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3.52 AVERAGE
3.52 AVERAGE
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
THAT ENDING. THAT WHOLE BOOK. I am speechless.
Want to see more bookish things from me? Check out my youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCferU-BCL2dlFjWdD0rS75Q
*I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review*
Struggling actress Kira auditions for a Chicago theatre company run by Joanna Cuyler and Malcom Mercer. Malcom is the director and lead actor in every show who has the reputation of using brutal tactics to push his cast to their limits until they ultimately break. When Kira is cast for the other lead role in their upcoming play Temper, she believes she can handle anything Malcom throws her way.
Honestly, the less you know going into this book, the better. If I had to find a way to explain this book I would just say the entire time reading it I was basically the Charlie Day conspiracy meme from Always Sunny in Philadelphia... Right from the first page I was sucked into the story and these characters. The story is told through dual perspectives between Kira and Joanna, each with a very distinct voice. I usually find that with multiple perspectives, I find myself liking one of them the most. With Temper, I was equally enthralled with both narrators. I wanted to know more about each of them and how everyone was somehow connected to one another. I loved the power struggle between Kira and Malcom both on and off the stage, there was so much tension between the two of them you knew someone would have to snap eventually. I also really enjoyed the secondary characters in this book, especially Kira's roommate and bestfriend, Spence. Malcom was an excellent villain and you couldn't help loving him, even though he is absolutely terrible.
The slow burn of this book and the small unveils were so well done they had me on the edge of my seat the entire time. I loved finding little tidbits of information that seemed like throw away comments but were actually major plot points later on in the book.
This definitely did not feel like a debut novel and I will 100% be checking out more of this author's work when they are released. I would definitely recommend checking this one out!
*I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review*
Struggling actress Kira auditions for a Chicago theatre company run by Joanna Cuyler and Malcom Mercer. Malcom is the director and lead actor in every show who has the reputation of using brutal tactics to push his cast to their limits until they ultimately break. When Kira is cast for the other lead role in their upcoming play Temper, she believes she can handle anything Malcom throws her way.
Honestly, the less you know going into this book, the better. If I had to find a way to explain this book I would just say the entire time reading it I was basically the Charlie Day conspiracy meme from Always Sunny in Philadelphia... Right from the first page I was sucked into the story and these characters. The story is told through dual perspectives between Kira and Joanna, each with a very distinct voice. I usually find that with multiple perspectives, I find myself liking one of them the most. With Temper, I was equally enthralled with both narrators. I wanted to know more about each of them and how everyone was somehow connected to one another. I loved the power struggle between Kira and Malcom both on and off the stage, there was so much tension between the two of them you knew someone would have to snap eventually. I also really enjoyed the secondary characters in this book, especially Kira's roommate and bestfriend, Spence. Malcom was an excellent villain and you couldn't help loving him, even though he is absolutely terrible.
The slow burn of this book and the small unveils were so well done they had me on the edge of my seat the entire time. I loved finding little tidbits of information that seemed like throw away comments but were actually major plot points later on in the book.
This definitely did not feel like a debut novel and I will 100% be checking out more of this author's work when they are released. I would definitely recommend checking this one out!
i hoped it was crazier. before i started this, i saw a few people calling it as if we were villains on steroids so i stupidly had high expectations for it. it was kind of lacking emotionally, i wished that it had more emotional depth to the characters and the interpersonal relationships between them.
Very very VERY place-specific. Like over the top direct references (which made the few times that Fargo just talked around real places/theater, like the Neo-Futurists, super inconsistent; I don't understand the logic).
The whole book is about characters not meant to be liked, and I get that. (Well, technically, the whole book is a fictionalized retelling of the very real Chicago theater, Profiles, being outed in June 2014 for its many issues.) But having the characters just try to out-manipulate each other, over and over, and then setting them up with the view that everyone must be exactly like they are... It felt a little extreme.
The ending seems like it was super cathartic for Fargo to write -- though whether that's because she just hated her characters as much as the reader should, or whether she was somehow more directly affected by the Profiles case than she's let on, who knows. The way she writes her characters' reactions to another character's reaction when witnessing an act of abuse makes me think it was a bit more personal -- literally every outrage was somehow an indicator that the outraged character had deeper person-specific feelings than they had let on (rather than just a general -- and fully believable -- dismay at abuse).
The whole book is about characters not meant to be liked, and I get that. (Well, technically, the whole book is a fictionalized retelling of the very real Chicago theater, Profiles, being outed in June 2014 for its many issues.) But having the characters just try to out-manipulate each other, over and over, and then setting them up with the view that everyone must be exactly like they are... It felt a little extreme.
The ending seems like it was super cathartic for Fargo to write -- though whether that's because she just hated her characters as much as the reader should, or whether she was somehow more directly affected by the Profiles case than she's let on, who knows. The way she writes her characters' reactions to another character's reaction when witnessing an act of abuse makes me think it was a bit more personal -- literally every outrage was somehow an indicator that the outraged character had deeper person-specific feelings than they had let on (rather than just a general -- and fully believable -- dismay at abuse).
If you are fine with reading about unlikeable characters who are effed up in every way possible, this is your gem. I really enjoyed this more than I expected. The ending was predictable from the beginning itself but that will not bother you if you go into it knowing its more like a character study than a thriller. I wouldnt say its a thriller. Its like a psychological fiction. There was not even one character I liked but at the same time I just loved the overall tension in the book and the way these people would do anything to achieve what they want. The chapters were short which I love in a book. It was really fascinating. I had so much fun.
Everyone was obsessed with and horny for a boring man and nothing was happening 😐