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A review by notlikethebeer
None of This Is True by Lisa Jewell
challenging
dark
tense
fast-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
3.0
I have really mixed feelings on this.
On the one hand, it was incredibly gripping and compelling, to the point that I read it as close to "all in one" that adult life allows. I found myself racing through the pages, reading in tiny snippets if that was all I had, desperate to find out what would happen next. I particularly liked the use of both the podcast and the Netflix documentary, both of these provided an interesting way to explore the story and create a lot of suspense as to what was going on. The idea of 'Instagram v reality' was interesting in isolation, but maybe a little over-done for thrillers.
On the other hand, I did have issues with this book! In terms of actual content, I think there was a level of potentially quite harmful victim-blaming around the relationship between Josie and Walter, that she had led him on or manipulated him. As another review says, a child cannot consent to a relationship with an adult, regardless of how "sociopathic" she is. I also found the reactions to Josie's revelation that Walter was abusing Erin highly unsettling. On a more general note, I wonder whether a major flaw of this book was how it was set up. The name, the blurb, everything sets you up to disbelieve a word Josie says - so I didn't believe anything she said, which did make a lot of the twists a lot less climatic! I think a lot of my ferocious reading came because I wanted to see what the big twists would be, how they would be shocking in the context of a deeply unreliable character. And I don't feel that that was delivered on, really.
Please note, major content notes for child abuse, physical abuse, alcohol addiction, sexual abuse.
On the one hand, it was incredibly gripping and compelling, to the point that I read it as close to "all in one" that adult life allows. I found myself racing through the pages, reading in tiny snippets if that was all I had, desperate to find out what would happen next. I particularly liked the use of both the podcast and the Netflix documentary, both of these provided an interesting way to explore the story and create a lot of suspense as to what was going on. The idea of 'Instagram v reality' was interesting in isolation, but maybe a little over-done for thrillers.
On the other hand, I did have issues with this book! In terms of actual content, I think there was a level of potentially quite harmful victim-blaming around the relationship between Josie and Walter, that she had led him on or manipulated him. As another review says, a child cannot consent to a relationship with an adult, regardless of how "sociopathic" she is. I also found the reactions to
Please note, major content notes for child abuse, physical abuse, alcohol addiction, sexual abuse.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Murder, Sexual violence, Physical abuse, Alcoholism, Kidnapping, and Domestic abuse