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betwixt_the_pages 's review for:
Beautiful Malice
by Rebecca James
'Truth or dare?' She asks.
I hesitate. 'Truth,' I say finally. 'I can imagine one of your dares, and I don't fancy running down Oxford Street naked tonight.'
'Truth,' Alice says slowly, drawing out the vowel sound as if she's savouring the word. 'Are you sure? Are you sure you can be completely honest?'
'I think so. Try me.'
'Okay.' And then she looks at me curiously. 'So. Were you glad, deep down? Were you glad to be rid of her? Your perfect sister? Were you secretly glad when she was killed?'
Katherine has moved away from her shattered family to start afresh in Sydney. There she keeps her head down until she is befriended by the charismatic, party-loving Alice, who brings her out of her shell. But there is a dark side to Alice, something seductive yet threatening. And as Katherine learns the truth about Alice, their tangled destinies spiral to an explosive and devastating finale.
An intense and addictive psychological thriller.
Rating: 4/5 Stars
Quick Reasons: a chilling expose on the ways families--both those of and those surrounding--are impacted by violent, horrible crimes; a fast-paced read; great plot, surprising plot twists; characters that are both endearing and absolutely terrifying
There must have been a point, reading this book, when I stopped trying to figure out the characters'--particularly Alice, with her volatile hot-and-cold temperaments--motivations. When I said, "Okay, book. I don't really know what you're trying to tell me right now, but that's okay. I trust you not to lead me into heartache."
There MUST have been a point when I stopped trying so hard to see what happened next...and while I'm glad of that moment, I never could have imagined the plot twist of this book until it was right on top of me...I also sort of resent it. Because heartache happened anyway.
Rebecca James has delved so completely into an examination of the ways a violent, horrible crime effects people. From experimenting with ideas such as survivor's guilt and clawing out from the dregs of the gutter into what might be life, to exploring the descent into madness that often accompanies a shocking betrayal, this book doesn't step gently around the hard topics, but dives toward them head-first.
The writing style at first was hard for me. Not because the words are tough, or the grammar is bad--but because this book jumps back and forth between three different times, and doesn't always give a hint right away about which moment a chapter is starting with. I found myself frustrated, in the beginning, with how quickly the author jumps from one time to the next and then back again--why couldn't she give us SOME sort of hint? Why did she have to make that part so difficult?
But I think there might have been a purpose, after all. Because Katherine's been living a half-life since Rachel died. In fact, Katherine hasn't really been LIVING at all. So it's safe to say, trapped as she is in guilt and depression and self-loathing, that perhaps Katherine wasn't always so certain of the time, herself. Toward the middle, I found my annoyance over the switches had worn off--I was following it much better than at the beginning. At the end, I found myself understanding why it might have been written that way to begin with.
This is a heart-wrenching, entirely realistic journey through tough and trying times; I can honestly say that Alice is, for the first time in all my years of reading, a character I started out loving whole-heartedly--for her enjoyment of life, for her quirky and mysterious ways, for the courage she had to face every moment IN the moment--and ended up hating. Because Alice isn't exactly what she seems. Alice has secrets of her own. And they're deadly.
Warning for mature content, with themes of rape, murder, and stalking. I'd recommend this to readers of Jay Asher, Jodi Picoult, and Alice Sebold. A thought-provoking read.
I hesitate. 'Truth,' I say finally. 'I can imagine one of your dares, and I don't fancy running down Oxford Street naked tonight.'
'Truth,' Alice says slowly, drawing out the vowel sound as if she's savouring the word. 'Are you sure? Are you sure you can be completely honest?'
'I think so. Try me.'
'Okay.' And then she looks at me curiously. 'So. Were you glad, deep down? Were you glad to be rid of her? Your perfect sister? Were you secretly glad when she was killed?'
Katherine has moved away from her shattered family to start afresh in Sydney. There she keeps her head down until she is befriended by the charismatic, party-loving Alice, who brings her out of her shell. But there is a dark side to Alice, something seductive yet threatening. And as Katherine learns the truth about Alice, their tangled destinies spiral to an explosive and devastating finale.
An intense and addictive psychological thriller.
Rating: 4/5 Stars
Quick Reasons: a chilling expose on the ways families--both those of and those surrounding--are impacted by violent, horrible crimes; a fast-paced read; great plot, surprising plot twists; characters that are both endearing and absolutely terrifying
There must have been a point, reading this book, when I stopped trying to figure out the characters'--particularly Alice, with her volatile hot-and-cold temperaments--motivations. When I said, "Okay, book. I don't really know what you're trying to tell me right now, but that's okay. I trust you not to lead me into heartache."
There MUST have been a point when I stopped trying so hard to see what happened next...and while I'm glad of that moment, I never could have imagined the plot twist of this book until it was right on top of me...I also sort of resent it. Because heartache happened anyway.
Rebecca James has delved so completely into an examination of the ways a violent, horrible crime effects people. From experimenting with ideas such as survivor's guilt and clawing out from the dregs of the gutter into what might be life, to exploring the descent into madness that often accompanies a shocking betrayal, this book doesn't step gently around the hard topics, but dives toward them head-first.
The writing style at first was hard for me. Not because the words are tough, or the grammar is bad--but because this book jumps back and forth between three different times, and doesn't always give a hint right away about which moment a chapter is starting with. I found myself frustrated, in the beginning, with how quickly the author jumps from one time to the next and then back again--why couldn't she give us SOME sort of hint? Why did she have to make that part so difficult?
But I think there might have been a purpose, after all. Because Katherine's been living a half-life since Rachel died. In fact, Katherine hasn't really been LIVING at all. So it's safe to say, trapped as she is in guilt and depression and self-loathing, that perhaps Katherine wasn't always so certain of the time, herself. Toward the middle, I found my annoyance over the switches had worn off--I was following it much better than at the beginning. At the end, I found myself understanding why it might have been written that way to begin with.
This is a heart-wrenching, entirely realistic journey through tough and trying times; I can honestly say that Alice is, for the first time in all my years of reading, a character I started out loving whole-heartedly--for her enjoyment of life, for her quirky and mysterious ways, for the courage she had to face every moment IN the moment--and ended up hating. Because Alice isn't exactly what she seems. Alice has secrets of her own. And they're deadly.
Warning for mature content, with themes of rape, murder, and stalking. I'd recommend this to readers of Jay Asher, Jodi Picoult, and Alice Sebold. A thought-provoking read.