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3.37 AVERAGE
3.37 AVERAGE
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“Women have to live so much of their life in the in-betweens.”
In case you didn't know: Megan Abbott is one of my all-time favourite authors. I adore her prose so much and the way she is able to portray the complexities of humanity and the relationships between women. It's fairly obvious why I'd been looking forward to Give Me Your Hand since it was announced. Abbott could write out the contents of a phone-book from 1975 and I'd be pretty much guaranteed to admire it. There is no other author out there like her and very few authors have made me feel to the degree that she has in prior releases.
Give Me Your Hand had a simple enough premise to it. As per usual, it followed the friendship between two young women. Armed with her brutal honesty and frank under-standing of being women, and the all-consuming friend-ships that can bloom in our youth, Abbott compels her audience into a chilling sort of captivation. While Give Me Your Hand is a solid release, and has its fair share of stellar moments, it is far from her best novel. There were moments where it seemed to pause and lack growth; perhaps this is due to its topic nature and inclusion of science (something I was never altogether great with in the past) and more of a personal preference.
I just found there to be quite a few passages where I nearly zoned out on. While they still had Abbott's signature shimmery prose to it, I did have difficulty focusing and connecting to the greater parts of it. They just weren't for me, and that's okay, because the story was enjoyable despite it.
What I found most striking about Give Me Your Hand is the sort of numbness that comes with it. I do not think I'm doing good with explaining it, but every time Diane appears on paper--both in present time, as a girl, and in the future as a women who has reappeared in Kit's life--there's this dreary sort of numbness that comes with her. I really dig it, because it adds this eerie element to it that will hit readers hard.
I enjoyed the central mystery and the connection that Kit and Diane shared, even after the years since high school passed and Diane told Kit a secret that changed everything. As adults, they are similar to who they were and because of this, that connection crackles even now. I thought there was something so terrifying, intriguing and bittersweet about their friendship and the series of events that unfolds in their adult years.
Admittedly, I found myself haunted by Diane's secret much like Kit was. There's something so... off center about Diane, you're disarmed. She seems normal enough. And then there's those moments in her scenes where you know she's not, and you're struggling right there with Kit.
Give Me Your Hand proves a theory I've had all along--even in Abbott's weaker points, her prose is so fiery and dark that there's no competition between her work and many of her contemporaries. I cannot stress this fact enough: even her least compelling works still remain better written than so many other's in modern times.
While this novel wasn't my favourite of Abbott's, it's still a fascinating read that will absorb your fear and captivate you in due time. Give it a chance, it's worth it once it gets into its groove.
“Women have to live so much of their life in the in-betweens.”
In case you didn't know: Megan Abbott is one of my all-time favourite authors. I adore her prose so much and the way she is able to portray the complexities of humanity and the relationships between women. It's fairly obvious why I'd been looking forward to Give Me Your Hand since it was announced. Abbott could write out the contents of a phone-book from 1975 and I'd be pretty much guaranteed to admire it. There is no other author out there like her and very few authors have made me feel to the degree that she has in prior releases.
Give Me Your Hand had a simple enough premise to it. As per usual, it followed the friendship between two young women. Armed with her brutal honesty and frank under-standing of being women, and the all-consuming friend-ships that can bloom in our youth, Abbott compels her audience into a chilling sort of captivation. While Give Me Your Hand is a solid release, and has its fair share of stellar moments, it is far from her best novel. There were moments where it seemed to pause and lack growth; perhaps this is due to its topic nature and inclusion of science (something I was never altogether great with in the past) and more of a personal preference.
I just found there to be quite a few passages where I nearly zoned out on. While they still had Abbott's signature shimmery prose to it, I did have difficulty focusing and connecting to the greater parts of it. They just weren't for me, and that's okay, because the story was enjoyable despite it.
What I found most striking about Give Me Your Hand is the sort of numbness that comes with it. I do not think I'm doing good with explaining it, but every time Diane appears on paper--both in present time, as a girl, and in the future as a women who has reappeared in Kit's life--there's this dreary sort of numbness that comes with her. I really dig it, because it adds this eerie element to it that will hit readers hard.
I enjoyed the central mystery and the connection that Kit and Diane shared, even after the years since high school passed and Diane told Kit a secret that changed everything. As adults, they are similar to who they were and because of this, that connection crackles even now. I thought there was something so terrifying, intriguing and bittersweet about their friendship and the series of events that unfolds in their adult years.
Admittedly, I found myself haunted by Diane's secret much like Kit was. There's something so... off center about Diane, you're disarmed. She seems normal enough. And then there's those moments in her scenes where you know she's not, and you're struggling right there with Kit.
Give Me Your Hand proves a theory I've had all along--even in Abbott's weaker points, her prose is so fiery and dark that there's no competition between her work and many of her contemporaries. I cannot stress this fact enough: even her least compelling works still remain better written than so many other's in modern times.
While this novel wasn't my favourite of Abbott's, it's still a fascinating read that will absorb your fear and captivate you in due time. Give it a chance, it's worth it once it gets into its groove.
I'm really not sure why the rating is as low as it is!! I found this to be very taught and gripping. Some weird ~essential dark feminine~ stuff but hey, I'm occasionally into that!
This book reminded me of The Blondes. Just because the characters are smart women, it isn’t a feminist book. It kept my attention but it’s not a good read and a little embarrassing.
I enjoyed this a lot but am confused by the lack of attribution to the Texas Monthly article on Marie Robards?
The writing is strong but the story/plotting didn't click for me.
“You can’t fix other people’s problems. You can’t fix other people”.
This was full of surprises, twists, and turns - I couldn’t put it down. It was such a page turner. My only issue was that it took a long while for things to start unraveling - it sort of dragged out in the beginning. I would definitely recommend this to people who love psychological thrillers. I don’t know what it is that makes female murderers so unsettling - is it because there are that many well written characters? Or because women aren’t considered capable to commit these crimes?
This was full of surprises, twists, and turns - I couldn’t put it down. It was such a page turner. My only issue was that it took a long while for things to start unraveling - it sort of dragged out in the beginning. I would definitely recommend this to people who love psychological thrillers. I don’t know what it is that makes female murderers so unsettling - is it because there are that many well written characters? Or because women aren’t considered capable to commit these crimes?
Well-written and easy to get caught up and keep reading. Kind of predictable, however.
Jumping from Then to Now, this book unravels the dark history between Kit and Diane and the even darker present. Kit tries not to get sucked back into the secrets and horror that Diane embodies, but finds herself back into the web. A fantastic psychological thriller that kept me reading right until the last page! I would recommend this to anyone that likes a suspenseful read!
I received this advanced readers copy in exchange for my honest opinion and review
I received this advanced readers copy in exchange for my honest opinion and review
This book pulled me in right away with the jumps between present and past. I enjoyed that we didn’t have to wait until the end of the book to find out what the big secret was, but there were some parts that just felt unnecessary, while other parts I needed more information. Truthfully none of the characters are very likable, but I enjoyed that about the novel. Overall an exciting read, and I look forward to reading more books by this author.