The fever a novel

why, tho

I was very excited for this book, expecting it to be a fast paced thriller, but I was disappointed. The characters all seem one dimensional and lacking depth and the story feels like it’s all over the place. It felt when I was reading it that there wasn’t a clear idea as to what the story was supposed to be and it was just left a jumbled mess of ideas that weren’t sorted through properly. I didn’t really latch on to any of the characters, they weren’t very intriguing unfortunately. The beginning of the book seemed to have a lot of build up, got me at least a little excited for a good twist, but the build up ended fizzling out after awhile and the ending seemed like an afterthought that was just thrown in there randomly and wasn’t even an interesting twist. The writing style I appreciated and it was a fast easy read, but I wouldn’t recommend.

A page turner. I really thought the ending was going to be much different.

Blog | Twitter | Instagram | “I have another friend who gets what I’m really like, and I get her. She scares me. Did you ever see yourself times ten in another person and want to cover your eyes?” I'm not going to even hesitate when I tell you this: Megan Abbott is one of my favourite writers. You know when you read a novel and it just hits you suddenly that hours have passed but you've been utterly consumed by a story? That was me with The Fever. Immediately, it hit me that the story was heavy in that special way that haunts you for hours after you've concluded your binge. I felt it in the previous novel of hers I had read--Dare Me. That was different, though. This felt all new to me and it simultaneously intrigued and gutted me. All in one sitting I just kept thinking: "Holy shit. This book." The Fever kept my mind spinning and reeling and captivated in a way that comes with mysterious and thrillers. I had the same feeling during Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn and The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins. It's like you've become so invested in the characters that you feel this lump forming in your throat as the story progresses. Ultimately, that's the most striking thing about Abbott's prose and stories; your mind doesn't remove itself from the pages. The Fever is not unlike a fever itself, heavy and intimidating. You feel yourself but not like yourself. Continued: BOOKEDJ