Verity by Colleen Hoover

 

Title:  Verity

Author:  Colleen Hover

Narrated by:  Vanessa Johansson, Amy Landon

Publisher: Audible Studios

Length: Approximately 8 hours and 10 minutes

Source: Audiobook from Amazon Music monthly allotment and physical book from the Kewaunee Public Library.

What is your favorite novel with an unreliable narrator?

Lowen Ashley has been caring for her mother who was dying of cancer.  She put her career as an author on hold and now that her mother has passed away, she finds herself in financial ruin.  She is offered a job to finish the remaining books in a wildly successful series by Verity Crawford.  Verity has been in an accident and has also recently lost her two daughters.  Lowen goes to Verity’s home to go through her notes to make an outline to finish eh series.  While there, she discovers Verity’s shocking autobiography. She also finds herself attracted to Verity’s husband, Jeremy.  Is Verity all that she seems to be?  What will Lowen do with the information that she has?

My thoughts on this novel:

·       This was the Page-turners Book Club selection for May at the Kewaunee Public Library.  Sadly, I had to miss the meeting due to a luncheon.  Happily, the luncheon was for my oldest son who won a scholarship.

·       The audiobook had great narrators, but I really didn’t like listening to an audiobook that was filled with constant F bombs.  That’s not how I talk in my everyday life, and I don’t really care to hear it.  There was also a LOT of sex scenes which were also awkward to listen to on an audiobook.

·       This was a hard book to read, there were scenes of violence against unborn children and babies.  It was really hard to imagine a mother that is obsessed with her husband and hates her own children.

·       There was a gothic Jane Eyre type vibe to this book.  Verity is the “wife in the attic” while Lowen is the young new author working downstairs.

·       Positives about this book:

o   The story moved along, and I wanted to know what would happen.  It was an engaging plot.

o   It reminded me of a soap opera with lots of drama.

o   It had an open ending – what was the truth?

·       Negatives about this book:

o   Violence against children. I could hardly read it – I was horrified.

o   Graphic, constant sex scenes.

o   Cheating.

o   Repetitive and not well written.

o   There were a lot of plot holes, and the ending wasn’t plausible.

Overall, I didn’t really care for Verity by Colleen Hoover. This is my first Colleen Hoover novel and I’m not sure that I want to read more.  Are all of her other books like this?