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rachelbernholtz's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
The majority of the book is great but the ending was really disappointing.
I hated how quickly the conflict was resolved, her hearing the confession on the baby monitor was too easy and then the prologue was really boring
paulabrandon's review against another edition
1.0
Holy moly, I'm not having much luck in my book choices these days!
This was the absolute pits and a complete waste of my time!
Main character is Jane Baxter. She's basically obsessed with her best friend, Marnie. Things are fine for Jane while she's married to Jonathan, but after his tragic death, she realises how much she needs Marnie in her life. So she's not too happy when Marnie falls for Charles, who Jane can't stand. She doesn't want him usurping the close relationship she has with Marnie. We learn early on that Charles is now dead, and Jane explains the story of how this came to be.
This is another book that rattles off the term "psychological thriller", when it's really a character study. A very slow-paced, verrrrry padded-out character study at that. There is so much extraneous, unnecessary material in here to try and cover up the fact there isn't a plot. At 40% we get to the revelation we all saw coming from the moment the book starts, but the book has nowhere else to go after that, and absolutely fuck-all happens from that point until the end.
Making worse what was already a terribly dull, uninteresting book was the journalist subplot. A woman named Valerie publishes a story online about how she thinks Jane and Marnie were lovers who both murdered their husband, which gets picked up by the press.
Is Britain the only place where this sort of fuckery happens?!? I read this shit in all the British police procedurals as well. Is publishing that sort of shit legal in Britain?
If you publish an article, online or in the paper, accusing somebody of MURDER, without anything to back it up, YOU WOULD HAVE THE SHIT SUED OUT OF YOU. It's libel. It's not legal. Here in Australia, a TV personality took defamation action because a newspaper said she was racist. For the life of me, I couldn't figure out why Jane and Marnie weren't going straight to a lawyer and, indeed, suing the shit out of Valerie. Valerie even badgers Jane in public and on the phone, and Jane never even once considers a restraining order. Valerie's actions are illegal and anybody in a similar situation as Jane, in the real world, would be doing something about it.
And the worst thing is - NOTHING even comes out of this subplot. Valerie just drops out of the book as it limps towards its dull, uninspired ending.
I honestly can't even think what the point of this book was. It's very slow-paced, with lots of extraneous material that has no purpose (including my favourite: descriptions of what every house and room the character visits looks like). It has no suspense and no plot twists to speak of. If you want yet another unreliable narrator (I guess Jane is) story, you might find something here to like, but you're better off trying one of the 2,437 that have come out in the last nine years.
This was fucking crap. And that's NOT a lie.
This was the absolute pits and a complete waste of my time!
Main character is Jane Baxter. She's basically obsessed with her best friend, Marnie. Things are fine for Jane while she's married to Jonathan, but after his tragic death, she realises how much she needs Marnie in her life. So she's not too happy when Marnie falls for Charles, who Jane can't stand. She doesn't want him usurping the close relationship she has with Marnie. We learn early on that Charles is now dead, and Jane explains the story of how this came to be.
This is another book that rattles off the term "psychological thriller", when it's really a character study. A very slow-paced, verrrrry padded-out character study at that. There is so much extraneous, unnecessary material in here to try and cover up the fact there isn't a plot. At 40% we get to the revelation we all saw coming from the moment the book starts
Spoiler
Jane murdered CharlesMaking worse what was already a terribly dull, uninteresting book was the journalist subplot. A woman named Valerie publishes a story online about how she thinks Jane and Marnie were lovers who both murdered their husband, which gets picked up by the press.
Is Britain the only place where this sort of fuckery happens?!? I read this shit in all the British police procedurals as well. Is publishing that sort of shit legal in Britain?
If you publish an article, online or in the paper, accusing somebody of MURDER, without anything to back it up, YOU WOULD HAVE THE SHIT SUED OUT OF YOU. It's libel. It's not legal. Here in Australia, a TV personality took defamation action because a newspaper said she was racist. For the life of me, I couldn't figure out why Jane and Marnie weren't going straight to a lawyer and, indeed, suing the shit out of Valerie. Valerie even badgers Jane in public and on the phone, and Jane never even once considers a restraining order. Valerie's actions are illegal and anybody in a similar situation as Jane, in the real world, would be doing something about it.
And the worst thing is - NOTHING even comes out of this subplot. Valerie just drops out of the book as it limps towards its dull, uninspired ending.
I honestly can't even think what the point of this book was. It's very slow-paced, with lots of extraneous material that has no purpose (including my favourite: descriptions of what every house and room the character visits looks like). It has no suspense and no plot twists to speak of. If you want yet another unreliable narrator (I guess Jane is) story, you might find something here to like, but you're better off trying one of the 2,437 that have come out in the last nine years.
This was fucking crap. And that's NOT a lie.
syringaflower's review against another edition
3.0
2,5* - The ending fell flat. And I mean really flat.
literately's review against another edition
2.0
27%— this book feels slow to get started. So many explanations and anecdotal back stories.
I’m so confused as to why these two best friends don’t spend time one on one with each other without their significant other(s)? Maybe they’d be able to be themselves and keep their friendship alive if they kept doing that? So strange.
I definitely found myself skimming at times to hurry past some of the dull details and get to the plot points. There were a lot of extra scenes that felt unnecessary.
Overall: YIKES. What a psycho. And not even in an intelligent or calculated way. Honestly I was a little disappointed because we knew from the start the antagonist was strange, obsessive, and self-serving. Nothing surprising. It just went way too far at the end, in a way that felt completely unbelievable. Then, the way it was wrapped up didn’t make any sense and left much to be desired.
Not the most creative suspense novel.
Favorite quote:
“Can someone who has spent her whole life leaning on others ever support someone else? I’m not convinced that they can. I think that when you willingly take on that role in someone else’s life, you have to accept that they will always put themselves first and that the structure of that relationship cannot be reversed. They will let you fall before they sacrifice themselves to support you.”
I’m so confused as to why these two best friends don’t spend time one on one with each other without their significant other(s)? Maybe they’d be able to be themselves and keep their friendship alive if they kept doing that? So strange.
I definitely found myself skimming at times to hurry past some of the dull details and get to the plot points. There were a lot of extra scenes that felt unnecessary.
Overall: YIKES. What a psycho. And not even in an intelligent or calculated way. Honestly I was a little disappointed because we knew from the start the antagonist was strange, obsessive, and self-serving. Nothing surprising. It just went way too far at the end, in a way that felt completely unbelievable. Then, the way it was wrapped up didn’t make any sense and left much to be desired.
Not the most creative suspense novel.
Favorite quote:
“Can someone who has spent her whole life leaning on others ever support someone else? I’m not convinced that they can. I think that when you willingly take on that role in someone else’s life, you have to accept that they will always put themselves first and that the structure of that relationship cannot be reversed. They will let you fall before they sacrifice themselves to support you.”
daniela_viana's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
madlain's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder, Toxic friendship, Dementia, Grief, Miscarriage, and Murder
Moderate: Blood, Sexual assault, Pregnancy, and Sexism
kels0512's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
monikajh_'s review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
yosoykimpossible's review against another edition
3.0
3.5/5 ⭐️
Jane y Marnie han sido amigas inseparables desde que tenían 11 años, siempre se han apoyado en todo, se conocen mejor que nadie y saben todo de la otra.
Hasta que Marnie empieza a salir con un hombre llamado Charles, y es entonces que Jane le miente a su amiga por primera vez, diciéndole que él le agrada. Pero a raíz de eso, vendrán más mentiras que cambiarán el rumbo de sus vidas para siempre.
Y es que si Jane no hubiera dicho aquella primera mentira, tal vez Charles aún estaría vivo.
Esta es una historia de una amistad incomprensible, dos mujeres muy diferentes unidas por hilos finos, caos, tragedias, obsesión, siete mentiras y una verdad.
Las primeras 120 páginas me parecieron algo lentas, como que no pasaba mucho que me interesara o llamara mi atención, pero de ahí en adelante la historia se fue volviendo adictiva porque se siente como si la protagonista te estuviera haciendo una confesión, contándote un chisme medio turbio o algo por el estilo.
Me pareció entretenido, y aunque deja varios cabos sueltos (como lo de la periodista) creo que para ser la primera novela de la autora no lo hizo nada mal. De verdad sentí frustración hacia la protagonista por sus actitudes y acciones, pero creo que es el punto, y eso la hizo parecer una mujer desequilibrada que podría existir.
También creo que quiso abarcar muchos temas en la novela y por lo mismo no terminó de desarrollarlos todos por completo (lo de la hermana, la mamá, el papá, el abuso, la periodista una vez más) pero aún así, volvería a leer a la autora.
Jane y Marnie han sido amigas inseparables desde que tenían 11 años, siempre se han apoyado en todo, se conocen mejor que nadie y saben todo de la otra.
Hasta que Marnie empieza a salir con un hombre llamado Charles, y es entonces que Jane le miente a su amiga por primera vez, diciéndole que él le agrada. Pero a raíz de eso, vendrán más mentiras que cambiarán el rumbo de sus vidas para siempre.
Y es que si Jane no hubiera dicho aquella primera mentira, tal vez Charles aún estaría vivo.
Esta es una historia de una amistad incomprensible, dos mujeres muy diferentes unidas por hilos finos, caos, tragedias, obsesión, siete mentiras y una verdad.
Las primeras 120 páginas me parecieron algo lentas, como que no pasaba mucho que me interesara o llamara mi atención, pero de ahí en adelante la historia se fue volviendo adictiva porque se siente como si la protagonista te estuviera haciendo una confesión, contándote un chisme medio turbio o algo por el estilo.
Me pareció entretenido, y aunque deja varios cabos sueltos (como lo de la periodista) creo que para ser la primera novela de la autora no lo hizo nada mal. De verdad sentí frustración hacia la protagonista por sus actitudes y acciones, pero creo que es el punto, y eso la hizo parecer una mujer desequilibrada que podría existir.
También creo que quiso abarcar muchos temas en la novela y por lo mismo no terminó de desarrollarlos todos por completo (lo de la hermana, la mamá, el papá, el abuso, la periodista una vez más) pero aún así, volvería a leer a la autora.