I really wanted to like this book, but I just cannot get into it. I'm up to the 20% marl on my kindle and it's still all about Lucia and her stifling marriage to Ray. There have been occasional glimpses of her two daughters but nothing to keep me interested enough to carry on.

I gather it's about Ray, a one-time celebrated artist who is eaten up with jealousy that his wife of many years might be more popular than he is, or was. One daughter lives at home and is obviously a Daddy's girl, while the other lives with her boyfriend in a very unsatisfactory relationship.

It's like plodding through porridge, and I have so many other books I want to read. My time is running out, so this one will have to be consigned to the To Be Deleted list.

DNF about 10%

I'm sorry but I couldn't tell you a single thing that happened in this. Like genuinely. It's making me feel dizzy trying to explain how nothing I read made sense to me. It's like I was reading but I wasn't? Like I'd zoned out, but I didn't - not until the point I decided to DNF because I knew then there was no convincing me I could pay this any attention or rate it highly. It lost me in the dust.

I like to read the Womens prize for fiction longlist most years so was thrilled to pick this up. Unfortunately it disappointed, the pacing was a mess, the writing wasn't to my taste and the characters were extremely unlikable. It also bored me. Not for me.

This book is so slow and unfortunately I was bored.
I couldn’t connect to either the characters or the storyline.
Not the book for me

I found myself frustrated and annoyed by the characters in this book. They were not likeable and I found I couldn't even make it half way through the book.

Is it possible to absolutely love a book but hate every single one of its characters in equal measure?! Because that’s how I felt about this book! I couldn’t put it down and wanted to find out more and more from this dysfunctional family.
The characters are so well written, and the author does an excellent job of making you despise each one! I loved the writing and became completely immersed in the story - a new author for me that I will be keeping an eye on future.

I’m so sorry I’ve sat on this one for months! I wish I hadn’t taken so long to read it because I loved it. I’ve read most of Mandelsohn’s books and this is immediately up there with When We We’re Bad as one of my favourites.

This was my first time reading a book from the author but I am delighted to say I thoroughly enjoyed the story and I look forward to reading more books from the writer in the future

I have to be honest, I wasn’t a huge fan of this book. I found the characters quite irritating and the story was good, but lacked execution.I think I was expecting more after so many good reviews 🙈

I loved this the father was the most fascinating horrible and attractive character. How the family unit is effected and dominated a really excellent book Thankyou .

Longlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction 2022 The Exhibitionist is about the highly toxic and dysfunctional Hanrahan family and it's patriarch Ray, a washed up artist. 

Ray is seeking to put on his first exhibition in years, bringing around a family reunion, full of fractures and long-harboured grievances. Jess thought she had escaped her family until she is drawn back, with a boyfriend who is desperate for them both to become part of it. Leah, her father's only champion rages against anyone who doesn't immediately bend to his will. Patrick, who is nothing short of bullied by Ray, is also seeking to make an escape, but can't find the right time to say anything. And their mother, and Ray's wife Lucia, a successful artist in her own right, must constantly be overshadowed by her husband to not threaten his career. 

The narrative style of The Exhibitionist is pacy, jumping between family members as we see their situations unravel. The climax all centres round the exhibition as the lives of each family member collides. At times Mendelson writes with humour and tenderness but sometimes this book also feels on the brink of torture porn. The reader inevitably finds themselves wishing (or screaming) for the characters to stand up for themselves or leave him but that's very easy to say behind the safety of the pages, and we all know the difficulties of escaping domestic violence. 

If you've ever met anyone like Ray, this story is very relatable, but for anyone it is also a very difficult read. Mendelson paints vivid and memorable characters, telling an important story, and perhaps one that needs to be talked about more, about dealing with difficult relationships, toxic family members and finding your freedom.

A rich sumptuous family saga full of hidden secrets and dysfunctional dynamics. Based around the unlikeable Ray Hanrahan and his long suffering wife Lucia, in a North London artistic middle class marriage, the story takes you through the ups and downs of their marriage as secrets are brought to the fore and hidden truths are realised.

This was on my TBR (figuratively speaking) pile and when I saw it was on the Women’s Prize shortlist, I decided it needed promoting - and I’ve just finished it.

‘The Exhibitionist’ is a family saga, focusing around the Hanrahan family at their London home. Ray, the patriarch, is having an art show at the house; Lucia, his long-suffering wife, is toying with lesbian desires with an MP called Priya. The three children are all quite far-removed, from feisty home-body Leah, to Jess, down from Scotland, and Patrick, who is sad and confused. There’s definitely a tragi-comedy element to this story in many ways.

I really wanted to like it - and in some ways, I did. Mendelson is adept at family dynamics, at spot-on descriptions, of something being described in an original, unconventional way. However, I had a number of issues with it, such as:

-The over-reliance on fragmentary conversation, meaning it’s often tricky to know who’s speaking and what their point is.
-Excessive use of colons/semi-colons. Now, I love a semi-colon but I think that they’re scattered throughout too freely in the novel.
-Ray is a heinous character. Yes, he is meant to be, but surely there’s a human side to him as well? Why does Lucia stick with him? Leah, too - such a devotee! I get that’s part of the story, but really? And also, all these ‘friends’ he has. Why, if he’s so awful?
-I didn’t understand why Jess and Martyn travelled to London separately, all the way from Scotland? Also, why does Mendelson, at times, write ‘Leah’s dad’ or ‘Jess’ mum’? It really jars and is unnecessary.

Ultimately, I rooted for Lucia - and really hope the Biennale opportunity wasn’t turned down! This is certainly a family drama but one that left me feeling on-edge and frustrated.

I wanted to read this because it was on the Women’s Prize longlist, but unfortunately it just wasn’t for me.

I enjoyed this book, although at times I did find it tricky to get along with the characters. Ray is such an appalling man! The writing was elegant and often witty, despite some dark subject matter. It was an insight into a very dysfunctional family and really, who hasn't been there? I enjoyed the mother's observations and love for her children but I did find things to be overshadowed somewhat by Ray's terrible behaviour. Overall I enjoyed it and would certainly try the author's other books.

I thoroughly enjoyed The Exhibitionist. The characters (especially Ray) are all hypnotically awful and the lead-up to the big exhibition is perfect - you know it's going to be a complete disaster but you have to keep reading to find out how. This is one of those books that you can't quite put your finger on exactly why it's so compelling - it just is!

Ray Hanarhan is the Exhibitionist. That's a fairly polite description of him. An Artist, as his first solo show for many years, Ray displays many other characteristics. Self centered, demanding, a misogynist who is always right, he does not expect to be questioned but does expect his wife and children to devote themselves to him and his wishes. But children become adults, have other relationships, other priorities and problems Lucia, Ray's wife, a talented Artist and Sculptor, has over the years succumbed to his demands,, playing second fiddle to his demands, knowing that he would be intensely jealous if others professionally viewed her work as better than his.
But the tensions within the family cannot continue, all in their own ways, recognise this, expect Ray.! They know they have to move on......but can they? The Exhibitionist boils away nicely towards its climax.
I enjoyed the book although at times I wanted to scream at the characters willing them to be individually strong when they needed to be and willing them to be confrontational if appropriate. Aargh Families.
Recommended

This is a spiky family drama about art and toxic relationships. I struggled at first with the writing and unlikeable characters but the further I got the more I started to see the cleverness and humour within Charlotte Mendelsons writing. The book is full of terrible characters that you either wanted to shake or murder which will definitely put people off but as you start to see the delicious drama unfold and the characters spiral out of control you won’t be able to look away.

Probably more like a 2.5/2.8 but I just didn't enjoy this book. We follow a family's life for about a day, during which the narcissistic patriarch is having an exhibition and keeps feeling very sad for himself.

Nothing much happens, as it is more character driven than plot driven, however the characters themselves didn't feel that well written either. I read it solely because it was longlisted by the Women's Prize for Fiction but I didn't see the attraction of it or what it was trying to say. To me at best it was okay.

If you enjoy reading about dysfunctional families, you may enjoy this. It felt like watching a reality tv, big personalities, gossip, lies and empty content. I sometimes cared for a character but then it would turn out to be very superficial description of their situation, it all felt very caricatural. There was no growth from the characters and if anything, I was intrigued to know what happens to some of them from the moment the book ended.

Egoist Ray Hanrahan is about to open an exhibition of his art for the first time in years and his whole family have gathered for it. Leah is her father's biggest fan, his son Patrick is finally beginning to do life on his own and his youngest daughter Jess has a big decision to make. Ray's wife Lucia is also an artist but life has meant that being a wife and mother has always taken precedence over her career. However, Lucia has a secret and if it comes out, everything could change.

This funny, quirky story about a very dysfunctional family explores themes of hidden desire, secret ambition and female sacrifice. There isn't much plot, which makes it quite hard to get into and Lucia's voice can be grating at the start. As a very character-driven book, if you're not enjoying the people (and to be honest, they're not very likeable), you will struggle to find much to like about it. However, I enjoyed watching Lucia's affair with the local MP develop but I was very aware that it wouldn't lead anywhere, which put a bit of a dampener on the whole thing. Overall, I just wanted a heroine with more likeability so that I could care about her sacrifices and a little more heartwarmth to the whole tone of the novel.