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booklistqueen's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
3.5
Struggling writer Lowen Ashleigh receives the chance of a lifetime when Jeremy Crawford hires her to complete the bestselling book series written by his wife, Verity. Just months after their daughters' deaths, Verity was left in a catatonic state after a car accident. Going through Verity's study, Lowen stumbles upon an unpublished autobiography full of erotic obsessions and dark confessions. Now Lowen can't stop thinking about how Verity's sexy husband deserves better, debating whether to show him Verity's writings.
Whenever Verity is mentioned (and it seems to be mentioned a lot), readers are either shocked I haven't read it yet or they warn me it's a complete piece of trash. Honestly, I can see both viewpoints. Colleen Hoover expertly blends erotic romance with a dark thriller. Switching between Lowen's perspective and Verity's manuscript added plenty of suspense and stunning revelations to keep you turning pages. Personally, it wasn't really the book for me. The book got uncomfortably dark for me, and, holy hell, there was a lot of sex! However, the memorable narrative and the dark corners of Hoover's mind will make this one pretty hard to forget, and I can understand why it's a favorite.
eve_everlasting's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
aj_humphreys's review against another edition
4.0
The genre isn't my favorite, but this was one hell of a page turner and the ending will have you going What The F###!?! It's a train wreck of a story that is hard to put down but it's cringe worthy throughout as the main protagonists battle crippling anxiety and inner demons. Worth a read.
daed's review against another edition
4.0
In spite of the fact that this is not my favorite genre, I really enjoyed it. But I'm not sure about the end... it was unexpected, but it didn't blow up my mind.
cala_p's review against another edition
5.0
This will be a short review because there is nothing I can say about this novel that won’t be a spoiler. And maybe less of a review and more of me talking.
This is so different from Colleen’s other books, but in a good way. That lady needs to write more thrillers, because damn, it works for her.
Lowen is a struggling writer who takes on a job to finish the final three books in Verity Crawford’s bestselling thriller series, written from the minds of a villain. While going through her office of writing notes, she stumbles upon an autobiography and there reads about the sinister life of Verity, starting from when Verity met her husband, Jeremy. Every 2-3 chapters is a chapter from Verity’s autobiography that details her obsession with Jeremy and her feelings regarding her growing family.
At the same time, we’re in the present with Lowen, Jeremy, Crew (Jeremy’s son), and Verity, who is in a coma-like state with a nurse watching over her. Lowen and Jeremy start to grow close, while Lowen suspects there is more to Verity than everyone else believes. She sees things, and Crew hints toward things. The book takes us back and forth. So while reading the sad and disturbing things that Verity is writing about, I was feeling jumpy when Lowen is near her. The autobiography is the perfect way to actually build that fear of Verity. She’s such a complex, interesting character and I don’t know what to feel about her.
Through it, there is so many twists and turns and OMG-moments. I can’t say much more about this, but just know this book is an emotional scary roller coaster. I haven’t really read thrillers prior to this, so I’m not sure if it’s the thriller genre I’m loving or just Colleen’s thriller, but this book has opened my eyes to the brilliance of the genre. This was such an addictive read and I implore anyone who is scared to read, to just read it! It’s so fun in a scary way.
This is so different from Colleen’s other books, but in a good way. That lady needs to write more thrillers, because damn, it works for her.
Lowen is a struggling writer who takes on a job to finish the final three books in Verity Crawford’s bestselling thriller series, written from the minds of a villain. While going through her office of writing notes, she stumbles upon an autobiography and there reads about the sinister life of Verity, starting from when Verity met her husband, Jeremy. Every 2-3 chapters is a chapter from Verity’s autobiography that details her obsession with Jeremy and her feelings regarding her growing family.
At the same time, we’re in the present with Lowen, Jeremy, Crew (Jeremy’s son), and Verity, who is in a coma-like state with a nurse watching over her. Lowen and Jeremy start to grow close, while Lowen suspects there is more to Verity than everyone else believes. She sees things, and Crew hints toward things. The book takes us back and forth. So while reading the sad and disturbing things that Verity is writing about, I was feeling jumpy when Lowen is near her. The autobiography is the perfect way to actually build that fear of Verity. She’s such a complex, interesting character and I don’t know what to feel about her.
Through it, there is so many twists and turns and OMG-moments. I can’t say much more about this, but just know this book is an emotional scary roller coaster. I haven’t really read thrillers prior to this, so I’m not sure if it’s the thriller genre I’m loving or just Colleen’s thriller, but this book has opened my eyes to the brilliance of the genre. This was such an addictive read and I implore anyone who is scared to read, to just read it! It’s so fun in a scary way.
a_bookish_rose's review against another edition
4.0
First of all I actually rate this a 4.5; it’s missing the full 5 due to the question of did she or didn’t she make it all up at the end lol I like to know the truth and the facts! I like that it’s different and has that ending but it’s just me who likes to know the facts, so it irritated me leaving the ending on a question of if she was being genuine on her letter or not. So much of the story could have been the truth, but so much of it also could have been a lie! I’m on the side believing how it panned out before we got to the letter that she really is a crazy woman and she wrote that letter to further manipulate the situation. My friend believes her letter, so I like how it’s left open for discussion and we will never know.
I loved the romance thrown in with Low and Jeremy and how it wasn’t rushed at all. Even the child wasn’t annoying like some children are in books- and in general. Not to sound like verity, but I’m not keen on children full stop either lol
This book did grip me way more than most have so far through my reading journey since last year, I have discovered Coho is an auto buy author and I’ll likely enjoy most of her books, or at least rate them no lower than 3 stars. We shall see..
All in all I loved this; just hated it was left on a question.
I loved the romance thrown in with Low and Jeremy and how it wasn’t rushed at all. Even the child wasn’t annoying like some children are in books- and in general. Not to sound like verity, but I’m not keen on children full stop either lol
This book did grip me way more than most have so far through my reading journey since last year, I have discovered Coho is an auto buy author and I’ll likely enjoy most of her books, or at least rate them no lower than 3 stars. We shall see..
All in all I loved this; just hated it was left on a question.
reading_nookva's review against another edition
5.0
Speechless!!!
Haven’t had a thriller book make me feel on edge with every page in a very long time! I absolutely loved this book! I loved the characters and how twisted it was!
Definitely one of my favourite reads of this year!!
Going to be hard to find a thriller that will top this one!
Haven’t had a thriller book make me feel on edge with every page in a very long time! I absolutely loved this book! I loved the characters and how twisted it was!
Definitely one of my favourite reads of this year!!
Going to be hard to find a thriller that will top this one!
mosman12's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No