The Sequel: A Novel by Jean Hanff Korelitz
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Web ID: 20312198Good book
That was a good book! I didn’t remember much of the first book. I read a lot of books, so it’s not because I didn’t enjoy it. As I read this one I remembered more and more. Well done. You don’t need to read the first one to enjoy this book, but I would. The last 100 pages or so were really twisting and turning. When you thought it was over, it wasn’t. Kept me guessing for sure. Anna was a good character and I enjoyed reading this one a lot.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Dark, devious and deliciously psychopathic!
The Sequel is literally the sequel to the best-selling thriller The Plot. Not only does it answer all those unanswered questions, but we get a glimpse into what an actual psychopath's mind looks like. And honestly, her mind is pretty messed up! While picking up where The Plot left off, we now delve into the devious secret past of the late Jacob Finch Bonner's widow, and quite frankly her life as a mastermind. The story is smart and undeniably shocking! Anna Williams-Bonner, the widow of best-selling author and perhaps plagiarist Jacob Finch Bonner whose own life included many demons, has decided she will now write her own book. Afterall, how hard could it be? Although living she is living off her late husband's royalites, she is quite bored. And Anna does write a book called The Afterward and lucks out because her publisher is the same as her late husband's. They were, of course excited to have her. As she begins her first book tour, some strange things begin to happen. A person comes to one of her book signings and is a bit off to say the least. He seems to know a bit too much about her. Coincidence? Maybe. But when she begins to receive excerpts from a story written long ago in which she thought she had purged every copy of and taken care of the person who wrote it, she realizes there is still a copy out there and she needs to find it and make it and whoever has it go away. You see, if someone exposes her secret backstory her beloved lifestyle will cease to exist. And she can't have that! So, she goes on a hunt to find who this person is and make sure she destroys both them and the copy. She believes she has solved the problem, but when another excerpt is sent to her late husband's parents, well ...all bets are off! Now she knows time is running out and after failing once, she decides she must revisit her sick disgusting past because clearly that's where the threat is coming from. She is not afraid of killing to keep her secrets ...never has been! As the reader goes on the ride of a lifetime with a true psychopath who feels nothing and cares about no one but herself, we learn her jaw dropping backstory as she tries desperately to justify her life. Who has the last copy and why now are they trying to hurt her? The Sequel is an entertaining, imaginative, off-putting psychological thriller with shocking turns of events in the life of one very flawed yet happy widow.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Wow!! So creative
I loved The Plot and was worried this book would not be able to come close to being as good as it was. I was pleasantly surprised. This is the story of Anna, the widow of Jacob Bonner the main character from The Plot. She is trying to navigate her new life as a widow and finds herself writing her own novel that becomes a success. Once again secrets begin to surface and someone begins sending her excerpts from another novel that could destroy her. I am not sure how Jean Haniff Korelitz comes up with her stories. They are well thought out and well crafted and full of surprising twists. I am left surprised every time. I would love to know her process, how does she do it??!! This is definitely not a stand alone story and must be read after The Plot. 4 ⭐️
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Sharp and clever, but an unneccessary sequel
"I never actually plan sequels. They demand to be done." - Ellen Hopkins On the contrary, Anna Finch-Bonner NEVER thought she'd be asked to step into the shoes of a 'literary genius'...but the public just won't let her husband's legacy go. After the untimely death of her husband Jacob Finch-Bonner, an aspiring author whose career was just getting started (thanks to an act of literary thievery) Anna's carefully crafted plan to keep Jacob's secret safe, even after his death, seems to be working, and as the royalty checks just keep coming, Anna truly thinks she has all of her bases covered...and it's time to live the high life. Fresh off of this success, the public is now eager to hear more...this time, from Anna herself. Anna preens, thinking she's more than up to the challenge...after all, it wasn't so hard the first time...right? But once she turns in her new smash novel, a chance meeting at a literary event brings a dark secret from ANNA'S past to light...and it's her turn to hit the panic button. Can she figure out who knows her true identity, how much they know, and stop the new perpetrator in their tracks before they 'spoil the plot'? Or does this mysterious figure have their own 'Sequel' in mind...one where Anna's fate mirrors her husband's deadly demise? Although it seems like a pretty obvious tip, you NEED to read The Plot before reading this book. This book in no way functions as an effective standalone, and to be honest, I almost wish I'd taken the time to re-read its predecessor before diving into this effort. From characters to plot points, SO much is referenced in a vague or sort of assumptive way that there isn't much opportunity for you as a reader to fill in the blanks without the FACTS. You NEED to know Anna inside and out, and to miss the first half of her 'journey' (which is essential to the backstory of book two) is to do yourself a disservice. Aside from that, reading the Plot before reading The Sequel will introduce you to the author's style, substance, and focus. But oddly enough, there is a downside to this as well; reading this book is going to feel like watching a bad adaptation of a novel you truly loved. There's enough familiarity to make it FEEL like the same property...but enough is lacking to remind you that (surprise, surprise) the FIRST one was better. This isn't to say that the author didn't try to inject some new life, new flair, along with her signature panache into this property. Using names of other Sequels as chapter titles? Brilliant. Her Literary Largesse shone once again, through her quippy, frank narration and subtle bits of observational humor sprinkled in along the way. In fact, that's the secret sauce that makes the FIRST part of this book so entertaining: her thinly veiled snark about the publishing world, and the 'insider' feel of the narrative is part of what draws you the reader into Anna's inner world. No publisher is too big (or too small) to escape her scrutiny and gentle pokes, and the character of Anna's literary agent in particular is pretty tongue-in-cheek. In this way, I could see why the author chose to continue in the vein of the Plot: this sort of satirical reflection must have been VERY fun to write...who WOULD want it to end? But unfortunately, what the Plot had going for it in, well, Plot...the Sequel just did not. Contrary to book one, whose main premise and evil plot become very clear (and were fairly linear), following the long trajectory of this twisty tale takes a LOT of energy...and a passion for minutiae from Anna's past that I just couldn't muster. The overall plot is not only overly convoluted, but it almost just feels like a lengthier rehashing of the denouement of book one, with every possible skeleton in Anna's closet popping out for a visit. The literary satire bent is all but over by 50% of the way through the narrative, so expect the laughs to dissipate at that point...and your joy to slowly dissipate along with it. Instead, we are forced to revisit Anna's trauma through lengthy stories from her past (not to mention excerpts of the resurfaced manuscript...which were boring to put it mildly) and I found myself putting down the book for weeks without feeling the urgent need to watch all of the puzzle pieces lock into place. Everything that made the second act of The Plot so exciting, intense, and devious was missing here: rather than a popcorn-worthy, splashy finale, it was more like a rock plopping into the bottom of the lake with a 'thud' instead of skipping masterfully along. I understand the WHY when it came to the Sequel...but I'm still sort of lost as to the WHAT the author wanted to leave her readers pondering. (And please, I hope it isn't a book three...I think it's time to 'start the next chapter,' to put it mildly.) And I think despite perhaps her best intentions and some effortlessly clever and interesting writing, when it comes to this particular second installment, I find myself agreeing with Andrew Stanton: "I'm not anti-sequel, but I just feel like there are very few ideas that are meant to be continued." 3.5 stars, rounded up to 4 #CeladonReads #thesequelbook #partner
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Anna is unhinged!
After first meeting Anna a couple of years ago in The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz, I was blown away by her somewhat unhinged antics. As soon as I heard Korelitz wrote The Sequel, it immediately went on my tbr! Anna Williams-Bonner is the author we love to hate. It's unfortunate that her husband, Jacob, is no longer around to enjoy his literary success, but some might say Anna is riding his coattails to her own acclaim. And why shouldn't she? I mean, she's only taking back what's rightfully hers. In The Sequel, I thought perhaps Anna was on the road to righteousness. If only others would let her stay on that path! I swear I had to keep reminding myself that Anna is not good. 😅 She's just a girl, living her life, who sometimes does very bad things. In this seriously entertaining thriller, you will find yourself contemplating what's bad and what's worse, all with a satirical look at the publishing side of books. Read this if you like: - psychological thrillers - rooting for the anti-hero - behind-the-scenes in the publishing industry
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
clever and fascinating
Anna Williams-Bonner is a fascinating protagonist. She is a terrible person, when you come right down to it, but I couldn’t help but admire her unfaltering determination throughout this book. She steamrolls over every obstacle to what she sees as her right to simply be left alone. Alas, the world is filled with obligations of all sorts—including the book tour she endures for the novel that she (so easily!!) wrote—and there are so many people who are in her way. Then, just when she thinks she is in the clear, she is made aware that her own backstory may still be known to someone out there. The Sequel is the story of how Anna becomes a “literary widow” and how she discovers, and obliterates, every challenge to her own very self-centered happiness. This is a fabulously twisty tale that will delight readers who love stories centered around writing and publishing. You definitely need to have read The Plot to get the most out of this book. I had the privilege of reading this book and listening to the audiobook; while both forms are excellent, if you are a fan of master narrator Julia Whelan you will want to get the audiobook.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Good mystery if you like your leads to be baddies
The story was compelling enough to keep me glued to it, but as I was going back and forth between the ecopy and the audiobook, I found that the characters were hard for me to enjoy. I enjoyed the mystery of trying to figure out who was threatening to out the main character's past, but I didn't love the route to getting to the resolution. This is a book where the lead is not a hero and frankly most all the characters were either mercenary or evil in some way or another. I guess they had to be in order for the reader to tolerate how Anna resolved her problems. I am just not the right audience for that kind of protagonist lead. I found myself captivated with the story, but dreading what would always come next. I would recommend it to people who don't mind sociopaths as much as I do. Ha.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Have been waiting for this sequel, impatiently
What do you expect? Of course this is a 5 star read. I may have enjoyed The Plot a tiny bit more but only b/c the entire premise was new to me….theft of a (deceased) author’s work. One of my favorite books ever. The Sequel was awesome as well. You know the idea of the story b/c it’s pretty much a continuation (or sequel) to The Plot. That said, the premise wasn’t new but wow, this one had twice the twists & turns. Do not think you have it figured out until it’s revealed. I mean @ 80%, it still had me confounded. So glad I discovered this author cuz her work is just phenomenal. Run, don’t walk to purchase The Sequel. If you haven’t read The Plot…..,Do. It. Now. THEN read The Sequel⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com