V — VERITY, written by Colleen Hoover; reviewed by Debi O’Neille

 

Published by Grand Central Publishing, a home of such authors as David Baldacci, Harlan Coben, Sandra Brown and  Nicholas Sparks.

This is the psychological thriller that made me the Colleen Hoover fan that I am. VERITY is the first of Hoover’s books I ever read.  I plan to read it again, and again.

I love mysteries, love a little romance, love MG and YA, and, I live for suspense. Tension? Won’t read without it. But I usually don’t like to be scared or pushed into s studying the shadows on my walls, or to force my dog to walk everywhere with me all through the night. But I did, after and during this book. (Poor, Teddy!)

Character Lowen is a novelist who isn’t doing too well, career-wise, and she’s not big on self-promotion or marketing. Add to that a few other circumstances, and she takes a job finishing a few planned novels for the well-known author—Verity—who was in an accident and is now unable to complete her series. Verity’s husband, Jeremy Crawford, convinces Lowen that she is the best writer for the job, because Lowen’s writing style matches Verity’s.

Sounds like the perfect scenario. And possibly, it is, until Lowen finds a manuscript that may not be meant for the public. It’s personal and horrifying. It’s an autobiography.

Lowen convinces herself to read the secret pages by telling herself that knowing Verity’s story will help her understand the woman whose writing she’s trying to emulate. It will help Lowen in finishing the series. That’s her job, after all. But naturally, unexpected relationships come into play, as well as a wealth of unexpected discoveries.

Twists and surprises await you in this haunting reality that will surely stay with you and make you, too, a Colleen Hoover fan. Happy reading!