Review: Home Before Dark

3 stars. Hahahahahaha.

Hmmmmmmmm.

Well, then. This is my first Riley Sager, and I have to say - it's kind of what I expected. A twisty, compelling page-turner that is somehow also clumsy, implausible and cheap. I'm such a picky, critical reader, and that for sure prevented me from just sitting back and enjoying the ride. But the fact is that the flaws here far outweigh the merits. 

The plot follows Maggie Holt, a young woman who inherits her childhood home when her father passes away. Her father had written a book about the place, a bestselling novel documenting her family's experiences in the so-called "house of horrors," and Maggie is determined to find out 1) why her father wrote such an unbelievable thing exploiting her childhood, and 2) what really happened to inspire him.

A couple of elements that were really distracting:

1. The borrowed premise. Being derivative is FINE - really - but this is straight up copied from Netflix's adaptation of Hill House. I don't mind when authors reference other works, but I do mind when they aren't self-aware about it. The tropes utilized here are just those - tropes - and I found myself wishing for a wink, a smirk, an elbow nudge to let us know that we're all here to lean in and suspend belief together, which brings me to...

2. The implausibility! Oh man. Horror is my favorite genre to read, so I'm no stranger to accepting unrealities for the sake of a reading experience. But this was just too much. Too much inexplicable decision-making (by sane, capable adults?!), too much memory loss, too many tangled secrets, too many convenient twists. Maggie acts like the book ruined her life...? Like every interaction is tainted by it? Would people really CARE that much?! Everything clicks together in the end, which is nice, but it feels kind of like an uhhhhhhh what? moment. Which brings me to...

3. Sloppy writing. Try-hard cliffhangers. Awkward dialogue. Characters who sound exactly like each other. Forced chemistry between other certain characters. Drawn out moments that should've been concise. Rushed moments that should've been drawn out. Unnecessary conflict. REALLY strange character motivations. Easily identifiable red herrings. 

I actually feel bad now. It's not THAT bad. It's just a little cringey.

Here's the thing: there's a fantastic idea here. And that idea brings us some great, spooky moments and a perfectly horrifying haunted house atmosphere. The mystery at the heart of the story is truly an interesting one and kept my attention, even though I started piecing things together about halfway through. I didn't hate the protagonist or the format or the way things unfolded. It's also, nicely, a fairly quick read. 

I'll pick up another Riley Sager soon. This was good enough for now.

Home Before Dark on: Amazon | Bookshop.org | Goodreads

Review: The Whisper Man

4 stars. WOW - this was a lot more complicated than I anticipated, in a good way. This book is a very successful example of multiple threads being woven into a complete and thrilling tapestry. I read it in one day and couldn't put it down. I was even, shall I say, a wee bit unsettled at one point...

The Whisper Man features several characters living in a town plagued by tragedy: a man, who recently moved their with his young son for a fresh start after his wife's death, an older detective haunted by a murder case he solved twenty years ago, a younger detective put on a frighteningly similar case, and several other minor - but sinister - individuals circling the mystery.

The multiple voices worked really well (I can't even complain about the younger child's POV, which I always compare to Stephen King and almost always find lacking - but not here!), and the twists and turns tie everyone together nicely. I didn't predict all of the reveals, which was quite something! 

If I did have a slight complaint, I'd say that Tom's voice sounded a bit ... I'm almost scared to say it ... feminine. I kept thinking I was reading from the perspective of a mother rather than a father. I mean, he drank white wine! I know, I'm joking, I would never adhere to such crippling gender stereotypes, but something about his approach to certain situations felt ... off. This is most definitely a problem with my interpretation and not the writing. But I am curious if anyone else experienced the same sensation.

Honestly though, this was great. This would be a fantastic beach read for those of us who like to lean into the dark stuff while lounging in the sunshine. I almost wish the author had leaned even a little bit deeper, because he's talented at writing creepy moments. 4 stars overall, and now I'm back to the Expanse............... god help me.

The Whisper Man on: Amazon | Goodreads

Review: The Perfect Nanny

4 stars. OH THIS WAS SO NASTY GOOD! Juicy, tangy, bittersweet, refreshing - totally quenched my thirst. I don't know why I resist books like this - The Silent Patient, Girl on the Train, etc. - I think it's because I find them predictable. I enjoy them, though! I love these little popcorn page-turners! Read this in one sitting on a flight and closed it with an evil grin.

The Perfect Nanny opens with two dead children. The first chapter is a montage of painful details: a mother's scream, the injuries inflicted, the shocked reactions of onlookers. It's tragic and twisted. And then we zoom out and back up and focus on the events leading up to the murders: Myriam, a young, suffering mother decides to go back to work and hires Louise. Louise is perfect. She cooks and cleans and cares for the kids. Until she goes insane and kills them (this isn't a spoiler).

One of the many strengths: not a single character is flat. We are treated to Myriam's deepest thoughts - including the dark stuff. The author really captures her very relatable postpartum stress, her distrust of other women, her complicated identity crisis that inevitably accompanies motherhood. Motherhood is a difficult, spiraling Thing that fucks with your emotional core, your very sense of self, and the portrayal here is refreshing.

And we are treated somewhat to Paul's perspective, as well. In fact, the marriage here strikes me as pretty realistic: imperfect, full of cracks, but not broken. And other perspectives are sprinkled throughout: Louise's fascinating landlord, her estranged child, her dead husband - each character is detailed and treated with care. And then there's Louise (I WANT TO KNOW MORE!) and her captivating descent into madness and obsession.

But seriously, I want to know more. I think I'm docking a star because Louise actually seemed a little - empty. Not flat, but not like funny, cracking, absurd, SPARKLY Annie Wilkes, you know? As far as baby killers go, Louise lacked a little ... something. She struck me as very sad and very closed. She still gave me chills.

Okay, it's way past my bedtime and I'm ending a 16+ hour travel day. My brain is scrambled. But I RECOMMEND THIS! I wish I understood French - I bet the original is spectacular.

The Perfect Nanny on: Amazon | Goodreads

Review: Dare Me

4 stars. Dreamy. Smooth and silky like milk chocolate. More like dark chocolate - something with a slight bitter tingle. It doesn't remind me at all of my own adolescence; Megan Abbott painted something entirely new for me. But the slimy threads of emotion, and the extremes, are familiar. The impulses, the obsession, the rage, the fear and fascination - the knowledge that, as a young woman, you have no idea what you're doing, and you're terrified it'll show. Dare Me is all that and more.

Addy Hanlon has always been second-in-command to her BFF and captain of the cheer squad, Beth. But when a beautiful new coach arrives, enthralling and inspiring the girls, Beth feels threatened and lashes out accordingly. Addy spends the course of the novel completely ruled by her confusion as the battle unfolds; she's torn between her intense loyalty to Beth and the promise of something dangerously attractive from her coach. A bunch of vicious, dieting, female, teenage athletes? What could go wrong?

With Megan Abbott at the wheel, absolutely nothing. Her writing is so melodic, so interesting. I couldn't put it down. She does female rage so well, that's no secret, but I felt like she properly conveyed female desire here as well. Sometimes, especially as a teenage girl, you just want. You want power or control or attention or sex or revenge or more from life and you don't even know why or how but it drives you completely. I thought that was written quite well here.

And female friendships of course, ugly and beautiful and fleeting.

My girl crush on Megan Abbott (have you SEEN her Instagram feed?) only grows.

Dare Me on: Amazon | Goodreads

Retro Review: If We Were Villains

When I started this blog, I had been posting reviews on Goodreads for about 6 months. In the interest of having all of my book writing in one place, I will post one of these old reviews every Friday. They weren't written with a blog in mind, so please forgive the lack of summary and off-the-cuff tone.

3 stars. I have mixed feelings about this book. There’s so much Shakespeare, which I absolutely loved. It compares quite adequately to The Secret History and its other lookalikes, which I also loved. It’s fast-paced, well-rounded and well-written. But it isn’t perfect and, I’m sorry to say, I was left unsatisfied. 

First issue - can anyone explain Richard’s escalating behavior in Act I? In my experience, people don’t change quite that dramatically without some sort of catalyst - drug abuse, adult onset bipolar disorder, SOMETHING. From the beginning, Richard felt like a plot device, his tantrums ultimately unexplained. It just didn’t feel natural, to me.

Second issue - one of the fantastic elements of The Secret History is its believability. Donna Tartt took pages and pages and pages to build a sturdy foundation so by the time we get to the murder, it feels like an act within the realm of what we’d expect from our characters. And listen, I’m happy to suspend realism for the sake of a good story. But the fact that six people completely readjusted their moral compasses on exactly the same night after a man demonstrated mentally ill - antagonistic, aggressive, scary, but mentally ill nonetheless - behavior for, what, several weeks? After years of friendship? Does not compute. For me, at least.

Third issue - about ¾ of the way through the book I shut it and whispered “first world problems.” This has been noted in other reviews, but these characters are privileged, ignorant and exhibit totally skewed perspectives. This may be explained by the whole “blame everything on Shakespeare” theme, and I actually buy that, in away. I’m certain that the school formed a bubble in which these people lived and perceived things and made decisions. But it really did seem … beyond dramatic. Melodramatic.

Fourth issue - all of this could’ve been solved had people just slept with whom they were attracted. Yeah, this is all basically just a giant case of romantic self-sabotage. Everybody’s cockblocking each other and using each other for sex and everything could’ve been prevented had the characters been honest with themselves. And look, truthfully, I don’t think I’m looking at this objectively. These people’s approach to courtship and sex and love don’t match my experiences at all. I don’t know anything about anything that transcends lust - transcends love even - enough to believe Oliver’s actions. I guess the characters felt like teenagers saturated with hormones (not unlike Romeo and Juliet?) rather than 20-something college students. 

WAIT, IS THAT THE POINT?! Did I just stumble on the whole damn point? These people spent so much time playing Shakespeare’s exaggerated, overemotional characters that they became exaggerated and overemotional themselves? HMMMM.

Alright, well, I feel bad now. I enjoyed this. I really did. M.L. Rio is incredibly talented and I have a huge crush on her. I want to learn from her - I want to learn how she thinks and what she knows and how she writes. I want to bond with her on things like Shakespeare and drama and Big Themes. But, as always, to thine own self be true, and If We Were Villains just felt a little empty, to me.

If We Were Villains on: Amazon | Goodreads

Retro Review: Security

When I started this blog, I had been posting reviews on Goodreads for about 6 months. In the interest of having all of my book writing in one place, I will post one of these old reviews every Friday. They weren't written with a blog in mind, so please forgive the lack of summary and off-the-cuff tone.

3 stars. The grand opening of a state-of-the-art resort approaches, and someone is determined to stop it. In this twisty thriller, readers will witness a gruesome and relentless murder spree through the eyes of the hotel's new and advanced security system - an unusual point of view that lends itself to many surprises.

As someone who has read countless thrillers and can pretty much predict twists and turns chapters before they happen, I found the plot of this book to be very boring. BUT. I really enjoyed the perspective from which this story was told. We don't know anything about our observer until the last quarter of the book, when we can finally piece the clues together and discover the truth. It's weird but intriguing - and by the end, I was more desperate to find out the fate of the observer more than the fate of those he observed throughout the entire book.

It's a fascinating creative exercise. As readers, we must constantly ask ourselves - does appearance fit reality? can we trust our narrator? can we trust our own impressions of what's happening in the story? are we watching things unfold from an unbiased perspective? And here - despite being spoon-fed tiny details about our narrator - we really have no idea. Is he good? Is he bad? Is he even alive? Is he a piece of artificial intelligence? It's all a mystery.

Also fascinating - when characters who are not even remotely admirable have an admirable purpose. Our narrator here (as it turns out) is obsessive and overly protective of the object of his affection - I mean, creepy doesn't even cover it. AND YET. He desires - almost above anything else - to save the object of his affection from a terrifying threat. It's confusing. And interesting. Very unique.

I guess I was a little too caught up in how the story was told over the story itself. I like an unreliable narrator. And in this book, the concept was applied with a great twist. Read for the point of view. It's different.

Security on: Amazon | Goodreads

Retro Review: Maestra

When I started this blog, I had been posting reviews on Goodreads for about 6 months. In the interest of having all of my book writing in one place, I will post one of these old reviews every Friday. They weren't written with a blog in mind, so please forgive the lack of summary and off-the-cuff tone.

5 stars. So, Maestra tells the story of Judith Rashleigh, art expert and expert murderess. She spends her days toiling away as a junior employee at an art house and her nights at a creepy hostess bar being paid to satisfy customers with her company. Upon discovering her shady boss’ shady fraud scheme, Judith goes on a rampage of sorts - a sweaty spree hopping from country to country leaving dead bodies and fake names in her wake. It’s wonderful and sneaky and fun. Maestra is zesty! It is zesty Italian with extra zing. The pace, the drama, the bloodshed, the sex - delightful - the most enjoyable reading experience I’ve had in a long time.

It certainly isn’t perfect; Judith displays some incredibly contradictory personality traits. It’s absolutely, one hundred percent unrealistic. It’s superficial. Still, there is strong writing in the “art parts,” which I found enjoyable and an interesting distraction from the somewhat rompy plot. 

Speaking of, I hope people weren’t too shocked. I didn’t find it that shocking, I just found it … open in ways other books aren’t. It’s constantly like, yeah, let’s go there, let’s open this door. I respect that. I admire it. It’s irresistible. I don’t know if it is feminist in the traditional sense of the word (though I hesitate to put parameters on that word), but it certainly expands upon a favorite topic of mine: complex, sexually aggressive women. More of that, please.

I can see the comparisons to Tom Ripley and Vicky Sharpe, but honestly, Judith feels like her own new thing. Is it wrong to say I relate to her? That I enjoyed watching her succeed? She channels that massive chip on her shoulder into getting exactly what she wants whatever the cost. It’s kind of impressive.

Maestra isn’t particularly profound, but it is profoundly entertaining. I can’t wait to read more, if for nothing else than the author’s expertise on a subject I love. Many individuals in the art world are - to quote a colleague of mine who spent years in the gallery business - “snooty,” and Hilton completely challenges that notion by creating a female character who is not only badass but also super, super emotionally into art. I loved it.

Maestra on: Amazon | Goodreads

Retro Review: In a Dark, Dark Wood

When I started this blog, I had been posting reviews on Goodreads for about 6 months. In the interest of having all of my book writing in one place, I will post one of these old reviews every Friday. They weren't written with a blog in mind, so please forgive the lack of summary and off-the-cuff tone.

3 stars. I didn't really like this. I was seduced by the creepy title and the promise of a dark thriller but all I got was a basic story told in weird increments. It was mediocre and predictable and while it kept me turning pages I just really didn't care.

There were a lot of annoying things about this book but the biggest, for me, had to be the protagonist. I know others have commented on her here and I would agree that she's just damn ridiculous. Consuming a story of any kind requires suspension of belief, and I'm willing to suspend a lot if the action is enjoyable and satisfying in its own way. But I'm really unwilling to believe that a girl was so traumatized by a pretty typical (yeesh, that may be misguided - common? fairly common?) romantic experience that it dictated every action years later. My favorite phrase, used by a reviewer above, is "psychologically improbable." Yeah, that just about covers it.

And it's the plot, too - everything's so campy and melodramatic and twisty in a way that simply isn't creative. It wasn't dark enough, for me. I mean, I was super unsettled by the fact that she even went to the stupid bachelorette party in the first place, but I was unsettled in a "oh, this narrator is really fucking dumb," and "a bachelorette party? I'd rather put a campfire out with my face" sort of way.

I read an interview with Ruth Ware in which she described this book as a combination of Agatha Christie and the Scream movies. Cool! What a fabulous concept. And also an extremely admirable goal. I am into it! I just don't think she got there, though, with this one. Poor execution. I'd like to read some of her other books and try her again, though.

In a Dark, Dark Wood on: Amazon | Goodreads

Retro Review: Before the Fall

When I started this blog, I had been posting reviews on Goodreads for about 6 months. In the interest of having all of my book writing in one place, I will post one of these old reviews every Friday. They weren't written with a blog in mind, so please forgive the lack of summary and off-the-cuff tone.

3 stars. I'm a huge Noah Hawley fan. Fargo and Legion are so incredibly creative and engaging and strong, so obviously I opened Before the Fall with high expectations and a side-eye on the hype. And did it get there? Did it do it for me? Well, sort of.

I've been thinking a lot about Goodreads and social media and its impact on the book world, and I would agree with many that Goodreads "reviews" should really be called "reactions." If I were to "review" this book, I'd probably give it a higher score than if I simply "reacted." I mean look, critics loved this book. They raved about it. "Ingeniously nerve-racking" - New York Times. "Terrific thriller" - Washington Post. "Highly entertaining" - AP.

My purpose here is different, though. I just want to chat! I want to provide my opinion in an informal (lazy) manner without feeling the pressure to recommend or not recommend. I want to unpack and extrapolate to a certain degree but keep things firmly in the realm of "response" rather than "review."

Ugh, okay, back to the book: I just don't know. I loved the concept - I like group dissection stories in which a bunch of characters are introduced and we learn about them one-by-one. I liked the mystery and the social commentary and the insights about families and relationships. I liked that it starts with a plane crash and moves backward and forward to build the narrative. I was delighted by the cinematic details and the deep characterization for which Hawley is particularly well-known.

BUT, I didn't like the ending, so much, although it was the type of dark turn I normally really enjoy. I thought the political / entertainment industry satire fell a little flat. Overall, it lacked a spark, I think, for me. It lacked the special flavor that usually keeps me reading something like this. It just wasn't spicy enough! I'm still a huge Hawley fan (his work this season on Legion is triumphant), but as I said, this is just a solid sort of for me.

Before the Fall on: Amazon | Goodreads

Retro Review: The Night Manager

When I started this blog, I had been posting reviews on Goodreads for about 6 months. In the interest of having all of my book writing in one place, I will post one of these old reviews every Friday. They weren't written with a blog in mind, so please forgive the lack of summary and off-the-cuff tone.

4 stars. The Night Manager tells the tale of a man named Jonathan Pine and his drive to bring down a rich criminal named Richard Roper. Pine infiltrates Roper's inner circle with the complicated support of the government, and - apologies for the old (yet appropriate) spy novel cliche - finds himself tangled in a web from which he will likely never escape.

This is one of those books that forced me to step back and say okay, regardless of how I feel about the story, it's an impressive piece of writing. Among the book's many merits, the dialogue stands out - it's perhaps the most spectacularly consistent use of colloquialism I've ever encountered (thanks to the italic emphasis on certain words, I could hear the British accents in my head). And the dedication to detail makes this book a bit of a project to get through; it required a certain amount of concentration I haven't needed since reading Shakespeare. That's not a complaint.

About the ending: I typically don't mind ambiguous endings. I really don't. Sometimes I find them to be much more satisfying than those that are wrapped up neatly in a bow. However, in this case, it felt like running a marathon for which there was no true finish line. Why dedicate so much time and energy to a story whose main plot line, ultimately, bears no real fruit?

Is that the point? That life, in the end, offers no rewards? That the bad guys go on being bad guys, and the good guys go on pretending they aren't bad guys, and the rest of us go on running in circles trying to figure out who is who? That's pretty bleak. That's a bitter piece of fruit, right there. Which is fine. But somehow it still felt like the ending diminished the story.

Maybe I'm a little unsatisfied because of something more specific. I don't mind a traditional villain's success as much as I mind a plague of unchecked office weasels taking over the earth. Like, I'll take Voldemort over Dolores Umbridge any day. The bureaucratic buttheads were simply a nightmare for someone like me, whose office is rife with tangled power plays and control for the sake of control. I wanted to see those ego-driven, political maniacs nailed to the wall for their pointless trifling. Sigh. I think this says a lot about me: that truthfully, I'm fine with Roper going free. But I'm not fine with the buttheads winning.

This was a really interesting read. It had a little bit of everything; some very, very good writing. I'm not sure I would recommend it, exactly, but I have no regrets about seeing it through.

The Night Manager on: Amazon | Goodreads