Book Review of Burst

I love this title. The verb vibrates throughout the book—the characters burst through doors, across a stage, into laughter, into freedom. As author Mary Otis explores the visceral relationship between a mother and daughter who are both sensitive artists in her novel Burst, the characters themselves burst into life.

The mother Charlotte, an alcoholic painter, and her daughter Viva, a dancer, are brilliantly written. Their individual characters, personalities, relationships, and personal journeys are realistically drawn with beautiful, straightforward language.

The twosome evolves from their beginnings—Viva as a little girl learning to adapt to ever-changing homes—to living separate lives as Viva reaches for her dream of being a professional dancer.

This book richly paints a psychological portrait of strong women who battle seemingly insurmountable problems. You root for them while dreading what seems to be inevitable.

The emotional tie that exists between every mother and daughter is always fascinating as it’s unlike any other relationship in life. When you add alcoholism and single parenting to the equation, tension flares—bursts from both women with intensity.

Even if you have the best relationship with your mother or daughter, you’ll find ways to relate to Charlotte and Viva. No matter how close or distant we are from each other in these roles, we’ll always be connected. And we’ll never fully know what the other person struggles to overcome.

Burst is a lyrical, honest, heartbreaking story that ultimately leaves you with hope.

Five stars for this amazingly written book by Otis. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC for the purpose of this review.

The cover is gorgeous and my heart did burst while reading this mom/daughter story. Addiction and poverty and madness but the ties between a girl and her mom… what a book! I desire to reread this with my mom to see what she thinks! It was written in a very lyrical way which I found matched the parts about dancing and not knowing what would come next.

Well done!

I enjoyed this book - the plot, the characters, the setting. It would make a nice movie, I guess. For those who are into mothers/daughter complicated stories it could be a favorite one!

Thank you to Net Galley for a copy of this book. Mary Otis does a great job of creating her characters of Charlotte and Viva, a mother-daughter duo who stick with each other through a life of very little money and addiction. The author's writing style grabs you and pulls you in, compelling you to read more about their chaotic life together. Though each character is flawed, you can't help but empathize with them, and this is due primarily Mary Otis' skillful writing style. I recommend the book.

This book is simply gorgeous. Charlotte is such a complicated character, someone we can all see ourselves in, even if we don't necessarily want to. Her love and devotion to Viva shines through her flaws. This book made me want to dance.

Well, this novel is aptly titled. Burst by Mary Otis literally burst off the page and into my heart. It’s a book with mother-daughter relationships at the core, as complicated and loving they might be. Charlotte and Viva are fiercely connected, but completely different. The book follows each of their stories as they weave back and forth from past to present, mother to daughter, frustration to love. Each grapple with their own identity, how intricately connected they are to each other and how to become free of what’s holding them back. I was completely invested, thoroughly taken with each of their stories and rooting for them both, helping me look at my own mother-daughter relationships with new eyes.

3.5 stars

I am always in for a mother/daughter story. And like most mother/daughter relationships, this one is complicated, and yet the bond they shared kept pulling them back together no matter how far one of them tried to stay away. I, personally, struggle with reading about alcoholism and neglect, which is why my rating is 3.5 stars, but the writing was masterful at evoking emotion.

Read if you like:
Family sagas covering a whole lifetime
Mother/daughter relationships
Dance stories

Thank you to Zibby Books for a digital ARC through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Refreshingly honest. Highly recommended for book clubs.

Burst does not hold back, but rather takes a bold forthright look at the ups and downs of a mother/daughter relationship over the years. The bond between Charlotte and Viva is immediately compelling and relatable. The author does a great job at showing how the relationship shifts over time and in different settings.

Ultimately this is a novel about imperfect but realistic love.

Burst was a wonderfully written novel following the stories of a mother-daughter duo filled with life-altering prose. Viva and Charlotte are both complex, carefully-crafted, and creative -- to the point where their individual creativity becomes a sore point for the two. The story revolves heavily around cycles, sharing similar storylines of insecurity and jealousy and alcohol-based comfort. I enjoyed reading this book immensely and the only reason it scores a 4/5 stars instead of a 5/5 is for personal reasons; I just wasn't able to immerse and connect with the two as much as I would've liked to. Otherwise, beautiful read. I recommend it with a cup of warm tea.

Mother daughter relationships are classic fodder for fiction. But in Mary Otis’s capable hands, the story of mother daughter duo Charlotte and Viva feels fresh, while also tapping into a vein of nostalgia of decades past. Living a “peripatetic” life - Viva’s description on her college application, Otis shows us two strong but damaged women doing the hard work of growing up together in an unforgiving and difficult world. When Viva has the chance to teach young women herself, she tries hard to help them locate their anger, their sorrow, their fierceness, and to be awake to those feelings which she encourages them to use to ignite their own power, an important lesson she learned from her mother. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC and Zibby Books for the recommendation

Burst is a raw look at the relationship between a mother and daughter and is told over a span of many years. Charlotte is a free spirited soul who raises her daughter Viva in many different settings over the course of her childhood. Viva grows up knowing the path she wants to follow, and although it is very different than her mother's, there is a bond between the two that is undeniable. Burst is a ultimately a story of love and all it's imperfections.