Verity — Colleen Hoover
Summary
In this dark, twisted novel, Hoover tells the story of a young writer, Lowen, who is hired by the husband of a well-known author who can no longer finish her book series due to a horrible accident. After Jeremy Crawford, the husband of the successful writer, insists on Lowen moving into their home, Lowen finds herself in the office of Verity Crawford. As she scavenges through Verity’s piles of writing in her office, Lowen feels hesitant and uneasy. However, due to her struggles as a young, aspiring author, she is pushed to do the job for the payment associated, despite her uncertainty. Spending most days in the office, Lowen struggled to find anything in the piles of pages to help her successfully write the novel in a way Verity would have.
As Lowen continues to scavenge through Verity’s drafted work and notes, she comes across an autobiography Verity wrote, unveiling dark family secrets she cannot unread. While Verity lies in a vegetative state in the upstairs bedroom, Lowne feels a lot of pressure to finish her job, and fast, especially given the chilling details of her manuscript. Lowen is left to decide whether she reveals Verity’s darkest secrets to Jeremy or finishes the job quickly without saying a word.
Review
As the movie version of this story comes around the corner to your nearest theatres, I would like to remind everyone that the book is always better than the movie. Hoover kept me on my toes from the beginning of the novel to the very last page. Unlike her typical love story novels, Verity reveals a darker, creative side of Hoover’s writing that sends chills down the reader’s spine. Verity not only tells a story of dark family secrets and manipulation, but also a twisted romance with a taste of obsession. If you are looking for Hoover’s steamy romance in a different light, this book is definitely for you. I would recommend this book most to those who love a good thriller or murder mystery; the suspense in this novel was infuriating. Nights that I was so tired I needed to put the book down, I continued turning pages. All in all, this book was page-gripping and most definitely one of my favorite recent reads.
One aspect of the book that I didn’t like as much was the ending. While it didn’t leave on a cliffhanger, it kept me thinking for days after, questioning the reality of the situation. However, if you are like me and make your friends read books after you, it will be a good conversation to have. In a way, I believe Hoover wrote the ending in this way intentionally, leaving readers questioning at the end of the book, and not just as the pages were turned.
