Why I Picked Up The Book

It was a Saturday, and I was on my way to Walmart to pick up some necessities for the upcoming week. My daughter asked me if we could go to the craft aisle after we picked up everything that we needed. She had some new gems that she was itching to glue to anything she could get her 4-year-old hands on. I told her, ” Sure, we can. A few minutes and some heavy bargaining later, we finished up getting her supplies because she managed to convince me to grab her some more glitter and googly eyes. 

As we were leaving the craft aisle, I glanced down the book aisle and made an impulse decision to browse and see what they had. I rarely go down this aisle, but I was in the mood to see what type of fiction books they had. As we were cruising down the aisle, this bright pink book caught my eye. Most of the books were all dark brown, black, or some deep variation of a fall color. I immediately gravitated to this pink book because a lot was going on besides the neon pink cover. 

On the cover were yellow words that read “A Sociopath’s Guide to A Successful Marriage” by M.K. Oliver. I was severely intrigued because what the hell? I picked it up and immediately flipped to the back of the book to read a quick synopsis. Silly me, though, I forgot book covers don’t do that as much anymore; that space is specifically for snippets of book reviews from big publishing companies. I was intrigued enough to buy it. Threw the book in the cart, and we were off to checkout. 

I believe it took almost 2 weeks to finish this book. My uninterrupted reading time is on the bus during the morning shift. I have a 20-minute window of time before I have to get back on the road. So I did 20-minute reading sessions every day. This post is less of a formal review and more of a reflection on the experience of reading this book. I wrote some notes down in my physical journal that I am going to try to explain. What surprised me most was how much easier it became to describe what felt missing than what actually worked.

When Your Brain Needs Lighter Fiction

The first thing I will say is that it is an easy and fun read. If you need something light to rafterread an extremely dark book, this will be perfect for you. Before this read, I had just finished up The Artist Way, and my brain was kind of overwhelmed. I think humans underestimate how emotionally exhausting certain genres can become over time. Sometimes your brain stops looking for transformation and simply wants movement, entertainment, and a temporary escape from constant introspection. 

The Problem I Had With The Main Character

Based on the title, I went into this book with high expectations for the main character. I just knew Lalla Rook was going to throw a loop with her life choices because she is a sociopath. And after getting through a few chapters, I realized that I was wrong. Her character was not complex, in my opinion. Based on the title, I expected Lalla Rook to feel psychologically intense and deeply manipulative. Instead, her character often felt emotionally unfinished, almost like someone experimenting with darkness rather than fully embodying it. At times, it felt less like I was reading about a true sociopath and more like I was watching someone perform what they believed a sociopath should look like. I expected her life choices to be more intense based on the title. I’m not sure if it was just her character or that the writer wasn’t descriptive enough. Not sure. 

Where The Psychological Depth Fell Short

There were a few events that I appreciated in the book, but nothing jaw-dropping. If there were a second book for her life, I would not care to read it. Maybe she needed more character development? And this is not bashing the author; however, part of the disconnect may come from the fact that I am used to writers like Stephen King, who build environments so vividly that the reader can practically visualize every room, expression, and movement. In comparison, this book felt emotionally and visually lighter. His stories are descriptive, which creates complex characters, and I practically visualize the scene and the person. This book felt lacking in descriptive detail. 

At times, the pacing felt fragmented. Certain chapters ended so abruptly that I found myself rereading previous pages just to make sure I had not missed something important. Sometimes I would go back to read the previous pages to make sure I didn’t miss anything. Chapters were shorter than what I am used to, so maybe that was the culprit. The book was good enough to finish, I was tempted to stop reading it altogether, but there was just enough in the story that I needed to see it all the way through. 

Towards the end of the book, the predictability of the plot receded, and I was almost confused about how it was going to end, which then sparked a lot of curiosity. All of the “Truths” being revealed in the end felt rushed. Each chapter was like a continuation of a story, and again, they were all short chapters, a variety between 1 to 4 pages. 

As far as Lalla, it felt like she was a new sociopath trying to find her way in this strange disorder. Some of the decisions she made felt like she was trying to force being a sociopath rather than an experienced one, if that makes sense. With a diagnosis such as sociopath, I am expecting some harsh, cold, and non-human characteristics that don’t make me question if she is really one or just cosplaying. Maybe the issue is that I don’t like the author’s writing style and not so much the character. At times, the psychological elements felt surface-level rather than deeply studied or emotionally lived-in.

The Strange Feeling of Almost Loving a Book

Although I just wrote out almost 1000 words on what I did not like about this book, I really did enjoy the book. It was a short, fun, and easy read. I think maybe because I’ve been submerged into some heavy topics, books, and discussions, I went into this book with the same expectations. For what it is, this book works well as a mental palate cleanser after spending too much time consuming heavier topics or emotionally dense books. For me, I had just picked up this book to relieve my mind of falling down the rabbit hole of The Nature Boy Cult. And maybe I was drawn to this because I just was in some heavy shit and went in with the same expectations. 

Overall, I would give this book a 7/10. It didn’t fully deliver the psychological depth I expected, but it was still entertaining enough to keep me reading until the very end. I would recommend it to anyone looking for a fast-paced psychological thriller that touches darkness without becoming emotionally heavy.

Happy Reading.