Take a photo of a barcode or cover
A review by achanceofsunny
The Roommate by Kiersten Modglin
2.0
1.5-2 stars. sorry in advance but this might get ranty bc wow did I dislike this.
first off, this did not read like a thriller at all. it read like a domestic drama, which is not what I signed up for. Elias was vaguely creepy but so much of the book was spent detailing long, repetitive, emotional conversations between Wes and his wife, Addie, which felt completely unnecessary. every conversation they had was exactly the same, with him asking her what he can do to improve, her telling him, and him being like “I just don’t know what to do!” even though she fully just told him what to do. overall so much of the book was dedicated to Wes whining over his marriage and fighting with his wife and daughter that it didn’t even feel like a thriller, it felt like diary entries from an oblivious asshole who didn’t try hard enough to be a good husband and father.
then there’s the matter of Wes himself, who was pathetic, oblivious, wishy washy and impossible to root for. I didn’t want him and Addie to get back together and I sort of even started to hope that Elias would kill him so I didn’t have to hear from him anymore. he made the dumbest decisions of all time, repeatedly, while acknowledging that he KNEW that they were dumb decisions. it started to seem like he was actively sabotaging himself just to forward the plot. he also was just generally a fucking asshole, like he’d spend a whole chapter crying about his wife and how much he loves her and then he’d turn around and say things like “she can get a taste of her own medicine” and “I was about to unleash the worst parts of myself on my wife.” fucking unbelievable.
if I was supposed to be surprised by the plot twist, I wasn’t. you can see it coming the moment it’s set up.
overall, this book was as boring as it was frustrating. do NOT recommend.
first off, this did not read like a thriller at all. it read like a domestic drama, which is not what I signed up for. Elias was vaguely creepy but so much of the book was spent detailing long, repetitive, emotional conversations between Wes and his wife, Addie, which felt completely unnecessary. every conversation they had was exactly the same, with him asking her what he can do to improve, her telling him, and him being like “I just don’t know what to do!” even though she fully just told him what to do. overall so much of the book was dedicated to Wes whining over his marriage and fighting with his wife and daughter that it didn’t even feel like a thriller, it felt like diary entries from an oblivious asshole who didn’t try hard enough to be a good husband and father.
then there’s the matter of Wes himself, who was pathetic, oblivious, wishy washy and impossible to root for. I didn’t want him and Addie to get back together and I sort of even started to hope that Elias would kill him so I didn’t have to hear from him anymore. he made the dumbest decisions of all time, repeatedly, while acknowledging that he KNEW that they were dumb decisions. it started to seem like he was actively sabotaging himself just to forward the plot. he also was just generally a fucking asshole, like he’d spend a whole chapter crying about his wife and how much he loves her and then he’d turn around and say things like “she can get a taste of her own medicine” and “I was about to unleash the worst parts of myself on my wife.”
Spoiler
AND THEN HE HAD THE AUDACITY TO ACCUSE HIS WIFE OF KISSING ANOTHER MAN the night after he let a woman kiss him and sit in his lap? AND THEN HE WENT AND SLEPT WITH ANOTHER WOMAN???????????????if I was supposed to be surprised by the plot twist, I wasn’t. you can see it coming the moment it’s set up.
Spoiler
also, Elias is allegedly a cybersecurity expert but his computer password was simple enough that Wes guessed it right away? fucking unlikely.overall, this book was as boring as it was frustrating. do NOT recommend.