Scan barcode
prairieraven's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-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
4.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcohol, Child abuse, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Grief, Mental illness, Misogyny, Murder, Pedophilia, Addiction, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Alcoholism, Death, Stalking, Child death, Toxic relationship, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Sexism, Adult/minor relationship, Physical abuse, Classism, Incest, and Toxic friendship
jennabeck13's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
None of This Is True by Lisa Jewell
⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 (3.5/5)
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
About 365 pages
TW: Domestic abuse, child abuse, sexual abuse, pedophilia, murder
Alix Summers has the life. She’s the host of a hit podcast, has two perfect kids, a beautiful home, and a seemingly great husband. Plus, she looks great for 45. This leads to jealousy from Josie Fair, another 45-year-old woman who happens to be celebrating her birthday on the same day in the same restaurant as Alix. Josie approaches Alix to comment that they are “birthday twins.” After this point, Josie becomes obsessed with Alix and convinces herself and Alix to let her tell her story on Alix’s podcast. The two develop a peculiar relationship as they question various elements of one another’s lives. Though weird, things seem to be going ok until one day Josie disappears… When searching for answers, Alix will discover the messes Jodie has left behind and that none of what she heard may be true.
Lisa Jewell is pretty much an auto-read author for me, so as soon as I saw this as a #BOTM pick, I knew what I was picking. This one fell short of many other Lisa Jewell books for me because of one reason, unreliable narrators. I’ve complained about them on #booksta before so I will save the rant, but I just am not a fan of them and that affected my ranking. BESIDES THAT, I did enjoy this book and I devoured it in about two days. The premise was solid and had me hooked from the start. I loved how Jewell told the story from multiple POVs and used “real-time” narrators, podcast clips, and Netflix clips to take us through the chaos.
If you have read it, whose story did you believe? Josie? Or Walter and the kids? I think they were all a bit crazy but lean more toward Walter and the kids.
Favorite Quote: “Both women fall silent. Then Josie sighs and says, “Men.” And there it is, the point at which it all boils down to eventually. The point where there are no words, no theories, no explanations for behaviors that baffle and infuriate and hurt. Just that. Men.”
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Gaslighting, Incest, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Death of parent, Kidnapping, Murder, Physical abuse, Rape, Blood, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Stalking, Toxic relationship, Adult/minor relationship, and Medical content
theinstabookworm's review against another edition
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Well, color me disappointed. I had been seeing amazing reviews for this on Bookstagram and that made me so excited. Now that I've finished, I don't get the hype. This is a slow-burn, but it does have enough suspense that it makes you want to keep reading. But, for what? This was so predictable and I guessed the twist early on. Lisa Jewell's books have always been hit-or-miss for me, and, unfortunately, this was another miss. One thing you should know going into this is that it is not a thriller and very much a suspense.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Murder, Cancer, Death, Physical abuse, Alcoholism, Child death, and Suicide
pomoevareads's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I am going to start my review by saying two seemingly contradicting statements. I gave this book five stars and I had issues with how child sexual abuse was handled.
The basic premise of None of This is True is the meeting of two 45 year old women on their birthday who come together to make a podcast about the lives of one of them. One of them had a privileged upbringing and is popular and successful and the other met her husband when she was 13 and he was 30 years older. Josie, the second woman, works at an alterations shop and has an affinity towards denim and is described as being a bit odd. Alix, the podcaster and privileged woman, agrees to interview Josie about her life for a new podcast. Alix focusses in on the more salacious content which Josie, who seeks attention, thrives under. But this one sided examination of marriages and family can’t last forever and soon Alix is under the microscope of Josie and worries about her own family.
Look, I couldn’t put this book down. There were no pacing gaps and it embodied the kind of slow burn suspense stories I love. And drama, yes there was much of it and while I am at times ashamed to admit it, I enjoy escapist drama-as long as it isn’t mine. The characters were solid and while the podcast element could seem overdone as so many books feature this now, it didn’t and felt fresh. I enjoyed the addition of the video movements and descriptions for the documentary that comes about. This is where the five stars lie.
Now to the more difficult part. Giving Josie blame for being groomed by Walter, 30 years her senior, one who had a previous marriage that also involved a 16 year old girl, is problematic at its core. A teen between the ages of 13 and 18 does not have the maturity or experience to see what is happening to her by this much older man. Walter is much more than a ‘bad man,’ he is a pedophile. The character of Alix and others in the story attribute responsibility to Josie for drawing the eye of Walter. I won’t say more than that as it would lead to spoilers but wanted to say something rather than nothing. I believe from the ending that the author doesn’t actually have these feelings and that she is demonstrating the characters of Alix and others in writing it this way.
I have read several of Jewell’s books and this one may be my favourite. I hope that I read the ending of this story as the author intended. I think this book might serve up some great discussions for book clubs and am impressed in the very short time this author was able to put this book together-clearly giving up her normal routines for laying out a story worked.
Thank you to @simonschusterca for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinions. None of This is True publishes August 8th.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Pedophilia, Toxic friendship, Adult/minor relationship, and Misogyny
Moderate: Alcoholism, Violence, Murder, Kidnapping, and Eating disorder
Minor: Child death and Pandemic/Epidemic
More...