There’s a moment in All’s Well where our main character, Miranda, tries to hide what she’s been doing by saying its all a play. She raves that is is a play on Macbeth, on Dr. Faustus. This moment is clever- it’s exactly what you’ve been reading, which is why I’m mentioning it to you, lovely reader.
All’s Well is Mona Awad’s newest release which centers around Miranda Fitch, a college theater director with chronic pain whose students are in mutiny. When three men approach her in a bar and offer her a way out, she takes it- no matter the cost to everyone else around her.
If you, like me, loved Mona Awad’s Bunny, you will be similarly drawn into All’s Well. Like its predecessor, All’s Well begins in a fairly normal state, but once the chaos begins, it begins. It’s terrifying from start to finish, and the writing itself is like pure gold. Awad knows how to encapsulate an absolutely absurd story but make it feel so real, so believable, that you are rapt at every word.
I won’t say I had any massive problems with All’s Well, except that maybe I was underwhelmed. I do believe that’s my fault- this was one of my most hyped new releases- and it isn’t a criticism I think holds any weight in this scenario. Especially because this is a 4/4.5 out of 5 for me.
Awad captures the desperation that comes with pain perfectly. If you have ever had an injury that brings you to physical therapy, ever experienced a phantom pain no one could help you with- this book is for you. This book sees you. From the very first minute of this book, it is about how pain torments. It is about the pain we inflict on others in the attempt to escape the things that ail us. It is a book about how even just surviving is a challenge when every day is an ache.
I love Mona Awad. She has quickly become one of my favorite authors, and I am grateful to have gotten this early release copy of All’s Well. Go out and read this. Immediately. NOW.
the void 