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3.4 AVERAGE
3.4 AVERAGE
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
If there’s one thing about Jessa Maxwell’s writing, it’s that it’s addicting and hard to stop reading. I binged The Golden Spoon and did the same with her second novel, I Need You to Read This, a quick, tense thriller about an advice columnist trying to solve the murder of her idol while horrific details of her past are simultaneously resurrected. While this story felt vastly different from Maxwell’s debut, the ease with which Maxwell hooks her readers from start to finish and paces the tense moments with surprising reveals is truly a work of art.
I was not blown away by the twists, but I could gorge myself on Maxwell’s books all day simply because her writing and storytelling is addictive.
Thank you to NetGalley and Atria for the arc!
I was not blown away by the twists, but I could gorge myself on Maxwell’s books all day simply because her writing and storytelling is addictive.
Thank you to NetGalley and Atria for the arc!
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
I liked the concept of this but it was extremely predictable
dark
mysterious
tense
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Diverse cast of characters:
No
i got and ARC from a Storygraph giveaway a while ago and finally go around to reading it. i can tell im gonna forget about this book soon. i think i discovered a reading pet peeve. short chapters just for a dramatic cut-off for the next one. i felt that a couple of these three page chapters could have been merged together and still have the same dramatic feeling. i think the book scratches the surface of all of its plot points. the book has 50 chapters, but it feels so slow.
alex gets her dream job working as Dear Constance, the advice columnist at the paper she was a big fan of. shes is anxious about taking over and filling such big shoes. if im understanding this correctly, this book happens in a little over two weeks because she only mentions working on two columns. she is running from her past, which we later learn through anonymous letters she sent to Dear Constance, is an abusive and kinda psychopathic ex. she is peeking over her shoulder and has three locks on her door but she doesnt really do anything about the threatening letters she gets until pushed to by her diner friends, Janice the waitress and Raymond the former (disgraced) cop. she has to change her name on her social security card to get away from her ex but is so careless with these very real threats. and she blindly trusts an "assistant" who turns out to be her ex's sister. i dont know girl, youre in your 30s, even if you were sheltered until you were 22, youve been living in new york for the past 8 years you have got to be more vigilant.
the love interest plot doesn't feel all that necessary in my opinion. she gets spooked because she trust this man so much. he asks her about the scars on her wrist and she gets scared and cuts him off but girl, you are in your 30s, he cares about you and you are standing there naked in his apartment. hes gonna wanna have deep and kind of intrusive conversations with you. you dont need to tell him right away but you dont need to completely pull back, just communicate a little.
the premise says that she is investigating the murder of the person who had her job before her but i feel like that doesnt start to happen until like 2/3rds into the book. she thinks her boss is the killer and she learns that his assistant made a reservation at a super exclusive, members-only bar. the assistant mentions that even with membership, its hard to get a table, but Alex and her diner friends just stumble in the front door because Janice used to go here a couple of times. and then they ask the most obvious question to the bartender and are surprised that they are being asked to leave? like girl duh!
very breezy read, but i wouldnt say suspenseful or thriller vibes. i was kinda bored reading this...
the love interest plot doesn't feel all that necessary in my opinion. she gets spooked because she trust this man so much. he asks her about the scars on her wrist and she gets scared and cuts him off but girl, you are in your 30s, he cares about you and you are standing there naked in his apartment. hes gonna wanna have deep and kind of intrusive conversations with you. you dont need to tell him right away but you dont need to completely pull back, just communicate a little.
the premise says that she is investigating the murder of the person who had her job before her but i feel like that doesnt start to happen until like 2/3rds into the book. she thinks her boss is the killer and she learns that his assistant made a reservation at a super exclusive, members-only bar. the assistant mentions that even with membership, its hard to get a table, but Alex and her diner friends just stumble in the front door because Janice used to go here a couple of times. and then they ask the most obvious question to the bartender and are surprised that they are being asked to leave? like girl duh!
very breezy read, but i wouldnt say suspenseful or thriller vibes. i was kinda bored reading this...
2.25 ⭐️ This is everything you expect a mysterious thriller to be. And absolutely nothing more. If this was the first thriller you'd ever read it would be fantastic. Otherwise, like me, you will guess every twist. It felt like there was no tension, no creepiness. Just a woman with trauma getting a new job and then getting heavily involved with workplace drama, before her past comes back to bite her.
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated