I read The Night Before a couple years back and loved it. Like awful book, but so much fun. There are very few reading experiences that hold up to the rollercoaster that was that book. Every eight pages there was a new wild turn and it was so ridiculous and over the top and just fantastic.

So I was stoked for the sequel.

This book is a lot less rollercoaster. It's just kind of a generic thriller. And I don't even feel comfortable tagging it as a romance because you could cut the entire romance out of the book and probably only lose about eight pages. The characters found each other hot and that's about it. I've read straight thrillers that were closer to romance than this book.

The thriller plot twist was obvious, but it was fine. I was kind of curious and it was a particularly brutal serial killer, so I was kind of down with that. But it just didn't do a whole lot. The writing wasn't great, although better than The Night Before, and he characters had no chemistry. It was just kind of nothing which was so disappointing. You could say a lot of negative things about The Night Before, but you couldn't call it nothing.

I'm gonna read the other two Lisa Jackson books on my shelf, but I'm looking forward to them a lot less now. I wouldn't bother recommending this.

Did anyone else find this book a little misleading? It's supposed to be following eight addicts throughout the country, but it seems like it's more about addiction as a whole and the 12 step program. Denizet-Lewis spends just as much time discussing addiction and what experts are saying as he does with the people he's following.

I kind of expected a close look at the lives of the eight individuals, but it feels more like he checks in with them every six months and writes an update. I never felt like I got to know them or their lives or their addiction. And it was pretty telling that he had to start every chapter with their name and addiction to remind you. It was helpful, but I don't want to have to be reminded. I wanted to get to know this people and I didn't at all. There were just too many people and not enough time with any of them.

I honestly felt like the person and addiction I knew best was the author, and at that point I would have rather this just been a memoir. It didn't really work for me the way it was structured.

There were still a lot of interesting aspects. I did like seeing the different paths of their recoveries and relapses, and it was nice to see such a variety of addiction. It's just overall, it was kind of meh and didn't do much for me.

I was teetering on the edge between three and four stars for this book, but by the end I think I felt a little more positively.

The beginning of this was a struggle for me. It was so exposition heavy and there was tons of dialogue just explaining the whole situation and all the magic. I couldn't connect with the story or the characters at all, and I was really worried about getting through the rest of the series. I get that, especially in high fantasy, you need to introduce entire worlds in addition to the story itself, but I think there's a better way to do it. And not connecting with the story also meant I spent a great deal of time being annoyed by nitpicky things because I wasn't enjoying it overall.

But around the halfway mark, it eased up. All of the basics had pretty much been explained, so it was a lot easier for me to get into the flow. It was fascinating. I really loved the dynamics between the characters. Kitty and Asher especially were a great duo. I adore them together, as a team against the world almost. And Asher's backstory is just superb. I keep hoping he doesn't die because he's my favorite and he would one hundred percent sacrifice himself at the slightest need.

And I really like how it offers so many perspectives. There are a lot of disagreements and personality clashes, but no one is really villainized by the narrative. They're just different and they're allowed to be different. It's really well done.

I think I did struggle with the dialogue throughout. It never really sounded like real people talking to me. It was always a little bit stilted. It got loads better in the second half, but I still found myself noticing it.

Overall, I really enjoyed this. I'd say if you're going to give this a go, commit to getting through the first half even if you're not enjoying it. It got infinitely better. I'm definitely continuing on with the series and would definitely recommend giving this a go.

This was so vile and gross and nauseating and I adored it.

It is basically about a romantic relationship between a thirteen year old and a guy in his late twenties (ish- I forget his exact age, but it was around there). They meet when she's about seven. It's so gross. Like genuinely made me sick to my stomach at points because the sex between them is pretty graphic. But it's so well done. The book never feels like it's condoning their relationship, it's just capturing something real. And their lives are so negative that at points, the relationship is the only positive thing they have. It's so unhealthy and obviously wrong, but you can see why they both gravitate towards it.

I also loved seeing the situation from all the different characters' points of view. From friends to family to random teachers, everyone has a different perspective that's so fully formed by who they are. It adds to the absolutely feel of reality this book had. You can see characters who think the relationship is true love and then, when seeing them interact, change their mind to abuse and it's so fascinating.

The writing was fantastic. It sucked me in immediately and I was just gone. Like this whole book flew by and I barely remember the experience because I was so completely absorbed by Greenwood's writing style. It was gorgeous.

Towards the end, the book started losing me more. It didn't get bad, it just sort of got a little over the top and the drama went through the roof. I really enjoyed the smallness of the beginning, more than murder and testifying in court and explosive family secrets.

I adored this. It's definitely not for everyone, but it was for me. I'm definitely interested in reading more from Greenwood because I thought this was fantastic.

This book was beautiful. I adored the writing style. I adored the characters. I fell completely in love with this story.

I loved the way she struggled with memory because it felt so real. She was talking about a trip she'd taken with her husband and asking him if he remembered gorging on cartons strawberries and the hike and how she'd been so much better then. He responded that they had so many strawberries because it was the only thing she would, and asked if she really remembered the trip. It wasn't Anna lying to other people so much as it was her lying to herself. It happened a few times and was captured so beautifully well.

The narrative is so disjointed in ways, flipping back and forth in time, but it's beautiful. It's so well crafted that I never struggled to follow Anna's train of thought or current situation. It's just gorgeous writing.

I did struggle with the emphasis placed on Anna's husband in her recovery. Everyone kept telling her she was so lucky, because she had a reason for recovery in him. And he was the reason she wanted to get healthy. I don't think that's a great mindset, and throughout the whole book it felt like the narrative was pushing that mindset as well. Like if you have someone who loves you, then you can get better for them, when that's not really how it works.

This was one of those books I always kind of got the vibe I would love, despite knowing nothing about it, and I'm so so glad I loved it as much as I did. It was fantastic and I genuinely can't recommend it enough.

I wanted to like this. I've been making an effort to branch out more into science fiction, which is not usually been my genre (a caveat I always feel is kind of necessary) and it's been hit and miss. I love The Expanse and John Scalzi, not so much The Forever War. So it goes. But this I was specifically recommended because I wasn't a big fan of Ready Player One. I was told this was similar, but so much better, so I was intrigued.

First of all, I don't get the comparison to Ready Player One. They both contain a virtual reality and that's about it. Not that it has anything much to do with this review, but I've heard this comparison a few times and I just wanted to state that they're pretty much nothing alike.

I didn't like this book from the very beginning, but I didn't hate it either. I kept expecting it to get better as there was less exposition needed and maybe fewer fifteen page descriptions of delivering a pizza, which is how the book opens. It got worse.

None of the characters' motivations made sense. Hiro Protagonist, the hero protagonist (haha.), I guess wants to save the day? Or save his exgirlfriend? Or is just bored by his life and motivated by sheer curiosity? Who knows. The teenage courier YT wants drama or fun or to get paid or something along those lines. There's a mafia boss who is super attached to the teenage YT for ...reasons. I always thought that one was going to be explained, but the only thing I can come up with is that he's super impressed she delivered a pizza on time once. The bad guy wants revenge. And also to fuck YT. I could never figure out that second one except for Stephenson inserting some child rape fantasy. Their "date" came out of nowhere and culminated in the fifteen year old orgasming the second he stuck his dick in her, so that was thoroughly unpleasant. The dude's age was never mentioned directly, but I think he was meant to be in his twenties.

The whole thing was incomprehensible. And then, if you managed to keep going despite all of that, you get to the end where they explain what L Ron Hubbard (I forget the character's actual name, but let's be real) is doing by having Hiro Protagonist speak for about 20 straight pages of dialogue, interrupted briefly by the racist Chinese caricature and the mafia boss caricature asking questions. That's not an exaggeration. I went through to check and counted eight straight pages of dialogue with a single dialogue tag. In eight pages, the only two words that weren't dialogue were "Ng says." Who does that? I'm so confused who found this book tolerable, let alone enjoyable.

The one positive I have to say about it is that the construction of the virtual reality seemed very interesting and well done. It's not something I particularly care about, but I can see more tech inclined people appreciating that aspect. It's really detailed and at points very well thought out, in terms of the way avatars and the like are discussed. Apart from that, I saw nothing of value in this book.

Wouldn't recommend. Can't fathom what people get out of this. The racism, the random child rape fantasy, the incomprehensible writing, the absurdly long winded exposition. More power to you if you enjoy this, but I didn't.

This is a really fascinating look at how scientists and doctors have used dead bodies both in history and present day. It's a bit graphic and gross at times, so maybe give this a pass if you're a squeamish person, but I enjoyed it so much. It was just so interesting. Like it was great information to learn in general, but Roach had such a great storytelling style. The book was as much about her interviews and own experiences as it was the bodies themselves. I'd highly recommend.

The one thing I did struggle with a lot was the discussion of animal experimentation. That was difficult for me. While I don't mind the dead body stuff because, you know, they're dead and can't suffer, the live animals being horrifically experimented on could. And there was a fair amount of that. But it's still worth the read.

I was kind of on the fence between three and four stars, but eh I liked it might as well go with four. This was a lot better for me than The Family Upstairs because it felt a lot more down to earth. I don't necessarily think it was a better book or better written, I just vibed with it more.

I do really understand why people like Lisa Jewell so much. Her writing style flows really well and is just really engaging overall. It draws you in even when sometimes I don't care quite as much as I should. Her writing makes up for some of the smaller flaws that might bug me more in other books.

Also it kept me guessing. This book wasn't entirely unsurprising, but I don't think there was any point before the end where I could logically lay out the twists and turns that were coming up and I appreciate that. It kept me on my toes a bit and I kept wanting to know more.

I struggled with two basic things. The first was the POV changes. It follows three different characters; a teenage girl who has gone missing, the wife of the girl's therapist, and a wannabe incel dude who is arrested for her abduction. I only really liked two of those perspectives and every time it switched to the third, I kind of sighed and had to get along with it. I don't think the third character was worse written, I was just less interested in their plot line and it always made the POV switches kind of disappointing.

I also didn't love the end. Not the conclusion to the mystery element, but the overall ending of the book. It felt a little too much like it was trying to teach a lesson and I just didn't care. That's not what I'm reading a thriller for. I'd rather have interesting characters living out their own stories for better or worse than get some kind of moral lecturing at the end. I didn't disagree with anything, it was more just that I found it tedious overall.

But this was solid. I was always wanting to pick it up and get back to it, even though it was my ebook which I'm supposed to only use when I have no access to physical books. But I cheated a few times and read this book instead. It's good. I'd recommend it.

The premise of this book is that a wealthy, PhD, respected writer decides to go "undercover" as a low wage worker to see if she is able to make ends meet and if it's actually possible to make a living. I think it's important to talk about these things. As a low wage worker, you are absolutely screwed if you don't have a safety net or some kind of help. Housing is terrible, jobs are terrible, schedules are terrible. And these things need to be discussed. But this book rubbed me the wrong way.

It never felt genuine. It always felt like someone cosplaying as a poor person. There was so much distance between herself and her coworkers, like every five seconds she needed to remind you that she wasn't actually one of them. That she had a PHD. That she had a real house and a real life to go back to. To me, it very much did feel like she thought she was better than them.

Once she got mad that her coworker wouldn't go home early when she'd gotten hurt and started making a scene and threats and the whole nine yards. Should the coworker have been able to go home? Absolutely. But there are other circumstances at play and if going home means your already limited grocery money (previously mentioned as the same money Barbara spent solely to feed herself, but this girl was feeding three people) is cut in half, someone's not gonna eat.

One time she started yelling about how the test they had to all take and pass before getting the job (I wanna say it was one of those stupid personality tests, but I can't remember for sure). She said it was bullshit and easy and anyone could pass, which was one of the most out of touch things I've heard. I work in retail and have many coworkers who wouldn't be able to pass a test like that without help. Whenever we have to take employee surveys at work, they literally assign someone to be available to help because so many people literally cannot do it alone. I can't imagine just discounting all of them. Discounting her coworkers who may have struggled with the test themselves. Can you imagine someone who's only worked with you for two weeks, when you are in a supervisory role, yelling at you that the employment test you needed help to accomplish was absurdly easy and anyone could pass? Especially come to find out she's a journalist who doesn't even need this job but is writing about you specifically?

At Walmart she decided to become pro union because she was annoyed that the job sucked so much, but she didn't actually do anything to help. This is a woman with connections and money who's been shown how awful it is to work there and decides that yes, Walmart desperately needs a union. So she goes around talking to all her coworkers about how they deserve to be paid more and need a union. Does she do any union organizing, start making actual steps? Nope, just starts mentioning the word union to her coworkers and quits a few days later. Thanks, Barbara.

She went on this whole big long rant about fat customers at one point and how much she hated them, which was super gross. Like don't get me wrong, my career is retail and I totally hate customers. But not because they're fat. That's awful and so unnecessary for this book. Leave your fatphobia at home, please.

I also didn't love the way this book was structured. She gives herself a month in each job, but that month included finding a job and place to live. I understand why she chose to do that, but I kind of would have preferred if she'd given herself a set up before going in, and started the month timer when she got a job. Because of this, she never actually worked for the whole month and I would have loved to see an actual month of working.

At the end she gave herself a big pat on the back for managing to get through the work and never needing a break. Like that blew me away. A break from what? She didn't really work for more than three weeks, which is totally exhausting, but why would you need a break from that as a healthy individual? It's only a couple of weeks. It's not like she did this for years like the rest of us. And she did actually get breaks because she'd go back home every time her month was over to chill in her nice house.

A few other little things: One time she was apartment hunting and rejected an affordable place because it was on the ground floor on a busy street. Like what? That's what curtains are for. That's not a reason to turn down a perfectly fine apartment. She took charity a couple of times, which bugged me. I get that she was doing the experiment, but I hope she donated back after the fact because it bugged me that she was using limited resources when she didn't need them. There was a little dig at the very end about how the restaurants she was going to in her "real life" were nicer than the ones she was working in.

I was gonna talk about big picture things in this review, but then I got so distracted by all the little irritations that I spent the entirety of this review on those instead. Whoops. But this book annoyed me and it really was all the little things adding together. Her tone frustrated me and the way she talked about low wage workers felt very disrespectful and condescending.

I found this really interesting in points. I liked hearing about her life and her struggles. Her perspective on what was happening during the trial and arrest was fascinating.

However, so much of the book was just about the investigation and the trial and the facts of it. I feel like anyone at least somewhat familiar with the case will find a lot of the information repetitive, both the claims of the police and Knox herself. It was widely reported. So at a point I did find myself getting bored.

I also hadn't realized how old this book was. It was written shortly after her initial conviction was overturned and she returned to America. I had assumed it was a little more recent and would cover more of her life after incarceration, but that's my bad for not doing enough research going in. Can't blame the author for my bad assumptions.

But overall this was fine. I'm not sure I'd recommend it unless you're completely clueless on the case or specifically interested in the case. It was fine and I'm glad I picked it up, but it also didn't do very much for me.