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byashleylamar's review against another edition
3.0
I was initially excited about reading I Love You More by Jennifer Murphy. Oliver Lane is found murdered during a beach vacation by his wife, Diana, and his pre-teen daughter, Picasso. As usual detectives immediately suspect his wife but the investigation is quickly turned upside down as they discover wife #2 (Julie) and wife #3 (Bert). Suddenly the suspect pool has expanded and all is not what it originally seemed. The plot was intriguing but the execution was weak. The timeline shifts throughout the book starting with the murder, then before the murder, then after the murder, then a year later. Each chapter is told from an alternating point of view – Picasso, Detective Kyle Kennedy and The Wives (collectively). It was easy to follow but the “voices” of the characters weren’t believable at all and the weird mystical undertones turned me off.
The first chapter is written in the voice of Picasso and it immediately felt unbelievable. She simply didn’t feel like a 12-year old girl. There is a constant reference to her being “wise beyond her years” and I felt myself wondering if that was simply a way to excuse the author’s inability to capture a truly youthful narrator. Picasso is also obsessed with words and spelling so her chapters are riddled with parentheses offering definitions for words which is distracting and unnecessary. Her voice would alternate between feeling far too adult and far too childish. Murphy never seemed able to really hit the right spot. The detective was fine. He was kind with children, attracted to beautiful women, he drank and, at times, was overly crass. He worked.
The chapters written by The Wives were the worst. Instead of giving each wife their own voice they all seemed to meld together. Murphy gave them all their own lives with Oliver, their own interests and their own passions but when it came to the narrative it all blurred. It may have been intentional but it felt awkward. There was also this weird mysticism that was in their chapters – the hand-holding, the swimming, the naked napping, the pink petal mediation baths, it was just weird. The only time it ever got weirder was during the one “Oliver” chapter. I’d rather not even discuss that.
The ending was ridiculous. It felt entirely out of place but not in the least unexpected. It was pretty clear early on that it wasn’t going to end the way it was implied and there was really only one real alternative presented. The motive was lacking, the execution ridiculous and the whole thing was just bad. I audibly groaned when I read the last chapter and closed the book.
Were there good moments in the book? Absolutely. As a whole though, it was disappointing.
Review by Ashley LaMar
Closed the Cover
The first chapter is written in the voice of Picasso and it immediately felt unbelievable. She simply didn’t feel like a 12-year old girl. There is a constant reference to her being “wise beyond her years” and I felt myself wondering if that was simply a way to excuse the author’s inability to capture a truly youthful narrator. Picasso is also obsessed with words and spelling so her chapters are riddled with parentheses offering definitions for words which is distracting and unnecessary. Her voice would alternate between feeling far too adult and far too childish. Murphy never seemed able to really hit the right spot. The detective was fine. He was kind with children, attracted to beautiful women, he drank and, at times, was overly crass. He worked.
The chapters written by The Wives were the worst. Instead of giving each wife their own voice they all seemed to meld together. Murphy gave them all their own lives with Oliver, their own interests and their own passions but when it came to the narrative it all blurred. It may have been intentional but it felt awkward. There was also this weird mysticism that was in their chapters – the hand-holding, the swimming, the naked napping, the pink petal mediation baths, it was just weird. The only time it ever got weirder was during the one “Oliver” chapter. I’d rather not even discuss that.
The ending was ridiculous. It felt entirely out of place but not in the least unexpected. It was pretty clear early on that it wasn’t going to end the way it was implied and there was really only one real alternative presented. The motive was lacking, the execution ridiculous and the whole thing was just bad. I audibly groaned when I read the last chapter and closed the book.
Were there good moments in the book? Absolutely. As a whole though, it was disappointing.
Review by Ashley LaMar
Closed the Cover
mctmama's review against another edition
3.0
this book kept me turning the pages. It seems like you know who killed Oliver (husband to three women, father to four children) but as you continue the story, you learn new facts. Some events seemed implausible to me...
screamking's review against another edition
3.0
This story is told from the perspective of three wives all married to the same man, one of the wives' daughter, and the detective solving the murder of the husband married to the wives. Sounds complicated, by Jennifer Murphy did a really nice job at executing the story line and bumping back and forth between perspectives in a simple manner instead of being difficult, like past authors I've read. It deals with romance and revenge and the bond between those who have been wronged by the same man.
I called the twist before it was revealed, and I was very happy about it. It's a twist most wouldn't see coming but it was definitely an interesting turn of events that really shook up the book. The author did a good job at making sure everything fit with who the culprit was instead of just sloppily throwing things together. Murphy was able to tie up all loose ends and give a well deserved ending.
I called the twist before it was revealed, and I was very happy about it. It's a twist most wouldn't see coming but it was definitely an interesting turn of events that really shook up the book. The author did a good job at making sure everything fit with who the culprit was instead of just sloppily throwing things together. Murphy was able to tie up all loose ends and give a well deserved ending.
lola425's review against another edition
2.0
It was OK. The bones of the story were there, but the execution could have used some honing. For instance, Murphy's male characters are painful to read, I cringed almost every time the main police detective spoke. Picasso was the most fleshed out character, but even so I didn't buy the ending.
manadabomb's review against another edition
3.0
My last postal club book for 2015 and it was unexpected! One of the things I like about joining a postal book club is the breadth of the books that make the rounds. Some of these I don't think I would have picked up on my own and read, but I'm always glad I read them. This book was one of those. I know I shouldn't but sometimes I judge books by their covers. There's a whole cliche about that and yet, I still do it! I almost never read the dust jacket either - I like being surprised. I Love You More pictures 3 well dressed women (with half their faces cut off at the top of the book) and one is holding a gun. Meh. Woman scorned? Eh.
I started reading because it's for the book club and the person who sent it wanted folks to read it. We start off with Picasso, a little girl who loves words and spelling and who might be too smart for her own good. Her mother is Diana Lane and her dad is Oliver Lane.
"The rumors started before my daddy's body got cold"
Well ok. You got me. Oliver Lane is murdered while Diana and Picasso are on vacation. The police show up and the investigation begins. Each chapter gives us the point of view of either Picasso, Detective Kennedy or The Wives. Wait, what? Ah yes, Oliver is a scumbag. He married Diana, then married Jewels, then married Roberta (aka Bert). Technically, he was only married to Diana but the other wives didn't know this. Each wife had a child or children with Oliver. He managed to keep 3 families completely separate and no one suspected anything. Jewels finally caught a whiff of something smelly and followed Oliver, only to find his other families. She introduces herself to each wife and they start meeting.... and planning.
We get all the backstory of the murder, the wives and their (weird) rituals, Picasso's newfound love of lying, Detective Kennedy's newfound lust of Diana. It seems like a basic mystery-that's-not-a-mystery. The wives did it.
Did they?
I started reading because it's for the book club and the person who sent it wanted folks to read it. We start off with Picasso, a little girl who loves words and spelling and who might be too smart for her own good. Her mother is Diana Lane and her dad is Oliver Lane.
"The rumors started before my daddy's body got cold"
Well ok. You got me. Oliver Lane is murdered while Diana and Picasso are on vacation. The police show up and the investigation begins. Each chapter gives us the point of view of either Picasso, Detective Kennedy or The Wives. Wait, what? Ah yes, Oliver is a scumbag. He married Diana, then married Jewels, then married Roberta (aka Bert). Technically, he was only married to Diana but the other wives didn't know this. Each wife had a child or children with Oliver. He managed to keep 3 families completely separate and no one suspected anything. Jewels finally caught a whiff of something smelly and followed Oliver, only to find his other families. She introduces herself to each wife and they start meeting.... and planning.
We get all the backstory of the murder, the wives and their (weird) rituals, Picasso's newfound love of lying, Detective Kennedy's newfound lust of Diana. It seems like a basic mystery-that's-not-a-mystery. The wives did it.
Did they?
snicholson016's review against another edition
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
princessleia4life's review against another edition
1.0
I think the author was trying to be like Harper Lee I’m To Kill a Mockingbird and use a child protagonist who is beyond their years but it just didn’t work for me. The style didn’t agree with me and I didn’t care for this book.
nicki_j's review against another edition
4.0
I like books with precocious child narrators, so I knew I would like this book and Picasso's character. It kind of reminded me of that movie with Cameron Diaz, only a lot more sinister. A few thoughts:
1. The Oliver chapter was unnecessary and just kind of weird. The only functional purpose in my mind was to reveal Oliver's actual name and background, and that could have been accomplished by having Picasso share the secret box with the Detectives
2. I did not like "The Wives" joint, stream of consciousness chapters. I would have rather had snippets from each individual wives.
3. I don't see how all three wives changed their minds about killing Oliver, as was alluded to in their last meeting. Diana softens after he confesses to her about the other wives but then she listens to Bert's voicemail and realizes Oliver said the same thing to her. So maybe Bert believed it, but Diana wouldn't have after that moment. And Jewels still wanted to kill him and even flew there to do so. So I don't see how Oliver "won" by driving them away from each other - when at least two of them were not on Team Oliver right before he was killed.
4. I guess it was a nice twist to have Picasso be the shooter but I wanted a better explanation/justification for her actions than what I got. The Unsmile seemed to be what pushed her over the edge.
Spoiler
1. The Oliver chapter was unnecessary and just kind of weird. The only functional purpose in my mind was to reveal Oliver's actual name and background, and that could have been accomplished by having Picasso share the secret box with the Detectives
2. I did not like "The Wives" joint, stream of consciousness chapters. I would have rather had snippets from each individual wives.
3. I don't see how all three wives changed their minds about killing Oliver, as was alluded to in their last meeting. Diana softens after he confesses to her about the other wives but then she listens to Bert's voicemail and realizes Oliver said the same thing to her. So maybe Bert believed it, but Diana wouldn't have after that moment. And Jewels still wanted to kill him and even flew there to do so. So I don't see how Oliver "won" by driving them away from each other - when at least two of them were not on Team Oliver right before he was killed.
4. I guess it was a nice twist to have Picasso be the shooter but I wanted a better explanation/justification for her actions than what I got. The Unsmile seemed to be what pushed her over the edge.
jggiggle's review against another edition
4.0
We need half star options, Goodreads! This is a 3.5 for me, but I suppose I will round up to 4. I like the story but there was major skimming happening and it made zero difference to the plot. There was just so much unnecessary writing.