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A review by obsidian_blue
Never Lie by Freida McFadden
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0
There's just so many coincidences to the point that the whole book just becomes a hot mess. Full review to come.
Full review: Holy cow this was terrible. Nothing made sense. It was too dumb to be believed. And I gobbled this mess up on a Sunday while watching the "You" series and just baffled that Joe from that series continues to not be caught. So maybe I am saying, I read a book about some baffling/terrible people who the police can't catch and then watched "You" and said, okay maybe this can happen? I don't know. I think the issue is that McFadden relies too heavily on unreliable narrators. That's her whole thing. So, you go in reading that pretty much anyone you meet is probably a liar. I think what gets me the most in this one, unlike her "Housemaid" series, you can't cheer for anyone. The whole book has you just about over everyone you meet.
And the plot, such as it is is so damn dumb (when the reveals come) that I went, but why would [redacted] do this when they could just do this then? Or, okay so we just end on a dark note and I am supposed to what? Applaud?
I never paid for any of McFadden's books. I think if I had, I would be more upset about this. But as a follower said, someone else out there has a great thriller that we are not reading because McFadden pushes out a book every 6 months or so and it's not good, but we all read it, review it. My 2025 resolution is to try to read an author I have never read before every month. So at least 12 new authors. Anything to hide the shame of still reading this author and her books (I don't even like).
Full review: Holy cow this was terrible. Nothing made sense. It was too dumb to be believed. And I gobbled this mess up on a Sunday while watching the "You" series and just baffled that Joe from that series continues to not be caught. So maybe I am saying, I read a book about some baffling/terrible people who the police can't catch and then watched "You" and said, okay maybe this can happen? I don't know. I think the issue is that McFadden relies too heavily on unreliable narrators. That's her whole thing. So, you go in reading that pretty much anyone you meet is probably a liar. I think what gets me the most in this one, unlike her "Housemaid" series, you can't cheer for anyone. The whole book has you just about over everyone you meet.
And the plot, such as it is is so damn dumb (when the reveals come) that I went, but why would [redacted] do this when they could just do this then? Or, okay so we just end on a dark note and I am supposed to what? Applaud?
I never paid for any of McFadden's books. I think if I had, I would be more upset about this. But as a follower said, someone else out there has a great thriller that we are not reading because McFadden pushes out a book every 6 months or so and it's not good, but we all read it, review it. My 2025 resolution is to try to read an author I have never read before every month. So at least 12 new authors. Anything to hide the shame of still reading this author and her books (I don't even like).