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monicamjw's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
annalokshin's review against another edition
2.0
took me such a long time to even get into this book because about 70% of it just seemed like background information to me. i will say the author did a good job of creating a depressing and pity inducing atmosphere, but again, the beating around the bush before getting into the actual plot was too much for me. i would forget things are even supposed to happen plot wise while reading and find myself wondering “why am i reading about this man’s midlife crisis for 150 pages again?”
i was in for some mystery and thrill, not an autobiography. however, the last little chunk of the book hit me out of nowhere and was actually quite disturbing. a very weird read for sure. still not sure how i feel about it
i was in for some mystery and thrill, not an autobiography. however, the last little chunk of the book hit me out of nowhere and was actually quite disturbing. a very weird read for sure. still not sure how i feel about it
magyklyxdelish's review against another edition
2.0
Wow this was a pretty big let down.
I’m all for slow burn thrillers but I would say 98% of this book was just boring and mundane buildup to what was a very predictable conclusion that didn’t effect me nearly as much as it was supposed to.
The parts of this book that were supposed to come off as creepy just came off as weird. I not only didn’t “like” the main character, I didn’t care about him one way or another. He was just this boring person whose life and thoughts moved the pages along. For such a short book it honestly dragged for me so much.
Now with writing, I’m not super picky. There’s really only a couple things that bother me. This book however has brought attention to a new annoyance in writing I didn’t know existed. Apparently writing a book where literally ALL of the dialogue has ZERO quotation marks, even when there’s a conversation going on between 3-4 people...well I would say it’s annoying, but it’s honestly just weird. I can’t imagine why anyone would do that? It brought confusion to parts where there didn’t need to be?
Even getting past the lack of quotation marks and having to guess when the conversation ends and the inner dialogue begins, I can’t get over how bored I was.
This isn’t a book I would read again or recommend, but to each their own.
I’m all for slow burn thrillers but I would say 98% of this book was just boring and mundane buildup to what was a very predictable conclusion that didn’t effect me nearly as much as it was supposed to.
The parts of this book that were supposed to come off as creepy just came off as weird. I not only didn’t “like” the main character, I didn’t care about him one way or another. He was just this boring person whose life and thoughts moved the pages along. For such a short book it honestly dragged for me so much.
Now with writing, I’m not super picky. There’s really only a couple things that bother me. This book however has brought attention to a new annoyance in writing I didn’t know existed. Apparently writing a book where literally ALL of the dialogue has ZERO quotation marks, even when there’s a conversation going on between 3-4 people...well I would say it’s annoying, but it’s honestly just weird. I can’t imagine why anyone would do that? It brought confusion to parts where there didn’t need to be?
Even getting past the lack of quotation marks and having to guess when the conversation ends and the inner dialogue begins, I can’t get over how bored I was.
This isn’t a book I would read again or recommend, but to each their own.
amylittleford's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Firstly, I'd like to thank Netgalley and Cornerstone Press for the eARC for an honest review. I also found the audiobook on the Libby app (library app).
You can probably see from my rating that I didn't enjoy this book. We have Thomas, the MC and narrator who is telling us his story and trying to figure out where he went so wrong. This is supposed to be a dark and gripping novel of psychological suspense but it completely missed the mark for me. Most of this book is learning about Thomas' life and his 'girls' which included his wife, daughter, twin sisters and mother. I would really love to know how many times in this book 'my girls' is written because I bet it is too many times - also half the time it isn't clear which of his 'girls' he is talking about which is very frustrating. Of course this is from Thomas' POV so most of what we are learning isn't real or how it actually happened. Don't get me wrong, I love a good unreliable narrator, and have recently read very good ones. This was not it.
Nothing happened in this book. I wasn't gripped at all. Even the ending when we learn why Thomas is in prison did nothing for me - I didn't care about the characters. They were all barely formed with no personalities. Half the things that are actually happening in Thomas' life that he isn't telling the reader never come to light and are just briefly mentioned that cause the downfall of his perfect family life. This is very slow paced but everything that happens is brushed over so it just feels like words about this family rather than a book with plot and character and meaning behind it. I don't think the narration of the audiobook helped.
A lot of the time, Thomas would lose focus and go off on a tangent about anything else, like the opera or his past. These things would come out of no where and would really drag and added nothing to the book. I get the reasoning behind it and how it shows us the mind that we are getting an insight into but I didn't enjoy it. I could say that all the characters are quite odd but that could also just be how Thomas sees them. I know I wouldn't have been able to get through it if I didn't have the audiobook. It looks like this is the only book Ani Katz has written - the writing is of good quality but the plot and characters weren't developed enough for me to enjoy.
You can probably see from my rating that I didn't enjoy this book. We have Thomas, the MC and narrator who is telling us his story and trying to figure out where he went so wrong. This is supposed to be a dark and gripping novel of psychological suspense but it completely missed the mark for me. Most of this book is learning about Thomas' life and his 'girls' which included his wife, daughter, twin sisters and mother. I would really love to know how many times in this book 'my girls' is written because I bet it is too many times - also half the time it isn't clear which of his 'girls' he is talking about which is very frustrating. Of course this is from Thomas' POV so most of what we are learning isn't real or how it actually happened. Don't get me wrong, I love a good unreliable narrator, and have recently read very good ones. This was not it.
Nothing happened in this book. I wasn't gripped at all. Even the ending when we learn why Thomas is in prison did nothing for me - I didn't care about the characters. They were all barely formed with no personalities. Half the things that are actually happening in Thomas' life that he isn't telling the reader never come to light and are just briefly mentioned that cause the downfall of his perfect family life. This is very slow paced but everything that happens is brushed over so it just feels like words about this family rather than a book with plot and character and meaning behind it. I don't think the narration of the audiobook helped.
A lot of the time, Thomas would lose focus and go off on a tangent about anything else, like the opera or his past. These things would come out of no where and would really drag and added nothing to the book. I get the reasoning behind it and how it shows us the mind that we are getting an insight into but I didn't enjoy it. I could say that all the characters are quite odd but that could also just be how Thomas sees them. I know I wouldn't have been able to get through it if I didn't have the audiobook. It looks like this is the only book Ani Katz has written - the writing is of good quality but the plot and characters weren't developed enough for me to enjoy.
alexisrt's review against another edition
4.0
Thomas Martin is a successful ad executive with a pretty wife, a daughter he loves, and a nice house on Long Island. Sounds great, right? Well, we know from the outset that it doesn't end well.
The initial setup of the book doesn't leave too much of a mystery: Something tragic happens to Thomas' family--and since it's a first person crime/thriller, you know the narrator can't be completely relied upon. That doesn't seem to be a huge recipe for success, or at the very least seems like it will be a retread, but Ani Katz generally makes it work.
It's a short book, a little over 200 pages, so it moves fairly briskly; I finished it in an evening. Although the general trajectory is predictable, Katz writes it well enough to keep you hooked and make you unsure exactly how and when things will happen. Although you know that Thomas has to be an unreliable narrator, he isn't a consistently unreliable one: you don't know how his self-perception is divorced from reality, and the degree isn't consistent. He seems to have been happily married, a good employee, a loving father, and there's independent evidence of that, such as promotions at work.
And yet, the seeds of toxic masculinity are there--the odd descriptions of the women in his life, referring to his wife and daughter as his "girls", his family history. The brevity of the book means that some aspects are only sketched out or hinted at, and character development was part of the fun for me.
(As a Long Island native I have a soft spot for books set there and particularly enjoyed the unnamed shout-out to the Walt Whitman Mall, where I spent so many hours as a teenager.)
The initial setup of the book doesn't leave too much of a mystery: Something tragic happens to Thomas' family--and since it's a first person crime/thriller, you know the narrator can't be completely relied upon. That doesn't seem to be a huge recipe for success, or at the very least seems like it will be a retread, but Ani Katz generally makes it work.
It's a short book, a little over 200 pages, so it moves fairly briskly; I finished it in an evening. Although the general trajectory is predictable, Katz writes it well enough to keep you hooked and make you unsure exactly how and when things will happen. Although you know that Thomas has to be an unreliable narrator, he isn't a consistently unreliable one: you don't know how his self-perception is divorced from reality, and the degree isn't consistent. He seems to have been happily married, a good employee, a loving father, and there's independent evidence of that, such as promotions at work.
And yet, the seeds of toxic masculinity are there--the odd descriptions of the women in his life, referring to his wife and daughter as his "girls", his family history. The brevity of the book means that some aspects are only sketched out or hinted at, and character development was part of the fun for me.
(As a Long Island native I have a soft spot for books set there and particularly enjoyed the unnamed shout-out to the Walt Whitman Mall, where I spent so many hours as a teenager.)
msalexisshea's review against another edition
1.0
I’m sorry but no to this book. I like “edgy” books but this guy sucked. Hated it.
smashton12's review against another edition
4.0
Well that was a terrible (in a good way) foray into the mind of a complete narcissist. The narrator was insufferable, but that’s the point, I think. I would love to see this done as a movie in the style of the scene from 500 Days of Summer where the events play out alongside each other as “perception” and “reality”.
pnwshel's review against another edition
2.0
I am always a bit bummed when I figure out the ending to a book too soon. This was the case with this story.
I kept reading to see how it would exactly play out. The ending? Really? That’s how it ends?
I kept reading to see how it would exactly play out. The ending? Really? That’s how it ends?
nicjohnston's review against another edition
3.0
A deeply disturbing and well written story about an apparently decent father, husband, brother and son whose life and mind slowly unravel to reveal a shocking conclusion. On paper I should have enjoyed this but I found it a little jarring and disjointed; regularly meandering into dialogue that added a limited amount to the narrative. I suspect for many this will be a terrific read enlivened by the unreliable narration of the main protagonist.
With many thanks to Netgalley and Random House (Cornerstone) for an advance copy in consideration of an honest review.
With many thanks to Netgalley and Random House (Cornerstone) for an advance copy in consideration of an honest review.
joe_thomas25's review against another edition
5.0
Psychological thrillers have ruled as perhaps the most popular genre of fiction for years now, hooking readers with pacy writing, questionable characters and shocking twists. It's a formula that's been highly effective, but in the past few there's been a new twist on psychological fiction that's appeared as a breath of fresh air - issued-led literary thrillers which combine many of the same psychological examinations, unreliable characters and twists with a deeper analysis of some of the biggest issues facing the modern world.
Books like Lullaby by Leila Slimani have already seen great success in this area, and this year sees a whole raft of titles publishing, including My Dark Vanessa by Elizabeth Kate Russell and Keeper by Jessica Moor, which promise to continue growing this vibrant sub-section of the genre.
Despite the rise of this genre, A Good Man, the debut novel from US author Ani Katz, stands out as the first literary thriller I've spotted which tackled an increasingly prominent issue in society - toxic masculinity and the impacts this can have on someone's psyche, and the lives of those around them.
With literary thrillers, I find it quite quick to establish whether or not it's a writing style and perspective that I'm going to enjoy, and A Good Man immediately had me hooked with an opening laced with intrigue and more than a hint of impending malice. I knew immediately that I needed to read on to find out what had happened to the main character, Thomas.
Thomas is 'a good man' - he works hard and has a successful career, he's got a beautiful wife and a daughter that he adores, and he's determined to leave behind the scars of his tumultuous childhood. But as the pieces of his life start to slowly fall apart, we start to question whether we can trust Thomas' perspective at all.
A Good Man is incredible well-written, managing to incorporate some fantastic descriptions alongside an increasingly pacy plot that weaves through an impressive amount of issues without ever feeling gratuitous. The thread of toxic masculinity is the core of the novel, but there's a great analysis of how Thomas' perspective can colour his opinions on many other issues throughout his life and the life of his family, and it's deftly handled indeed. Many of the issues covered are important plot developments, so I won't list them here, but it's a sign of an impressive debut when so many complex elements can be juggled so effectively.
The supporting cast of characters are colourful, particularly Thomas' sisters and mother, but the novel is so insular to Thomas' perspective and thoughts that even those closest in his life still feel like peripheral characters to his story, which seems to fit Thomas' stance very well. It's as if these characters are less people with their own thoughts and motives, but events that happen to Thomas. He sees them as characters in the play of his life, not people leading their own performances, and it's a very powerful way of presenting a cast of characters that I appreciated greatly.
Overall, I'm not sure I've ever read anything that I'd compare to this. It's brutal, insular and probing in all of the best ways, and offers a brilliant psychological perspective on an issue that's only now coming to the fore in fiction, which culminates in a powerhouse finale. It's a portrait of a man in crisis, though he doesn't know it for most of the novel, and it's a very fine debut indeed.
I received an advanced review copy from William Heinemann in exchanged for an honest, unbiased review. Many thanks to William Heinemann for providing me with the copy.
Books like Lullaby by Leila Slimani have already seen great success in this area, and this year sees a whole raft of titles publishing, including My Dark Vanessa by Elizabeth Kate Russell and Keeper by Jessica Moor, which promise to continue growing this vibrant sub-section of the genre.
Despite the rise of this genre, A Good Man, the debut novel from US author Ani Katz, stands out as the first literary thriller I've spotted which tackled an increasingly prominent issue in society - toxic masculinity and the impacts this can have on someone's psyche, and the lives of those around them.
With literary thrillers, I find it quite quick to establish whether or not it's a writing style and perspective that I'm going to enjoy, and A Good Man immediately had me hooked with an opening laced with intrigue and more than a hint of impending malice. I knew immediately that I needed to read on to find out what had happened to the main character, Thomas.
Thomas is 'a good man' - he works hard and has a successful career, he's got a beautiful wife and a daughter that he adores, and he's determined to leave behind the scars of his tumultuous childhood. But as the pieces of his life start to slowly fall apart, we start to question whether we can trust Thomas' perspective at all.
A Good Man is incredible well-written, managing to incorporate some fantastic descriptions alongside an increasingly pacy plot that weaves through an impressive amount of issues without ever feeling gratuitous. The thread of toxic masculinity is the core of the novel, but there's a great analysis of how Thomas' perspective can colour his opinions on many other issues throughout his life and the life of his family, and it's deftly handled indeed. Many of the issues covered are important plot developments, so I won't list them here, but it's a sign of an impressive debut when so many complex elements can be juggled so effectively.
The supporting cast of characters are colourful, particularly Thomas' sisters and mother, but the novel is so insular to Thomas' perspective and thoughts that even those closest in his life still feel like peripheral characters to his story, which seems to fit Thomas' stance very well. It's as if these characters are less people with their own thoughts and motives, but events that happen to Thomas. He sees them as characters in the play of his life, not people leading their own performances, and it's a very powerful way of presenting a cast of characters that I appreciated greatly.
Overall, I'm not sure I've ever read anything that I'd compare to this. It's brutal, insular and probing in all of the best ways, and offers a brilliant psychological perspective on an issue that's only now coming to the fore in fiction, which culminates in a powerhouse finale. It's a portrait of a man in crisis, though he doesn't know it for most of the novel, and it's a very fine debut indeed.
I received an advanced review copy from William Heinemann in exchanged for an honest, unbiased review. Many thanks to William Heinemann for providing me with the copy.