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thehaleysheriff's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual assault, Pedophilia, and Murder
ravenrenee's review
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
samstillreading's review against another edition
5.0
Megan Abbott falls into the far too long list of authors I’ve been meaning to read, but never got around to it. I should know by now that the list will contain a multitude of great authors and I will kick myself for not reading them earlier. Megan Abbott is definitely one of those authors as Give Me Your Hand is one of the creepiest, unsettling psychological thrillers I’ve ever read. I loved every moment of this story and couldn’t tear my eyes away from it. It’s not your run of the mill thriller as the contents are different and emotions felt by the reader are magnified.
Give Me Your Hand focuses on Kit, a post-doctoral research scientist in a lab that isn’t the fanciest, but has one of the best scientists in the land working there, Dr Severin. Kit is thisclose to being part of Dr Severin’s team for a research project into premenstrual dysphoric disorder, an extreme form of PMS. This could be Kit’s major career breakthrough. Kit has managed to do better than anyone else from her small town – finishing high school and winning a scholarship to a better college before studying further. Some of that determination is thanks to a friend from high school, Diane. The pair pushed each other to be their best until Diane confessed a deep secret to Kit, ending their friendship. Now Diane reappears in Kit’s life, poached from a fancy lab just before Dr Severin’s big announcement. This sends the current scientists into a frenzy, speculating on Diane’s role on the project. Kit says something while drunk and then an accident occurs. Diane helps Kit out, but now Kit has a secret too that could ruin her career. It all snowballs from there…
This thriller is fantastically creepy as the reader gets inside Kit’s head, experiencing her thoughts, doubts and worries. It flicks back and forth between Kit and Diane in the current day and in their high school years, gradually revealing the secrets of each woman. There is just enough intrigue and gasp-worthy moments to keep the reader justifying ‘just one more chapter’. Abbott writes a fast paced plot and I never felt that I as the reader was being pushed or hurried past anything. Every single detail is carefully thought out and important. Abbott builds up enough tension that I thought I couldn’t be surprised any more – but I was completely wrong! The finale just builds and builds and while the main threads are brought to a close, there is enough ambiguity to make you wonder at the motivations and lengths some characters will go to just to get what they want. This is scary science to the extreme!
The science setting of the novel is enough thing that really pulled me in. You just don’t read thrillers set in a lab that don’t have ghosts and/or monsters. Megan Abbott has really done her research here and it shows in the authenticity of the lab – the sniping, the desperation to get grants and the constant longing for more money, better equipment. She then takes this and turns things really dark, as the former friendship between Kit and Diane grows, then retreats. It’s a slightly eerie novel, but the intensity is huge. Megan Abbott writes a brilliant, gripping thriller and I look forward to reading more of her work.
Thank you to Pan Macmillan for the copy of this book. My review is honest.
http://samstillreading.wordpress.com
Give Me Your Hand focuses on Kit, a post-doctoral research scientist in a lab that isn’t the fanciest, but has one of the best scientists in the land working there, Dr Severin. Kit is thisclose to being part of Dr Severin’s team for a research project into premenstrual dysphoric disorder, an extreme form of PMS. This could be Kit’s major career breakthrough. Kit has managed to do better than anyone else from her small town – finishing high school and winning a scholarship to a better college before studying further. Some of that determination is thanks to a friend from high school, Diane. The pair pushed each other to be their best until Diane confessed a deep secret to Kit, ending their friendship. Now Diane reappears in Kit’s life, poached from a fancy lab just before Dr Severin’s big announcement. This sends the current scientists into a frenzy, speculating on Diane’s role on the project. Kit says something while drunk and then an accident occurs. Diane helps Kit out, but now Kit has a secret too that could ruin her career. It all snowballs from there…
This thriller is fantastically creepy as the reader gets inside Kit’s head, experiencing her thoughts, doubts and worries. It flicks back and forth between Kit and Diane in the current day and in their high school years, gradually revealing the secrets of each woman. There is just enough intrigue and gasp-worthy moments to keep the reader justifying ‘just one more chapter’. Abbott writes a fast paced plot and I never felt that I as the reader was being pushed or hurried past anything. Every single detail is carefully thought out and important. Abbott builds up enough tension that I thought I couldn’t be surprised any more – but I was completely wrong! The finale just builds and builds and while the main threads are brought to a close, there is enough ambiguity to make you wonder at the motivations and lengths some characters will go to just to get what they want. This is scary science to the extreme!
The science setting of the novel is enough thing that really pulled me in. You just don’t read thrillers set in a lab that don’t have ghosts and/or monsters. Megan Abbott has really done her research here and it shows in the authenticity of the lab – the sniping, the desperation to get grants and the constant longing for more money, better equipment. She then takes this and turns things really dark, as the former friendship between Kit and Diane grows, then retreats. It’s a slightly eerie novel, but the intensity is huge. Megan Abbott writes a brilliant, gripping thriller and I look forward to reading more of her work.
Thank you to Pan Macmillan for the copy of this book. My review is honest.
http://samstillreading.wordpress.com
novelvisits's review against another edition
4.0
My Thoughts: When Kit Owens met Diane Fleming at the start of her senior year of high school, Kit was a bright student, already at the top of her class, but a little lost, no real direction. Diane’s ease with her own brilliance helped Kit to feel the same. The two shared a love of science and chemistry and competed for the same prestigious scholarship. But, even before that scholarship was awarded their friendship had fatally faltered. Twelve years later, Kit is again in competition with Diane. This time for the chance to be part of a research study that will ultimately make one of their careers, and Kit is terrified. Terrified of Diane.
“I guess I always knew, in some subterranean way, Diane and I would end up back together.
We are bound, ankle to ankle, a monstrous three-legged race.
Accidental accomplices. Wary conspirators.
Give Me Your Hand moves between chapters titled “Now” and “Then,” alternately telling the stories, the secrets of Kit and Diane in the past and the present. I loved this back and forth technique with the then chapters slowly answering the question that arose in the now chapters. Abbott does a remarkable job of dropping hints, propelling her readers forward. Over and over, I succumbed to “just one more chapter.”
“Diane,” I said, what is it? I paused. “Did someone do something to you? Did someone hurt you?”
I would regret saying this, asking this, more than anything else in my whole cramped life.”
See! I don’t read a lot of suspense/thriller novels, but have heard so many great things about Megan Abbot that I knew it was time to give her a try. Give Me Your Hand was the perfect place to start. While it had a few moments of unbelievability and choices that didn’t fully add up (as many books in this genre do) those in no way hampered my enjoyment of Give Me Your Hand. If you’re on the hunt for a fun, summer read, look no further! Grade: B+
Note: I received a copy of this book from Little, Brown and Company (via NetGalley) in exchange for my honest review. Thank you!
Original Source: https://novelvisits.com/give-me-your-hand-by-megan-abbott-eden-by-andrea-klein/
“I guess I always knew, in some subterranean way, Diane and I would end up back together.
We are bound, ankle to ankle, a monstrous three-legged race.
Accidental accomplices. Wary conspirators.
Give Me Your Hand moves between chapters titled “Now” and “Then,” alternately telling the stories, the secrets of Kit and Diane in the past and the present. I loved this back and forth technique with the then chapters slowly answering the question that arose in the now chapters. Abbott does a remarkable job of dropping hints, propelling her readers forward. Over and over, I succumbed to “just one more chapter.”
“Diane,” I said, what is it? I paused. “Did someone do something to you? Did someone hurt you?”
I would regret saying this, asking this, more than anything else in my whole cramped life.”
See! I don’t read a lot of suspense/thriller novels, but have heard so many great things about Megan Abbot that I knew it was time to give her a try. Give Me Your Hand was the perfect place to start. While it had a few moments of unbelievability and choices that didn’t fully add up (as many books in this genre do) those in no way hampered my enjoyment of Give Me Your Hand. If you’re on the hunt for a fun, summer read, look no further! Grade: B+
Note: I received a copy of this book from Little, Brown and Company (via NetGalley) in exchange for my honest review. Thank you!
Original Source: https://novelvisits.com/give-me-your-hand-by-megan-abbott-eden-by-andrea-klein/
sutoscience's review against another edition
2.0
So, I really enjoyed Megan Abbott's other book, 'YOU WILL KNOW ME.' I thought it was atmospheric and twisty, and an interesting look into a particular family drama. I was excited to start Give Me Your Hand -- and it began quite beautifully -- because it dealt with themes of female competition, female friendship, and ambition. I think Abbott is a talented storyteller and will be reading her other books, but unfortunately I'm a bit let down by this book.
This story stumbles because the wrong character is the protagonist. Or, the least interesting character. She's a bit of a Mary Sue -- nervous, bad at hiding things, and she only gets pushed into her field because of her friend, Diane. She's pretty passive, and it's unclear whether or not she'd be pursuing her current goal had it not been for her childhood competition.
There's also too few layers of the onion to unfurl. There are some twists, but they don't feel like they fundamentally change our perspective of the characters and feel a bit telegraphed or irrelevant.
The past storyline versus present storyline also feels gimmicky and I'm thoroughly uninterested in the past storyline. If the story had been told more linearly, with the past storyline truncated, it would have been a better paced book.
Speaking of the pacing, the middle section of the book and last third drags. This goes back to the layers of a character thing: the main character has one reaction and one emotional state for the entire rest of the book. There's nothing more to gain from her, nothing more to learn about her, and not enough interesting conflicts or tensions.
On the plus side, the feeling of claustrophobia and plot machinations are pretty strong, and I think Abbott is a skilled storyteller. I just think this book may not have gotten the editorial attention it needed to be more of a taut thriller.
This story stumbles because the wrong character is the protagonist. Or, the least interesting character. She's a bit of a Mary Sue -- nervous, bad at hiding things, and she only gets pushed into her field because of her friend, Diane. She's pretty passive, and it's unclear whether or not she'd be pursuing her current goal had it not been for her childhood competition.
There's also too few layers of the onion to unfurl. There are some twists, but they don't feel like they fundamentally change our perspective of the characters and feel a bit telegraphed or irrelevant.
The past storyline versus present storyline also feels gimmicky and I'm thoroughly uninterested in the past storyline. If the story had been told more linearly, with the past storyline truncated, it would have been a better paced book.
Speaking of the pacing, the middle section of the book and last third drags. This goes back to the layers of a character thing: the main character has one reaction and one emotional state for the entire rest of the book. There's nothing more to gain from her, nothing more to learn about her, and not enough interesting conflicts or tensions.
On the plus side, the feeling of claustrophobia and plot machinations are pretty strong, and I think Abbott is a skilled storyteller. I just think this book may not have gotten the editorial attention it needed to be more of a taut thriller.
vandermeer's review against another edition
3.0
So well written, but I was not very happy with the story, especially the conclusion. So much more could have been made of the disappearance of a body. Also, I found the fact, that they did not call 911, far-fetched. I also felt very sorry for Diane and thought, that Kit treated her unfairly. I first thought, Diane may be a Psychopath/Sociopath, but many of the things she did, made her seem the opposite, empathetic and altruistic, and I wonder, why Kit would not see that.
srfrank's review
dark
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
3.5
Content Warnings
Minor: Suicide
hayleybeale's review against another edition
3.0
31/2 stars. Ms Abbott does female friendships and rivalries really well, but this book just didn't have enough light and shade for me.
skcoe's review against another edition
3.0
“Because the bad things you do become part of you, literally. This is no metaphor. They become part of you on a cellular level, in the blood.”
I came away from this book wishing it had a clearer final message it wanted to impart. I liked a lot of it, from the allegory of those with less having to try harder to compete against those with more, the PMDD narrative centre, and the focus on the struggles specifically built in to womanhood. What i wished for more was these things to connect to our central relationship, and for the relationship between our main character and her high school friend to be further fleshed out and even have more resolve. I also wished for more chapters set in the past, and more of a/the friendship between Kit and Diane. I loved the way their stories intertwined and I simply wanted more. But altogether it was a good story that surprised me in places and i liked it well enough.
The above quote stuck out to me, especially coming back to it after the final pages. This, i feel, despite the misogyny in science, class struggles/differences, and PMDD focus, is what the book wanted to say: sometimes the bad things are bad things, no matter the surrounds.
I came away from this book wishing it had a clearer final message it wanted to impart. I liked a lot of it, from the allegory of those with less having to try harder to compete against those with more, the PMDD narrative centre, and the focus on the struggles specifically built in to womanhood. What i wished for more was these things to connect to our central relationship, and for the relationship between our main character and her high school friend to be further fleshed out and even have more resolve. I also wished for more chapters set in the past, and more of a/the friendship between Kit and Diane. I loved the way their stories intertwined and I simply wanted more. But altogether it was a good story that surprised me in places and i liked it well enough.
The above quote stuck out to me, especially coming back to it after the final pages. This, i feel, despite the misogyny in science, class struggles/differences, and PMDD focus, is what the book wanted to say: sometimes the bad things are bad things, no matter the surrounds.