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Book Review | Waif




Angela is stuck in an unhappy marriage with a wealthy husband, so she finds herself fantasizing about an attractive man she ran into at the grocery store. She confesses this to her husband, and to her surprise, he asks her to describe her dream man so that he can get plastic surgery to look like him.

However, no trustworthy doctor wants to undertake the extent of procedures he’s requesting, so they resort to a back alley doctor and find themselves caught up in the underbelly world of underground adult films.

Waif by Samantha Kolesnik presents an intimate and unflinching portrait of a dysfunctional marriage. The writing is beautifully poetic and introspective and does an excellent job at placing us inside Angela’s head.

However, some interesting parts of the story feel like they were cut too short perhaps due it its length as a novella. For instance, I wish both the aspects of extreme plastic surgery and Angela joining a gang of queer adult film actors could have been explored further.

Nevertheless, this novella is a powerful and cutting examination of trauma and what it’s like being stuck inside an abusive relationship—packing one big emotional punch.

Lastly, special thanks to the author for sending me this novella in exchange for an honest review.

Book Details:

Publication Date : December 1, 2021
Publisher : Grindhouse Press
ASIN : B09HSHW9MV
Pages : 122
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