Reviews tagging 'Gaslighting'

None of This Is True by Lisa Jewell

211 reviews

eveling_99's review

challenging emotional mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Murder, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Addiction, and Grief

daffodilcherry's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

A psychological thriller following the link between two women, Alix and Josie, who meet when they realise they share their birthdays. Josie then asks Alix to make a podcast about her, unravelling her life. Interspersed in their tale are flashforwards to a true crime documentary made from their story. 

This story reads like a Netflix/BBC miniseries that gets crazy popular and that everyone's mum is obsessed with. The first 50% is amps up the tension between the two women, but ultimately it goes along very slowly. The second 50% is fast paced, desperate and dramatic. My one ultimate annoyance with this book is the title: None of This is True.

It ultimately spoils the fact that Josie is lying about the exact circumstances of her life.

if it had been named differently I think the revelations of the second half would have hit a lot stronger. However, the ending was so very satisfying (ending spoiler:)

especially the final twist of Josie's final chapter where she may not be as diabolical as we were lead to believe...

 

In terms of diversity, both Alix and Josie are white cis women, married to their husbands. Everyone appears to be ambiguously white and straight, except for, some of Nathan's friends and

Josie's daughter Roxy, who is a lesbian with her dark moments.

Erin is autistic with smooth food preferences and is the gamer queen of my heart. 

I very much enjoyed this as an audiobook, with two excellent main narrators and then a full cast making up the interviewees of the inserted documentary moments. My only gripe with it was that at times in the documentary aspects the interviewer's voice was very quiet, but otherwise it was good.

Wheelhouse: narrative parallels/foils, women protagonists over 45,

unreliable narrators,

spliced in revelations in the form of interviews.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Stalking, Murder, Domestic abuse, Kidnapping, Ableism, and Sexism

Moderate: Child abuse, Torture, Incest, Lesbophobia, and Gaslighting

The dog is uninjured and fine at the end. Josie's relationship with Walter:

allegedly started dating when she was 15 he was 42, describes grooming behaviour, alleges that he is physically, emotionally and fiscally abusive towards her.

spoiler for the twist of Josie and Walter:

this is then twisted when her children allege that she was manipulative and emotionally abusive towards the whole family, including Walter, and that she may have attacked him as he died.

Josie's relationship with her children:

Erin is autistic and while Josie is mostly supportive in terms of providing her with food she likes there is an underlying current of slight abelism when it comes to Josie's views on Erin. Josie ends up fighting Erin, restraining her in her house and abandoning her for dead while stealing her money. Roxy appears to have a more fraught relationship with Josie, with allegations of child abuse and that Josie allegedly sabotaged her relationship with Brook. There is a custom made child's chair with restraints which apparently Josie used on Roxy.

Josie's final plan:

she kidnaps Alix's husband and ends up killing him, apparently accidentally.

Roxy:

final final twist spoilers: Roxy might have been the one to have killed her then girlfriend Brook.

kerryamchugh's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

A wild twist on the unreliable narrator. Definitely recommend the audio, which is fully sound edited to sound like the podcast/documentary series at the center of this story, with a full cast. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Adult/minor relationship, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Kidnapping, Gaslighting, Murder, Domestic abuse, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Pandemic/Epidemic

heather_harrison's review

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

4.75 ⭐️

0.25 off because a pedophile is a pedophile not matter the twist

This had my jaw on the floor many times. Somebody order a wellness check for Lisa Jewel because her mind is just 🤯

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Stalking, Child abuse, Toxic relationship, Adult/minor relationship, Murder, Toxic friendship, Alcoholism, Death, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Confinement, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, and Pedophilia

Minor: Pandemic/Epidemic, Grief, and Drug use

madelonpaige's review against another edition

challenging dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Gaslighting, and Pedophilia

kecasey's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Domestic abuse, Alcoholism, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Murder, Kidnapping, Injury/Injury detail, and Grief

Minor: Pandemic/Epidemic

ariellevela's review

dark mysterious sad tense medium-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

5.0

This book was pretty full of twists and turns, so many honestly. I was not expecting this read to be so controversial and saw the protagonist as a victim at the start but some things are revealed along the line. It was definitely a book that kept me on my toes. If you are into thrillers, this is the book for you. There was a lot of mystery that comes to a reveal toward the end. And you get a sort of full satisfaction of what you read throughout the book. The main character is VERY controversial and a compulsive liar who seems like she is addicted to lying but you don't know it until it's too late. The content is not extremely graphic but there is some blood mentioned and a dead body. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Gaslighting, Mental illness, and Murder

bethghoul's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Murder, Pandemic/Epidemic, Physical abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Child death, Death, Alcoholism, Blood, Stalking, Child abuse, Incest, Pedophilia, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Pregnancy

thevanessa's review

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

4.5/5⭐️



It was really good, but I wouldn’t recommend it, at least not without a full list of trigger warnings😅

The audiobook though 👏🏻so good👏🏻 one of the best audiobooks I’ve ever listened to! The voice actors gave it there all and really sold me the story, so much so that it felt real

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Violence, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Grief, Incest, Pandemic/Epidemic, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Confinement, Alcohol, Death of parent, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Stalking, Torture, Gaslighting, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, and Adult/minor relationship

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail and Medical content

mhinch's review

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Blood, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Alcoholism, Child death, Domestic abuse, Murder, Sexual assault, Incest, Toxic friendship, Death of parent, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, Pedophilia, Adult/minor relationship, Death, Gaslighting, Gore, Toxic relationship, and Violence