Young Blood - Stephanie von Harrach, Sifiso Mzobe

DNF @ about 75 pages in. 

 

I'm ill and have been resting most of the day, so I thought it might be a good moment to tackle my TBR pile shelves. 

 

This is an advance copy I grabbed a couple of years ago, but it turns out the story just doesn't work for me. The translation was clunky in places, which didn't help—I can see how the writing may have had a lot more charm in its original English. What made me give up on it, though, was the main character's treatment of his girlfriend. It may be realistic for a guy his age and background, but I simply don't care to spend much time on narrators who are that unapologetic about their abuse/misogyny.

 

He keeps trying to pressure his girlfriend into sex, engages in emotional blackmail, gives her the silent treatment when she says she's not ready yet, doesn't care about her crying while they drive home, and constantly cheats on her with other women. And yet, somehow, the jacket copy suggests that it's his getting into stealing cars which puts a strain on the relationship.

(show spoiler)

 

Edit: Looks like the spoiler tags in the text editor don't work. How do I hide spoilers properly? 

 

Edit: I think I got it to work!