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The Hot Mess Prince

Emily Spady

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Neel Batra is good--no, great--at his job. A consummate professional despite all the chaos of...

Contemporary MM Romance

Meitu

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• #1 FREE image processing app around the world • With Meitu, you got various ways of...

Sassy Brit (97 KP) rated Beneath the Skin in Books

Jun 5, 2019

Beneath the Skin

Caroline England | 2017 | Fiction & Poetry

8.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

Beneath the Skin by Caroline England, is a dark, complex domestic drama, which takes a peek into the lives of four couples whose lives are shrouded with mystery and drama just waiting to be revealed.

In this character driven story, we’re privy to what is going on surrounding four women Anotonia (Toni), Sophie, Helen, and Olivia and the secrets they keep. There is a lot going on, and although the biggest twist is at the ending, which wasn’t really a shock after all, I found myself enveloped in the journey towards it, and enjoyed seeing how their lives melded together. Especially when tragedy struck.

Originally, I found the story went at a much slower pace than I expected, and there are at first a lot of characters to get your head around. However, Caroline England has supplied a huge amount of detail to soak up, which made for a compelling read. I love it when I read a book and hear all these questions building up in my head. Why are these things were happening? What’s the real truth behind their spiteful deeds and their strange relationships? Is there something which binds them? A common interest perhaps?

None of these characters where what I’d call true friends, they were constantly throwing each other under the bus, and more like ‘friend-enemies’, which made some characters not very likeable, yet very entertaining to read about!

In addition, the book deals with a lot of sensitive issues and as the title, ‘Beneath the Skin’, would suggest, self harming is one of them. It’s woven very cleverly into the plot alongside other issues like alcoholism and abuse.

This is a perceptive book showing how manipulative and deceitful some people can be, and how actions have consequences but not necessarily for the same person. I’m looking forward to seeing what the author comes up with next book.

Kudos

Phillip McSween (751 KP) rated Under the Skin (2014) in Movies

Feb 9, 2018

Hoped For More

Under the Skin was doing just fine...until it took a strange direction that I really couldn't get behind. I can't explain it without ruining the movie so I won't. I'm not saying it's not worth watching at least once. However, even if you end up liking it, your appreciation for the film may not be immediate.

I say that because it took me awhile to digest some of the messages sprinkled throughout the film because I was too busy trying to focus on what was actually happening plot-wise. The film preaches that we are victims of our own desires, the things we should probably stay away from but can't. When we don't get the things that we want, we would rather destroy those things than treat them as a loss and move on. How many times have you heard, "I didn't want that job anyway" or "I hate that team. They win too much"? If we can't have the good thing, then no one should have it.

With strong messages like these, It's a wonder the film wasn't better. Overall, it just felt like a puzzle with missing pieces. You're guessing continuously, expecting things to fall into place at some point, but they never do. Again, not a bad film...it just could have been so much more. I expected more excitement and intrigue from a film about an alien female roaming Scotland streets luring men into her van.

For what it's worth, the film does a great job of grabbing your attention and curiosity immediately, setting a tone that demands your attention. Scarlett Johansson was great in her role as Laura the alien life form. You can't help but relate to her struggle of trying to blend in while trying to complete her mission at the same time. Perhaps that was another message: We shouldn't try and change who we are to fit in with social norms. A few tweaks could have made this film a lot better. Overall I give Under the Skin a 75.