Many thanks to NetGalley and Scribner for gifting me a digital ARC of this thought-provoking book by Sarah Rose Etter - 4.5 stars rounded up!

Cassie is trapped. She is working what should have been her dream job at a tech firm in San Francisco, a job that she moved across country for. But the unrealistic, unfair, and unethical expectations of her boss, as well as the unrelenting hours, have soured her but she can barely afford her life as it is. She feels like there are two parts to her - the real and the fake versions. Then the dichotomy in the community between the rich and all those homeless living on the street, eats at her. She's always had what she calls her black hole shadowing her - it absorbs her depression, sadness, loneliness and it is unrelenting in its presence.

This book takes place pre-Covid, which adds just another level of stress and anxiety into Cassie's world. She's trying so hard but everything around her is so hard. It's a stark, honest look at our society and how it affects our personalities. It feels so real - Cassie's fears, anxieties, troubles are all there to touch you emotionally. I had to sit and think on this one a bit after that ending but it was worth it. The writing is perfect - I loved the definitions and reflections.

Cassie is in crisis. Stuck in a cutthroat job that she hates, living in a city that she hates, living a life that she hates. She is followed by her black hole, trying to
Keep it at bay. This one stuck with me. All of Cassie’s actions were relatable. Great illustration of mental health.

I really wanted to like this book, but Ripe wasn’t for me.
Ripe is the story of a young woman working for a tech startup, dating a man who lives with another woman and grappling with the verbal and physical abuse she endured from her mother before leaving home. Cassie has a black hole that has followed her since she was a child. Sometimes the black hole is huge; sometimes it’s as tiny as a freckle, but it’s always with her.

I’m not spoiling it when I say that the black hole is her depression & and anxiety. As someone who has experienced debilitating depression before, Ripe has the most accurate depiction of depression that I’ve ever read. It’s dark and sludgy and difficult to get through. The writing is brilliant, because you feel what Cassie is feeling, but there’s no hope in this book. The ending is vague but devastating. There’s absolutely no one in Cassie’s life who sees her and tries to help her. It made me uncomfortable from the start.

I often read books that make me cry. This is not the same. This just made me feel dark and sad.
Trigger warning for verbal and physical abuse, abortion.

I have read a lot of work by this author, and I think this has been my favorite novel so far. It was very relevant to our current climate, and world. It felt very realistic, and it held my attention through out. I really was invested in the journey, and thought the characters were well developed. I will recommend this book to my book clubs as I think there is a lot of discussion pieces. It was a beautiful book, and the end rocked me.

This is such a haunting and poetic read that is going to stay with me. Anyone who has struggled with anxiety and depression will relate to Cassie.

Sarah Rose Etter is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors! I love the way that she writes, its so poetic. Cassie and her black hole will haunt me for a long time. Much like her previous novel The Book of X, this book is surreal and strange. Etter has the uncanny ability to make her characters so human even in the face of bizarre circumstances. Highly recommend this.

Ripe is a story of a woman grappling with the realities of corporate America and the struggles of being a cog in the start-up machine. Cassie, our heroine, slowly begins to question what she's willing to give up in order to save her conscience. As a native Californian, the San Francisco setting was particularly interesting. There is much commentary on the fact that in a beautiful, glittering city filled with innovation and possibility, extreme wealth lives toe-to-toe with extreme poverty. The early days of COVID are descending, the start-up machine is churning along, toxic bosses abound, and Cassie falls for a man she shouldn't, which forces her to confront the depleted feelings that crash in via this "small black hole" she's lived with for as long as she can remember.

The structure of this was really interesting -- it begins with definitions, is rich with reflection, and has social commentary that doesn't feel forced or gimmicky. Highly recommend to reader who enjoy character-driven novels that ask questions of the void.

I would like to preface by saying that I devoured this book in under 24 hours. From the very first page, I knew right away that it would have such an impact on me, and I was correct. I could not, put it down. This book was so beautifully written, unique and surreal, and so painfully relatable that it sincerely took my breath away.

Ripe is the story of Cassie, a thirty-three year old woman working in Silicone Valley. Her job at start up tech company, VOYAGER, is a miserable, draining affair. What started out as a new dream job and a new dream life, quickly materialized into a lonely, horrific nightmare. But she is not alone. Never truly alone. A miniature blackhole has been with her since birth, following her everywhere she goes. She is the only one who can see it, and the only one who can hear its humming. The blackhole feeds off of her emotions, growing larger or smaller as her moods fluctuate. As Cassie’s job continues to cross boundaries, and as she watches the world around her decay more rapidly each day, the anxiety and depression that feed this blackhole intensify.

This is a beautiful and exquisitely gut-wrenching exploration of familial trauma, hustle-culture, mental illness and masking, and what it feels like to navigate today’s world. Etter’s prose is all-encompassing, and entirely gripping; the way that she was able to capture every single emotion and experience so potently, had me sick to my stomach at times. It felt too real, too relatable, too personal, and all I wanted was to give Cassie a hug (and I wanted a hug as well LOL). Ripe is a true literary gem, and I know that this is one of those books that I will never stop thinking about.

Thank you SO much to NetGalley and Scribner for an e-ARC, I am so grateful that I got to experience this book a wee bit early, and I can’t wait to put the physical copy on my shelf!

3.5 stars! While a lot of the melodramatic writing wasn’t my style, I liked a lot of this book. I especially liked the author’s commentary of Silicon Valley tech hustle. I thought the parody of Cassie’s AI bot CEO, unsatisfied boss, and ridiculously misogynistic coworkers was genius (the puffy vests!). I highlighted a lot of passages that made me groan in solidarity with the main character.

I think the story could have done without the COVID tie-in (isn’t Cassie’s life hard enough??) and while the prose wasn’t for me, there’s a subset of readers that will absolutely love this book.

This book is so provocative and thought provoking. The author takes such a a unique approach to depicting depression as well as modern day hustle culture. The obstacles the main character was faced with felt realistic and i genuinely felt sad the whole day I was reading this (in a good way). The ending also left my stomach on the floor. It was defiantly open to interpretation and I’m going to be spending the next few days thinking about this book.

Sad girl lit-fic fans, this is for you! It's the story of a woman working a soul sucking job in Silicon Valley who happens to have a black hole that has been following her for her entie life. From the obvious metaphors for anxiety/depression to the spot on depection of contempoary work culture, everything about this was executed perfectly.

Cassie's been followed by a black hole for her whole life but it's getting worse. She's in a horrible job in Silicon Valley, an unrewarding relationship which has resulted in pregnancy and she doesn't have any friends. And COVID is out there looming like the hole (but not yet here). It's an unusual novel to be sure and an unconventional one. I suspect this will be a love it or hate it read but Cassie will stick with anyone who picks it up. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. For fans of literary fiction.

I think this novel is a super unique and impactful, and represents the crushing sensation of living in a city full of inequality while bad news headlines pile up (including a global virus), and at the same time dealing with personal struggles like bad relationships and fear of being pregnant. There were many moments I found myself relating to.
I also loved the black hole as a character/symbol throughout the novel, and the ending.

The black hole and pomegranate metaphors were so well done! Silicon Valley capitalist hustle culture and soul sucking dread?! Perfect combo

This book was something else. I've seen people call this sad girl lit, but this is more than that. It's a mirror held up to society to show us our darkest selves.

Ripe perfectly depicts anxiety and depression, toxic work environments, strained mother daughter relationships, loneliness, etc.

It almost feels as though you're watching an episode of Black Mirror. The social commentary was very well done. For example: employees at a mandatory company event complain about the food while outside homeless people live in tents. I could go on and on about all the social commentary in this book, but i'll stop here. I urge you to read the book instead.

I can't possibly express how much I loved this. It's like the book perfectly encapsulated what a lot of people have been thinking & feeling (especially after the pandemic). Although this book is dark, reading it felt like finally getting to scream after holding it in for a long time. Like finally getting to express your frustration, fear, and rage.

Do yourself a favor and read this.


Thank you to NetGalley, Sarah Rose Etter, and Scribner for the ARC.

This book is like a punch to the face -- I was immediately immersed in this world and it was uncomfortable. And then the book didn't really let up in its pace and discomfort so you end up feeling exactly like Cassie. Definitely dark but I definitely recommend!

Ripe comes out next week on July 11, 2023, and you can purchase HERE! I really liked this one!

As lovely as it was to see the look on his face when he opened the door, this—the fact that he so adamantly doesn't want her to leave—is even better. Maybe we're all overthinking it, and everybody just needs someone who wants them to be there.

hello, new favorite book alert!!! Planning to read this one? Well you better be prepared to annotate! A lot...

Ripe follows a woman named Cassie as she navigates life - an unfulfilling job, a complicated relationship, loneliness, depression, a tough upbringing with a verbally abusive mother, drug abuse, etc. Her only true companion is a black hole that has been following her since birth.

I cannot stress this enough - this book was absolutely fantastic. First of all, the writing style was beautiful. Cassie's story and the things she is experiencing in her life are so painfully relatable. It's sort of a bittersweet feeling as you realize plenty of people feel the same way as you do, but upsetting to know that pain is such a prominent part of the human experience. I really felt connected to Cassie and at times I had to remind myself that this is just! a! book! because my feelings were hitting me too hard.

The story was a little bit too depressing for my personal taste, but the book was well written - unique and thought provoking!

This was such an interesting contemporary adult read. I loved that it takes place during a time that everyone who reads it will recognize. Cassie's life circumstance is one that many young adults will be able to find relatable.

Cassie is working in the center of the tech universe, Silicon Valley. She works at a start-up, brings in 6 figures, lives in the city, and is in a position so many are striving for. However, it is not without its many pitfalls. From the toxic work culture to the surface-level relationships, being across the country from her family, and the generally deprecating state of the world and particularly San Franciso, Cassie is truly unhappy.

The format of this book was original and executed really well. Cassie is a very likable character and someone that you can really root for. The events in the book brought on many emotions for me that I am sure the author strived for. I was very interested to see how the company Cassie works for, Cassie, her friends, and the whole of the city would be depicted reacting to the impending events of the world that were going to play out, but the book stops right before then unfortunately. However, this was still a great book.

I really enjoyed this read and really recommend it to anyone interested in the contemporary adult genre.

A brilliant and bleak novel. A black hole I was drawn into. Beauty and Horror.

Sarah Rose Etter’s Ripe crackles with electricity and was so enthralling I devoured it in one sitting.

This is a book about family dynamics, social class, and the pressure to be successful. A commentary on loneliness, depression, and what we choose to share of ourselves. It is anti-capitalism in a way that really grips you as a reader…the dread is palpable. I felt like I was riding the train with Cassie, commuting into her job at Silicon Valley.

The commentary on the wealth disparity and growing housing insecurity will feel true for all who have either lived in San Francisco or visited.
Above all, a commentary on those who suffer- from food insecurity, poverty, loss of love and belonging, etc. That Cassie’s mother may have suffered from her own black hole and the allegory surrounding it potentially being inherited was beautifully done.

This one got under my skin.