Useful by Debra Oswald

Debra Oswald starts her book Useful with a suicide attempt by the book’s main character, Sullivan Moss. But his attempt fails, and he wakes up in the hospital. Feeling that he is of no use to society, he decides to donate an organ. At least thatway, he can do something good in his life.

To become a suitable donor, he eventually stops drinking and, despite himself, ends up living a healthier and more stable life. He even gets a steady job. But despite these improvements, he remains a weak and unreliable character. He even sleeps with his best friend’s wife, which makes it hard to sympathize with him.

Completely Fed Up with Sully

At one point, I was completely fed up with ‘Sully’ and started skimming the book. That’s never a good sign… I feel uneasy leaving a book unfinished, so by skimming, I hoped to catch enough of the plot to understand what was actually happening. Unfortunately, this meant that Useful didn’t work for me as a reader. The main reason is Sully:

he is sloppy, often frustrating, and largely unsympathetic, even though he occasionally shows a kind side.

Despite my struggles with the main character, I have to admit that Useful is well written. There is a certain atmosphere throughout the story, and Debra Oswald’s writing style keeps you engaged and curious about what will happen next. Still, I personally found it hard to connect with Sully and his journey.

Overall, I rate Useful a 4 out of 10. I just didn’t enjoy it as much as I hoped, because of the obnoxious main character.

Book Trailer of Useful

Here’s the book trailer of Useful:

Reading Tip

If you don’t mind books with an unsympathetic main character, you may also like Hunting Wives.