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A review by lovelymisanthrope
Hidden Bodies by Caroline Kepnes
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I originally bought this book when I bought "You". When the television series came out, I binged the entire first season in one day, and I was fascinated by how much I enjoyed it. I felt like all of the characters were so unlikable, but I was still captivated. Now, almost five years later, I finally picked up the sequel.
"Hidden Bodies" picks up right where "You" left off. Joe has gotten away with a lot of murder, and he is still on the hunt for the perfect girlfriend. He thinks he has finally found the one, but she ends up stealing rare books from him and moving to LA to pursue an acting career. Joe, unable to accept rejection, decides to move out to LA himself to exact his revenge. To Joe's surprise, he meets an amazing woman, Love, and he once again believes he found the one. But, this relationship may not be as perfect as Joe thought it to be.
Joe is still just as unlikable as he was in the first book. He is an obsessive, psychotic man who wants to think of himself as a romantic but is too fixated on control to enjoy people as they are. I felt like this book went way off the rails and Joe as a character felt out of control. I do not know why I expected him to reign it in, but I was so surprised to find he was up to the same old obsessive, murderous antics. This book is a lot more explicit than the previous as well.
I want to believe everyone has a soulmate, and I am happy(?) Joe found Love, but good grief is she just as chaotic as he is. I was not expecting to meet the female version of Joe.
I did not enjoy this story as much as "You", and I think it was because of how unstable Joe felt as a character. I do think this is a credit to Caroline Kepnes's writing, because it takes a skilled writer to create a story that captivates an audience but has such an unlikeable character.
Will I continue in this series? I do not know.
"Hidden Bodies" picks up right where "You" left off. Joe has gotten away with a lot of murder, and he is still on the hunt for the perfect girlfriend. He thinks he has finally found the one, but she ends up stealing rare books from him and moving to LA to pursue an acting career. Joe, unable to accept rejection, decides to move out to LA himself to exact his revenge. To Joe's surprise, he meets an amazing woman, Love, and he once again believes he found the one. But, this relationship may not be as perfect as Joe thought it to be.
I want to believe everyone has a soulmate, and I am happy(?) Joe found Love, but good grief is she just as chaotic as he is. I was not expecting to meet the female version of Joe.
I did not enjoy this story as much as "You", and I think it was because of how unstable Joe felt as a character. I do think this is a credit to Caroline Kepnes's writing, because it takes a skilled writer to create a story that captivates an audience but has such an unlikeable character.
Will I continue in this series? I do not know.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Toxic relationship, Sexual content, Murder, Pregnancy, Stalking, Death, Blood, and Torture