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A review by dl2001
When the Curtain Falls by Carrie Hope Fletcher
1.0
This book was absolutely terrible. I didn't have high expectations by any means but the whole thing was a shit show. I would not recommend it to anyone for any reason.
I've read Carrie's autobiography, All I Know Now and I liked it a lot. In my opinion, she should stick to non-fiction because When The Curtain Falls was an absolute travesty.
I had a really hard time rooting for Olive and Oscar. They seem entirely unsuited to each other. We were given no evidence of them being a good match at all. They had terrible communication. Olive expected him to read her mind. As far as I could tell, they didn't even have anything in common. Remind me again why these two were supposedly in love?
The dialogue was terrible. I don't know anyone in real life who would talk like any of these characters. Exhibit A (dialogue from the book)
"I'm sure lots of other people in the cast would happily take a free latte!"
"Yes, but this one literally has my name on it. And my honey in it"
"Honey? Really?"
"Yes, really, And don't call me honey!"
"Well, we've kissed now, so I feel like I know you well enough to call you honey, don't I?"
Their conversations were awkward at best and utterly cringeworthy at worst. It just highlighted their lack of chemistry and the fact that they really didn't know anything about each other.
I also hated the supernatural element of the story. It really did not fit with the rest of the book's tone. I found it hard not to laugh when Oscar came across Fawn's ghost. I just couldn't take it seriously. I found Fawn and Walter's relationship a lot more engaging and believable, I think the book would have at least been palatable if it had just been about their relationship.
Finally, the ending was atrocious. Possession? Really? It had never even been mentioned in passing before and it was a massive plot device. Apparently everyone except Olive and Oscar knew that they were madly in love with each other, of which I saw no evidence. Also, I found it hard to believe that Walter would only commit suicide after SEVENTY YEARS when the highlight of his life was seeing Fawn's ghost only once a year. It just made no sense.
I only finished this book out of spite, to be honest. Please do not read this. I wouldn't ask it of my worst enemy.
I've read Carrie's autobiography, All I Know Now and I liked it a lot. In my opinion, she should stick to non-fiction because When The Curtain Falls was an absolute travesty.
I had a really hard time rooting for Olive and Oscar. They seem entirely unsuited to each other. We were given no evidence of them being a good match at all. They had terrible communication. Olive expected him to read her mind. As far as I could tell, they didn't even have anything in common. Remind me again why these two were supposedly in love?
The dialogue was terrible. I don't know anyone in real life who would talk like any of these characters. Exhibit A (dialogue from the book)
"I'm sure lots of other people in the cast would happily take a free latte!"
"Yes, but this one literally has my name on it. And my honey in it"
"Honey? Really?"
"Yes, really, And don't call me honey!"
"Well, we've kissed now, so I feel like I know you well enough to call you honey, don't I?"
Their conversations were awkward at best and utterly cringeworthy at worst. It just highlighted their lack of chemistry and the fact that they really didn't know anything about each other.
I also hated the supernatural element of the story. It really did not fit with the rest of the book's tone. I found it hard not to laugh when Oscar came across Fawn's ghost. I just couldn't take it seriously. I found Fawn and Walter's relationship a lot more engaging and believable, I think the book would have at least been palatable if it had just been about their relationship.
Finally, the ending was atrocious. Possession? Really? It had never even been mentioned in passing before and it was a massive plot device. Apparently everyone except Olive and Oscar knew that they were madly in love with each other, of which I saw no evidence. Also, I found it hard to believe that Walter would only commit suicide after SEVENTY YEARS when the highlight of his life was seeing Fawn's ghost only once a year. It just made no sense.
I only finished this book out of spite, to be honest. Please do not read this. I wouldn't ask it of my worst enemy.