Series: You (Book 4 of #4) A Joe Goldberg Novel
By: Caroline Kepnes
ISBN: 9780593133811
Publisher: Random House
Publication Date: 04/25/2023
Format: Other
My Rating: 4 Stars (ARC)
New York Times bestselling author Caroline Kepnes, whose acclaimed YOU series inspired the hit show on Netflix, follows Joe Goldberg to the hallowed halls of Harvard, where he earns a coveted place in a writing fellowship . . . and leaves crimson in his wake.
Joe Goldberg is ready for a change. Instead of selling books, he’s writing them. And he’s off to a good start. Glenn Shoddy, an acclaimed literary author, recognizes Joe’s genius and invites him to join a tight-knit writing fellowship at Harvard. Finally, Joe will be in a place where talent matters more than pedigree . . . where intellect is the great equalizer and anything is possible. Even happy endings. Or so he thinks, until he meets his already-published, already-distinguished peers, who all seem to be cut from the same elitist cloth.
Thankfully, Wonder Parish enters the picture. They have so much in common. No college degrees, no pretensions, no stories from prep school or grad school. Just a love for literature. If only Wonder could commit herself to the writing life, they could be those rare literary soulmates who never fall prey to their demons. Wonder has a tendency to love, to covet, but Joe is a believer in the rule of fiction: If you want to write a book, you have to kill your darlings.
With her trademark satirical, biting wit, Caroline Kepnes explores why vulnerable people bring out the worst in others as Joe sets out to make this s mall, exclusive world a fairer place. And if a little crimson runs in the streets of Cambridge . . . who can blame him? Love doesn’t conquer all. Often, it needs a little push.
My Review
Caroline Kepnes returns with her famous Joe Goldberg (YOU) series, YOU AND ONLY YOU —Joe, the bookseller, is now a writer, and course, falls in love with his only kind of dark, twisted love and obsession.
We all LOVE Joe! Even though he is a narcissistic, evil, manipulative, and twisted murderer, he is highly ENTERTAINING! After four successful TV seasons and four books, he remains as wild, crazy, and dangerous as the day we met.
A big fan, can you believe Joe, the serial killer, the hopeless romantic, the bookseller, is a WRITER?
Joe is living the dream. A creative class at Harvard. He is surrounded by talent.
He writes a novel titled Me and winds us in a workshop headed up by Glenn Shoddy, the author of Scabies for Breakfast. Shoddy, an acclaimed literary author, recognizes Joe's genius and invites him to join the tight-knit writing fellowship at Harvard.
His classmates are published writers; best of all, Joe has his sites set on his soulmate, Wonder Parish. She manages Dunkin' Donuts and lives at home with her blue-collar family. He thinks they have much in common. No college degrees, pretensions, or stories from prep school or grad school. Just a love for literature.
Joe thinks she is a gifted writer, and he falls in LOVE. He will sacrifice his art for hers. And if he has to, he will kill her darlings for her. He can push, inspire, and empower her to write her first novel.
Then there is a podcast about the Body on Bainbridge. Watch out, Joe; your past may be rising to the surface. Shoddy's wife, Sly, has her own secrets.
As usual, the bodies start dropping when Joe is around. Is he the only KILLER in the class?
Kepnes keeps the fun and twists coming with literary references and Joe SHINES. Get inside his head, where one minute he is your biggest fan, and the next he is planning your murder.
Joe's obsession with Wonder resembles Beck's in the earlier books. He goes back to his roots fixated on Wonder, leaving him emotionally torn between proving himself as a writer and proving his devotion to his new love. His inner struggle. However, in the end, Joe is out for himself.
With creativity, cultural and literary references filled with dark, sarcastic humor, and wit—another hit by the talented author.
Is Joe's time running out? Will he soon be caught for his crimes? I'm still determining what Kepnes has in store for Joe next, but I would love to see him in prison, how he fares from the inside, and the trouble he gets into. Will he fall for an inmate, someone as evil and twisted as he?
I am in for the long haul.
Thanks to #RandomHouse for a gifted e-ARC via #NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
Pub Date: April 25, 2023
My Rating: 4 Stars
Praise
“Kepnes gleefully portrays the most back-stabbing seminar yet, dropping literary names with abandon as she twists the plot . . . Joe Goldberg might be a narcissistic, manipulative, murderous, utterly unreliable narrator, but he’s damn entertaining.” —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“Puckish . . . Kepnes waggishly satirizes the publishing industry, and her outsized characters’ egos and anxieties lay the foundations for delightfully deranged plot twists. . . . Joe’s stream-of-consciousness narration engages throughout, rendering readers both confidante and accomplice. Kepnes reliably entertains.”
—Publishers Weekly
“Within this intensity, [Joe’s] snark-laden observations about ego, love, and loyalty ring true.”
—Booklist
YOU (JOE GOLDBERG) SERIES
“[A] storytelling sorcerer . . . Kepnes is brilliant.” —The New York Times Book Review
Apr 14, 2021 | You Love Me
Every time someone asks what inspired me, I think of something new, because that first book is a sum of so many books you read. Today I think about the Choose Your Own Adventures series that was popular when I was a kid. Those books made me so anxious! The horror of knowing that one decision, by nature, will impact and limit future opportunities. So many years later, here we are holding our phones, embarking on countless consequential adventures defined by our choices.
About the Author
Caroline Kepnes is the author of You, Hidden Bodies, Providence, You Love Me, and numerous short stories. Her work has been translated into a multitude of languages and inspired a television series adaptation of You, currently on Netflix. Kepnes graduated from Brown University and previously worked as a pop culture journalist for Entertainment Weekly and a TV writer for 7th Heaven and The Secret Life of the American Teenager. She grew up on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, and now lives in Los Angeles.
