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3.19 AVERAGE
3.19 AVERAGE
The same compelling storytelling as We Were Liars, the same story turned on its end that makes you wonder what really went on, but with an ending that falls sadly flat.
✔️POPSUGAR reading challenge: a book about a villain or antihero ✔️
I had no idea what to expect from this book, which made it so much more enjoyable. This book was truly a wild journey, and I loved the way that the chapters were going back in time. It was so clever and unique in the way that we, as readers, watched the plot and the truth unfold before us. The lyricism and unreliable narrator made this such a quick read that I couldn't put down.
I had no idea what to expect from this book, which made it so much more enjoyable. This book was truly a wild journey, and I loved the way that the chapters were going back in time. It was so clever and unique in the way that we, as readers, watched the plot and the truth unfold before us. The lyricism and unreliable narrator made this such a quick read that I couldn't put down.
I'm so mad at this book, which steals so much from Patricia Highsmith's [b: The Talented Mr. Ripley|2247142|The Talented Mr. Ripley (Ripley, #1)|Patricia Highsmith|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1435426615s/2247142.jpg|1817520] without the author adequately acknowledging the huge debt it owes to that novel. When the author says her book feels like 'layer upon layer' of influences like noir and superhero and Victorian novels, that ignores the very very specific elements that come from one work.
Plus, the ending has some problems - it doesn't end in a final enough way, it feels so incomplete, like what about Imogen's leaving her money to Jule? And the implausibility: what about the fact that a trained private investigator, who thinks Jule is dead, and has presumably seen pictures of both women, mistakes her for Imogen? And is easily overpowered?
I feel like this book is exploiting an audience that is unfamiliar with Ripley and who might find this book original and shocking. The additional backwards in time narrative trick doesn't add much but felt obfuscating to me, to cover up weakness with the story.
I have read other recent homages to famous works, like [b: Great|4671|The Great Gatsby|F. Scott Fitzgerald|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1490528560s/4671.jpg|245494] by Sara Benincasa, a YA retelling of The Great Gatsby, and [b: Wilde Lake|26198780|Wilde Lake|Laura Lippman|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1454170384s/26198780.jpg|46174550] by Laura Lippman, a riff on To Kill a Mockingbird, and I found them both enjoyable if not in any way comparable to the originals. This was also enjoyable, but I felt ripped off or misled as a reader.
Spoiler
Killing someone on a boat with an oar. Being sent to find that person by their parents, finding them lazy and aimless on the beach. Inhabiting their identity in order to feed a great desire to be wealthy and to fit in with wealthy people.Plus, the ending has some problems - it doesn't end in a final enough way, it feels so incomplete, like what about Imogen's leaving her money to Jule? And the implausibility: what about the fact that a trained private investigator, who thinks Jule is dead, and has presumably seen pictures of both women, mistakes her for Imogen? And is easily overpowered?
I feel like this book is exploiting an audience that is unfamiliar with Ripley and who might find this book original and shocking. The additional backwards in time narrative trick doesn't add much but felt obfuscating to me, to cover up weakness with the story.
I have read other recent homages to famous works, like [b: Great|4671|The Great Gatsby|F. Scott Fitzgerald|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1490528560s/4671.jpg|245494] by Sara Benincasa, a YA retelling of The Great Gatsby, and [b: Wilde Lake|26198780|Wilde Lake|Laura Lippman|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1454170384s/26198780.jpg|46174550] by Laura Lippman, a riff on To Kill a Mockingbird, and I found them both enjoyable if not in any way comparable to the originals. This was also enjoyable, but I felt ripped off or misled as a reader.
Loveable characters:
No
“For anyone who has been taught that good equals small and silent, here is my heart with all its ugly tangles and splendid fury.”
Stars (Out of 10): 6.5/10 Stars
Favorite Character: Honestly, this was the kinda book where every character wasn’t necessarily made to be likable, but rather to be interesting.
Spoiler Free: I was so hooked on this book! With so many twists and turns to navigate, and the unique way of the story being told backwards, I could not put this book down! I enjoyed almost every chapter of this novel.
However, with such a positive intro, you may be wondering why this book only has 6.5/10 stars. This is all due to how the book ended, and while I won’t go into too much detail here to avoid spoilers, it honestly was kind of disappointing. There was all this build up and exciting twists and turns that ended up feeling like they went nowhere, and the potential was wasted.
Additionally, another thing to know going into this book is that the writing style is fairly clear cut and simple, and thus the connection you get to the characters, and sometimes the plot, is also that. There are no beautiful words and luxurious phrases to make you think the MC, Jule, is the best person out there. There is simply what happened, occasionally what Jule thinks of it, and that’s about it. This detachment is also enhanced somewhat by the use of third person, since we never seem to be directly controlled by Jule’s thoughts. However, all of this ends up adding to the story, and allows for the reader to create their own opinions and theories about what the hell went down in this novel without the biases of the narrator overshadowing it completely.
Careful! Spoilers beyond this point!
Spoilers: They say the universe will end not with a bang but with a whimper, and I feel that’s the exact idea this book copied.
I was fully planning on giving this book 8 or 9 out of 10 stars until the letdown that was ending. This entire book felt like the continued increase of speed and beat within a song, but then inevitably failed to deliver a proper culmination of all that tension. The book made the events all seem so planned and calculated on Jule’s part, and continued to strengthen this assumption up until chapter 2 or 1. Then, it turns out the entire event was based around a bunch of accidents, from accidentally getting the catering job to accidentally running into Imogen’s mother to even not meaning to kill Imogen. It all felt like a let down after seeing the calculating and often cut throat mind of Jule.
Now I get there is some meaning to be found in this sort of ending, where it is entirely different from what you expected and you end up learning the villain/anti-hero isn’t quite so evil as expected, but I just can’t get over that feeling of disappointment.
However, the reveal of Jule being the girl Imogen used to be forced to hang out with was definitely a nice touch, seeing as she turned into Imogen’s chosen best friend in the end.
Stars (Out of 10): 6.5/10 Stars
Favorite Character: Honestly, this was the kinda book where every character wasn’t necessarily made to be likable, but rather to be interesting.
Spoiler Free: I was so hooked on this book! With so many twists and turns to navigate, and the unique way of the story being told backwards, I could not put this book down! I enjoyed almost every chapter of this novel.
However, with such a positive intro, you may be wondering why this book only has 6.5/10 stars. This is all due to how the book ended, and while I won’t go into too much detail here to avoid spoilers, it honestly was kind of disappointing. There was all this build up and exciting twists and turns that ended up feeling like they went nowhere, and the potential was wasted.
Additionally, another thing to know going into this book is that the writing style is fairly clear cut and simple, and thus the connection you get to the characters, and sometimes the plot, is also that. There are no beautiful words and luxurious phrases to make you think the MC, Jule, is the best person out there. There is simply what happened, occasionally what Jule thinks of it, and that’s about it. This detachment is also enhanced somewhat by the use of third person, since we never seem to be directly controlled by Jule’s thoughts. However, all of this ends up adding to the story, and allows for the reader to create their own opinions and theories about what the hell went down in this novel without the biases of the narrator overshadowing it completely.
Careful! Spoilers beyond this point!
Spoilers: They say the universe will end not with a bang but with a whimper, and I feel that’s the exact idea this book copied.
I was fully planning on giving this book 8 or 9 out of 10 stars until the letdown that was ending. This entire book felt like the continued increase of speed and beat within a song, but then inevitably failed to deliver a proper culmination of all that tension. The book made the events all seem so planned and calculated on Jule’s part, and continued to strengthen this assumption up until chapter 2 or 1. Then, it turns out the entire event was based around a bunch of accidents, from accidentally getting the catering job to accidentally running into Imogen’s mother to even not meaning to kill Imogen. It all felt like a let down after seeing the calculating and often cut throat mind of Jule.
Now I get there is some meaning to be found in this sort of ending, where it is entirely different from what you expected and you end up learning the villain/anti-hero isn’t quite so evil as expected, but I just can’t get over that feeling of disappointment.
However, the reveal of Jule being the girl Imogen used to be forced to hang out with was definitely a nice touch, seeing as she turned into Imogen’s chosen best friend in the end.
This one was hard for me to get into. It reminded me of Memento the movie in that you never knew what was true and what wasn’t and the sequence just wasn’t right. This one didn’t work for me as well, but I am glad I read it!
I could've finshed this in one day if I didn't have to go to work and could have slept in. I was so hooked on this. I know that some have griped that the reverse-chronological order is confusing, and sure maybe it is at the start. But I have never read another story told in this way before and I was honestly really impressed with how we'd get the "twists" first and then move into how that twist came about. It's crazy to read the origin story of our main character Jule and see just how dark and twisted this story got, all from where she started. Really really interesting and I've already passed it along to a friend and recommended it to another.
chuloooo me ha gustado es el primero q me leo de este estilo y además muy original lo de los capítulos al revés
bua acabo de leer una review sobre q no sabes como te sientes sobre los personajes y es q literal q no se si las amo si las odio ni nada
bua acabo de leer una review sobre q no sabes como te sientes sobre los personajes y es q literal q no se si las amo si las odio ni nada
Zupełnie mi nie po drodze z książkami Lockhart. Jedyne co mi się tak naprawdę podobało to odwrócona narracja i sposób w jaki zmieniała się historia z każdym wcześniejszym epizodem. Kompletnie nie rozumiem motywacji głównej bohaterki, wszystko, co z nią związane jest bardzo zagmatwane i po skończeniu powieści mam bardzo dużo pytań dotyczących tylko Jules. Jestem równie sfrustrowana jak po lekturze ,,Byliśmy łgarzami'' i nie wiem czy tak powinno być.
3,5 stars tbh
"Imogen is a runaway heiress, an orphan, a cook, and a cheat.
Jule is a fighter, a social chameleon, and an athlete.
An intense friendship. A disappearance. A murder, or maybe two.
A bad romance, or maybe three.
Blunt objects, disguises, blood, and chocolate. The American dream, superheroes, spies, and villains.
A girl who refuses to give people what they want from her.
A girl who refuses to be the person she once was."
Okay, I have some serious mixed feelings right now... I was really intrigued by this story and it felt refreshing to read something new and different. To begin this review with I just have to praise the way the chapters were written. It wasn't tradionally written from chapter one till chapter whatever the ending number is. No, the chapters in this one went backwards, which I didn't realize until a few chapters into the book. So it starts with 18 and then it goes backwards as the story is being told backwards. The mystery unfolds slowly and I would be lying if I said that I wasn't caught by the very fascinating enigma. I could barely leave the book and I just wanted to know more and more, which is a sensation I haven't felt in a while!
But what wasn't that good then? Well, let's get this straight. The ending. What the actual. Imagine this; For lots of pages mystery is revealing it's truthful side and you learn more and more about the characters and what their history is about. It's getting really tensed as the pages become less and less, the anticipation is growing and then boom, it ends abruptly without more explanation. I wanted to know why Juliette even got involved in Imogen's life and what her motives were. Sure, those were explained but it was defective in my opinion, just too random to be an original idea. But then it just ended with all those kind of unplanned motives and it all just felt wasted. In my imagination, Jule's and Imogen had known each other for years and later on Imogen would have changed a lot in a way that didn't suit Jule's taste and therefore it ended as it did. But here I am with an ending that tells me thta Jule's barely knew Imogen? She had no idea of who that person was, she just wanted a job? And then it just went overboard and now she's on the run?
The characteristics were poorly produced as well. They were explained but I never got on a deeper level with any of them. It was difficult when reading through third person but our main character was more or less Jule, and I have no idea who she is. That might as well be the point given the story such a mysterious background but it wasn't my cup of tea. There should've been more to add on Jule's attributes but they were simply lacking and I might never understand her motives about anything. Which is frustrating. I have read a story but at the same time the story gave me nothing in return.
I do realize that E. Lockhart was following the same writing routine as she did with "We were liars" and it worked very well with it, but it did simply not suit Genuine Fraud. There were too many question marks left after finishing the book which only leaves the reader frustrated. I don't even know if I want to recommend this one... It was good and thrilling though I guess that the end of it just spoiled everything... Though you might not react like I did.
Until next time.
"Imogen is a runaway heiress, an orphan, a cook, and a cheat.
Jule is a fighter, a social chameleon, and an athlete.
An intense friendship. A disappearance. A murder, or maybe two.
A bad romance, or maybe three.
Blunt objects, disguises, blood, and chocolate. The American dream, superheroes, spies, and villains.
A girl who refuses to give people what they want from her.
A girl who refuses to be the person she once was."
Okay, I have some serious mixed feelings right now... I was really intrigued by this story and it felt refreshing to read something new and different. To begin this review with I just have to praise the way the chapters were written. It wasn't tradionally written from chapter one till chapter whatever the ending number is. No, the chapters in this one went backwards, which I didn't realize until a few chapters into the book. So it starts with 18 and then it goes backwards as the story is being told backwards. The mystery unfolds slowly and I would be lying if I said that I wasn't caught by the very fascinating enigma. I could barely leave the book and I just wanted to know more and more, which is a sensation I haven't felt in a while!
But what wasn't that good then? Well, let's get this straight. The ending. What the actual. Imagine this; For lots of pages mystery is revealing it's truthful side and you learn more and more about the characters and what their history is about. It's getting really tensed as the pages become less and less, the anticipation is growing and then boom, it ends abruptly without more explanation. I wanted to know why Juliette even got involved in Imogen's life and what her motives were. Sure, those were explained but it was defective in my opinion, just too random to be an original idea. But then it just ended with all those kind of unplanned motives and it all just felt wasted. In my imagination, Jule's and Imogen had known each other for years and later on Imogen would have changed a lot in a way that didn't suit Jule's taste and therefore it ended as it did. But here I am with an ending that tells me thta Jule's barely knew Imogen? She had no idea of who that person was, she just wanted a job? And then it just went overboard and now she's on the run?
The characteristics were poorly produced as well. They were explained but I never got on a deeper level with any of them. It was difficult when reading through third person but our main character was more or less Jule, and I have no idea who she is. That might as well be the point given the story such a mysterious background but it wasn't my cup of tea. There should've been more to add on Jule's attributes but they were simply lacking and I might never understand her motives about anything. Which is frustrating. I have read a story but at the same time the story gave me nothing in return.
I do realize that E. Lockhart was following the same writing routine as she did with "We were liars" and it worked very well with it, but it did simply not suit Genuine Fraud. There were too many question marks left after finishing the book which only leaves the reader frustrated. I don't even know if I want to recommend this one... It was good and thrilling though I guess that the end of it just spoiled everything... Though you might not react like I did.
Until next time.