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zarlina's review
1.0
This one was described as "fast-paced" and "twisty."
Well. There were not a single "twist" that no one saw from miles ahead, and It was certainly NOT fast-paced in any way. In fact, it was basically standing still. The same old story, drunk wife (can we PLEASE stop giving women the same personalities OVER and OVER? The drunk, suspicious woman who can't use her words to communicate with anyone is getting so very tiresome) who thinks her husband is cheating and thinks she knows who the other woman is and decides to stalk her to find evidence of her suspicions.
Did she stalk the right woman? Of course not.
Did she ever stop to ASK either the woman or her husband? Nah.
Was the husband cheating? Well, even after 300 pages, we don't know. Because the author decided to end the whole book with going back to where it all started. With the wife thinking her husband (who she decided wasn't being unfaithful) is actually cheating on her, and with a new woman as culprit.
That's how the book ends. So this "fast-paced thriller" (which was not in any way a thriller to begin with) didn't actually move at all. It wasn't even moving in circles in the end. It was standing still.
I told myself that this year I was going to be kinder in my reviews, but then I read this one and I'm sorry but I'm already breaking my new year's promise. Maybe next year.
Don't read this book.
Well. There were not a single "twist" that no one saw from miles ahead, and It was certainly NOT fast-paced in any way. In fact, it was basically standing still. The same old story, drunk wife (can we PLEASE stop giving women the same personalities OVER and OVER? The drunk, suspicious woman who can't use her words to communicate with anyone is getting so very tiresome) who thinks her husband is cheating and thinks she knows who the other woman is and decides to stalk her to find evidence of her suspicions.
Did she stalk the right woman? Of course not.
Did she ever stop to ASK either the woman or her husband? Nah.
Was the husband cheating? Well, even after 300 pages, we don't know. Because the author decided to end the whole book with going back to where it all started. With the wife thinking her husband (who she decided wasn't being unfaithful) is actually cheating on her, and with a new woman as culprit.
That's how the book ends. So this "fast-paced thriller" (which was not in any way a thriller to begin with) didn't actually move at all. It wasn't even moving in circles in the end. It was standing still.
I told myself that this year I was going to be kinder in my reviews, but then I read this one and I'm sorry but I'm already breaking my new year's promise. Maybe next year.
Don't read this book.
tiffany_jolly's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
shabanak's review against another edition
3.0
He Said He Would Be Late by Justine Sullivan
Audiobook narrated by Kelli Tager
Macmillan Audio
Publication: 14 March 2023
3⭐️
Synopsis: The main character, Liz, finds a suspicious text from a woman on her husband's phone, and her journey throughout the book to see if there is truth to her suspicions or if it's all in her head.
Characters that felt like real people were a specialty of this author's writing. This read was enjoyable because there was a lot of personality. Throughout the first half of the book, Liz's humor and inner dialogue made her very relatable to me. Her flaws and insecurities were realistically portrayed by the author, and it was interesting to watch her unravel throughout the book. However, despite being in her head throughout the entirety of the book, we do not learn much about her; I would have preferred to have included a little bit more information about her as a person.
The book's abrupt conclusion, which dealt with Liz's day-to-day life in great detail, was a little jarring. For a book about characters this character-focused, having an open-ended conclusion was a little unsatisfying. I also thought that the conclusion was stopped short, as if someone put a period in the middle of a sentence.
Thanks, Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for this ARC.
Audiobook narrated by Kelli Tager
Macmillan Audio
Publication: 14 March 2023
3⭐️
Synopsis: The main character, Liz, finds a suspicious text from a woman on her husband's phone, and her journey throughout the book to see if there is truth to her suspicions or if it's all in her head.
Characters that felt like real people were a specialty of this author's writing. This read was enjoyable because there was a lot of personality. Throughout the first half of the book, Liz's humor and inner dialogue made her very relatable to me. Her flaws and insecurities were realistically portrayed by the author, and it was interesting to watch her unravel throughout the book. However, despite being in her head throughout the entirety of the book, we do not learn much about her; I would have preferred to have included a little bit more information about her as a person.
The book's abrupt conclusion, which dealt with Liz's day-to-day life in great detail, was a little jarring. For a book about characters this character-focused, having an open-ended conclusion was a little unsatisfying. I also thought that the conclusion was stopped short, as if someone put a period in the middle of a sentence.
Thanks, Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for this ARC.
readerrho's review
funny
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
judithdcollins's review against another edition
5.0
Justine Sullivan's clever debut, HE SAID HE WOULD BE LATE is a twisty domestic suspense about motherhood, marriage, and a search for the truth.
Liz Bennet is married to a wonderful man, Arno, and a mother to Emma. She has never had an issue trusting her husband until she sees a text on her husband's phone from a work colleague with a kissy face.
Now, this is all she can think about. She becomes obsessed, determined to find out the identity of this woman. Arno works long hours at a banking firm in downtown Boston while Liz and Emma are home.
However, nothing is as it appears.
Liz is an author with one published book but she cannot get into her current book. She cannot concentrate thinking of her husband traveling and enjoying life while she is at home with a baby and trying to write.
She has a nanny but is following her husband instead of writing. He gets home late, and Liz starts sleuthing, determined to discover what he is up to.
Is he faithful or not?
HE SAID HE WOULD BE LATE is an emotional, insightful, and compelling exploration of marriage and motherhood. Beautifully written with humor, rich character development, and a satisfying conclusion. I would class this as a suburban mystery.
The book shines with the witty dialogue inside Liz's head as she second-guesses everything. Add in a therapist, neighbors, and friends to weigh in.
The audiobook was outstanding, performed by narrator Kelli Tager. I love the cover, and the book draws you in. Highly recommend the audiobook.
It would make an interesting book club pick. Look forward to reading more from this author. For fans of Nora Murphy and Stacy Willingham.
Thank you to #MacmillanAudio and #NetGalley for a gifted ALC in exchange for an honest review.
Blog review posted @
www.JudithDCollins.com
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
Pub Date: March 14, 2023
My Rating: 4.5 Stars
March 2023 Must-Read Books
Liz Bennet is married to a wonderful man, Arno, and a mother to Emma. She has never had an issue trusting her husband until she sees a text on her husband's phone from a work colleague with a kissy face.
Now, this is all she can think about. She becomes obsessed, determined to find out the identity of this woman. Arno works long hours at a banking firm in downtown Boston while Liz and Emma are home.
However, nothing is as it appears.
Liz is an author with one published book but she cannot get into her current book. She cannot concentrate thinking of her husband traveling and enjoying life while she is at home with a baby and trying to write.
She has a nanny but is following her husband instead of writing. He gets home late, and Liz starts sleuthing, determined to discover what he is up to.
Is he faithful or not?
HE SAID HE WOULD BE LATE is an emotional, insightful, and compelling exploration of marriage and motherhood. Beautifully written with humor, rich character development, and a satisfying conclusion. I would class this as a suburban mystery.
The book shines with the witty dialogue inside Liz's head as she second-guesses everything. Add in a therapist, neighbors, and friends to weigh in.
The audiobook was outstanding, performed by narrator Kelli Tager. I love the cover, and the book draws you in. Highly recommend the audiobook.
It would make an interesting book club pick. Look forward to reading more from this author. For fans of Nora Murphy and Stacy Willingham.
Thank you to #MacmillanAudio and #NetGalley for a gifted ALC in exchange for an honest review.
Blog review posted @
www.JudithDCollins.com
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
Pub Date: March 14, 2023
My Rating: 4.5 Stars
March 2023 Must-Read Books
theladylovestoread's review
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
donasbooks's review against another edition
3.0
I found an audiobook of HE SAID HE WOULD BE LATE by Justine Sullivan on the Libby app. Check for your local library on the app and read great books for free!
zlibrarian's review against another edition
3.0
This engrossing novel is neither a thriller nor a tale of female empowerment. It dives into the emotional world of a woman wanting to do more than be a compliant wealthy wife, but lacking the confidence or rage to commit to actions that will help herself. Of course, that isn’t how Elizabeth “Liz” Bennett sees her life. She identifies with the clearheaded eponymous heroine of her favorite novel Pride and Prejudice, but gained her Bennett surname through a marriage that began as one of equals, but has now shifted into something unsettlingly different.
Sullivan has a gift for ironic descriptions of wealthy 21st century American life, calling attention to attitudes about money, physical appearance, and ideas of “the good life” with dry wit. Liz is a writer whose first novel was successful; as the novel begins, she’s struggling to complete her second novel and dodging her literary agent while she cares for her two-year-old daughter. The person she was before marriage is smothered beneath the demands of parenting and trying to make herself acceptable for uncomfortable social gatherings for employees of the investment firm that pays her husband Arno a large salary. Arno is handsome, kind, seemingly loved by all -- perhaps one person too many, as Liz fears when she sees a text signed with a kiss emoji on his phone.
Liz may feel that she is taking control of her situation by investigating hints of an affair, but she is spurred to action by the advice of an acquaintance, a sarcastic, negative woman who isn’t even a close friend. Both women seem mired in a swamp of traditional gender roles and stereotypes about what women should and should not do. None of the wealthy in their social world seem willing to volunteer for a shelter or seek connections or conversations with people beyond their limited world, and as a result their focus turns inward: hours spent keeping fit, shopping, thinking about or having affairs. Liz interacts with women whose conversational skills rely on veiled insults as a form of alleged humor; her in-laws shame her for resisting their childrearing advice and demands for her to move closer. With all this pressure, it’s no wonder that Liz has trouble maintaining her identity. For a special occasion she is willing to pay various services to “style” her, giving other women hundreds of dollars to renovate her eyebrows and choose every part of her outfit, right down to the sunglasses that she wears to a catered holiday barbeque at the palatial home of Arno’s co-worker.
Liz initially seems bemused by the DIY fashion stylings of her likable nanny, a young queer woman that sometimes wears loose-fitting men’s shirts or a set of industrial coveralls -- sensible clothing choices for a person working with an active two-year-old child. I found myself wondering how anyone that got through grad school could have managed to avoid conversations, reading, or classroom discussions that challenged the kind of neo-Stepford Wifery on display in the Stonebridge social gatherings.
The twist at the end of the novel is well crafted, with spare language that adds emotional weight. However, some loose threads felt unsatisfying. I hoped that Mariana, the protagonist’s Colombian friend from graduate school, might be a bigger part of the story, if only to break through Liz’s self-destructive behavior by offering another point of view. The reader may want the endlessly patient Arno to slip up. Given Liz’s ability to lie (to herself and others) and spy, it was hard not to wonder what might happen if she became vengeful, leading to a fast-paced, challenging sequel (“Elizabeth Bennett's Revenge?). Sullivan is an engaging writer, and it will be interesting to read more of her work.
Sullivan has a gift for ironic descriptions of wealthy 21st century American life, calling attention to attitudes about money, physical appearance, and ideas of “the good life” with dry wit. Liz is a writer whose first novel was successful; as the novel begins, she’s struggling to complete her second novel and dodging her literary agent while she cares for her two-year-old daughter. The person she was before marriage is smothered beneath the demands of parenting and trying to make herself acceptable for uncomfortable social gatherings for employees of the investment firm that pays her husband Arno a large salary. Arno is handsome, kind, seemingly loved by all -- perhaps one person too many, as Liz fears when she sees a text signed with a kiss emoji on his phone.
Liz may feel that she is taking control of her situation by investigating hints of an affair, but she is spurred to action by the advice of an acquaintance, a sarcastic, negative woman who isn’t even a close friend. Both women seem mired in a swamp of traditional gender roles and stereotypes about what women should and should not do. None of the wealthy in their social world seem willing to volunteer for a shelter or seek connections or conversations with people beyond their limited world, and as a result their focus turns inward: hours spent keeping fit, shopping, thinking about or having affairs. Liz interacts with women whose conversational skills rely on veiled insults as a form of alleged humor; her in-laws shame her for resisting their childrearing advice and demands for her to move closer. With all this pressure, it’s no wonder that Liz has trouble maintaining her identity. For a special occasion she is willing to pay various services to “style” her, giving other women hundreds of dollars to renovate her eyebrows and choose every part of her outfit, right down to the sunglasses that she wears to a catered holiday barbeque at the palatial home of Arno’s co-worker.
Liz initially seems bemused by the DIY fashion stylings of her likable nanny, a young queer woman that sometimes wears loose-fitting men’s shirts or a set of industrial coveralls -- sensible clothing choices for a person working with an active two-year-old child. I found myself wondering how anyone that got through grad school could have managed to avoid conversations, reading, or classroom discussions that challenged the kind of neo-Stepford Wifery on display in the Stonebridge social gatherings.
The twist at the end of the novel is well crafted, with spare language that adds emotional weight. However, some loose threads felt unsatisfying. I hoped that Mariana, the protagonist’s Colombian friend from graduate school, might be a bigger part of the story, if only to break through Liz’s self-destructive behavior by offering another point of view. The reader may want the endlessly patient Arno to slip up. Given Liz’s ability to lie (to herself and others) and spy, it was hard not to wonder what might happen if she became vengeful, leading to a fast-paced, challenging sequel (“Elizabeth Bennett's Revenge?). Sullivan is an engaging writer, and it will be interesting to read more of her work.