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stina_33's review against another edition
4.0
This book was really interesting. Tons of twist and turns and clues that made you think. The only thing I didn't like was how they sped up Lar and Amanda forming a relationship. Everything else was well paced and made for an interesting read. I would recommend this book and will read it again.
k_west1984's review against another edition
1.0
I read 50% of this book and flicked through the over 50. Wasnt for me 1 bit started off ok then dragged on. Didn't like any of the characters either
thegeekybibliophile's review against another edition
3.0
When Constance Lawson goes missing, all efforts are initially focused on finding the thirteen-year-old and reuniting her with her grieving family. All that changes when ambitious journalist Amanda Bowe zeroes in on Constance's uncle, Karl Lawson, twisting his close relationship with Constance into something sordid, implying that he is responsible for her disappearance, destroying Karl's life in the process. It only took seven days.
Six years later, Amanda has everything she ever wanted. She's married, has a young son, and is the host of a hit talk show. All it takes is a single phone call to shatter the illusions of her perfect life, plunging her into a nightmare that feels all to familiar...
Guilty is a complex story that slowly builds. I often found myself feeling frustrated by the slow pace and seemingly mundane details. (Many of these details proved to matter later on, but not all of them.) My first thought, upon finishing the book, was that it felt like I'd read two books instead of one.
Even though I enjoyed the overall story, I can't shake a mild feeling of dissatisfaction. The story is broken up into four parts, and while important things are revealed in all them, parts two and three felt tedious to read. The pace was too slow for my liking, and I didn't understand the point of most of those details until I reached part four.
All of this left me feeling terribly conflicted. Despite being dissatisfied with things, Guilty still manages to tell a great story, and Elliot's writing is very good. The snail-like pace of large portions of the story bogs it down, dimming what would otherwise shine.
That said, the vast majority of Goodreads reviewers gave this book four and five stars. So I'm inclined to think it's a case of Guilty not being a good fit for me, than anything else.
I received an advance reading copy of this book courtesy of Bookouture via Netgalley.
Six years later, Amanda has everything she ever wanted. She's married, has a young son, and is the host of a hit talk show. All it takes is a single phone call to shatter the illusions of her perfect life, plunging her into a nightmare that feels all to familiar...
Guilty is a complex story that slowly builds. I often found myself feeling frustrated by the slow pace and seemingly mundane details. (Many of these details proved to matter later on, but not all of them.) My first thought, upon finishing the book, was that it felt like I'd read two books instead of one.
Even though I enjoyed the overall story, I can't shake a mild feeling of dissatisfaction. The story is broken up into four parts, and while important things are revealed in all them, parts two and three felt tedious to read. The pace was too slow for my liking, and I didn't understand the point of most of those details until I reached part four.
All of this left me feeling terribly conflicted. Despite being dissatisfied with things, Guilty still manages to tell a great story, and Elliot's writing is very good. The snail-like pace of large portions of the story bogs it down, dimming what would otherwise shine.
That said, the vast majority of Goodreads reviewers gave this book four and five stars. So I'm inclined to think it's a case of Guilty not being a good fit for me, than anything else.
I received an advance reading copy of this book courtesy of Bookouture via Netgalley.
kkward1697's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Would love to give this 5 stars based on the overall premise and satisfying conclusion. I was, however, disappointed by how much it dragged on. There were far too many characters introduced for the type of story this was. These characters would be barely explained and then thrown back in later chapters, just assuming the reader would remember who they were. This was very frustrating to get through and could have been a fast, exciting read without all of that.
myrdyr's review against another edition
4.0
I found the sensationalism of "fake news" and it’s aftermath as a plot device to be timely and original. As someone who has suffered at the hands of a deceitful narcissist who is never held to account for their actions, the revenge aspect of the book appealed to me. I will definitely look for other books by Elliot.
megs_books_'s review
3.0
Not enough background (for me) in the beginning. I see what the book wanted to be. However, to its credit, it's not a terrible read. It's just not one I would say it was a classic.....😑ugh is all i can say
noveldeelights's review
4.0
Goodness gracious me, this is one dark read!
I requested this book on Netgalley because of the cover. It was the pretty pink balloon that did it. Never mind reading the description so I didn’t actually know what this book was about. Except someone made a terrible mistake that could ruin their family. Thank you tagline. And so I was pleasantly surprised.
When thirteen year old Constance goes missing, reporter Amanda Bowe zeroes in on Constance’s uncle Karl and absolutely vilifies him in her articles. Six years later, Karl’s life is in ruins. He’s lost his job, his house, his wife and child. As the saying goes, mud sticks. Meanwhile Amanda is thriving. She has a successful career, a husband and a son.
This is a story about revenge but also about how powerless you are when nobody believes you, even when you know it’s the truth. In this day and age of “fake news”, this story is incredibly apt. “Guilty” highlights the power of the media and how quickly and easily they can distort facts and turn them into something they’re not. Yes, they do good but they’re also capable of utter destruction.
You can’t help but feel for Karl. Watching him go from being a valued member in a close-knit family to being completely alone, was heartbreaking to read. Despite his actions, I sympathised with him all the way. A sentiment I couldn’t quite extend to Amanda. I kind of wanted to hurt her. Badly.
“Guilty” is one gripping psychological thriller with a well constructed plot and realistic and believable characters. I felt it was quite slow but I was still mesmerised. The addition of newspaper articles was genius as it truly showed the difference between what actually happened and what the reporter wrote. It really added an extra layer and proves you shouldn’t always believe what you read.
Incredibly thought-provoking, it’ll make you question everything.
Many thanks to the publisher for my advanced copy!
I requested this book on Netgalley because of the cover. It was the pretty pink balloon that did it. Never mind reading the description so I didn’t actually know what this book was about. Except someone made a terrible mistake that could ruin their family. Thank you tagline. And so I was pleasantly surprised.
When thirteen year old Constance goes missing, reporter Amanda Bowe zeroes in on Constance’s uncle Karl and absolutely vilifies him in her articles. Six years later, Karl’s life is in ruins. He’s lost his job, his house, his wife and child. As the saying goes, mud sticks. Meanwhile Amanda is thriving. She has a successful career, a husband and a son.
This is a story about revenge but also about how powerless you are when nobody believes you, even when you know it’s the truth. In this day and age of “fake news”, this story is incredibly apt. “Guilty” highlights the power of the media and how quickly and easily they can distort facts and turn them into something they’re not. Yes, they do good but they’re also capable of utter destruction.
You can’t help but feel for Karl. Watching him go from being a valued member in a close-knit family to being completely alone, was heartbreaking to read. Despite his actions, I sympathised with him all the way. A sentiment I couldn’t quite extend to Amanda. I kind of wanted to hurt her. Badly.
“Guilty” is one gripping psychological thriller with a well constructed plot and realistic and believable characters. I felt it was quite slow but I was still mesmerised. The addition of newspaper articles was genius as it truly showed the difference between what actually happened and what the reporter wrote. It really added an extra layer and proves you shouldn’t always believe what you read.
Incredibly thought-provoking, it’ll make you question everything.
Many thanks to the publisher for my advanced copy!
mandylovestoread's review
4.0
Wow.. that was a rollercoaster! So many despicable characters! Great book
yvo_about_books's review
3.0
Finished reading: June 10th 2017
"Does she not realise the past never goes away? It can swing a fist and knock us out with one blow."
*** A copy of this book was kindly provided to me by Netgalley and Bookouture in exchange for an honest review. Thank you! ***
Spoiler
I admit I was sold as soon as I saw the cover and read the blurb. What was the terrible mistake mentioned and how could this destroy a family? Guilty had all the signs of being an eventful and intriguing psychological thriller and I was really looking forward to finally pick it up. Unfortunately I ended up having mixed thoughts about it. There is no doubt Guilty has a plot that is both complex and filled with twists that will make things spin out of control. The story is separated in different parts, dividing the plot as the story evolves and the time passes. It shows a lot of time has gone into developing the plot and different events and consequences of those actions, and it was without doubt interesting to see how those mistakes and actions in general can have a huge impact on the future. That said, I did feel there was almost too much squeezed into the plot and the different events sometimes felt a bit rushed and lost part of their importance. Especially in the beginning it's a little difficult to understand what is really important in the story and Constance's case feels a bit rushed in general. I understand that the focus is rather on the past-present-consequence relation and what effect the past has on the rest of the story, but it did make it hard to get a proper feel for the story straight away. Furthermore, the pace is quite slow and it took me a lot longer than expected to finish Guilty. It was interesting to see the characters evolve over time, but I do have to say that I didn't like the main characters at all. It definitely made it a lot harder to care for what happened when I just couldn't feel a connection to the characters... And there were also various parts of the story that felt either forced, unnatural or rushed to me. It might just have been that I expected something a little more fast-paced though and in a way I did appreciate the complexity of the plot in Guilty. Like I said, I had mixed feelings so I guess this story can go either way for you... If you like slower paced psychological thrillers that follow characters over a bigger span of time and show how some actions can have huge consequences for the future, Guilty will probably be a right fit for you.
One morning, the thirteen-year-old Constance Lawson is reported missing. She had a row with her parents the night before and wasn't in bed when her mother checked on her. Nobody has seen her since, but there are a lot of rumors starting to go around. Then journalist Amanda Bowe starts a media frenzy implying that Constance's uncle Karl Lawson is the prime suspect... In such a way that six years later, Karl's life is in ruins. Amanda is thriving though and seems to have everything she can wish for: a successful career, husband and a healthy son. Her life seems to be complete, but one day everything changes with just one phone call...
Guilty has without doubt a lot of potential and the plot itself is both complex and intriguing. The pace was a bit slow though and I had a hard time connecting to the main characters. They are not exactly likeable and this made connecting to the story a lot more difficult. The development of the characters over time is interesting, although I'm not sure up to what point some actions are actually credible. In short I ended up having mixed thoughts, but I can definitely understand why the right person would love this psychological thriller. And a last random note: the plinks just sound lovely!
P.S. Find more of my reviews here.