Joanna's Reviews > Rouge

Rouge was one of my most anticipated new releases for the second half of the year. Mona Awad must've been high off of her mother’s Dior perfume fumes when she wrote this book because this was wild. Rouge is an acid-trippy psychological novel that explores the topics of strained mother-daughter relationships, grappling with identity as a multi-ethnic person, American beauty standards, and toxic obsession with the beauty industry. Rouge had the recipe for a masterpiece, but it was half-baked. I'm all for weird, but the weirdness isn't my gripe with this book. The problem is it was way too repetitive. We get it Mona, you have an affinity for red rose petals, jellyfish, and Tom Cruise. I felt like I was trapped in a never-ending episode of Black Mirror, but in the worst way possible. The same thing was repeated over and over again to the point where when the story was finally coming to a head, I just didn't care anymore because I was so drained. And then, that ending? It was unnecessary and lackluster. I think this story would've been a lot more effective and engaging if it were a short story or novella. The topic of beauty standards and society's obsession with youth and beauty products is nothing new and, in my opinion, a little played out, and Rouge didn't give us anything revolutionary about the topic.

Thank you Netgalley, Simon Element/Simon & Schuster, and Mona Awad for the eARC.

Expected Publication Date: Sept. 12, 2023