2019 book 121

Philip Pullman's The Book of Dust: The Secret Commonwealth
Normally I don't prioritize books by white cis male authors, but I'm still interested in the adventures of Lyra--now a twenty year old college student--so figured I'd make an exception. And then I got to page 187 and said "oh, no. Oh, gross" OUT LOUD. This is what I get for trusting male authors: a character who is "in love" with a girl he's known since she was a baby, who was attracted to her when she was a young teen WHO HE WAS TEACHING, but now it's okay because she's twenty????? And in mortal danger???? Pullman even has a sensible lady tell this dude "it's cool, you're both adults!" EWWWW no. And it’s not that the age difference is even that big, it’s just that Pullman presents all this in a very . . .  clueless manner (Lyra secretly enjoys being catcalled, if you were wondering more about the general vibe.) Lyra, of course, is also threatened with rape at one point.
The story here is kind of weird, too; Pullman is doing his usual railing against corrupt organized religion, and has now added rational intellectuals and skeptics (who hate imagination? it's all bizarre) to the mix. I just think it's weird that all these secret groups of powerful/evil men are still all after this one poor girl. And then everyone is just journeying around for the entire book. It doesn’t have a remotely satisfying conclusion, because the conclusion will be in the next book. Just all around not good. C-.