DiscoverWomen's Fiction

Celebrating Naked

By

Worth reading 😎

Intriguing and emotional plot highlighting the highs and lows of life, and why it's so important to celebrate every second of it.

After reading the synopsis and the first chapter or so, I chose to continue reading 'Celebrating Naked'.


I immediately fell in love with Averill's elaborate and descriptive style of writing. The author took her time to build a world within the story, to give her characters a true personality and to bring the plot to life before the reader's eyes. At times maybe a little too detailed, Averill nevertheless persists and makes sure you get to know each character - the good, the bad and the ugly.


I thoroughly enjoy stories that I can fully immerse myself in, that consume me heart and soul and give me some food for thought and Averill's way of portraying love through a time of grief definitely did that for me. The author shows that love is not just love, it's not simple and easy to explain, and far too often, we let our definition of love be swayed by what other people might be thinking of us. Each character in the story had a different kind of connection with Sissy and it was powerful to see how this affected the other relationships in the story, for example, Liz's and Cliff's marriage, as well as the partnerships the children choose.


As much as I enjoyed embarking on a trip to Santa Fe, I did struggle with certain aspects of the book. To begin with, the author approached me and made me aware that, even though the story had been looked over by editors, there were still a fair few mistakes and she was happy to send me a new version. I said not to worry about that as I thought it couldn't be that bad if someone had already looked over it, but unfortunately, it was quite difficult to read at times. Missing commas, full stops and even letters made it tricky to grasp some sentences, and I found myself rereading lines a couple of times to understand the meaning.


In addition to that, I struggled with certain language and writing regarding sex and race, and would urge the author to have this text proofed by a sensitivity reader in the future to avoid any miscommunication.


All in all, I enjoyed the plot and see a lot of potential in the story, as well in Averill's style of writing, but I also think the book would benefit from a further editorial process.



Reviewed by

Avid reader. Freedom chaser. Reality escaper. Dog mama. Wine lover. eCommerce Executive @ Monwell Ltd. Writer @ The Bookish Paper 🌱💫

About the author

Lindsey, daughter of a gypsy Queen and a gynecologist, is woman of many hearts, a filmmaker, a novelist, a sushi lover, a trashy TV watcher, an amazing dancer... the list is endless. She's married to a dreamer who makes her feel like burping hearts, and has a son who she fondly calls potato. view profile

Published on August 20, 2020

100000 words

Contains mild explicit content ⚠️

Worked with a Reedsy professional 🏆

Genre: Women's Fiction

Reviewed by