By: Caroline Kepnes
Series: You #2
ISBN: 9781476785622
Publisher: Atria
Publication Date: 2/23/2016
Format: Other
My Rating: 4.5 Stars
Charmingly murderous antihero Joe continues his twisted quest for the perfect love in this thrilling follow-up to the “deeply dark yet mesmerizing” You (Booklist). When Joe follows the woman he wants to marry to the West Coast, he never imagines that his obsession will lead him to such tragedy... After the heartbreak of losing his girlfriend, Beck, Joe Goldberg thought he’d never love again. But when mysterious Amy Adam begins working for Joe at Mooney Books, he finds himself obsessed with his new employee. Amy is Beck’s opposite—she hates Twitter, she doesn’t even have an email address, she's completely unsearchable online—and she quickly captures Joe’s heart. But just before Joe can ask Amy to marry him, she disappears, leaving a trail of clues in her wake. Joe is then forced to do something so vile, so awful that he nearly loses his mind: he moves to Los Angeles to find Amy. He is tortured by a series of aspiring Angelenos—an insufferable stand-up comedian, philistine booksellers, a money-hungry nanny, and a slutty ghostwriter—before meeting his ticket to a more luxurious world: a surgically enhanced, social media–savvy heiress named Love Quinn. But Joe can’t stop stalking Amy, despite the world opening up to him with Love on his arm. Will Joe finally escape his sordid past? Or is Love just the latest casualty in Joe’s unrelenting search for the perfect match?
My Review
A special thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Carolyn Kepnes returns following You (You, #1, her sensational debut, where we met the famous obsessively dark serial killer, Joe Goldberg—the bookstore manager. In HIDDEN BODIES, (You #2) Joe is back, after his breakup with Beck, now with his sights on someone new. He tells himself he will do it right this time around. He thinks he is a good boyfriend, and will choose well. He is committed to the details. Amy Kendall Adam is a sharpie. She is passionate, with an imagination, good sex, and she has a heart. She is anti-Beck. Amy goes to work for Joe at Mooney Books. He cannot stalk her online. She is off the grid. No Facebook, no Twitter, no Instagram, not even an email address. She uses burner phones and Joe has to program her new number into his phone every couple of weeks. The ultimate analog—his perfect match. Just when Joe thinks all is going well, the next morning Amy has disappeared and there is a gaping hole where the yellow wall of Portnoy’s complaints used to be. She stole every last copy and did not leave one for him! She also took the Yates first edition (holds memories of their sexual history). She has left him and stole from him. He had bought the crap about her wanting her own bed. She has left a note saying they both have secrets and are really the same. $23,000 in rare books. She came here to trick him, to rob him—he is angry. We all know what happens when Joe feels betrayed.Look out! Joe soon realizes she is in Hollywood and has signed up for acting classes. He will make her pay. He is on his way to Los Angeles. He is determined to find her. The road from here is witty, crazy, and wild with an array of quirky characters. How can Amy be pursuing an acting career in LA without the Internet? A girl like Amy, a new sociopath with no agent, no connections, would start looking for work on Craigslist. Anyone can post a casting call on the site, and actors submit their photos and resumes constantly, according to Calvin. So he writes a casting call, specifically designed to appeal to Amy’s overweening ego. He tries everything from hiking, breaking into data bases, Pilates, and Craigslist. He hates Amy for not being on Facebook and no email. He has a plan; he wants revenge. He is obsessed. Joe world is expanding in Hollywood. However, Joe did not imagine meeting Love Quinn. (he thinks she may be a pervert too). He is pulled into the Hollywood lifestyle. The Quinns are rich, and Love is older, having been married previously, and has been around the block. We also meet her twin brother, Forty. Love does not believe in bad or good people. She believes in people. She loves eccentric people. She loves a good story. She does not care about age. He is caught up in the pop culture and the dazzle. Soon, Joe forgets about Amy. However, in his past he still has to worry about the little thing called murder: Peach Salinger and Guinevere Beck, and the mug of urine. Can he tell Love the truth? Can he change? Can he trust Love? Maybe Facebook is not his best friend. Killer Joe. However, Joe is determined to not allow his past to dictate his future. Women leave him. Can he stop lying and killing? The stuff he writes to himself is hilarious! He is a sociopath, dark, disturbing—and man Kepnes is creative, imaginative-- touching on each naughty, wacky, and evil thought. Once you have gotten over the shock factor of book #1, with book #2, you can enjoy the wild crazy ride. Entertaining, clever, quirky, and witty psychological thriller. Fans and new readers will savor HIDDEN BODIES. It is YOU with the whipped cream and a cherry on top. Highly anticipating #3 to learn Joe’s fate.
Have pre-ordered the audiobook (2/23). Cannot wait! Santino Fontana (swoon) narrating. Need to experience "Joe" in audio, as well as digital, to get the full experience.
Review Links:
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You #1
About the Author
Caroline Kepnes is a native of Cape Cod and the author of many published short stories. She has covered pop culture for Entertainment Weekly, Tiger Beat, E! Online, and Yahoo. She has also written for television shows, including 7th Heaven and The Secret Life of the American Teenager. Her directorial debut short film, Miles Away, premiered at the Woods Hole Film Festival. Caroline is a Brown University graduate now residing in Los Angeles in the same building that the Hillside Strangler once called home. She spends a lot of time on Cape Cod. Website Twitter
