The End of Our Story

by Meg Haston

[Joséphine]

Initial thoughts: The End of Our Story ranks among the books I've had the most difficulty rating. The prose is beautiful and well-crafted, which engaged me throughout the book, even when I became uncomfortable with the plot and characters. My discomfort diverged between irritation at double standards and dealing with the complexities of domestic violence.

It didn't sit well with me that one count of cheating (rightly) came with repercussions, but on another count was romanticised. That irked me so much, especially because of the gender disparity that come with it. That made me want to go with 1 star.

On the flip side, the complexities of domestic violence were difficult to grapple with because of the pain the characters involved went through. That part was worked through so well on a myriad of fronts, that for that, I would've gone with 4 or maybe even 5 stars. In the end, I decided to go with the middle ground to give weight to both.