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lottevanderpaelt's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
mike_nz's review against another edition
3.0
Very predictable with not a single likeable character - however, I'm not gonna lie - I was thoroughly entertained!
bhnmt61's review against another edition
Florence Darrow is determined to have the recognition she feels she deserves and she is willing to play a little fast and loose to get what she wants. But her small steps into the gray areas soon turn into huge leaps when she gets tangled up with someone with no morals at all.
I enjoyed the first 75 pages or so—Florence is so cheerfully amoral in the early stages of her collapse that you can’t help but be amused. But once I saw where it was going, I lost interest. I skipped over and read the last 75 pages and that was plenty for me to know this book is not for me. I get that part of the fascination of reading a book like this is seeing how they get away with it, and it can be like working a puzzle to see how all the different layers of deception fit together. But that doesn't mean I have to like it.
I'm tempted to make some kind of sweeping social commentary about the moral state of our nation given the current popularity of books and movies about criminals successfully pulling off elaborate plots (from Gone Girl to the Ocean heist movies). But I know a whole bunch of normal, law-abiding citizens who love that stuff, so I'll just stick with saying I do not understand the appeal. I will cheerfully accept the label of boring stick-in-the-mud.
I enjoyed the first 75 pages or so—Florence is so cheerfully amoral in the early stages of her collapse that you can’t help but be amused. But once I saw where it was going, I lost interest. I skipped over and read the last 75 pages and that was plenty for me to know this book is not for me. I get that part of the fascination of reading a book like this is seeing how they get away with it, and it can be like working a puzzle to see how all the different layers of deception fit together. But that doesn't mean I have to like it.
I'm tempted to make some kind of sweeping social commentary about the moral state of our nation given the current popularity of books and movies about criminals successfully pulling off elaborate plots (from Gone Girl to the Ocean heist movies). But I know a whole bunch of normal, law-abiding citizens who love that stuff, so I'll just stick with saying I do not understand the appeal. I will cheerfully accept the label of boring stick-in-the-mud.
thechanelmuse's review against another edition
4.0
“Change is never a smooth curve; it comes in leaps and jolts, plateaus and remissions. And in the periods after an old identity fades away but before a new one is fully installed, there is a certain sense of impunity. As if nothing quite matters. You are not quite yourself. You’re not quite anyone.”
Who is Maud Dixon? is a clever debut novel that Alfred Hitchcock would’ve likely adapted to screen. Interweaving topics of classism and influence into the shaping of identity, author Alexandra Andrews begins the novel like a contemporary tale, following a young woman, Florence Darrow, who is desperately driven to trade her life as a low-level publishing employee to become a famous author.
When she gets the opportunity of a lifetime to be the assistant to the best-selling pseudonymous writer known as “Maud Dixon” and join the literary research trip to Morocco, Florence enters a newfound world of wisdom in life and writing, as well as story building and character development when an accident occurs, propelling readers down a rabbit hole of crime and mystery that will leave you questioning what’s fact, what’s fiction, and exactly who is Maud Dixon.
Alexandra Andrews' writing style is colorful (the atmospheric setting of Morocco) and easily gets you entranced into her world of twists and turns. Funny enough, this novel doesn't feel like a modern book. (Hence the Alfred Hitchcock nod.) But that's by no means a bad thing.
Who is Maud Dixon? is a clever debut novel that Alfred Hitchcock would’ve likely adapted to screen. Interweaving topics of classism and influence into the shaping of identity, author Alexandra Andrews begins the novel like a contemporary tale, following a young woman, Florence Darrow, who is desperately driven to trade her life as a low-level publishing employee to become a famous author.
When she gets the opportunity of a lifetime to be the assistant to the best-selling pseudonymous writer known as “Maud Dixon” and join the literary research trip to Morocco, Florence enters a newfound world of wisdom in life and writing, as well as story building and character development when an accident occurs, propelling readers down a rabbit hole of crime and mystery that will leave you questioning what’s fact, what’s fiction, and exactly who is Maud Dixon.
Alexandra Andrews' writing style is colorful (the atmospheric setting of Morocco) and easily gets you entranced into her world of twists and turns. Funny enough, this novel doesn't feel like a modern book. (Hence the Alfred Hitchcock nod.) But that's by no means a bad thing.
njw13's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
scottnap's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
djtran's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
ioanamaria_hara's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
3.5
marytreybig's review against another edition
5.0
Dude. What.
I went to my local bookstore in town and said “I’m tired of reading all the hyped up thrillers that everyone is talking about. I need something different.” This was it.
The author’s writing was wonderful.
I went to my local bookstore in town and said “I’m tired of reading all the hyped up thrillers that everyone is talking about. I need something different.” This was it.
The author’s writing was wonderful.