Reviews with content warning for Sexual content - Verity

Honestly one of the worst books I’ve ever read but pure insanity and intrigue prevented me from DNF-ing this one. After the crazy, implausible cliffhanger twist at the end I wish I wouldn’t have wasted my time. The best way I can describe this book is uncomfortable. I wasn’t captivated by any of the storytelling, I felt no connection to the characters and I am honestly concerned a plot such as this was even constructed. 100% do not understand the hype around this book. Yes, there is spice but it’s very awkward and poorly written in my opinion. I get that this book is intended to be disturbing and graphic but it lacks sustenance and fell incredibly flat.

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erratictemporality's review against another edition

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medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.75

this book had potential, but it was just so poorly executed.

weirdly, to anyone that hasn't read this, i do highly recommend listening to it as an audiobook so you don't physically have to force yourself through it, but you get to experience all the absolutely iconic moments.

to people that genuinely liked this, i implore you to branch out into thriller authors.

but okay, hear me out.
it was kind of hilarious?? and lowkey amazing in a fucked up kind of way?? like there were (very brief) moments of, holy shit, hoover kind of cooked here??? mind you, not enough to absolve the book of that dogshit "twist ending", the plot holes and the paperthin characters. but enough to have it taking up an annoying amount of space in my mind. i feel like its a good book to discuss, especially as writers, to see where intention and execution fail to align.

spoilers below VVV

first, characters.

if it were written well, the MC would've been introduced as this perfectly normal, everyman character, who, within her own mind, was justified in every action she took. then, as the book went on, the audience would realise that she's actually, incredibly fucked up, and kinda cursed. But Hoover's writing made it feel more like she was written to be a relatable character who just did fucked up shit because of fear/stress/paranoia?

like her whole demeanour in the first scene made her seem like an average girly who was just really disillusioned to life, but nothing in the way the main character acts in the rest of the book aligns with how she’s portrayed at the start. the main character's attitude toward's verity's wealth was so insufferable. like no acknowledgment that verity had worked for what she had?? and she was jealous of Crew in a way that was so fucking dumb, like the kid had lost his mum and both his sisters??? are you mentally good?? she was written as such an insufferable character, who was portrayed to be relatable and it made me want to punch a bitch. i feel so bad for the kid she's about to raise, she'd make a shit mother.

And it pisses me off because the main character's reactions are so GOOD sometimes, so perfectly fucked up, like biting down on verity's teeth marks?? And not being wracked with guilt or fully questioning reality after reading verity's letter? it makes the book FUN, i just feel like it could've been executed so much better within the context of the rest of her character? it didn't feel like unreliable narrator, when the book would've been so much better if it was.

so i'm genuinely still conflicted about her characterisation, idk if she was intended to be read as really fucking twisted, or as the relatable MC. Im not saying it has to be clear cut, ambiguity isn't necessarily a bad thing, but this confusion seems more like a result of shitty writing, than intentional ambiguity. there's obviously an argument that the author's intention doesn't matter, it's about how the characters are actually read, but im trying to give Hoover the benefit of the doubt here. and i'm lowkey kinda mad, the first version of her character would've been soo compelling

That said, there is also a good chance that I’m just a shit reader that didn’t pick up on nuances that would’ve sold this book. But you can judge that for yourself :))

and that sleepwalking plot line?? it felt like such a waste of time and in no way explained her attitudes towards her mum. Like im not saying her mum wasn't fucked for how she responded to it, more that it was so fucked up that it seemed like such an unreasonable and unbelievable reaction that just again, points to poor characterisation. And even if it wasn't, it’s still not enough to warrant the MCs attitude towards her death? Like as ungrateful and selfish of a human as your mum might be, watching and caring for her as she dies isn’t something you just brush off?? And sure maybe the MC was holed up in her house for a minute after her mum’s death, but that felt more like telling, and not showing, her grief.

Okay, I realise that im using “show don’t tell” in a kind of contradictory way to how it’s taught. I think I just mean that Hoover’s not a good enough writer to communicate complex human emotions. Which is kind of crippling when you’re dealing with all the traumatic shit that she chose to include in this book. Oh and the love interest (can't remember his name, which kind of proves my point) was just so bland and boring that neither Verity's nor the MC’s motivations made any sense. These last two paragraphs were kind me just taking shots at Hoover, but i stand by them.

And plot wise, there're so many plot holes and times where you could tell hoover wrote something in to try justify something that'd happened earlier, to make it look like the book held up. A good thriller with a good plot twist would be enjoyable to reread because it would completely change the implications of so many things that happen earlier in the book. But this book just doesn’t do that. That final letter was so pathetic. I think it's silly to sit here and point out each plot hole, you can probably see it too and if you can’t there’s a lot of reviews on here that'll show you.

oh and lowkey, the verity who wrote that letter was wayyy less compelling and believable than the verity who wrote the autobiography. like tf kinda person can stomach to write that shit about their own kids? i will, however, give Hoover props for being able to write two distinct tones from the same perspective. but lowkey, that could've just been the voice actor.

So, I feel, fundamentally that there was so much potential for this book to be a good psychological thriller, Hoover just isn’t good enough to execute it. Which, i guess, makes it a fun book to analyse and learn from? i guess?

idk, pls (kindly) let me know if you think i'm completely off base

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lindyhopper's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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vaehangel's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

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jillianm713's review against another edition

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dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

This book pissed me off. I started skimming it just because I wanted to know what happened, but not because it was a gripping thriller but because I was annoyed and just wanted it to be done. The insertions of Verity’s unpublished manuscript were the parts that I found most interesting (don’t know what that says about me as a person)

so once it was revealed that those parts were just a writing exercise and she wasn’t actually that horrible of a mother just made me mad and reduces all the stakes down to nothing.

I was interested in what was happening, hence the additional star, but it ultimately left me annoyed and angry.

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lexibug's review against another edition

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dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This was a solid 3.5 star read until the ending. I love the ending a lot. It's one thing to have a plot twist, but this is of a whole other world. I am speechless; highly recommend this one!!

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