A review by angelicasreads
All of This Is True by Lygia Day Peñaflor
2.0
I don’t leave ARCs unfinished. That’s just a personal rule of mine. If I request it, then I read it.
That was the only reason I kept reading this novel.
When I first read the synopsis of this book I knew I simply had to read it. It’s a mix of every reader’s greatest dream and worst nightmare.
Imagine meeting your favorite author of all time. More than just meeting them, imagine becoming close, intimate friends with them. Imagine being able to go to their house and being invited to their parties and sharing your deepest darkest secrets.
Now imagine this author slowly starts to manipulate you. Imagine that they take advantage of your “friendship” for their personal gain. Imagine that they take your deepest darkest secrets and publish them in their brand new novel, barely bothering to change the names of the characters from those of you and your friends.
That sounds like an interesting novel. That sounds like something I had to read.
And for the most part, this book was. It had all the pieces. They just weren’t put together in a way that compelled me to keep reading, or even to like or care about the characters I was reading about.
The book is told through a series of interviews, book passages, and journal entries. We get to see bits and pieces from everyone’s point of view and how they viewed the situation. Sadly, perhaps because of the format, I never got to connect with any of the characters. Then again, both the Illuminae trilogy and the Themis Files are written in similar fashions and I absolutely love them so, it’s probably not that.
Honestly, all the characters acted like a bunch of spoiled brats. And not even in an interesting way, where I recognize they are terrible people but they are still somewhat likable. No. They were just annoying. Also, they kept talking about being “friends” and we see how this friendship falls apart but honestly, they all sort of hate each other so that wasn’t believable either.break.jpg
I went into this book expecting a thriller. I wanted a mystery full of drama and morally questionable characters. I suppose, technically this book has all those things which only makes the fact that I didn’t care about any of it even worse.
There are probably some of you who might like it, to which I say, more power to you! I'm glad. Personally, though, I just wasn't feeling it. The one thing it's got going is that it's actually not that long. That said, despite knowing this, it felt like it went on forever and ever.
So, do I recommend? No. Not really. But hey, read it if you're still interested in it. I wish you luck and hope you like it more than I did!
**I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review. Thank you so much, HarperTeen! All opinions are my own.**
That was the only reason I kept reading this novel.
When I first read the synopsis of this book I knew I simply had to read it. It’s a mix of every reader’s greatest dream and worst nightmare.
Imagine meeting your favorite author of all time. More than just meeting them, imagine becoming close, intimate friends with them. Imagine being able to go to their house and being invited to their parties and sharing your deepest darkest secrets.
Now imagine this author slowly starts to manipulate you. Imagine that they take advantage of your “friendship” for their personal gain. Imagine that they take your deepest darkest secrets and publish them in their brand new novel, barely bothering to change the names of the characters from those of you and your friends.
“She played with them as characters for her novel because she wasn't talented enough to think of her own story.”
That sounds like an interesting novel. That sounds like something I had to read.
And for the most part, this book was. It had all the pieces. They just weren’t put together in a way that compelled me to keep reading, or even to like or care about the characters I was reading about.
The book is told through a series of interviews, book passages, and journal entries. We get to see bits and pieces from everyone’s point of view and how they viewed the situation. Sadly, perhaps because of the format, I never got to connect with any of the characters. Then again, both the Illuminae trilogy and the Themis Files are written in similar fashions and I absolutely love them so, it’s probably not that.
Honestly, all the characters acted like a bunch of spoiled brats. And not even in an interesting way, where I recognize they are terrible people but they are still somewhat likable. No. They were just annoying. Also, they kept talking about being “friends” and we see how this friendship falls apart but honestly, they all sort of hate each other so that wasn’t believable either.break.jpg
I went into this book expecting a thriller. I wanted a mystery full of drama and morally questionable characters. I suppose, technically this book has all those things which only makes the fact that I didn’t care about any of it even worse.
There are probably some of you who might like it, to which I say, more power to you! I'm glad. Personally, though, I just wasn't feeling it. The one thing it's got going is that it's actually not that long. That said, despite knowing this, it felt like it went on forever and ever.
So, do I recommend? No. Not really. But hey, read it if you're still interested in it. I wish you luck and hope you like it more than I did!
**I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review. Thank you so much, HarperTeen! All opinions are my own.**