emilyrhodes17's review against another edition
4.0
I read this book a few years ago. Underrated in my opinion. I enjoyed it thoroughly.
kirstena's review against another edition
2.0
Hmm...the author has an amazing way with words. And I think that's why I kept reading. But the plot was lacking and the ending bizarre.
mhall's review against another edition
3.0
This novel grew on me. It takes place in the 1980s at Esther Percy School, an elite New England prep school, and is narrated by a woman looking back and figuring out her past and her teenage relationship with the wealthy daughter of a prominent politician. There is horseback riding and cocaine; however, it is actually more about character than plot. About halfway through I realized the writing was actually very good:
"I had started prep school at thirteen. Rich, wild girls - the ones who couldn't contain their outlaw yearnings - were dazzling and commonplace as New England snow. But Skye was a newborn rebel, with a vengeful and mercurial heart. At any moment she might repent, or head for a cliff, not caring who else got hurt."
"I had started prep school at thirteen. Rich, wild girls - the ones who couldn't contain their outlaw yearnings - were dazzling and commonplace as New England snow. But Skye was a newborn rebel, with a vengeful and mercurial heart. At any moment she might repent, or head for a cliff, not caring who else got hurt."
heykellyjensen's review against another edition
1.0
What a disaster of a book. I can't begin to comprehend what the goal or purpose of this way, and I feel like it was a major rip off a lot of other stories and rehashed terribly.
First, the over reliance on drug use as a major theme in pre-college boarding school is plain absurd. Whoever the audience is for this story is in for disappointment - this is way too adult for the high school age and way too juvenile for adults. De Garmont wants to write something similar to Curtis Sittenfield's "Prep," but falls so flat.
Second, the title has nothing to do with the book. There is one line in the entire book and in no way is this about gossipy folks. All of the characters are dry and predictable, with no depth and no interest in anyone except themselves. It's like De Garmont wanted to portray something that she wanted to convey, but failed in both respects as the story falls flat and the title does nothing more than make clear this is nothing but "show."
The writing is not spectacular. It's cliched, and it's not original. There's nothing spectacular here, and all of the hype surrounding this book (through its publisher and through press) is nothing but a means of trying to sell something that just isn't. The story line has too many elements cobbled together poorly without giving an indication of aim or aspiration in any character - Catherine apparently is a big deal horse rider, but we know so little about it. Sure it comes up, but maybe only after a few chapters. It was a total afterthought...a detail added simply because it adds to the air of the prep school. Maybe if this had actually been developed and made a reader care about Catherine's passion it could have worked but since Catherine didn't care herself (until the horse went missing, a la the end of the book), we can't care, either.
I would not recommend this for anyone. I finished it simply because I wanted to see what the disappointing ending was that other reviewers mentioned. I found the ending to be the only redeeming quality of the book: one character ends up dead (not that she was ever alive, anyway) and the others have nothing going for them. I love myself a good prep school story, but this was painful not because of that, but because of how poorly executed and planned it was. Really - high schoolers able to hop a plane to South America on a whim to get coke without a parent even knowing? Even for the early 80s, you have got to be kidding me.
First, the over reliance on drug use as a major theme in pre-college boarding school is plain absurd. Whoever the audience is for this story is in for disappointment - this is way too adult for the high school age and way too juvenile for adults. De Garmont wants to write something similar to Curtis Sittenfield's "Prep," but falls so flat.
Second, the title has nothing to do with the book. There is one line in the entire book and in no way is this about gossipy folks. All of the characters are dry and predictable, with no depth and no interest in anyone except themselves. It's like De Garmont wanted to portray something that she wanted to convey, but failed in both respects as the story falls flat and the title does nothing more than make clear this is nothing but "show."
The writing is not spectacular. It's cliched, and it's not original. There's nothing spectacular here, and all of the hype surrounding this book (through its publisher and through press) is nothing but a means of trying to sell something that just isn't. The story line has too many elements cobbled together poorly without giving an indication of aim or aspiration in any character - Catherine apparently is a big deal horse rider, but we know so little about it. Sure it comes up, but maybe only after a few chapters. It was a total afterthought...a detail added simply because it adds to the air of the prep school. Maybe if this had actually been developed and made a reader care about Catherine's passion it could have worked but since Catherine didn't care herself (until the horse went missing, a la the end of the book), we can't care, either.
I would not recommend this for anyone. I finished it simply because I wanted to see what the disappointing ending was that other reviewers mentioned. I found the ending to be the only redeeming quality of the book: one character ends up dead (not that she was ever alive, anyway) and the others have nothing going for them. I love myself a good prep school story, but this was painful not because of that, but because of how poorly executed and planned it was. Really - high schoolers able to hop a plane to South America on a whim to get coke without a parent even knowing? Even for the early 80s, you have got to be kidding me.
kate_elizabeth's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars
Beautifully written; captures so well the inherent selfishness, short-sightedness and flawed logic of being a teenager.
I hate Skye, though. Just throwing it out there.
Beautifully written; captures so well the inherent selfishness, short-sightedness and flawed logic of being a teenager.
I hate Skye, though. Just throwing it out there.
24hourlibrary's review against another edition
5.0
I've sat on this review for a while because it was such a perfect fit for my reading tastes that I'm not sure I can (A) accurately describe how and why I liked it and (B) make it a review that would actually be useful to anyone who doesn't have identical reading tastes to mine -- which, based on my fairly extensive number of conversations and readings around bookish preferences, seem to be somewhat unusual. So, no promises this will actually say much of anything that will be useful to you other than I loved this book and definitely think it's worth reading.
Let's set the scene. Catherine has recently enrolled in the Esther Percy School for Girls after some behavioral issues at her last school, where she's left her small group of close friends (including her boyfriend). Privileged -- but not too privileged -- Catherine is suddenly swept up into a world steps above her own when Skye Butterfield, a senator's daughter, also enrolls. Fast and deep friends, Catherine and Skye are inseparable. Catherine can't help but fall deeper and deeper into Skye's world, no matter how outrageous she is and no matter how dangerous a crash course she knows Skye is on. Until it's too late.
I suspect if I were to classify this as dark academia, a lot of folks would balk at the idea. Strictly speaking, I suppose it's not technically dark academia -- but it's a sibling of the genre enough that fans of dark academia will almost definitely be on board with the premise and story of this novel. You've got your boarding school setting, your 1%-er drama, your high stakes and dark events, and an introspective narrator who, for the most part, is quite secondary (Richard of The Secret History is an excellent comp for Catherine). One of the things I loved about the plot of this book -- and, another thing I think it has in common with many dark academia novels -- is how the storyline that is ultimately the main plot of action creeps throughout. Mentions of drugs start off like passing details and the mentions grow until their role is evident.
With this method of plotting, the story lends most of its focus to Catherine's observations and indecision around what to do about her relationship with Skye. Even as she sees the damage Skye causes, Catherine again and again convinces herself to return. While it's true that Catherine's narration style -- and, ergo, the prose -- is lofty and, really, what you'd expect from campus literary fiction, and it's also true that this style is unlikely both for Catherine's age and what we know of her personality, the captivating style pushes all that aside and manages a fantastic balance of compelling the reader forward while still maintaining that particular tone and texture so common in literary fiction. All to say -- despite still coming off as distinctly literary, the prose is still massively accessible and the plot, perhaps, makes the story even more so. Although they're totally different books, I was frequently reminded of Ellen Hopkins' Crank as I read this one, noting how the use of drugs (as in the characters' use as well as the use of the concept of drugs in the story) somehow humanizes characters and story in a way that few things can. There's the danger of drugs being a cliché or otherwise not working in a story, but Gossip never falls prey to it. Meanwhile, despite the deliberate pacing, the tension of Catherine and Skye's story make it exceedingly difficult to put down.
Gossip's cast of characters, too, rely somewhat on archetypes (again, those typical to dark academia). But these types are never boring, often surprising, and all the better for their slightly fewer years of experience compared to the casts of most dark academia novels. Though about 17, most of the main characters shine through in moments of typical teenage behavior and immaturity while the story still acknowledges the privilege and circumstance (ie, largely unsupervised lives thanks to boarding school and the 1980s) in their independence. The cast moves throughout New England and beyond as they please, not restricted by authority figures, the law, or the societal expectations (hitchhiking, for instance) more common today. Any reader who suggests the characters acted beyond their years don't know teenagers very well, have forgotten their own teenage selves, and probably have not considered the importance of Gossip's setting.
I hate to always compare dark academia (-adjacent) novels to The Secret History, but as Tartt's novel is the gold standard, it's hard not to. Gossip hits many of the same notes as TSH while drawing from real-life events at Choate Rosemary Hall that make the story even more interesting. While the book will satisfy a lot of the cravings that TSH appetizes readers with, it's also less of a commitment, both in page count and prose density. It's a novel that will appeal both to adults and (perhaps slightly precocious) teens, and one that, now having read it, I'm surprised is not more frequently mentioned or discussed by book lovers. It's a book lovers book and one I absolutely recommend clearing your weekend for.
Let's set the scene. Catherine has recently enrolled in the Esther Percy School for Girls after some behavioral issues at her last school, where she's left her small group of close friends (including her boyfriend). Privileged -- but not too privileged -- Catherine is suddenly swept up into a world steps above her own when Skye Butterfield, a senator's daughter, also enrolls. Fast and deep friends, Catherine and Skye are inseparable. Catherine can't help but fall deeper and deeper into Skye's world, no matter how outrageous she is and no matter how dangerous a crash course she knows Skye is on. Until it's too late.
I suspect if I were to classify this as dark academia, a lot of folks would balk at the idea. Strictly speaking, I suppose it's not technically dark academia -- but it's a sibling of the genre enough that fans of dark academia will almost definitely be on board with the premise and story of this novel. You've got your boarding school setting, your 1%-er drama, your high stakes and dark events, and an introspective narrator who, for the most part, is quite secondary (Richard of The Secret History is an excellent comp for Catherine). One of the things I loved about the plot of this book -- and, another thing I think it has in common with many dark academia novels -- is how the storyline that is ultimately the main plot of action creeps throughout. Mentions of drugs start off like passing details and the mentions grow until their role is evident.
With this method of plotting, the story lends most of its focus to Catherine's observations and indecision around what to do about her relationship with Skye. Even as she sees the damage Skye causes, Catherine again and again convinces herself to return. While it's true that Catherine's narration style -- and, ergo, the prose -- is lofty and, really, what you'd expect from campus literary fiction, and it's also true that this style is unlikely both for Catherine's age and what we know of her personality, the captivating style pushes all that aside and manages a fantastic balance of compelling the reader forward while still maintaining that particular tone and texture so common in literary fiction. All to say -- despite still coming off as distinctly literary, the prose is still massively accessible and the plot, perhaps, makes the story even more so. Although they're totally different books, I was frequently reminded of Ellen Hopkins' Crank as I read this one, noting how the use of drugs (as in the characters' use as well as the use of the concept of drugs in the story) somehow humanizes characters and story in a way that few things can. There's the danger of drugs being a cliché or otherwise not working in a story, but Gossip never falls prey to it. Meanwhile, despite the deliberate pacing, the tension of Catherine and Skye's story make it exceedingly difficult to put down.
Gossip's cast of characters, too, rely somewhat on archetypes (again, those typical to dark academia). But these types are never boring, often surprising, and all the better for their slightly fewer years of experience compared to the casts of most dark academia novels. Though about 17, most of the main characters shine through in moments of typical teenage behavior and immaturity while the story still acknowledges the privilege and circumstance (ie, largely unsupervised lives thanks to boarding school and the 1980s) in their independence. The cast moves throughout New England and beyond as they please, not restricted by authority figures, the law, or the societal expectations (hitchhiking, for instance) more common today. Any reader who suggests the characters acted beyond their years don't know teenagers very well, have forgotten their own teenage selves, and probably have not considered the importance of Gossip's setting.
I hate to always compare dark academia (-adjacent) novels to The Secret History, but as Tartt's novel is the gold standard, it's hard not to. Gossip hits many of the same notes as TSH while drawing from real-life events at Choate Rosemary Hall that make the story even more interesting. While the book will satisfy a lot of the cravings that TSH appetizes readers with, it's also less of a commitment, both in page count and prose density. It's a novel that will appeal both to adults and (perhaps slightly precocious) teens, and one that, now having read it, I'm surprised is not more frequently mentioned or discussed by book lovers. It's a book lovers book and one I absolutely recommend clearing your weekend for.
candiebella's review against another edition
5.0
Wow. It brought back that feeling of invincibility that seventeen yr olds have. Scary. Beautiful writing. Read it in one gulp.
jbamlove's review against another edition
1.0
A boring book about priveleged, boring teenagers and a story of an inexplicable friendship between two unlikeable girls.
marekcornett's review against another edition
2.0
Well, I'm still not entirely sure what to think about this book. It was really well written, but the story was pretty dark. Definitely not a light summer read. It perpetuates stereotypes about privileged rich teenage girls, and I found the whole horse showman part of the story odd. It just didn't fit. I would have preferred the story to include more about the characters' relationship with each other.
nectarine_waffle's review against another edition
3.0
This novel grew on me. It takes place in the 1980s at Esther Percy School, an elite New England prep school, and is narrated by a woman looking back and figuring out her past and her teenage relationship with the wealthy daughter of a prominent politician. There is horseback riding and cocaine; however, it is actually more about character than plot. About halfway through I realized the writing was actually very good:
"I had started prep school at thirteen. Rich, wild girls - the ones who couldn't contain their outlaw yearnings - were dazzling and commonplace as New England snow. But Skye was a newborn rebel, with a vengeful and mercurial heart. At any moment she might repent, or head for a cliff, not caring who else got hurt."
"I had started prep school at thirteen. Rich, wild girls - the ones who couldn't contain their outlaw yearnings - were dazzling and commonplace as New England snow. But Skye was a newborn rebel, with a vengeful and mercurial heart. At any moment she might repent, or head for a cliff, not caring who else got hurt."