Combination Office Romance and Psychological Thriller
The Very Nice Box is—weird? I'm not totally sure how to categorize this book, which is half unbelievable office romance and half semi-unhinged psychological thriller. The story revolves around Ava Simon, a product engineer at an Ikea-esque furniture company whose dedication to her work masks her persistent grief after the death of her partner. Ava reminds me of Eleanor Oliphant: practical, competent, and impatient with social norms. Where Eleanor remains essentially herself throughout that novel, though, Ava makes a somewhat startling shift in personality after meeting Mat, the new marketing director. Mat is, in the words of the book's blurb, not what he seems, which is only true if you aren't inherently suspicious of young, entitled white men who speak in self help platitudes and crumble at the first sign of criticism. If you, like me, do not believe Mat's act for one solitary second, then you will likely read the first part of the book, ostensibly the beginning of their romance, with the theme song from "Jaws" blaring in the background.
Perhaps because I was unable to buy into their relationship, the first half of the book felt interminably long. I knew something bad would happen, so I wasn't invested in growing to like Mat, no matter how charming Ava found his spontaneity and confidence. The book picked up in the second half when Mat's issues become more clear, but even then I found myself wanting to shake Ava, whose last relationship was good and healthy and queer and clearly superior to this one. Grief makes you do strange things, I get it, but this strange?
I did like The Very Nice Box's skewering of corporate culture, and I would definitely watch a show that was just Ava and Jaime gossiping about the characters at Strada. I also wanted more of the Good Guys—not because they are actually good guys, but because they make excellent, believable villains. Gleichman and Blackett are onto something with their depiction of the dangers of a self help culture that provides the language of social responsibility without any of the accountability.
Overall, though, this was a tough read for me. Too slow at the beginning, too much information too quickly at the end, and too much time spent with the kind of manchild I avoid in my everyday life. Nevertheless, thanks to NetGalley and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for the ARC!
Perhaps because I was unable to buy into their relationship, the first half of the book felt interminably long. I knew something bad would happen, so I wasn't invested in growing to like Mat, no matter how charming Ava found his spontaneity and confidence. The book picked up in the second half when Mat's issues become more clear, but even then I found myself wanting to shake Ava, whose last relationship was good and healthy and queer and clearly superior to this one. Grief makes you do strange things, I get it, but this strange?
I did like The Very Nice Box's skewering of corporate culture, and I would definitely watch a show that was just Ava and Jaime gossiping about the characters at Strada. I also wanted more of the Good Guys—not because they are actually good guys, but because they make excellent, believable villains. Gleichman and Blackett are onto something with their depiction of the dangers of a self help culture that provides the language of social responsibility without any of the accountability.
Overall, though, this was a tough read for me. Too slow at the beginning, too much information too quickly at the end, and too much time spent with the kind of manchild I avoid in my everyday life. Nevertheless, thanks to NetGalley and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for the ARC!