The design and UX isn't done, Rob and Abbie, okkurrrr! 😌
saibhandari's review against another edition
challenging
dark
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
bethsmout's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
pandasbookshelf's review against another edition
4.0
Becky is a contemporary re-telling of the much-loved classic Vanity Fair. I didn’t realise this was inspired by Vanity Fair going in until I read the authors foreword at the beginning of the novel. This really added something unique and I’ll confess I’ve never read the classic but did some Google searching prior to reading through this. I enjoyed this unique take on the classic story and found myself invested in Becky’s story and outcome. I loved the 90s contemporary setting and other influences and found the story engaging and easy to follow. The book was well written and the characters had depth in particular Becky. Thank you to the author, publisher and Netgalley for an opportunity to read an arc of this book.
theshiftyshadow's review against another edition
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? It's complicated
1.5
I didn't like this at all.
I read Vanity Fair a few years ago and while I didn't really love it, I came away with the feeling that everyone except Becky was an insufferable idiot. Then I watched the ITV adaptation with Olivia Cooke as Becky and I realised that's the point! Everyone is an insufferable idiot except for Becky!Â
What works so well about the original story, for me, is the time it's set in has an awful lot of ridiculous society rules and etiquette and Becky feels like quite a modern character in contrast to the others and her presence among them really amplifies how silly they all are. It's a satire, I'm sure. And what the TV adaptation did so well was break the 4th wall occasionally, so we feel like we're in it with Becky, she knows all these people are idiots, and she acknowledges we're smart enough to know it too, and you don't really feel too bad for any of them when she gets what she wants.Â
 The problem then with this retelling, set in 90's era among the tabloid press and upper social classes of London, is that Becky seems like the worst character. She's conniving and cold, and while the writer tries to give her a backstory that explains her character, she tries a bit too hard, and the setting she puts her in, among tabloid journalists and the rich owners of the papers, doesn't provide the same ridiculous background for Becky to scheme her way to the top.
 It works in Vanity Fair because the massive class divide present in that story is enough in itself to a) explain Becky's exclusion and thus her motivations, and b) is wide enough to be amped up and ridiculed. Now obviously there's still a class divide at work in 90's London, and in the circle Becky finds herself moving in, but I feel like the writer doesn't really have a grip on that, or the characters that exist in it. Some of the changes she makes to characters and relationships aren't for the better. Amelia, for example, I always felt was kind of silly but mostly harmless, and although Becky takes advantage of her and uses her connections, she at least liked her, enough to want her to be a bit smarter about things, at the very least. Here though Amelia barely exists, and their relationship revolves around their individual relationships with George.
One thing that actually left a bit of a bad taste in my mouth was the missing child plot line, which was presumably based on the Milly Dowler case. I understand that the author wanted to set this retelling in the era of 90s tabloids, and that case, and the subsequent phone hacking inquiry, was a massive part of that era, and probably it's downfall, but I just didn't like how it was included here.Â
I think there's just too much going on in this book. Do the modern day Vanity Fair retelling, or write about the rise and fall of someone within that 90's tabloid world. Trying to do both just seems like an unnecessary thing, and the book doesn't pull it off.Â
(while looking for this book to log I noticed there's another modern retelling of Vanity Fair called The Rise and Fall of Becky Sharp, where Becky and Amelia meet on Big Brother, which immediately sounds like a more appropriate setting for an update.)
I read Vanity Fair a few years ago and while I didn't really love it, I came away with the feeling that everyone except Becky was an insufferable idiot. Then I watched the ITV adaptation with Olivia Cooke as Becky and I realised that's the point! Everyone is an insufferable idiot except for Becky!Â
What works so well about the original story, for me, is the time it's set in has an awful lot of ridiculous society rules and etiquette and Becky feels like quite a modern character in contrast to the others and her presence among them really amplifies how silly they all are. It's a satire, I'm sure. And what the TV adaptation did so well was break the 4th wall occasionally, so we feel like we're in it with Becky, she knows all these people are idiots, and she acknowledges we're smart enough to know it too, and you don't really feel too bad for any of them when she gets what she wants.Â
 The problem then with this retelling, set in 90's era among the tabloid press and upper social classes of London, is that Becky seems like the worst character. She's conniving and cold, and while the writer tries to give her a backstory that explains her character, she tries a bit too hard, and the setting she puts her in, among tabloid journalists and the rich owners of the papers, doesn't provide the same ridiculous background for Becky to scheme her way to the top.
 It works in Vanity Fair because the massive class divide present in that story is enough in itself to a) explain Becky's exclusion and thus her motivations, and b) is wide enough to be amped up and ridiculed. Now obviously there's still a class divide at work in 90's London, and in the circle Becky finds herself moving in, but I feel like the writer doesn't really have a grip on that, or the characters that exist in it. Some of the changes she makes to characters and relationships aren't for the better. Amelia, for example, I always felt was kind of silly but mostly harmless, and although Becky takes advantage of her and uses her connections, she at least liked her, enough to want her to be a bit smarter about things, at the very least. Here though Amelia barely exists, and their relationship revolves around their individual relationships with George.
One thing that actually left a bit of a bad taste in my mouth was the missing child plot line, which was presumably based on the Milly Dowler case. I understand that the author wanted to set this retelling in the era of 90s tabloids, and that case, and the subsequent phone hacking inquiry, was a massive part of that era, and probably it's downfall, but I just didn't like how it was included here.Â
I think there's just too much going on in this book. Do the modern day Vanity Fair retelling, or write about the rise and fall of someone within that 90's tabloid world. Trying to do both just seems like an unnecessary thing, and the book doesn't pull it off.Â
(while looking for this book to log I noticed there's another modern retelling of Vanity Fair called The Rise and Fall of Becky Sharp, where Becky and Amelia meet on Big Brother, which immediately sounds like a more appropriate setting for an update.)
em_evans's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
shelbynotsweet's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
This is a modern retelling of William Thackeray’s Vaniery Fair.Â
indoorg1rl's review
challenging
dark
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Set in 90s tabloid-era London, Becky pushed her way up through the ranks at the Mercury newspaper with manipulative scoops, exploiting celebrity secrets and gossips.
I had no idea that this was a retelling of Vanity Fair, and only found out because of the author’s note at the end.
Becky’s adventure was quite captivating. It felt real and was written like a memoir. The audiobook I listened to was also narrated really well and enhanced the reading experience.
(Thanks to Pan Macmillan Australia for a gifted copy in exchange for an honest review)
jenuinepanic's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
jmatkinson1's review against another edition
4.0
Rebecca Sharp is determined to slough off her background and be a success. She re-invents herself as a public schoolgirl and manages to gain a foothold in the tabloid press. With a nose for good journalism and a ruthless streak Becky rises high but at a huge personal cost.
This book purports to be a re-telling of the Thackeray novel 'Vanity Fair' with an updated setting and there are many parallels. However it also draws heavily on the story of Rebekah Wade, an infamous tabloid editor and friend to the movers and shakers of the late 1990s. Lots of real-life stories are altered slightly and aspects of the original novel are lost but what emerges is a really entertaining read.
This book purports to be a re-telling of the Thackeray novel 'Vanity Fair' with an updated setting and there are many parallels. However it also draws heavily on the story of Rebekah Wade, an infamous tabloid editor and friend to the movers and shakers of the late 1990s. Lots of real-life stories are altered slightly and aspects of the original novel are lost but what emerges is a really entertaining read.