Review: "Providence Girls" by Morgan Dante
"I could convince myself that if my body wasn't mine, it was yours."
First things first: thank you to Morgan Dante for the free eARC of this book that I received in exchange for an honest review!
The Breakdown:
Review:
"'We've only known each other for six months.'
"'Epics have been made about less.'"
I have to admit, this book was always going to be highly rated by me; I've mentioned before that I've read Morgan Dante's work in the past and have adored it. Providence Girls is not exempt from my adoration, and I am so glad that their writing continues to be exactly what I want out of my reading.
Providence Girls follows two perspectives: Lavinia (Vin) writing in the "present" (1950s) to her lover, and Asenath (Azzie) fifteen years prior, writing about her condition and their lives for Vin to read once she's gone. These perspectives reflect upon how Vin and Azzie met became lovers, leading the reader through gentle confessions and asides as they write to each other, years apart. In this, Dante highlights older MCs than what I tend to see, which was lovely to see (Vin starts at a 36-year-old and ends in her fifties). Dante is sure to avoid the idea of lesbian bed death in this, however, with a couple explicit scenes as they explore the more physical aspects of their relationship.
This book is filled with quotes and concepts I adore, from historic U-Hauling to the "you bring the body, I'll bring the shovel" kind of support between the soft, nostalgic Vin and and the cold, ever-moving-on Azzie. From the betrayal to the sacrifices the characters make, their decisions are imbued with love and the evidence of their struggles. Dante's plot doesn't just center a soft slow-burn, but really revolves around Vin and Azzie working through their past traumas and their differing ways of coping. As one of Vin writes to Azzie, "We came from the same stone, but our languages were lost to one another."
Slower paced stories can be a hard read for me, which worried me when I went into it, but Dante keeps a steady pace that keeps the reader intrigued without having to wait too long for the pay-off. They also maintain eldritch, cosmic horror elements and worldbuilding from the jump, with Vin's stumble into Azzie's life. The reader and the characters know that there are heavy pasts that influence their relationship, with hints and clues along the way that lead us to their respective reveals. I will say, you can see the content warnings and the clues and whatever your imagination conjures, Vin and Azzie's realities are likely worse; this isn't bad or good or anything, but instead a marker of the spirituality and magical "realism" built into this book.
I don't want to get spoiler-heavy in this review, especially because this book hasn't come out yet (you should get a copy when it does, by the way), but the ending had me on the edge of my seat. While Providence Girls begins a little slow, it picks up more and more at the end, snowballing into a climax, Sappho-filled sadness, and then a final chapter that acts almost as an epilogue in the perspective of an entirely different character. Dante has these characters face tragedies without giving up hope, growth, and the ability for them to love, and the ending is … not what I was expecting (in a good way!), acting as a continuation of the characters' perseverance. I didn't know how I thought Providence Girls would end, but Dante crafted a fitting conclusion with notes of the same humor carried throughout the rest of the story.
That humor is another thing to note — Dante makes the characters' voices distinct while maintaining a beautiful sense of lyricism and, oftentimes, wry humor. Azzie has extensive literature collections that she shares with Vin, leaving them both with poetry and verse as a way of both bonding and as a way of informing their own writing; Vin read Shakespeare before leaving home, understanding precisely the meaning of her name, making it natural for the characters to bond other the works Azzie keeps. In typical sapphic fashion (affectionate), Azzie has a lot of Sappho, but also other queer writers such as Oscar Wilde and Lord Byron. Dante incorporates short excerpts of classical literature and references to mythology throughout, adding nuances and layers for the characters and reader to unravel and think upon. While this book has a lovely plot, interesting characters, and fascinating worldbuilding, the prose itself is a big reason to read Providence Girls.
Content Notes:
Dante includes a list of content warnings both in the book and on their website, which includes:
- Past sexual abuse between a father and daughter
- Past rape
- Past traumatic pregnancy
- Body horror
- Emetophobia
- Body dysmorphia
- Ableism toward people with albinism
- Mentions of suicide ideation
- Drug addiction (to opium), both implied and stated (not graphic)
- Mild to moderate gore
- Child abuse (sexual, physical, metaphysical)
- Grief
- Forced lack of agency between a father and daughter
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