This review originally appeared on the book review blog: Just One More Pa(i)ge.

I saw this book making the rounds and the title was so intriguing. Though I’ll be honest, for as many times as I had seen the title and cover, I actually could not seem to hang on to what the book was about. So when I finally started it, I truly had no idea what I was getting into. And for this type of story, I think it was definitely better that way.

This is, primarily, a story about a young artist trying to make a splash, a mother trying to hold it together, and a [mute] teen trying to 'come of age.' Lady writes a Craigslist ad for a nanny for her toddler, Devin, and S answers. Quickly creating a place for herself in the family, S becomes a confidante for Lady and forms a…strange…relationship with Seth, Lady’s 18-year-old, selectively mute, son from a previous relationship. S and Lady both have reasons for posting the ad/taking the job that the other knows nothing about. And as they spend time together, a vortex of secrets, self-destruction, and questionable artistic decisions consumes them both.

This novel was a train wreck, and in the same way that we all know what happens in Titanic but are still compelled to watch through the end, it got compulsively readable. Weirdly though, for all that it was like reading a disaster unfold, and was told with a super sinister feel, the conclusion, when the secrets come out and everything comes together at the end, was actually pretty mundane. I mean, not that I would want to personally experience any of those secrets or the way they affected S and Lady’s relationships (both with each other and with essentially everyone else in their lives), nor do I necessarily think these types of secrets are commonplace, but I felt like nothing that came out was actually as dark as it was built up to be. However, the weaving together and development of these relationships over the course of the novel was expertly handled. And I love how every character is deeply flawed and almost compulsively unlikable. I think it’s a real talent to write characters like that, where none are the “hero” of the story, but you still sort of care what happens to them and truly don’t want to see the worst come to pass. Even these, who all demonstrated, to a slightly unrealistic extreme, some of the worst traits a person could have (manipulative, selfish, nosy, condescending, deadbeat, overindulgent, weak, disrespectful, and in Seth’s case, the “typical” teen need to rebel), it’s absolutely reflective of real life. And while no one is even close to perfect, everyone does generally try to do the best with what they have and deserves the benefit of the doubt. Lepucki really knows how to write characters.

There are a few other things that I also enjoyed from this book. For one, everything is written really sharply and harshly, especially the sexual relationships. It’s different than the way sex is usually talked about and I loved that. I thought the use of technology (Craigslist, Twitter, phones in general) was necessary for this story, especially with a main character like Seth who is nonverbal – it allowed us to see more of his thoughts and POV, but still in the limited way that the rest of the characters saw it. Plus, it was a great little teaser glimpse into Lady’s mind as well. I love when books are up to date like this, reflecting on what it's like to actually live in the [digital] world of today. And it made the reading experience more immersive, which was cool.  The exploration of art, and what qualifies, was really out of the box. Normally, in stories about artists, the typical pieces are discussed, like photography, painting, etc. And we do get that here. But we also get to see conceptual art, art as performance, exploration, and statement. It’s different and creative and adds a dimension that is wholly original. It is also dark, judgmentally unsound, and definitely gets the reader thinking about what qualifies and how far it’s ok to go in the name of art. Relatedly, the “the most messed up people create the best art” trope was shown in an entirely new light here and I definitely respect and appreciate that perspective shift. I’ve also never read anything at all with a nonverbal character (at least not to the extent that Seth is) and that was a super interesting aspect. Last, to reiterate, I think the title is fantastic, and as we learn what it means and how it fits into the rest of the story, it proves to be an even more masterful pick.

However, there were a couple things that I was less impressed with. There was a lot of mother-daughter drama that seemed to come and go as needed by the plot, but never really took on a depth of feeling that fully justified characters’ decisions and choices (that were supposedly based on those relationships). Mainly though, it took me a little while to get into this book. Perhaps I wasn’t paying enough attention while reading, but for the first little bit, I kept confusing the S vs Lady narrated sections. There are many parallels in their lives (the mommy issues, for one, the art issues, for another) and it took me some time to get a handle on their separate stories. Although things definitely started moving once I got more into it, it never picked up like I was hoping. Plus, as I mentioned, it’s all beautifully interwoven and built up to a crescendo that ends up ringing somewhat anticlimactically (for me). It was all very uncomfortable and awkward to read about though (in a good way), so maybe that’s the point.

All in all, this was an entertaining, messy, slightly creepy, upscale suburban read. It addressed some common and some less explored themes, and presented a cast of very captivating, unlikable characters.

I received this book, in exchange for an honest review, courtesy of Blogging for Books and Hogarth.

Quotes:

“Language has two functions: to harm and to repair harm.” p.142

“The tequila was making me feel like a ballerina assassin…” p.181

“And yet, there were other days. On other day, he would roll into a ball under the covers and press his spine against my stomach, the joey to my kangaroo, and then he’d clap three times very quickly, which meant something like I’m comfortable, but also, I love you, but also, The dark is scary but not under to covers, but also, I’m afraid of death but not right now, and I know that if he had talked at that moment I would have pretended not to hear him.” p. 175

“I’d been stupid enough to believe that because I hated her I didn’t also love her.” p.242

“Once Devin had asked Lady if he could eat an entire cake himself on his birthday. She’d said yes because that was months away, he would never remember her promise, and it was easier than saying no.” p.284