What do readers think of Bad Animals by Sarah Braunstein? Write your own review.

Bad Animals invites readers on a tumultuous journey through time, blending elements of science fiction, romance, and mystery. Set in 1995, the novel introduces Maeve Cosgrove, a buttoned-up librarian in a quiet Maine town. Her life takes an unexpected turn when a brutal encounter with a ghost from her past leaves her battered and disoriented, almost drowning in the Thames.

The central premise is captivating: Alex wakes up in a derelict room, older than he should be, with no memory of the intervening years. The days shift unpredictably between 1999 and 2010, leaving Alex perpetually disoriented. As he navigates this temporal maze, he discovers that seemingly insignificant actions have far-reaching consequences.

While the concept is intriguing, execution falls short in places. The writing lacks depth, and character development feels one-dimensional. Alex’s emotional journey could have been more nuanced. Additionally, the romance subplot, while promising, remains underdeveloped.

The novel’s strength lies in its portrayal of the human condition. Alex grapples with existential questions, haunted by the past and uncertain of the future. His relationships—particularly with Holly—add emotional weight to the narrative. The moments of connection and loss resonate deeply.

The pacing keeps readers engaged, but some transitions between time periods feel abrupt. The mystery surrounding Alex’s predicament builds suspense, urging us to unravel the secrets hidden within the temporal fabric.

Maeve is a part of us all - our obsessions, our frustrations, our insecurities and our desires. Ms Braunstein takes us on a journey, sometimes feeling like a quest, as we visit the areas of Maeve's life that overwhelm and drive her. We get glimpses of who she is, along with who she was and who she could possibly be in the future. This book is a beautiful study of our own circumstance and brings reflection of how might we react if given the opportunities or temptations. It also takes us on an exploration of control for how we want other to see us or what we might hide from those who know us well; but most interestingly it takes us on a journey of preconceived notions and misunderstood intentions. This book will keep you thinking and feeling from beginning to end.

I love books, libraries and authors, and I hoped 'to like this book better than I did. It seemed to me to be all over the place, and made me wonder if the author ever decided exactly which story she was telling.

I kept reading, not because the plot was suspenseful or exciting, but in hope of a revelation that would tie it all together. I didn't hate the book and think it might promote a LOT of discussion for book clubs.

This book was a very good read and, as I reviewed the posts already written in praise of the book, I do not want to be redundant. I do want to add, though, that this would be an excellent book club selection because it has the multiple levels of plot structure, character development, and just plain good writing that we all enjoy.

This book is a subtle, intriguing unfolding of Maeve Cosgrove's clouded perspective into more clarity and subsequently her awareness of her own emotional growth and power. This story will leave the reader feeling uneasy yet inspired by some aspects of the literary creative process. Good book to discuss.

A good solid read. What I liked best about this novel is that the characters showed human flaws, vulnerabilities and weaknesses...the writer succeeded in giving me plausible people.

What began as an introspective and mundane bit of belly button gazing by an insecure librarian became a complex and fascinating look at the true inner workings of a repressed an deluded middle-aged woman. Maeve's identity as a wife and mother is fragile, so her sense of self is sustained by her work at the library. When that abruptly ends, Maeve must find another way to feel meaningful. So begins a story whose multi-layered characters lead us to see that reality exists in the mind, and one mind is not necessarily sharing the reality of another's.
Braunstein's prose is elegant and compelling. However, she muddied the narrative with sub-plots that go unresolved and are unnecessary. The bold daughter and her botany experiments lends nothing to the narrative except to point out how different she is from either parent. One the other hand, Braunstein deftly weaves seeming disparate plot lines – Libby's tale, the lives of refuge Will and librarian Katrina, and the famous author and his wife's relationship into a whole with Maeve as the common thread. Clearly Braunstein is a writer who forces us to ponder what is real and whether perception is reality.

I could not put this book down! Bad Animals by Sarah Braunstein was a thoroughly enjoyable read. I loved the unpredictability of the story; just when I thought I had figured out where we were going next, the book made an unexpected turn (with one exception). And this happened more than once, which is probably why I could not stop reading! The characters are well-developed. You get a true sense of their heartbreak, sense of loss, frustration, ambition, jealousy, narcissism. I particularly liked Braunstein's writing style at certain points in the book: you were given glimpses of what was to happen in the future, but those events actually did not appear later in the book as you would expect. Yet, they did not need to be recaptured later in the book because you already understood from the "glimpse," what had happened (I probably didn't explain that well, so you'll have to read the book to understand). I will definitely be recommending it to my book club.