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Kristy H (1252 KP) rated Playing the Palace in Books
Jul 29, 2021
Funny and sweet romantic comedy
Carter Ogden fantasized about the Prince of England growing up--who didn't? Openly gay Prince Edgar is handsome and easy to adore. When Carter meets Edgar through a work event, sparks fly. Before he knows it, it seems like the two are dating. But their relationship receives intense media scrutiny--and the disapproval of the Queen of England. Can they find a happily ever after when it seems like everything--and everyone--are against them?
"He was destined to become the king of England, and I was a nice Jewish boy from New Jersey; we both knew what we were supposed to be doing, but we were fighting it. When it came to emotional stability, neither of us had a prayer."
This is a cute and funny story overall. We have Carter, who is reeling from a breakup and does not feel worthy of love and then Edgar, who is scared to trust. It's not easy to be in a relationship when you're the Prince of England. As Edgar states, he's "a symbol and an institution." The two meet at the United Nations and there's definitely some insta-chemistry, but they are also pretty sweet together. You can't help but root for this pair.
"Because ever since I can remember, there's been only one unthinkable sin, and that was disgracing my family and my country, in any way. I was being held to a different standard, which I agreed with. I had one job: to represent the royal household and to make England proud, and I was a calamity."
The book is a little ping pong-ish in its highs and lows. Everything is good... and then it's not. Rinse and repeat. At times, it seems a little insane that Edgar and his family cannot trust Carter, yet you can understand how utterly crazy and invasive the British media is--we see it all the time. I would have liked to see the two communicate a bit more, but new relationships are hard.
The cast of characters in PALACE are wonderful--completely engaging. Carter's family and friends are adorable, especially his sister and aunt Miriam. They make you laugh and cry. There's an excellent vomiting scene with poor Carter that will have you cringing and chuckling. Parts of this story are just plain hilarious. But it's also serious in its look at finding love after loss, insight into homophobia, and seeking acceptance for yourself and your partner, no matter what kind of relationship you may be in.
Overall, this is a fast and fluffy romantic read that also offers a good take on acceptance. 3.5 stars.
"He was destined to become the king of England, and I was a nice Jewish boy from New Jersey; we both knew what we were supposed to be doing, but we were fighting it. When it came to emotional stability, neither of us had a prayer."
This is a cute and funny story overall. We have Carter, who is reeling from a breakup and does not feel worthy of love and then Edgar, who is scared to trust. It's not easy to be in a relationship when you're the Prince of England. As Edgar states, he's "a symbol and an institution." The two meet at the United Nations and there's definitely some insta-chemistry, but they are also pretty sweet together. You can't help but root for this pair.
"Because ever since I can remember, there's been only one unthinkable sin, and that was disgracing my family and my country, in any way. I was being held to a different standard, which I agreed with. I had one job: to represent the royal household and to make England proud, and I was a calamity."
The book is a little ping pong-ish in its highs and lows. Everything is good... and then it's not. Rinse and repeat. At times, it seems a little insane that Edgar and his family cannot trust Carter, yet you can understand how utterly crazy and invasive the British media is--we see it all the time. I would have liked to see the two communicate a bit more, but new relationships are hard.
The cast of characters in PALACE are wonderful--completely engaging. Carter's family and friends are adorable, especially his sister and aunt Miriam. They make you laugh and cry. There's an excellent vomiting scene with poor Carter that will have you cringing and chuckling. Parts of this story are just plain hilarious. But it's also serious in its look at finding love after loss, insight into homophobia, and seeking acceptance for yourself and your partner, no matter what kind of relationship you may be in.
Overall, this is a fast and fluffy romantic read that also offers a good take on acceptance. 3.5 stars.
Dana (24 KP) rated The Wrath and the Dawn in Books
Mar 23, 2018
Okay, can we start off with this cover? I mean, it is freaking gorgeous!!!
As a rendition of A Thousand and One Nights, this had quite a few references to the original story, namely the stories told within the entirety of the novel. I love the stories and I hope they continue through the rest of the series.
I picked this book up quite a while ago, but I never got around to reading it. I had heard so many great things about it, but I didn't trust the reviews for some strange reason. So there it sat, staring at me from my shelf like I was betraying it or something. So, I picked it up. And I was not disappointed at all.
I loved the simplicity of it all. Not saying this is not a complex story; it most definitely is!! The characters do not feel like they are inflated to something more than human that a lot of stories tend to gravitate toward to today. They were all relatively normal (well at least in the story). Khalid, don't get me started on him. I absolutely adore him. If you have not read the book yet, do it and you'll see what I mean. I won't put anything too specific, except that I love him. Shazi is an amazingly strong woman. Not only is she able to stay feminine while she is kicking ass, she is so freaking sassy!!! I love the quick wit she has in any situation. It is very refreshing to see a woman character like her!
The descriptions of both the characters and the places around them drew me in and made me feel as if I was there, hiding in the shadows, able to smell the roses and lilac. I want Shazi's wardrobe, just saying. It seems so freaking beautiful!
I hope we get more of a backstory in the coming novels. I would love to see Khalid and Shazi as kids more to get a glimpse of why they are the way they are. The airs of mystery are well crafted, but I want some of those shrouds to be taken away so we can see the secrets underneath~~
Overall, I absolutely adored this novel and cannot wait until I get to read the next one!!
The Rose & The Dagger comes out 26 April!
As a rendition of A Thousand and One Nights, this had quite a few references to the original story, namely the stories told within the entirety of the novel. I love the stories and I hope they continue through the rest of the series.
I picked this book up quite a while ago, but I never got around to reading it. I had heard so many great things about it, but I didn't trust the reviews for some strange reason. So there it sat, staring at me from my shelf like I was betraying it or something. So, I picked it up. And I was not disappointed at all.
I loved the simplicity of it all. Not saying this is not a complex story; it most definitely is!! The characters do not feel like they are inflated to something more than human that a lot of stories tend to gravitate toward to today. They were all relatively normal (well at least in the story). Khalid, don't get me started on him. I absolutely adore him. If you have not read the book yet, do it and you'll see what I mean. I won't put anything too specific, except that I love him. Shazi is an amazingly strong woman. Not only is she able to stay feminine while she is kicking ass, she is so freaking sassy!!! I love the quick wit she has in any situation. It is very refreshing to see a woman character like her!
The descriptions of both the characters and the places around them drew me in and made me feel as if I was there, hiding in the shadows, able to smell the roses and lilac. I want Shazi's wardrobe, just saying. It seems so freaking beautiful!
I hope we get more of a backstory in the coming novels. I would love to see Khalid and Shazi as kids more to get a glimpse of why they are the way they are. The airs of mystery are well crafted, but I want some of those shrouds to be taken away so we can see the secrets underneath~~
Overall, I absolutely adored this novel and cannot wait until I get to read the next one!!
The Rose & The Dagger comes out 26 April!
Louise (64 KP) rated The Sun is Also a Star in Books
Jul 2, 2018
*I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest opinion*
The Sun is Also a Star is Nicola Yoon’s second novel and they just keep getting better. She is becoming the queen of contemporary and I will definitely be reading everything that she writes. This book is so much better than Everything, Everything.
<img src="https://media.giphy.com/media/l41YleLHixOeCWNe8/giphy.gif"; width="140" height="180" alt="description"/>
Natasha is an undocumented immigrant living in New York with her family, she is being deported back to Jamaica after living in America for 8 years. Desperate and at the end of her tether she will do anything to stop this from happening. Natasha has her future planned out and her friends in New York.
Daniel is a Korean-American and has his entrance exams for college.He’s to study medicine as his parents have always wanted but this is not Daniel’s dreams,he wants to be a poet and write about love and fate.
Natasha and Daniel meet on the streets of New York City the day that Natasha is to be deported and Daniel has his entrance exam. Believing in fate and destiny, Daniel tries to convince Natasha that she will fall in love with him by the end of the day and in doing so asks her questions that scientists have tested and proved.
This book is really amazing, it has everything going for it! First off we have that stunning cover the colours and design are just beautiful. Nicola Yoon’s writing is very addictive. It had all the romance and then scientific facts and whilst writing about serious topics she then blends in the humour. I also loved that there were excerpts from other characters such as their history or future and it really added and made it such a fulfilling story.It made you realise that things happen for a reason and everyone’s actions lead to someone else’s fate/destiny.
The characters are great, they are three-dimensional but also they have their flaws,they are totally different from one another in what they believe in and want from life.
This does seem like insta-love because the book is set over the course of day, but it’s not insta-love as Natasha wants nothing to do with Daniel and it takes time for her to warm to him.
I would definitely recommend this book.
I rated this 5 out of 5 stars
The Sun is Also a Star is Nicola Yoon’s second novel and they just keep getting better. She is becoming the queen of contemporary and I will definitely be reading everything that she writes. This book is so much better than Everything, Everything.
<img src="https://media.giphy.com/media/l41YleLHixOeCWNe8/giphy.gif"; width="140" height="180" alt="description"/>
Natasha is an undocumented immigrant living in New York with her family, she is being deported back to Jamaica after living in America for 8 years. Desperate and at the end of her tether she will do anything to stop this from happening. Natasha has her future planned out and her friends in New York.
Daniel is a Korean-American and has his entrance exams for college.He’s to study medicine as his parents have always wanted but this is not Daniel’s dreams,he wants to be a poet and write about love and fate.
Natasha and Daniel meet on the streets of New York City the day that Natasha is to be deported and Daniel has his entrance exam. Believing in fate and destiny, Daniel tries to convince Natasha that she will fall in love with him by the end of the day and in doing so asks her questions that scientists have tested and proved.
This book is really amazing, it has everything going for it! First off we have that stunning cover the colours and design are just beautiful. Nicola Yoon’s writing is very addictive. It had all the romance and then scientific facts and whilst writing about serious topics she then blends in the humour. I also loved that there were excerpts from other characters such as their history or future and it really added and made it such a fulfilling story.It made you realise that things happen for a reason and everyone’s actions lead to someone else’s fate/destiny.
The characters are great, they are three-dimensional but also they have their flaws,they are totally different from one another in what they believe in and want from life.
This does seem like insta-love because the book is set over the course of day, but it’s not insta-love as Natasha wants nothing to do with Daniel and it takes time for her to warm to him.
I would definitely recommend this book.
I rated this 5 out of 5 stars
Daniel Boyd (1066 KP) rated The Haunting of Hill House in TV
Nov 13, 2018 (Updated Nov 13, 2018)
Predictable jumpscares (2 more)
Bad acting
Crappy script
Overhyped Garbage
The Haunting Of Hill House is a 2018 Netflix series directed by Mike Flanagan, who directed last year's fantastically creepy adaption of Stephen King's 'Gerald's Game'. Hill House even features some of the same cast members in Carla Gugino and Henry Thomas, whom I both really like. Before diving into it, I thought that this show was going to be tailor made for me, with a brilliant cast and the same subtle but terrifying horror that Flanagan used in Gerald's Game.
However, after watching the first couple of episodes, I was struggling to get into it. Due to the massive amount of hype and praise that this show was getting I decided to stick with it. By the time I got to episode 6, I was done, but then my girlfriend guilted me into watching that rest of the series because she wanted to see it and she was, "too scared to watch it alone."
What a huge waste of time that turned out to be.
If you have read any of my other reviews of horror-based media, you will know that I have a love/hate relationship with the genre. There are very few horror movies or shows that I feel indifferent about. I hate lazy, formulaic bad horror and that is exactly what Hill House is.
Every single episode consists of a jumpscare at the start of the episode, then a hard cut either forwards or backwards in the timeline. Then about 15-20 minutes of piss poor acting and boring dialogue. This is followed by another cheap jumpscare, usually a woman screaming at an obnoxiously loud volume at the camera. Then we get another hard cut back to the other timeline.
The main issue with this structure, (other than being extremely lazy and repetitive,) is that when the hard cut is made to the other timeline, the audience knows that it is done by an editor and that we are now being asked to focus on a part of the story within the other timeline, but for the characters within the show, it makes no sense. For example, two people are having a conversation when something creepy happens. They go to investigate and a screaming woman comes launching towards them or is standing at the edge of a bed or doing basically any other ghost story cliché you can think of. Then the show cuts away to show the characters as children being haunted by a different ghost, but then when we cut back to the present, we never find out how the last jumpscare was resolved. What was the aftermath of that screaming lady at the end of the bed you ask? How was that resolved? How are the character's mentalities after this happened to them? Who cares?! Say the writers, let's just move on to the next cheap jumpscare.
The script is extraordinarily lazy and the child actors are horribly bad. This is an issue that I feel that there isn't really any excuse for anymore after the brilliant child performances in shows like Stranger Things and Season 2 of the Sinner.
If you judge the quality of something based on what it sets out to do versus what it actually does, then The Haunting Of Hill House is the worst show that I have had the displeasure of sitting through this year. The scares are pathetic, the acting is atrocious in places, the script is diabolically cheesy at times, there is hardly any originality present for an, 'original series,' and the show is overflowing with clichés. Not once did a jumpscare actually scare me, because they were all either laughably predicable or they would be totally out of place just for the sake of shock value and would merit a heavy sigh rather than an legit scare. The most egregious, offensively bad example of this was when two characters were having a conversation in a car in episode 6 and a ghost randomly screams from the backseat.
Please do not waste your time with this series, 2018 had so much brilliance to offer on the small screen and despite what you might hear from big publications, this is not one of them.
However, after watching the first couple of episodes, I was struggling to get into it. Due to the massive amount of hype and praise that this show was getting I decided to stick with it. By the time I got to episode 6, I was done, but then my girlfriend guilted me into watching that rest of the series because she wanted to see it and she was, "too scared to watch it alone."
What a huge waste of time that turned out to be.
If you have read any of my other reviews of horror-based media, you will know that I have a love/hate relationship with the genre. There are very few horror movies or shows that I feel indifferent about. I hate lazy, formulaic bad horror and that is exactly what Hill House is.
Every single episode consists of a jumpscare at the start of the episode, then a hard cut either forwards or backwards in the timeline. Then about 15-20 minutes of piss poor acting and boring dialogue. This is followed by another cheap jumpscare, usually a woman screaming at an obnoxiously loud volume at the camera. Then we get another hard cut back to the other timeline.
The main issue with this structure, (other than being extremely lazy and repetitive,) is that when the hard cut is made to the other timeline, the audience knows that it is done by an editor and that we are now being asked to focus on a part of the story within the other timeline, but for the characters within the show, it makes no sense. For example, two people are having a conversation when something creepy happens. They go to investigate and a screaming woman comes launching towards them or is standing at the edge of a bed or doing basically any other ghost story cliché you can think of. Then the show cuts away to show the characters as children being haunted by a different ghost, but then when we cut back to the present, we never find out how the last jumpscare was resolved. What was the aftermath of that screaming lady at the end of the bed you ask? How was that resolved? How are the character's mentalities after this happened to them? Who cares?! Say the writers, let's just move on to the next cheap jumpscare.
The script is extraordinarily lazy and the child actors are horribly bad. This is an issue that I feel that there isn't really any excuse for anymore after the brilliant child performances in shows like Stranger Things and Season 2 of the Sinner.
If you judge the quality of something based on what it sets out to do versus what it actually does, then The Haunting Of Hill House is the worst show that I have had the displeasure of sitting through this year. The scares are pathetic, the acting is atrocious in places, the script is diabolically cheesy at times, there is hardly any originality present for an, 'original series,' and the show is overflowing with clichés. Not once did a jumpscare actually scare me, because they were all either laughably predicable or they would be totally out of place just for the sake of shock value and would merit a heavy sigh rather than an legit scare. The most egregious, offensively bad example of this was when two characters were having a conversation in a car in episode 6 and a ghost randomly screams from the backseat.
Please do not waste your time with this series, 2018 had so much brilliance to offer on the small screen and despite what you might hear from big publications, this is not one of them.
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Zuky the BookBum (15 KP) rated Mary Rose in Books
Mar 15, 2018
3.5 stars
I wasnt sure what to think about this book when I first saw the synopsis, I couldnt tell whether it was going to be a horror or something else. It turned out to be something else.
Going into this book I was impressed with the writing and the building of characters. Both elements really helped set the mysterious, brooding tone that this book portrays.
I began the book enjoying Simons character but eventually, like a lot of over-bearing husband characters, he got on my nerves. I understand the books whole thing was about protecting Mary Rose but the way he crawled around on all fours for her got really irritating. I understand this was done to add a layer to the story, however, I didnt enjoy that aspect of it. I much prefer books that arent all loved up and mushy. I think my annoyance with the characters in this ruined a certain aspect of the book and made it less enjoyable for me overall.
I really liked the story for this one, however. A twenty year old mystery of how a young girl when missing on a mysterious and creepy Scottish island is definitely the sort of book I like. The tension and paranoia built throughout the story is superb and youre really stuck wondering is Mary Rose dead? Is Mary Rose a portal to some sort of dark magic? Is the island really filled with paranormal things? Its a great book that keeps you guessing all the way through.
This book does give all it secrets up at once, which normally isnt my kind of mystery book, but it worked in this one. I know many people are disappointed by the ending but I thought it was equally shocking as it was poignant. Reading the afterthought bit about the original story of Mary Rose and Hitchcocks ideas for a movie of it really helped me understand and appreciate how the novel ended.
I would recommend this novel for readers who have a slightly different taste in mysteries than me. If you like themes such as love and loss, then you will really get on with this one. I personally thought it was going to be more spooky and less emotional, but I still enjoyed the bulk of it.
<i>Thanks to Netgalley, Adaptive Books and Sunshine Sachs for giving me the opportunity to read this in exchange for an honest review.</i>
I wasnt sure what to think about this book when I first saw the synopsis, I couldnt tell whether it was going to be a horror or something else. It turned out to be something else.
Going into this book I was impressed with the writing and the building of characters. Both elements really helped set the mysterious, brooding tone that this book portrays.
I began the book enjoying Simons character but eventually, like a lot of over-bearing husband characters, he got on my nerves. I understand the books whole thing was about protecting Mary Rose but the way he crawled around on all fours for her got really irritating. I understand this was done to add a layer to the story, however, I didnt enjoy that aspect of it. I much prefer books that arent all loved up and mushy. I think my annoyance with the characters in this ruined a certain aspect of the book and made it less enjoyable for me overall.
I really liked the story for this one, however. A twenty year old mystery of how a young girl when missing on a mysterious and creepy Scottish island is definitely the sort of book I like. The tension and paranoia built throughout the story is superb and youre really stuck wondering is Mary Rose dead? Is Mary Rose a portal to some sort of dark magic? Is the island really filled with paranormal things? Its a great book that keeps you guessing all the way through.
This book does give all it secrets up at once, which normally isnt my kind of mystery book, but it worked in this one. I know many people are disappointed by the ending but I thought it was equally shocking as it was poignant. Reading the afterthought bit about the original story of Mary Rose and Hitchcocks ideas for a movie of it really helped me understand and appreciate how the novel ended.
I would recommend this novel for readers who have a slightly different taste in mysteries than me. If you like themes such as love and loss, then you will really get on with this one. I personally thought it was going to be more spooky and less emotional, but I still enjoyed the bulk of it.
<i>Thanks to Netgalley, Adaptive Books and Sunshine Sachs for giving me the opportunity to read this in exchange for an honest review.</i>
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Goddess in the Stacks (553 KP) rated It's Not Like It's a Secret in Books
Jun 4, 2019
Sana is a California transplant from Wisconsin; both her parents are immigrants from Japan, so despite feeling like she's a midwesterner, none of her friends think of her as one. There's a cringe-y scene early in the book where she cheers with her friends about being "midwestern farmer's daughters" and they tell her she's cute for thinking that, but she's Japanese, obv. I felt really bad for her. When her family moves to California, suddenly she's not the only Asian girl in a sea of whiteness. It's an interesting mix of having a place with your own people but also fighting the stereotypes of sticking with your own ethnicity. It's assumed she'll be friends with the other Asian kids, which annoys her, but she also finds to be true; having not had the opportunity to have friends like her before, she finds she really likes it. But she also tries to break that mold and be friends with people she's not assumed to like - like Jamie Ramirez and her Hispanic friends, and Caleb and his white goth friends.
The book also explores the way racism hits races differently; the Hispanic kids get hassled by cops while the Asian kids don't - though they also have things expected of them that the Hispanic kids don't. The book gets into cultural expectations as well - PDAs are not really a thing in Sana's world, so she's reluctant to be public about her affections at school, which drives misunderstandings.
It's only in the last few chapters that all the secrets come out, and Sana struggles to put things right.
One thing I really liked about the book is the narrative structure. At the beginning of the school year, Sana's English teacher gives them a project, which is to keep a journal to transcribe poems into and talk about what they mean to you. Chapters from Sana's poetry journal are interspersed with chapters of the narrative, and give some nice insight to how she's feeling. Her love interest, Jamie, also loves poetry, and it plays a large part in their relationship.
I quite enjoyed this book.You can find all my reviews plus more at http://goddessinthestacks.com
The book also explores the way racism hits races differently; the Hispanic kids get hassled by cops while the Asian kids don't - though they also have things expected of them that the Hispanic kids don't. The book gets into cultural expectations as well - PDAs are not really a thing in Sana's world, so she's reluctant to be public about her affections at school, which drives misunderstandings.
It's only in the last few chapters that all the secrets come out, and Sana struggles to put things right.
One thing I really liked about the book is the narrative structure. At the beginning of the school year, Sana's English teacher gives them a project, which is to keep a journal to transcribe poems into and talk about what they mean to you. Chapters from Sana's poetry journal are interspersed with chapters of the narrative, and give some nice insight to how she's feeling. Her love interest, Jamie, also loves poetry, and it plays a large part in their relationship.
I quite enjoyed this book.You can find all my reviews plus more at http://goddessinthestacks.com
Angel's Halo (Angel's Halo MC, #1)
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Creswell Springs was a small little town in Trinity Count, California. Population 1,500—maybe....
Kristy H (1252 KP) rated Her Sister's Lie in Books
Mar 11, 2019
Overall, this one is a mixed bag
Hannah Roscoe hasn't seen or spoken to her sister, Nina, in ten years when she receives the call that Nina is dead. The sisters have no other family, so Hannah is now guardian to her fifteen-year-old nephew, Abe, a sullen and angry boy whom she barely knows. Abe comes to live with Hannah, and soon they learn that the police are investigating Nina's death as suspicious. Simultaneously, Hannah begins experiencing strange, unexplained events that quickly have her questioning both her safety and her sanity. Nina's death seems to be close to exposing secrets she thought were buried forever. Is Hannah safe? And her secretive past?
"I... then stopped myself, pulled by the invisible thread that runs through all of us, that however much we might want to, none of us can ever truly disown. Family."
Well, this was an interesting, albeit frustrating one. I really love Debbie Howells' work and the fascinating stories she weaves. Her characters are always complex and often flawed, and there's no exception here. Hannah is a mess, honestly, and I won't lie, she's not the easiest to like. Truly, there aren't really any likeable characters here. Hannah is an unreliable narrator, which sometimes drives me a bit insane. However, the book does a strong job of making you wonder who to trust or believe and what exactly is going on. I was confused a good portion of the time. The weird, creepy things that happen to Hannah are interesting and crazy, though they sort of stressed me out. (Maybe I get too involved?)
The novel is filled with references of Hannah and Nina sticking to the script and keeping each other's secrets. At first, it's intriguing and you're curious as to what they are hiding. After a while, when Hannah makes yet *another* reference to the script and secrets--without any details being revealed--you sort of want to scream. I get a little frustrated at the lack of any reveal throughout the entire book. Eventually, I basically guessed all the major twists anyway, though I still found them clever.
So, overall, this one is a mixed bag. Unlikable characters, some frustrating plot pieces. Some clever plot twists, though I managed to predict most of them. It's a very quick read, however. My rating may be slightly affected by my overall love of Howells. If you've never read anything by her, I would definitely head to THE BONES OF YOU first.
I received a copy of this novel from the publisher and Netgalley in return for an unbiased review (thank you!).
"I... then stopped myself, pulled by the invisible thread that runs through all of us, that however much we might want to, none of us can ever truly disown. Family."
Well, this was an interesting, albeit frustrating one. I really love Debbie Howells' work and the fascinating stories she weaves. Her characters are always complex and often flawed, and there's no exception here. Hannah is a mess, honestly, and I won't lie, she's not the easiest to like. Truly, there aren't really any likeable characters here. Hannah is an unreliable narrator, which sometimes drives me a bit insane. However, the book does a strong job of making you wonder who to trust or believe and what exactly is going on. I was confused a good portion of the time. The weird, creepy things that happen to Hannah are interesting and crazy, though they sort of stressed me out. (Maybe I get too involved?)
The novel is filled with references of Hannah and Nina sticking to the script and keeping each other's secrets. At first, it's intriguing and you're curious as to what they are hiding. After a while, when Hannah makes yet *another* reference to the script and secrets--without any details being revealed--you sort of want to scream. I get a little frustrated at the lack of any reveal throughout the entire book. Eventually, I basically guessed all the major twists anyway, though I still found them clever.
So, overall, this one is a mixed bag. Unlikable characters, some frustrating plot pieces. Some clever plot twists, though I managed to predict most of them. It's a very quick read, however. My rating may be slightly affected by my overall love of Howells. If you've never read anything by her, I would definitely head to THE BONES OF YOU first.
I received a copy of this novel from the publisher and Netgalley in return for an unbiased review (thank you!).