Caroline Kepnes

The main merit of this novel, and what distinguishes from the Netflix series, is masterfully threading the thin line between the realistic depiction of a deranged stalker's perspective and the glamourisation of women's abuse, without ever falling on the other side.
The inner voice of the protagonist, constantly spinning the narrative of control and obsession and of their rationalisation, makes for a wildly unsettling ride. And kudos to the author for making the victim(s) quite unlikeable. She proved a point there: being hyper-sexualised, cheating, lying, posing and being immature DOES NOT influence or justify the abuser's actions. It does not get much clearer than in the pages of this narrative, and I guess it would be interesting to have it read collectively and discussed in high schools around the world.

A final remark: it is impossible to review this story eithout talking (or at least thinking intensely) about the series which, although I binge-watched it with mucho gusto, falls quite short of setting the boundary between the taking the killer's perspective and looking for a justification. A major symptom of this lack of honesty is the introduction of the healthy friendship between our monster and an abused child, absent in the book. That story line makes it look like he WOULD BE indeed caring and loving, IF ONLY his victims were not so imperfect. Well, this quite betrays the spirit of the novel and casts the shadow of "she asked for it" on the whole thing.

Anyway, the hipster dude had to go XD… (mais)

With Friends Like These...
Review of the Amazon Original Stories eBook (March 19, 2024), released simultaneously with the Audible Original audiobook.

This didn't feel at all in keeping with the suspense fiction in the other stories of the Never Tell collection. The suspense here was only from the questions: "which one of them is the bad friend?" and "is anything going to happen?" Eventually a supposed secret is revealed, but even the truth of that is questioned, so you are left in doubt at the end.

It is 2 stars only for the ambition of telling a lifetime over the course of 44 pages. Ellen and Tanya are young women at the beginning and are 70 something years old at the end. The story goes over their friendship, the boyfriends, their husbands, their children with the unresolved revelation coming towards the conclusion.

The Bad Friend is the sixth of six Amazon Original Stories eBooks/Audible Audio audiobooks released on March 19, 2024 as part of the Never Tell Collection of short stories which are promoted with the collective description:

"How well do you know people? How well do they know you? Six award-winning, bestselling authors of suspense explore the lingering threat of secrets and the inescapable fear that they can’t stay buried forever. No matter how dark the hiding place, the consequences of revealing the truth can bring out the worst in lovers, friends, family, and strangers."

Trivia and Links
Caroline Kepnes is the author of several novels, the most popular of which is You (You #1, 2014) which was also the basis for the Netflix TV series. Her most recent novel is For You and Only You (You #4, 2023).

You can watch for current and past Amazon Original Stories which are usually paired with their Audible Original narrations at an Amazon page here (link goes to Amazon US, adjust for your own country or region).… (mais)

This is one of my most anticipated releases of 2021 and thank you so much to both Netgalley and Random House for the gift advance copy of You Love Me. I also want to say I am truly sorry for the delay of this review. This lateness is no reflection on how good or bad this book is. I have just had a few months where I haven’t wanted to do anything but read sleep repeat.

I first off want to say I am a major fan of Joe Goldberg and the YOU series. I love the character that is Joe. (don’t judge me I know he is nuts.) there is just something so captivating in the way this author describes this crazy man and the women that come across him.

I read You and Hidden Bodies again to prepare myself for book three and I am really glad I did. Once the story finishes in Hidden Bodies, I am instantly wanting to know how Joe and Love's story continues. This book takes you in a completely different direction than what's expected, and I think I really enjoyed that the most. I wasn't expecting Joe to fall for someone else and I certainly wasn't expecting that person to be in the predicament she was in.

Although the fact that this other person loves books is a complete added plus to this read. I will say I missed a bit of Joe in this book considering that I felt like this book was very tame in who he was in book one and two. That being said will people die in this book? Will we get a crazy obsessive Joe? Yes and kind of. There are parts you will find that the old Joe shines and it is great and there are parts where he tries to be tame and normal and it is just weird. I know this review is a bit tame and lacks detail but it is truly something you should experience on your own if you are a fan of the series. I will give it three stars because it was good but I can’t go any higher then that because I just needed a bit more crazy Joe and a little less attempt at normal. Will I continue the series if it continues? Yes, I would I would even love to see a different series from her. I will say that if you haven’t read the first two books start there. They are worth it.



… (mais)