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bombadalejr's review
3.0
I bought this book so my mom and I could have a summer book-club with each other and, since we both like mystery/thrillers with female leads, I thought this book would be perfect.
The first few chapters droned on, and when the book did pick up momentum it only lasted a few pages before the author slammed on the breaks and went back to a slow narrative. I found the book frustratingly predictable. Once the author established the therapy style of Grace, and the heavy emphasis on the phrase "you should have known", I almost immediately knew what was going to happen. There were some fantastic moments of suspense, but they mostly came at a weird time or lasted only a few paragraphs. Even the parts in the book that were not predicted, were unsurprising and lacked a climax.
In fact, I'd say this entire book lacked a climax. There was not really a rise and fall of information to me, it was all done in the same and somewhat monotone narrative voice. Sometimes, while skimming through the monotonous narrative of Grace's day-to-day and skipping the moments where even a child would have connected the foreshadowing (yet, somehow Grace and her doctorate didn't), I would have to run back through and find where the "action" started after finding myself thrust into an interrogation that was over before it started.
The saving grace (pun not intended) of this book was the look it gave into a shocked mind trying to reason with itself everything that was happening. Yet, even in doing that, the author allowed her extremely intelligent character to come off as ignorant. I'm not saying Grace should have known what was going to happen or how everything would play out, just that the author could have given her more credit when Grace began to react the same way that her patients did, yet somehow did not realize it.
My mom loved it, but in the end this book just kept me frustrated the whole weekend.
The first few chapters droned on, and when the book did pick up momentum it only lasted a few pages before the author slammed on the breaks and went back to a slow narrative. I found the book frustratingly predictable. Once the author established the therapy style of Grace, and the heavy emphasis on the phrase "you should have known", I almost immediately knew what was going to happen. There were some fantastic moments of suspense, but they mostly came at a weird time or lasted only a few paragraphs. Even the parts in the book that were not predicted, were unsurprising and lacked a climax.
In fact, I'd say this entire book lacked a climax. There was not really a rise and fall of information to me, it was all done in the same and somewhat monotone narrative voice. Sometimes, while skimming through the monotonous narrative of Grace's day-to-day and skipping the moments where even a child would have connected the foreshadowing (yet, somehow Grace and her doctorate didn't), I would have to run back through and find where the "action" started after finding myself thrust into an interrogation that was over before it started.
The saving grace (pun not intended) of this book was the look it gave into a shocked mind trying to reason with itself everything that was happening. Yet, even in doing that, the author allowed her extremely intelligent character to come off as ignorant. I'm not saying Grace should have known what was going to happen or how everything would play out, just that the author could have given her more credit when Grace began to react the same way that her patients did, yet somehow did not realize it.
My mom loved it, but in the end this book just kept me frustrated the whole weekend.
swalsh121's review
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
georginamay22's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Very slow, took quite a while for their to be any suspicion. I also find it hard to connect with rich characters who aren't rich enough to fit in, but still send their kids to private school and go to fundraising galas.
lillycano's review
3.0
A bit of a let down tbh. The book could have been cut in half if the author did not go on so many tangents.
punkinmuffin's review against another edition
4.0
How good is it when you find a new-to-you writer? I happened to be listening to the New York Times Book Review podcast, and they had Korelitz on as a guest, talking about her latest novel, [b:The Plot|55315487|The Plot|Jean Hanff Korelitz|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1622126972l/55315487._SY75_.jpg|78569619] (which I am totally going to read). I vaguely remembered that I'd put You Should Have Known on my want-to-read list a while ago, and as it happened, my local library had an available copy.
It's kind of funny that I had also recently read Taffy Broedesser-Akner's [b:Fleishman Is in Trouble|41880602|Fleishman Is in Trouble|Taffy Brodesser-Akner|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1556374309l/41880602._SY75_.jpg|70634699]. Also set in New York. Also centred around an upper middle class Manhattan Jewish couple. Also featuring a disappearing spouse. But the books are very different otherwise. Grace, the narrator of You Should Have Known, is a very different character to Toby Fleishman. And while both books are close-ups of marriages, You Should Have Known is much more, well, forensic. Without spoiling anything, this is a fantastic portrayal of someone whose world, essentially, ends. And things don't necessarily go where you might predict, all of the time. Much of the drama is excruciating, because we're seeing things from Grace's point of view, and she is experiencing something catastrophic. And it takes an incredibly deft writer to keep her reader with the narrative, in the face of so much awfulness. I stayed with it because I got really invested in Grace, and wanted to see her come out the other side.
Definitely recommend this one, especially if you like a literary page turner.
It's kind of funny that I had also recently read Taffy Broedesser-Akner's [b:Fleishman Is in Trouble|41880602|Fleishman Is in Trouble|Taffy Brodesser-Akner|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1556374309l/41880602._SY75_.jpg|70634699]. Also set in New York. Also centred around an upper middle class Manhattan Jewish couple. Also featuring a disappearing spouse. But the books are very different otherwise. Grace, the narrator of You Should Have Known, is a very different character to Toby Fleishman. And while both books are close-ups of marriages, You Should Have Known is much more, well, forensic. Without spoiling anything, this is a fantastic portrayal of someone whose world, essentially, ends. And things don't necessarily go where you might predict, all of the time. Much of the drama is excruciating, because we're seeing things from Grace's point of view, and she is experiencing something catastrophic. And it takes an incredibly deft writer to keep her reader with the narrative, in the face of so much awfulness. I stayed with it because I got really invested in Grace, and wanted to see her come out the other side.
Definitely recommend this one, especially if you like a literary page turner.
hollsbooks's review
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.0
alidottie's review
3.0
3 and a half stars
I enjoy reading Hanff, but I found this book could have used more editing. I kept thinking “I’ve already read almost this exact paragraph 30 pp ago.” I understand that the author was probably pointedly beating us over the head with foreshadowing information, but I would have like it a lot better if it had not been 496 pages. SPOILER: I did appreciate that the book had a hopeful ending unlike the first book I read by her where she kills off her main character and the “bad guy” gets away with it.
I enjoy reading Hanff, but I found this book could have used more editing. I kept thinking “I’ve already read almost this exact paragraph 30 pp ago.” I understand that the author was probably pointedly beating us over the head with foreshadowing information, but I would have like it a lot better if it had not been 496 pages. SPOILER: I did appreciate that the book had a hopeful ending unlike the first book I read by her where she kills off her main character and the “bad guy” gets away with it.
sksrenninger's review
4.0
I felt like this character must be more like the author than the main character in Admission, because drawing her personality seemed more effortlessly authentic. I really appreciated and enjoyed how real-to-life Korelitz's description of New York is, and I found her depiction of the private lives of wealthy UES mothers to be realistic and very interesting, if admittedly self-centered and unrelatable. It was a little suspenseful without being scary, which I enjoyed. (I agree with other reviewers--it's not a thriller--but I wasn't expecting a thriller, so that was okay by me.) The ending seemed a little too tidily wrapped up, but sometimes it's nice to see that happen to a character you like. Also, I liked that she named her chapters--it makes it a little more interesting than "Chapter 21," etc, if also a little more cutesy.
charisma_reads's review
3.0
This could’ve been so much more shorter. It’s overkill on details and repeats details like crazy. Other than that i enjoyed it for the most part.
mrsbear's review
No rating on this one. I tried very hard because the synopsis sounded good but after listening to 10 chapters I threw in the towel.
What doesn't work for me may be your favorite book so give it a go if it sounds like a book you will like.
What doesn't work for me may be your favorite book so give it a go if it sounds like a book you will like.