Verity

Name of the book = Verity
Author : COLLEEN HOOVER
REVIEW :
So I’m much more of a movie or show person, and I love analyzing them, but I’ve been looking to get back into reading
because I want to expand my taste for good writing. I’ve been reading horror and thriller books for now to ease my way
back in. I will be as brief as I can with this.

My problems with Verity summed up:

The book hits a point where it becomes formulaic and sort of drag to get through. I think its around the time Lowen and
Jeremy have one of their first really intimate moments and we know they’re bound to sleep together. At this time Lowen
starts to get a bit bored with the manuscript.
All the sex gets a bit heavy-handed and detracts from the book after a while. It starts to feel less like a spicy romance thriller
and more like cheap erotica for horny women.
In general, there was a lack of subtext throughout the book. I don’t wanna get too much into that and risk sounding like a
snob.
Finally, the ending. Holy cow was the ending bad. No matter which of the 3 scenarios you believe to be true (Jeremy being
the psycho that plotted everything, team letter, team manuscript) there are holes and ridiculous decisions made by
characters all around. If you’re team letter, why the actual fuck would you not write “this is a writing EXERCISE” on the
manuscript? Why the fuck would you hide the letter in the fucking floor of all places whether you want the letter to be
found by Jeremy or Lowen? Amnesia to conveniently forget certain plot points is a HUGE writing sin as well. Why would
Jeremy trust Verity around Crew at ALL if he suspected something like that?
If you think the manuscript was real, why the absolute fuck would you write a 15 chapter detailed confession to one of the
most horrific crimes one could commit? I understand she’s a writer and suspension of disbelief and all that, but I can only
suspend my disbelief so much. There are also cheap open-ended plot points like Crew cutting his chin, the basement stuff
being rummaged through, and whether or not Jeremy had read the manuscript before. The letter in general just felt like
cheap attempt to make things open-ended in a super contrived way.

What I liked:

I’ve seen people complain about the lack of characterization, which doesn’t make a ton of sense to me. Do you guys mean
specifically how the characters look? Because in terms of personalities, the characterization was pretty great.
I enjoyed the setup and buildup for much of the book thanks to Hoover’s writing style. Its quick, descriptive when it needs
to be, and watching the characters interact differently with one another is pretty intriguing.
Scary elements. There were some pretty creepy/scary moments sprinkled throughout the book that were actually
impressive. Verity following Lowen with her eyes from the balcony, Verity appearing at the top of the staircase, Crew
waving to the empty window, Crew cutting his chin on a knife that isn’t there, and some of the child abuse scenes, while
graphic, did give me the chills. I also think big chunks of the manuscript were pretty convincing in terms of Verity’s
supposed inner thoughts. There are women out there that are fucked up in the head and get jealous of their children.
In general, there was a fun and interesting thriller/mystery to read through for about 70% of the book. Colleen Hoover
definitely has writing chops when it comes to building an interesting scene efficiently and keeping readers guessing. But the
last act of this book feels so weak and cheap that it left a bad taste in my mouth.