To start, thank you to the publisher Celadon Books and Bookish First for the review copy of The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz.
This review doesn't contain any obvious spoilers, but contains some information related to the plot and character's decision-making. If you prefer to go into thrillers completely blind, you may want to skip my review.
First the positives: I loved Jean Hanff Korelitz's writing style and pacing. Many have said that this is a "slow burn" thriller, but I actually thought the pacing was well done. I was engaged and wanted to keep reading at the end of each chapter.
Also contrary to several others, I enjoyed the discussions of the writing and publishing process as well as the difficulties and pitfalls new and experienced writers face when embarking on that long road to writing a novel. Perhaps this is why I felt it wasn't as slow as others. If this isn't of interest, the beginning of The Plot might feel like a slog.
I found Jacob Finch Bonner to be unlikeable but realistic. He's had a successful first novel and has "made it" in the writing world only to realize that he can't keep up with that success. He is bitter and feels like a failure -- I can imagine I would feel the same after being somewhat of a "one hit wonder."
But as the novel progressed, I felt that Jake was not thinking enough about the set of facts in front of him. I, like others, had guessed early on some of the plot twists of the book, and I felt that Jake should've been able to as well. At the very least, he should have been questioning the assumptions he was making, and he really wasn't. He took a lot at face value, and if he hadn't, he may have avoided a lot of the novel's plot points.
I also took issue with the fact that nearly all of this novel didn't need to take place. After Jake gets the first note saying that he is a thief, he is understandably concerned. But, (and even he makes this realization multiple times) he hasn't done anything wrong. He did not plagiarize any material. A book did not already exist. The original author died without completing the book. Jake wrote the plot in his own words following the recollection of what someone had told him. Even his attorney at one point tells him that ideas can't have a copywrite. How many people haven't gone up to a writer and said, "I have this great idea for a novel" and then proceeded to tell them what that is? So why was he so worried? Better yet, why not just tell his publishing team when it comes up? I feel like they could've easily spun the narrative in his favor and it all would've been behind him. If the messages persisted, police could investigate where they were coming from, he could hire a bodyguard, etc.
Ultimately, I enjoyed the book. It provided me entertainment, but I also found myself frustrated with Jake as a character and the plot as a whole. I didn't even find the novel within a novel "Crib" which has this "plot twist of a century" to be all that shocking.
But, as this book explores, it is hard to write a novel, and even harder to write many great novels. I thought the writing and pacing were great, so I will definitely be checking out Jean Hanff Korelitz's other novels. Unfortunately, this one was a miss for me, but I 100% appreciate all the hard work that went into it.
This review doesn't contain any obvious spoilers, but contains some information related to the plot and character's decision-making. If you prefer to go into thrillers completely blind, you may want to skip my review.
First the positives: I loved Jean Hanff Korelitz's writing style and pacing. Many have said that this is a "slow burn" thriller, but I actually thought the pacing was well done. I was engaged and wanted to keep reading at the end of each chapter.
Also contrary to several others, I enjoyed the discussions of the writing and publishing process as well as the difficulties and pitfalls new and experienced writers face when embarking on that long road to writing a novel. Perhaps this is why I felt it wasn't as slow as others. If this isn't of interest, the beginning of The Plot might feel like a slog.
I found Jacob Finch Bonner to be unlikeable but realistic. He's had a successful first novel and has "made it" in the writing world only to realize that he can't keep up with that success. He is bitter and feels like a failure -- I can imagine I would feel the same after being somewhat of a "one hit wonder."
But as the novel progressed, I felt that Jake was not thinking enough about the set of facts in front of him. I, like others, had guessed early on some of the plot twists of the book, and I felt that Jake should've been able to as well. At the very least, he should have been questioning the assumptions he was making, and he really wasn't. He took a lot at face value, and if he hadn't, he may have avoided a lot of the novel's plot points.
I also took issue with the fact that nearly all of this novel didn't need to take place. After Jake gets the first note saying that he is a thief, he is understandably concerned. But, (and even he makes this realization multiple times) he hasn't done anything wrong. He did not plagiarize any material. A book did not already exist. The original author died without completing the book. Jake wrote the plot in his own words following the recollection of what someone had told him. Even his attorney at one point tells him that ideas can't have a copywrite. How many people haven't gone up to a writer and said, "I have this great idea for a novel" and then proceeded to tell them what that is? So why was he so worried? Better yet, why not just tell his publishing team when it comes up? I feel like they could've easily spun the narrative in his favor and it all would've been behind him. If the messages persisted, police could investigate where they were coming from, he could hire a bodyguard, etc.
Ultimately, I enjoyed the book. It provided me entertainment, but I also found myself frustrated with Jake as a character and the plot as a whole. I didn't even find the novel within a novel "Crib" which has this "plot twist of a century" to be all that shocking.
But, as this book explores, it is hard to write a novel, and even harder to write many great novels. I thought the writing and pacing were great, so I will definitely be checking out Jean Hanff Korelitz's other novels. Unfortunately, this one was a miss for me, but I 100% appreciate all the hard work that went into it.