Unfortunately, for me, Very Nice was just Very Okay.
The storyline had a lot of potential: a daughter and her mother who each inadvertently sleep with the daughter's writing professor. But something just didn't quite grab me with this one like I thought it would. I can't quite put my finger on it, but I think it's just this book doesn't quite fit neatly into one genre. Is it trying to be a beach read? A dark comedy? A drama? I'm really not sure. I think if the author had distinctly committed to one of these genres, the book as a whole would have been more tight and engaging.
There were definitely what felt like quite a few overly convenient relationships and people showing up at the right place at the right times. And some short stories that the daughter wrote that I know were entwined with the main plot, but for whatever reason I just wasn't quite connecting the dots. Add to that a very weird side storyline about a deranged family with whom the daughter became entangled (including a particularly disturbing and confusing relationship between the daughter and the eldest son) and it was all a bit too much. Furthermore, the professor really didn't seem like that much of a catch to begin with and both the mother and daughter managed their feelings in an awkward way.
Sprinkled into this not-quite-beach-read/not-quite-dark-comedy, were some serious references to major issues such as politics and gun control that just felt a little heavy and out of place.
And the ending let me down.
Okay, I think I covered what I didn't like, so let's focus on some of the positive. The plot was well-paced and there was definitely an air of mystery, not knowing all along quite how this intense situation would play out. Would the mother and daughter find out about each other/who (if anyone) would end up with the professor/was the professor just using the women or were his feelings genuine?
Unfortunately, by the end, the lack of likable characters and the far-fetched plotlines just made me ultimately not care that much.
Judge the cover: 3/5
The storyline had a lot of potential: a daughter and her mother who each inadvertently sleep with the daughter's writing professor. But something just didn't quite grab me with this one like I thought it would. I can't quite put my finger on it, but I think it's just this book doesn't quite fit neatly into one genre. Is it trying to be a beach read? A dark comedy? A drama? I'm really not sure. I think if the author had distinctly committed to one of these genres, the book as a whole would have been more tight and engaging.
There were definitely what felt like quite a few overly convenient relationships and people showing up at the right place at the right times. And some short stories that the daughter wrote that I know were entwined with the main plot, but for whatever reason I just wasn't quite connecting the dots. Add to that a very weird side storyline about a deranged family with whom the daughter became entangled (including a particularly disturbing and confusing relationship between the daughter and the eldest son) and it was all a bit too much. Furthermore, the professor really didn't seem like that much of a catch to begin with and both the mother and daughter managed their feelings in an awkward way.
Sprinkled into this not-quite-beach-read/not-quite-dark-comedy, were some serious references to major issues such as politics and gun control that just felt a little heavy and out of place.
And the ending let me down.
Okay, I think I covered what I didn't like, so let's focus on some of the positive. The plot was well-paced and there was definitely an air of mystery, not knowing all along quite how this intense situation would play out. Would the mother and daughter find out about each other/who (if anyone) would end up with the professor/was the professor just using the women or were his feelings genuine?
Unfortunately, by the end, the lack of likable characters and the far-fetched plotlines just made me ultimately not care that much.
Judge the cover: 3/5
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