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chymerra's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- 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
Gibson is still reeling from a divorce he didn’t see coming when he meets Cammie. Immediately taken by her, Gibson doesn’t at first notice the inconsistencies in her stories. He is just happy to find someone who loves him. Shelby is devastated by the sudden death of her wife. She suffers from hypochondria and severe anxiety and is floundering until she attends a grief counseling session. There, Shelby meets Cammie, who is grieving the death of her best friend. Connecting with her on a level that she only had associated with her deceased wife, Shelby opens her house to Cammie. But Shelby and Gibson soon discover that Cammie’s stories aren’t adding up. What happens when Gibson and Shelby meet up and compare notes? How will Cammie react? Will they be able to confront her?
This book is told from 3 different points of view: Cammie (in the beginning and end), Gibson, and Shelby. Cammie gave the start and ending notes (and her explanation for what happened). But, the main focus of the book was on Gibson and Shelby. Everything that happened was seen from their POVs (well, it was 3rd person), with Cammie being featured heavily. Usually, I’m not too fond of books with multiple POVs, but it worked in this case.
Cammie was a freaking trip. From her opening note, I knew her version of the truth wouldn’t align with Gibson or Shelby. Cammie is a scam artist and a psychological liar. She went out of her way to find people who were hurting/damaged. Cammie gaslighted her way through the book, and when Gibson and Shelby backed her into a corner, Cammie freaked out. But her ending did make me pause and wonder about some of the things she told Shelby and Gibson were true.
I felt terrible for Gibson. He was genuinely struggling after his divorce, and Cammie saw that. All he wanted was someone who made him feel attractive and who appreciated him for him. Cammie’s lies started on day one with him. Thankfully, he had a good group of supportive friends that refused to allow Cammie to bring her drama and lies into their lives. He was such a nice guy that he even went to help Shelby when Cammie started getting too much for her. I liked how his experience shaped him and how he turned out.
Shelby, on the other hand, was a hot mess. I don’t even know where to begin with her. She suffered from extreme medical anxiety and extreme general anxiety. Coupled with her devastation over her wife’s death, she was a freaking mess. I was not faulting her there because I would have been too. But, the one time she decides to go to a grief counseling group, she meets Cammie. And, of course, Cammie latches on to her. In a way, Shelby got the sharper end of the stick with Cammie than Gibson. But Shelby became obsessed with helping Cammie, which drove her to a mental breakdown. Her story resonated with me the most because of her ending.
The Fake didn’t have a happy ending; in a way, for all three, it did. It was more bittersweet and reflective. It was also more Shelby and Gibson coming to terms with themselves and why/how they let someone like Cammie into their lives.
Cammie did get the last note in. She wrapped everything up perfectly and tried to spin the story her way (I loved how the author did that). As I said above, I also wondered if some of her stories were genuine. You know that there is always a kernel of truth in a lie. That may be the case here, which is why I liked this book so much.
There are trigger warnings in The Fake. They are cancer, toxic relationships, gaslighting, death, mental illness, physical abuse, addiction, self-harm, and suicidal thoughts. If any of these trigger you, I recommend not reading this book.
I would recommend The Fake to anyone over 21. There are language, violence, and sexual situations. Also, see my trigger warning paragraph.
Many thanks to Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine, Ballantine Books, NetGalley, and Zoe Whittall for allowing me to read and review The Fake. All opinions stated in this review are mine.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Grief, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Cancer, Death, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Addiction, Physical abuse, and Self harm
boundbywords's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I deeply enjoyed Whittal's 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑩𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝑲𝒊𝒏𝒅 𝒐𝒇 𝑷𝒆𝒐𝒑𝒍𝒆 (released and read in 2016), so you can imagine my anxious anticipation to pick up her newest release. Sadly, this read like it was written by a completely different author.
Being mistaken as a thriller in more early reviews than I can count, 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑭𝒂𝒌𝒆 is actually consistent with the authors' usual narrative: a multi-perspective account of characters dealing with contemporary and realistic issues like grief, loss, mental health and interpersonal relationships. The addition of a scam artist, and inevitably, themes resembling a thriller storyline, just made this one feel more forced rather than genuine for me. I would have liked to see it (the scam) be a catalyst early on, instead of the driving force of the entire book–it didn't add intrigue, just annoyance.
I felt like both the characters and I were strong-armed into suspending our beliefs about Cammie (the con-artist's) intentions and then told to react and deal with it realistically and calmly, but none of it felt purposeful? The amount of exposition in here took away from an opportunity to help us truly understand the characters, especially Cammie, which may have been the point, but ended up painting her as an entitled gnat rather than a possibly misunderstood butterfly–it made ALL of the characters feel as relatable as cardboard cutouts.
If you're looking for quick read with some insights into grief and mental health (specifically anxiety, OCD and agoraphobia), I would give this one a try.
Being mistaken as a thriller in more early reviews than I can count, 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑭𝒂𝒌𝒆 is actually consistent with the authors' usual narrative: a multi-perspective account of characters dealing with contemporary and realistic issues like grief, loss, mental health and interpersonal relationships. The addition of a scam artist, and inevitably, themes resembling a thriller storyline, just made this one feel more forced rather than genuine for me. I would have liked to see it (the scam) be a catalyst early on, instead of the driving force of the entire book–it didn't add intrigue, just annoyance.
I felt like both the characters and I were strong-armed into suspending our beliefs about Cammie (the con-artist's) intentions and then told to react and deal with it realistically and calmly, but none of it felt purposeful? The amount of exposition in here took away from an opportunity to help us truly understand the characters, especially Cammie, which may have been the point, but ended up painting her as an entitled gnat rather than a possibly misunderstood butterfly–it made ALL of the characters feel as relatable as cardboard cutouts.
If you're looking for quick read with some insights into grief and mental health (specifically anxiety, OCD and agoraphobia), I would give this one a try.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cancer, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Grief, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Addiction, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, and Kidnapping