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How To Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia
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How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia is Mohsin Hamid's spectacular, thought-provoking novel of...
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Lose Yourself Without Getting Lost. This handy application presents you several self-guided walks...
There's Something About Sweetie
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The irresistible companion novel to the New York Times bestseller When Dimple Met Rishi, which...
Jamie (131 KP) rated The Darkest Lies in Books
Jul 26, 2017
Believable plot regarding child abduction (1 more)
The mystery is compelling
Frustrating protagonist, (2 more)
Extremely predictable
Good case for why civilians shouldn’t go rogue and get in the way of police work
A frustrating abduction mystery
You know that age in every teenager’s life where they start to become a little bit rebellious? Telling little white lies, sneaking out, hanging out with crowds they know the family wouldn’t approve of? It can be a scary time for parents, who knows who’s out there? The Darkest Lies is every parent’s worst nightmare and follows a mother who finds her world shattered when her daughter goes missing.
I’m going to come right out and say that this book was frustrating for me. The synopsis really caught my eye and the idea for the plot is intriguing. Unfortunately, issues with the protagonist as well as a shaky and highly predictable plot made for a mediocre experience.
The narration in this book was a little bit weird and I had a hard time getting used to it. It is primarily told using first person point of view though switches regularly to second person as Melanie speaks directly to Beth in her inner monologue. It was just uncomfortable to read.
What’s so bad about first person point of view? See the issue for me with first person narration is that it’s easy to end up alienating readers if it’s difficult to relate to the narrator, and boy did I dislike Melanie. To be blunt, she was really annoying. She was self-centered, mean-spirited, often blinded by her own hubris, and near the end has a bit of a messiah complex going which I found completely ridiculous. She was constantly complaining about the police’s incompetence, throwing herself in the way of the investigation despite being asked multiple times to back off before she could destroy their leads. “I couldn’t go home. I was too furious, too desperate to prove I was right and the police were wrong.”
I get it, she’s consumed with guilt and grief over what happened to her daughter, over not being able to protect her. Desperate people tend to lash out and do stupid things, but I just couldn’t believe anyone would be so foolish. Melanie’s antics do lead up to something important in the plot, but honestly she didn’t need any help making a fool of herself. Before all the crazy came out she was constantly breaking down every female character she encountered, often focusing in on their looks and finding ways to insult them. Neighbors, police officers working on the case, teenagers, it didn’t matter. There are numerous examples of Melanie exhibiting this jealous personality throughout the course of the book.
She spends more time going on drunken rampages pointing fingers at everyone in town, harassing the police, treating her husband like garbage while emotionally cheating with a friend, and avoiding actually seeing and being there for her daughter. While her awful actions over the course of the book is an important aspect of the plot, I just couldn’t justify it because she never learns and remains stubborn even after being told off multiple times. Add on top how stereotypically reckless she acts at the end instead of seeking help from the police because of course she doesn’t need them and I just couldn’t dig the story.
I liked the central idea around the dangers of teens sneaking out and trusting strangers, but the story meandered so much it kind of gets lost in Melanie’s mental collapse and crazed search for the culprit. The plot attempts to use some misdirection to keep the reader guessing but the construction was just sloppy, and the actual culprit isn’t even the character that Melanie cares about the most. Every “bad” character is so blatantly obvious that the advertised twist is really easy to see. I kept on reading because I wanted to know the how and the why. I think there was potential here, and if the author wanted to stick to the narrative that Mel is actually really nice and is just being manipulated then why does she remain every bit as petty and controlling? She is still unable to see past her own emotions and unable to learn from her mistakes. I wished that this could’ve ended with more character growth for the main character.
I’m going to come right out and say that this book was frustrating for me. The synopsis really caught my eye and the idea for the plot is intriguing. Unfortunately, issues with the protagonist as well as a shaky and highly predictable plot made for a mediocre experience.
The narration in this book was a little bit weird and I had a hard time getting used to it. It is primarily told using first person point of view though switches regularly to second person as Melanie speaks directly to Beth in her inner monologue. It was just uncomfortable to read.
What’s so bad about first person point of view? See the issue for me with first person narration is that it’s easy to end up alienating readers if it’s difficult to relate to the narrator, and boy did I dislike Melanie. To be blunt, she was really annoying. She was self-centered, mean-spirited, often blinded by her own hubris, and near the end has a bit of a messiah complex going which I found completely ridiculous. She was constantly complaining about the police’s incompetence, throwing herself in the way of the investigation despite being asked multiple times to back off before she could destroy their leads. “I couldn’t go home. I was too furious, too desperate to prove I was right and the police were wrong.”
I get it, she’s consumed with guilt and grief over what happened to her daughter, over not being able to protect her. Desperate people tend to lash out and do stupid things, but I just couldn’t believe anyone would be so foolish. Melanie’s antics do lead up to something important in the plot, but honestly she didn’t need any help making a fool of herself. Before all the crazy came out she was constantly breaking down every female character she encountered, often focusing in on their looks and finding ways to insult them. Neighbors, police officers working on the case, teenagers, it didn’t matter. There are numerous examples of Melanie exhibiting this jealous personality throughout the course of the book.
She spends more time going on drunken rampages pointing fingers at everyone in town, harassing the police, treating her husband like garbage while emotionally cheating with a friend, and avoiding actually seeing and being there for her daughter. While her awful actions over the course of the book is an important aspect of the plot, I just couldn’t justify it because she never learns and remains stubborn even after being told off multiple times. Add on top how stereotypically reckless she acts at the end instead of seeking help from the police because of course she doesn’t need them and I just couldn’t dig the story.
I liked the central idea around the dangers of teens sneaking out and trusting strangers, but the story meandered so much it kind of gets lost in Melanie’s mental collapse and crazed search for the culprit. The plot attempts to use some misdirection to keep the reader guessing but the construction was just sloppy, and the actual culprit isn’t even the character that Melanie cares about the most. Every “bad” character is so blatantly obvious that the advertised twist is really easy to see. I kept on reading because I wanted to know the how and the why. I think there was potential here, and if the author wanted to stick to the narrative that Mel is actually really nice and is just being manipulated then why does she remain every bit as petty and controlling? She is still unable to see past her own emotions and unable to learn from her mistakes. I wished that this could’ve ended with more character growth for the main character.
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Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) rated Hysteria in Books
Jun 7, 2018
(This review can also be found on my blog <a href="http://themisadventuresofatwentysomething.blogspot.co.uk">The (Mis)Adventures of a Twenty-Something Year Old Girl</a>).
I am a HUGE fan of Megan Miranda. I love the way she writes, and I love the plot of her stories. When I saw Hysteria by her, I knew I had to read this book! I must say that she didn't disappoint me.
Mallory killed her ex-boyfriend in self defense, so she claims, but she can't really remember what happened that night. Mallory's parents ship her off to a boarding school to get her away from everything that happened back at home. However, she can't help but feel that her ex-boyfriend's ghost has followed her. She can hear his heartbeat. She has the impression of a hand indented on her shoulder from where she's being grabbed by his ghost. Not long after Mallory arrives, another pupil is found dead in her room. Mallory claims she was sleeping and can't remember anything. Could she have possibly done it? Is Mallory a killer?
The title of this book called out to me. Hysteria is a brilliant title for this book, and it suits the story rather well.
How wicked does the cover to Hysteria look!?! The cover was another aspect that made me want to read this book. Whilst the cover doesn't really let you know too much about what's going on with the story, the design is still amazing!
I loved how the setting of this book mostly took place at some old boarding school surrounded by a forest. Yes, it is a bit cliched, but it worked well for this book.
The pacing was fantastic. There was never a dull moment in this book. I kept on reading without ever wanting to put this book down. It is very action packed and thrilling!
As for the dialogue, I felt it was fantastic. I imagined it to be exactly how older teens would speak. Be warned that there are a few swear words, but they aren't overly used just for the sake of swearing. The dialogue is smooth and never once feels forced.
The characters of this story were developed quite well. I loved how Mallory seemed very down to Earth, yet was always trying to get her memories back. She just felt very real. Reid was fantastic! I loved the way he wanted to protect Mallory. Colleen was my favourite character. I loved her free spirited attitude towards everything!
Overall, I thought this story was very well executed. There weren't really any major plot twists, I thought, but the story itself was really great!! This had me on the edge of my seat...well my bed as I was laying down reading it.
I'd recommend this book to everyone aged 15+ as it's such a good book!
I am a HUGE fan of Megan Miranda. I love the way she writes, and I love the plot of her stories. When I saw Hysteria by her, I knew I had to read this book! I must say that she didn't disappoint me.
Mallory killed her ex-boyfriend in self defense, so she claims, but she can't really remember what happened that night. Mallory's parents ship her off to a boarding school to get her away from everything that happened back at home. However, she can't help but feel that her ex-boyfriend's ghost has followed her. She can hear his heartbeat. She has the impression of a hand indented on her shoulder from where she's being grabbed by his ghost. Not long after Mallory arrives, another pupil is found dead in her room. Mallory claims she was sleeping and can't remember anything. Could she have possibly done it? Is Mallory a killer?
The title of this book called out to me. Hysteria is a brilliant title for this book, and it suits the story rather well.
How wicked does the cover to Hysteria look!?! The cover was another aspect that made me want to read this book. Whilst the cover doesn't really let you know too much about what's going on with the story, the design is still amazing!
I loved how the setting of this book mostly took place at some old boarding school surrounded by a forest. Yes, it is a bit cliched, but it worked well for this book.
The pacing was fantastic. There was never a dull moment in this book. I kept on reading without ever wanting to put this book down. It is very action packed and thrilling!
As for the dialogue, I felt it was fantastic. I imagined it to be exactly how older teens would speak. Be warned that there are a few swear words, but they aren't overly used just for the sake of swearing. The dialogue is smooth and never once feels forced.
The characters of this story were developed quite well. I loved how Mallory seemed very down to Earth, yet was always trying to get her memories back. She just felt very real. Reid was fantastic! I loved the way he wanted to protect Mallory. Colleen was my favourite character. I loved her free spirited attitude towards everything!
Overall, I thought this story was very well executed. There weren't really any major plot twists, I thought, but the story itself was really great!! This had me on the edge of my seat...well my bed as I was laying down reading it.
I'd recommend this book to everyone aged 15+ as it's such a good book!