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jellyjello's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
bookph1le's review against another edition
2.0
I really liked You Will Know Me, but this one just left me cold. Spoilers ahead.
I found this book very disjointed at times, particularly in the beginning, to the extent that I sometimes had trouble following it.
The dynamic between the two women needed more work. I could understand Kit being freaked out by what Diane told her, but their relationship didn't seem fully formed to me. It would have made more sense had their relationship come across as codependent instead of one sided. Kit's continuing to be haunted by what Diane told her would make more sense to me had the two women had a very close relationship before the revelation. I would have preferred it had the book condensed more of Kit's opening narrative to allow more space to flesh out her relationship with Diane instead of just telling it in a few tiny flashbacks designed to lay all the pieces in line for the plot.
I very, very much disliked the explanation for what Diane did what she did. That trope is so tired. I'm dismayed by how often thrillers conclude with "because s/he was crazy" as an explanation. It's not only lazy writing, it's a damaging and misleading depiction of mental illness. The truth most of us don't want to acknowledge--and that so many authors of buzzy thrillers seem unwilling to challenge themselves to write about--is that most crimes are committed by people without mental illnesses for a variety of reasons, many of them mundane. I really long for mystery and thriller writers to write complex character portrayals that expose what motivates crimes rather than whipping out the "crazy" trope. Abbott obviously did a lot of research about working in labs, but I wish she'd spent more time on her characters and less time on lab details, something I know she's capable of doing because she did a much better job of it with You Will Know Me.
One other thing: I find it so annoying the way authors structure suspense novels of late, coyly hinting at some terrible, terrible secret for scores of pages before the big reveal. This technique works well when the hints are subtle, but when they're as obvious as they were with this book it's not hard to figure the secret out long before it's revealed. That cheats the reader of the payoff that makes the teasing worthwhile and instead makes the teasing annoying and tiresome.
I found this book very disjointed at times, particularly in the beginning, to the extent that I sometimes had trouble following it.
The dynamic between the two women needed more work. I could understand Kit being freaked out by what Diane told her, but their relationship didn't seem fully formed to me. It would have made more sense had their relationship come across as codependent instead of one sided. Kit's continuing to be haunted by what Diane told her would make more sense to me had the two women had a very close relationship before the revelation. I would have preferred it had the book condensed more of Kit's opening narrative to allow more space to flesh out her relationship with Diane instead of just telling it in a few tiny flashbacks designed to lay all the pieces in line for the plot.
I very, very much disliked the explanation for what Diane did what she did. That trope is so tired. I'm dismayed by how often thrillers conclude with "because s/he was crazy" as an explanation. It's not only lazy writing, it's a damaging and misleading depiction of mental illness. The truth most of us don't want to acknowledge--and that so many authors of buzzy thrillers seem unwilling to challenge themselves to write about--is that most crimes are committed by people without mental illnesses for a variety of reasons, many of them mundane. I really long for mystery and thriller writers to write complex character portrayals that expose what motivates crimes rather than whipping out the "crazy" trope. Abbott obviously did a lot of research about working in labs, but I wish she'd spent more time on her characters and less time on lab details, something I know she's capable of doing because she did a much better job of it with You Will Know Me.
One other thing: I find it so annoying the way authors structure suspense novels of late, coyly hinting at some terrible, terrible secret for scores of pages before the big reveal. This technique works well when the hints are subtle, but when they're as obvious as they were with this book it's not hard to figure the secret out long before it's revealed. That cheats the reader of the payoff that makes the teasing worthwhile and instead makes the teasing annoying and tiresome.
missyjohnson's review against another edition
3.0
I bought this at my favorite book store, Book People in Austin. It was on a staff recommended mystery section and is a signed copy. It certainly kept me interested as I read it very quickly. I enjoyed the backdrop of the chemistry and scientific research labs. I had never ready anything that had a focus on PMDD and how the menstrual cycle affects the brain. I could relate to entirely too many of the issues expressed. It got a little sloppy toward the end and I had to extend belief a bit. the psychological aspects of what we know of others and what we think we know, then what we make up in our own heads that motivates actions is an interesting bit. The author did do a good job of keeping it suspenseful.
youmeandem's review against another edition
4.0
megan abbott has a way of making you fall in love with the girl you shouldn't fall in love with because she'd ruin you completely, and yet here i am once again rooting for diane fleming over the book's protagonist kit.
probably because kit is a whiny bitch that doesn't deserve all the good things she gets even though she thinks she does and everyone around her seems to agree
but diane deserved much more!! who cares if she's a psychopath she still had a lot of feelings!!! maybe if someone cared about her she would've been okay!!!
probably because kit is a whiny bitch that doesn't deserve all the good things she gets even though she thinks she does and everyone around her seems to agree
but diane deserved much more!! who cares if she's a psychopath she still had a lot of feelings!!! maybe if someone cared about her she would've been okay!!!
veganheathen's review against another edition
5.0
Megan Abbott has such a way of captivating me with her books. She always seems to add those little details of things that are inconsequential, but stand out in your memory when you recall certain events. The way she writes is beautiful, with complex and realistic characters. This book was about a complicated friendship intertwined with relentless ambition.
erintowner's review against another edition
5.0
This was a twisty turny psychological thriller with some truly surprising plot twists. I really couldn't put it down. I loved the setting of the book in a chemistry lab; either the author did her research well or she's spent a lot of time in the world of scientific research. This book seemed to posit deeper questions than the average book in this genre. Some people will take the how the author talks about 'female relationships' out of context and use her words to support the popular ideas that women can't be friends, women are socialized to be nice in society but aren't at their very cores, etc. Thinking like that is reductive and not how I interpreted the author's points. I felt the author captured some things a lot of women experience very well without being too dramatic or pitting her characters against each other in a literary catfight. If you're nervous about reading this book because of all the attention that's been focused on the female characters' relationships to each other and ohmygod what do they MEAN for ALL WOMEN, don't worry about that. I didn't experience this book that way.
crimsoncor's review against another edition
3.0
Liked but didn't love. Missing the breathless, edge-of-your-seat urgency of her other books I have read (which are all curiously poorly reviewed on good reads. This one has better reviews, shrug).
cleath2018's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0