A Major Disappointment: Why I Regret Reading 'The Surgeon'

I was thoroughly unimpressed with Musso's writing in 'The Surgeon'. It was dry and illogical, but after reading some of Marina Stepanova's work, I have to admit that my opinion of Musso has improved.

The book is Stepanova's first novel, and I really hope she's refined her writing style since then. I mean, it's not like I'm going to go out of my way to find out, but I'm sure it won't change my mind about the book.

About the Book

The book is bound in a hardcover, which looks like a decent attempt at quality. But let's be real, the cover art is a total miss. I mean, the illustration on the cover already looks off to me - trust your instincts and avoid anything that seems suspicious.

Plot

A character named Xripunov (at least, I couldn't find his name in the book) decides to become a surgeon. But honestly, you can't really enjoy the plot because it feels like the author can't even speak Russian properly. The writing is clunky and amateurish, making it difficult to become invested in the story.

Writing Style

This book is a joke at the reader's expense. The author tries to be ironic and show off with complex sentence structures, but it's a total letdown. It's like a bad impersonation of Slava Se, but Se is a genius, and his humor is so sharp and witty that only someone incredibly smart and well-educated could pull it off.

Here's why:

Prolonged sentences that are as long as paragraphs. I had to re-read them multiple times to make sense of them, but even then, I'm not sure I understood the point. Mocking entire cultures. The author takes a swipe at a specific people group, which is not only tasteless but also poorly executed. Mocking the very best things in life - family, motherhood - it's just disgusting and makes me feel sorry for the author: is her family life really that bad? Mature themes. And I'm not just talking about the occasional swear word from a character's dialogue (which is unavoidable, I suppose). I'm talking about the author using explicit language directly at the reader. It's just unacceptable.

Here are a few examples:

Let's be real, the value for money is zero - it's not worth the time or effort. The shipping would be a waste of time, and the book itself is a complete waste of time. The author's writing is subpar, the plot is weak, and the themes are off-putting. If you value your sanity and your time, stay far, far away from this book.