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3.35 AVERAGE
3.35 AVERAGE
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thank you to NetGalley, Hank Phillippi Ryan and Forge Books for the free e-book in exchange for an honest review.
I love novels by Ryan and I find each and every one unique from the last one. I loved the idea behind this one and how twisty it becomes. It's always an adventure reading these novels and I enjoyed most of the characters in this one. There were many twists that I actually didn't see coming and I love that in a novel. It was such a wild ride in the last 50 pages and I was very excited about it! Definitely recommend!
I love novels by Ryan and I find each and every one unique from the last one. I loved the idea behind this one and how twisty it becomes. It's always an adventure reading these novels and I enjoyed most of the characters in this one. There were many twists that I actually didn't see coming and I love that in a novel. It was such a wild ride in the last 50 pages and I was very excited about it! Definitely recommend!
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
“Her Perfect Life” is a story of guilt, fame, revenge, sisters, and a trail. Every single thing characters do, every single decision they make opens one door but closes others.
Lily lives the perfect life. She has a daughter Rowen, now in the first grade. She had a sister, Cassie, who was “lost, and Lily has never stopped looking for her. She is an investigative journalist; she gets the “big” news stories, and the big news is always bad. She lives the volatile life of a “public figure” and has “first world” problems: too much attention, too little anonymity, an expensive and obvious car, and a constant fear that she will be some other reporter’s big scoop.
The story is told in alternating narratives by Lily and her assistant, Greer; each chapter is clearly labeled. The team has a new “source,” one who has given them a couple of amazing leads, but now he wants something in return for the next big story, something special, and something very important. A high-stakes emotional chess game ensues. Events from the past wait to spring into the present for revenge and retribution. Ignoring them will not make the danger go away, and a decision must be made; that decision will change everything.
“Her Perfect Life” highlights the dark side of fame. It is a cat and mouse game, but who is the cat and who is the mouse? I received a review copy of “Her Perfect Life” from Hank Phillippi Ryan, Tor/Forge Books, and Macmillan Publishing. It is the story of a family, relationships, duplicities, and ultimate forgiveness. Advice for readers: plan your time wisely; once you start reading this book, you will not be able to stop reading until the very last page.
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I was so excited to get an early copy of this, because I've loved other Hank Philippi Ryan books, but this didn't live up to my expectations, unfortunately.
Synopsis: Lily Atwood has a perfect life - she is a famous reporter, raising a 7-year-old daughter - but her deep secret is that her big sister disappeared when Lily was a child and they never found out what happened to her. Then a mysterious source reaches out to Lily and implies that her sister is still alive but in danger, and they need to work together to save her.
I really enjoyed the first half. It's fast, and the alternating POVs and flashbacks are great at building suspense. But about halfway through, you find out what happened to Cassie, and it just didn't make sense.
I stuck it out because I was really hoping I was just missing something, it'd come together later. And there are some twists later that definitely surprised me, and helped a bit with the logic, but I still felt like there were too many plot holes that were just not addressed.
My other issue is that all the POVs didn't seem necessary. It added an extra mystery to incorporate, but that mystery didn't add anything to the primary storyline. When it all came together, I felt like that POV and story was just a distraction from the main story.
Also - why is it that everyone in that family had the same middle name? That just struck me as weird haha.
Synopsis: Lily Atwood has a perfect life - she is a famous reporter, raising a 7-year-old daughter - but her deep secret is that her big sister disappeared when Lily was a child and they never found out what happened to her. Then a mysterious source reaches out to Lily and implies that her sister is still alive but in danger, and they need to work together to save her.
I really enjoyed the first half. It's fast, and the alternating POVs and flashbacks are great at building suspense. But about halfway through, you find out what happened to Cassie, and it just didn't make sense.
I stuck it out because I was really hoping I was just missing something, it'd come together later. And there are some twists later that definitely surprised me, and helped a bit with the logic, but I still felt like there were too many plot holes that were just not addressed.
My other issue is that all the POVs didn't seem necessary. It added an extra mystery to incorporate, but that mystery didn't add anything to the primary storyline. When it all came together, I felt like that POV and story was just a distraction from the main story.
Also - why is it that everyone in that family had the same middle name? That just struck me as weird haha.
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thank you to NetGalley and Forge Books for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This story was super twisty, and there are a lot of names so stay focused.
I liked the way everything unraveled and came together at the end. I truly did not see it coming!
Also, Hank coming up with her own hashtag within the story #perfectLily is genius. I love it!
This is the first novel I’ve read by Hank but it certainly will not be my last. I definitely recommend this one!
This story was super twisty, and there are a lot of names so stay focused.
I liked the way everything unraveled and came together at the end. I truly did not see it coming!
Also, Hank coming up with her own hashtag within the story #perfectLily is genius. I love it!
This is the first novel I’ve read by Hank but it certainly will not be my last. I definitely recommend this one!
HER PERFECT LIFE by Hank Phillippi Ryan follows famous television reporter, Lily Atwood as she slowly starts getting fed stories from her own life. A missing sister, her daughter’s ‘secret’ father...how far will Lily go to protect her reputation?
This was my first HPR, and I’ve got to say, I quite enjoyed it! It rotates among several points of view, jumps timelines, and holds so many secrets...the perfect recipe for an engaging thriller.
The chapters in this book are short and launch you into the next perspective, which keeps the pace nice and quick, and really did make this book hard to put down. The twists were also *chefs kiss*
My main issue with this book is that I had a hard time caring about any of the characters (except for little Rowey), and that did make it tricky at times to understand their motivation.
This may have been my first HPR, but it definitely won’t be my last!
Publication Date: September 14, 2021
*** special thanks to NetGalley and Forge Books for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review ***
Although this book had a slow start, with an emotional start with some family drama, missing family members, but the end totally blew my mind. I hadn't anticipated the end, which made it all the more a worthwhile read.
I had a hard time connecting with any of the characters be it the too perfect Lily or her workaholic sneaky producer Greer.
The twist in the end was well done, with a powerful emotional factor.
Thanks to NetGalley and to MacMillan - Tor/Forge for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I had a hard time connecting with any of the characters be it the too perfect Lily or her workaholic sneaky producer Greer.
The twist in the end was well done, with a powerful emotional factor.
Thanks to NetGalley and to MacMillan - Tor/Forge for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thank you to the author, NetGalley and Forge Books for allowing me to be a Super Reader for this book and read it in advance of its publication date (Sept 14 2021).
Lily Atwood seemingly has the perfect life. Or does she? She is an award-winning TV reporter in Boston. A single mom with a young daughter. Her publisher, Greer, is seemingly content to be out of the spotlight. Lily's life does indeed seem perfect....until the bouquet of flowers show up at her house with a card signed "From Cassie". Cassie is Lily's sister who disappeared when she was 18 and Lily was 7. Or did she disappear?
This is a fast-paced book that kept me guessing until the end. The characters are interesting and intriguing and the story sucks you right in.
Lily Atwood seemingly has the perfect life. Or does she? She is an award-winning TV reporter in Boston. A single mom with a young daughter. Her publisher, Greer, is seemingly content to be out of the spotlight. Lily's life does indeed seem perfect....until the bouquet of flowers show up at her house with a card signed "From Cassie". Cassie is Lily's sister who disappeared when she was 18 and Lily was 7. Or did she disappear?
This is a fast-paced book that kept me guessing until the end. The characters are interesting and intriguing and the story sucks you right in.
Thanks to Netgalley for this review copy in exchange for an honest review.
Lily Atwood is a famous television reporter. Everyone knows her. Everything in her life is perfect and people around her try everything to keep it that way. She found a source who is giving big news but is that source reliable? what he/she wants?. Lily is hiding a few secrets and if someone will know them. Her life won't be that perfect.
I loved the sound of the synopsis so I requested it on Netgalley. The starting wasn't ideal. The writing style was annoying. With time, I felt there wasn't enough plot and details was used as fillers. All of the characters were so annoying. The story was told from the POV of Lily, Greer and another character. Lily's POV was a bit better. But Greer POV was so annoying and she as a character didn't make sense. There were so many plot holes and loose ends. In short, the story and character both didn't work for me. The ending felt cramped and sloppy.
Lily Atwood is a famous television reporter. Everyone knows her. Everything in her life is perfect and people around her try everything to keep it that way. She found a source who is giving big news but is that source reliable? what he/she wants?. Lily is hiding a few secrets and if someone will know them. Her life won't be that perfect.
I loved the sound of the synopsis so I requested it on Netgalley. The starting wasn't ideal. The writing style was annoying. With time, I felt there wasn't enough plot and details was used as fillers. All of the characters were so annoying. The story was told from the POV of Lily, Greer and another character. Lily's POV was a bit better. But Greer POV was so annoying and she as a character didn't make sense. There were so many plot holes and loose ends. In short, the story and character both didn't work for me. The ending felt cramped and sloppy.