standards, repressed memories, and, of course, Tom Cruise. (Sort of.) I deeply enjoyed the plot from start to finish, loving how I never knew what was coming next.

As wonderful as the plot of <I>Rouge</I> is, it is the thematic use of grief that shone brightest for me. The death and mourning of the mother-daughter relationship leads us to a stunning and utterly human conclusion that has continued to stick with me since finishing. This is a novel that’s worth re-reading, again and again.

Thank you to netgalley and the Simon Element for my arc in exchange for an honest review!