maxtiu's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.25
i have really heavy bias towards these subjects, but overall i never felt suspense or like there were stakes. the characters were flat and i didn't really find myself rooting for them. even the "twist" wasn't surprising because i just wasn't invested in anything, so it felt like a non-issue.
irisgreen's review
adventurous
dark
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
readingphoebe's review
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
emrichards's review
adventurous
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
ghostreadin's review
adventurous
dark
funny
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
shinypurplepants's review against another edition
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
sapphicshark's review
dark
emotional
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
mmartinko11's review
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
emendelowitz's review
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Confidence was a wild ride from start to finish. If I had to sum it up I would say that it’s a Social Network like ride through the story of two scammers who fake it till they make it a la Elizabeth Holmes in the style of Gwyneth Paltrow’s mindless new age placebo vibe set to the backdrop of post-recession era America. If that doesn’t draw you in, it also features a toxic gay friendship/relationship/situationship (or whatever you’d label it as) which is honestly one of my favorite themes in books.
Our main character Ezra is physically small and is heavily visually impaired as well as coming from a poor family, which made him a target in school. To get around this he started scamming people into thinking he had cool shoes and even drugs. Eventually when he is caught he gets sent to a Paris Hilton style reform camp where he attempts to lay low until he meets Orson Ortman (what a name). The two develop a strong friendship and begin their first of many scams, all in the name of Robin Hood type anti-capitalist ideology. They go on to have a physical relationship and lead one of the largest companies in the world, but it is all based on a lie and things begin to unravel as you might imagine. Alongside the plot, Ezra begins to unravel personally as things spin out of control and his eyesight starts to degenerate.
Confidence covers a wide spectrum of topics such as the post-2008 American Dream (and if that even exists), the power of money and greed to corrupt, unrequited love and devotion, and even pyramid schemes. This is an ambitious novel for one of its short size, but I honestly think it tackled everything really well. There were times I felt like things were moving too fast and we kind of grazed over some important character relationship aspects, but honestly it was nice to have a past paced story, especially since it was dealing with a lot of business-y things (and I have yet to watch succession). Ezra was so well fleshed out as a character that his feelings and emotions toward Orson still impacted me all throughout the book. I cannot speak to the disability representation, but I felt like it was both important to have as representation while also creating more tension as a brilliant metaphor by reflecting Ezra’s internal turmoil; the more things spun out of control the worse his eyesight got.
Overall, Confidence was a great fast paced look into this business/scam/wellness culture that came up throughout the 2000s and 2010s. I honestly hope this is made into a film one day because I think it would translate to the screen perfectly.
P.S. There was one scene where I kept waiting for a certain character to yell “SORRY MY PRADA’S AT THE CLEANERS” like Andrew Garfield in The Social Network.
Our main character Ezra is physically small and is heavily visually impaired as well as coming from a poor family, which made him a target in school. To get around this he started scamming people into thinking he had cool shoes and even drugs. Eventually when he is caught he gets sent to a Paris Hilton style reform camp where he attempts to lay low until he meets Orson Ortman (what a name). The two develop a strong friendship and begin their first of many scams, all in the name of Robin Hood type anti-capitalist ideology. They go on to have a physical relationship and lead one of the largest companies in the world, but it is all based on a lie and things begin to unravel as you might imagine. Alongside the plot, Ezra begins to unravel personally as things spin out of control and his eyesight starts to degenerate.
Confidence covers a wide spectrum of topics such as the post-2008 American Dream (and if that even exists), the power of money and greed to corrupt, unrequited love and devotion, and even pyramid schemes. This is an ambitious novel for one of its short size, but I honestly think it tackled everything really well. There were times I felt like things were moving too fast and we kind of grazed over some important character relationship aspects, but honestly it was nice to have a past paced story, especially since it was dealing with a lot of business-y things (and I have yet to watch succession). Ezra was so well fleshed out as a character that his feelings and emotions toward Orson still impacted me all throughout the book. I cannot speak to the disability representation, but I felt like it was both important to have as representation while also creating more tension as a brilliant metaphor by reflecting Ezra’s internal turmoil; the more things spun out of control the worse his eyesight got.
Overall, Confidence was a great fast paced look into this business/scam/wellness culture that came up throughout the 2000s and 2010s. I honestly hope this is made into a film one day because I think it would translate to the screen perfectly.
P.S. There was one scene where I kept waiting for a certain character to yell “SORRY MY PRADA’S AT THE CLEANERS” like Andrew Garfield in The Social Network.
woolyllamareads's review
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0