Wendy Moore’s kleptomania bubbles up when she struggles to deal with the latest changes in her life. Her next-door neighbor Pam leaves, and Wendy’s son, Billy, goes to college. The empty-nest syndrome makes it hard for her to keep her issues under control. Even gardening and refurnishing furniture help only to an extent. 

Harper is a writer who has seen success but is currently on the edge, with her latest book being a flop. The agent and publisher want her to try something different and more in line with what the public wants. Moving to the suburbs is not something she prefers, but if it helps revive her career, why not? 

As Wendy and Harper become friends, things get complicated. Their secrets come to light, and the women need to decide what they really want from their lives. 

The story comes in the first-person POV of Wendy and Harper in alternative chapters. 

The Goodreads blurb calls it a ‘humorous and heartwarming novel’. Unfortunately, I didn’t feel the urge to even chuckle or smile, let alone laugh. 

While Wendy and Harper are sketched to be on the opposite sides of the spectrum, neither is likable. The first-person narration makes it even worse. I was annoyed by their voices even before I hit 30%. 

Also, the voices became less distinctive as the story progressed. By halfway through, I got confused between the POVs each time Harper and Wendy had a discussion, even though the chapter head clearly mentioned it. Additionally, the chapters are way too long (and slow). 

The themes are great and deal with mental illness, loneliness, family issues, etc. But the way they are handled doesn’t make the story appealing or emotional. Moreover, I’m not a fan of extreme opinions on either side (patriarchy vs. feminism). And don’t ‘tell’ me you are a progressive woman and harp on it from the very first chapter. ‘Show’ it to me. I see enough of these arguments on social media. I don’t need long dialogues and rants in books. 

The characters are stereotypical, which makes them more caricatures than real. How one shows a progressive woman is important. Make her feel relatable despite her flaws. Here, Harper has been created for readers to dislike her. She used feminism as a defense mechanism and grated my nerves with her judgmental attitude and hypocrisy. Wendy wasn’t great, but Harper was made to sound so annoying! Not fair in a way, but I have seen such people, so they do exist. 

The writing isn’t great either. It feels clunky and choppy. It's easy to zone out. I finished it because I wanted to see what would happen at the end. 

There’s a bit of romance, too, if we can call it that. Nate, by all means, should be the ideal book boyfriend. However, I couldn’t care less. Nate’s character was unable to make much impact. Joe fared better, though he isn’t that impactful either. In short, none of the characters have a strong presence. 

Of course, the book does have a few redeeming features. It presents a writer’s situation, uncertainty, dilemma, and vulnerability well. Those few scenes were good and relatable. I wish the book focused more on the ‘writer’ part rather than the other aspects. The actual writing process (which one method Harper preferred) could have been used in detail. We don’t get to see her write anything, as such. We only get the updates. 

There’s no denying the character development towards the end. But getting there was laborious and long-winded, filled with loads of internal dialogue. I lost all interest by then. 

To summarize, Take It From Me is supposed to have been a heartwarming novel about two different women helping each other grow. Sadly, it didn’t work for me. Do check the other reviews before you decide. Or, take it from me and find another book. 

Thank you, NetGalley and Montlake, for the eARC. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book. 

#NetGalley #TakeItfromMe