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3.48 AVERAGE
3.48 AVERAGE
mysterious
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:
Complicated
Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC of What You Did by Claire McGowan. This thriller kept me guessing, although I did have my suspicions. I just couldn't reconcile the scene with my suspicions, but then it all came together in the end. The last line was particularly chilling!
Six friends attended Oxford together, and 25 years later, they have a mini-reunion. Alison and Mike, Jodi and Callum, Karen, and Bill. Two couples are married, Karen, Alison's best friend, is unmarried and flirty. Alison works on the board of a refuge for women attacked by men. Alison and Mike are married, but Ali has always wondered what would have happened if she had gotten together with Bill and not stood up for Mike all those years earlier. Jodi and Callum are expecting their first child at age 43.
The friends gather at Ali and Mike's home and proceed to get drunk and some even get high. Ali is awakened at 3 am, and is stunned when her best friend, Karen, comes in the house screaming that she was raped. Ali's life is turned upside down when secrets about all of the friendships come to light.
I was interested in finding out who raped Karen, and was shocked to read of all the indiscretions and hurt the friends caused each other over the years. I thought the author did a nice job keeping the reader guessing and tied it up nicely at the end, with a surprising chill to the bones about what some people will do to cover for others to get what they want.
#WhatYouDid #ClaireMcGowan #NetGalley
Six friends attended Oxford together, and 25 years later, they have a mini-reunion. Alison and Mike, Jodi and Callum, Karen, and Bill. Two couples are married, Karen, Alison's best friend, is unmarried and flirty. Alison works on the board of a refuge for women attacked by men. Alison and Mike are married, but Ali has always wondered what would have happened if she had gotten together with Bill and not stood up for Mike all those years earlier. Jodi and Callum are expecting their first child at age 43.
The friends gather at Ali and Mike's home and proceed to get drunk and some even get high. Ali is awakened at 3 am, and is stunned when her best friend, Karen, comes in the house screaming that she was raped. Ali's life is turned upside down when secrets about all of the friendships come to light.
I was interested in finding out who raped Karen, and was shocked to read of all the indiscretions and hurt the friends caused each other over the years. I thought the author did a nice job keeping the reader guessing and tied it up nicely at the end, with a surprising chill to the bones about what some people will do to cover for others to get what they want.
#WhatYouDid #ClaireMcGowan #NetGalley
I’m on the fence about this one. I really loved the idea of a Uni friends reunion weekend that goes wrong. I also loved the question of who you would side with, your best friend, or your husband. I loved parts of this and struggled with others. Ali, the main character was unlikeable, and her decisions were strange. Ultimately it just didn’t grab me.
Main character, Ali, is an idiot. Book has potential but doesn’t execute well.
Overall alright, the ending felt like a twist for the sake of a twist. The character development was decent but I felt a large lack of empathy for the characters throughout the book. The children especially felt like your cliched horror movie children, where their only action is to perform actions to endanger and entrap our protagonist.
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
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:
Yes
dark
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
What You Did is a thriller/mystery but in part an examination of the effects of rape and how difficult it can be to deal with legally while respecting the victim and her experience. I found the book hard to put down.
Read my full review, including a rating for content, at RatedReads.com: https://ratedreads.com/what-you-did-fiction-book-review/
Read my full review, including a rating for content, at RatedReads.com: https://ratedreads.com/what-you-did-fiction-book-review/