Title: The Sunday Girl
Expected publication: 1 September 2018
My Rating: 🌟🌟1/2
Book Description:
Any woman who’s ever been involved with a bad, bad man and
been dumped will understand what it feels like to be broken, broken-hearted and
bent on revenge. Taylor Bishop is hurt, angry and wants to destroy Angus
Hollingsworth in the way he destroyed her: Insidiously. Irreparably. Like
a puzzle, he’d slowly dissembled … stolen a couple of pieces from, and then
discarded, knowing that nobody would ever be able to put it back together ever
again. So Taylor consulted The Art of War and made a plan. Then
she took the next step – one that would change her life forever.
Then things get really out of control – and The Sunday Girl becomes impossible to put down.
Then things get really out of control – and The Sunday Girl becomes impossible to put down.
My musings:
There is something irresistibly intriguing about stories of
revenge. Admit it – who has not at one point in their lives fantasised about
getting even, about getting their own back, even if it’s just directed at the
sibling that’s eaten your (no longer) secret stash of lollies or taken a peak
at your diary. So when I was offered the chance to read an ARC of The Sunday
Girl I felt very excited to indulge the darker side of my psyche.
The premise is not all that different from your usual tale
of a jilted woman out for revenge. Taylor is in a turbulent relationship with
the much older and sometimes cruel Angus, who she adores for the same mysterious
reasons that usually see women remain in dysfunctional relationships despite
the agony they cause them. One day Angus, high on drugs, kicks Taylor out for
another woman, uploading a private sex tape he has taken of her onto the
internet as a parting gift. Jilted, hurt and with her reputation at stake,
Taylor swears to get her own back and reclaim her inner tigerwoman. So far, so
good. At this stage, I was ready to savour anything that would give Angus his
just deserts – the man sounds like a first class a**hole. I particularly
enjoyed the way Taylor sets out to forge her plan, using Sun Zu’s book on The Art
of War to meticulously plot Angus’ downfall. At this stage, the book was still
fun to read, and Taylor is quite the entrepreneur when it comes to making sure
that Angus gets a taste of his own medicine. Until Angus comes knocking on
Taylor’s door, begging her to take him back. He is remorseful, he has changed,
he is a new man – blah-di-blah-di-blah. Taylor, you dimwit, I wanted to shout,
don’t fall into this old trap! But she does ....
Overall, I found The Sunday Girl to be a well-written book
with some clever and original ideas that had a lot of potential. I really
enjoyed some aspects of it, but it ultimately didn’t click with me. Taylor, who
originally seemed like a worthy protagonist, made some crappy choices that may
be understandable for some, but which didn’t sit well with the story for me and
often weren’t grounded in enough reason to make them understandable. For the
most part, I felt annoyed at Taylor for stumbling from one bad decision to the
next and then whining about it, despite a solid support system of friends and
family that would have stood by her. For the most part, her decision-making
seemed outlandish and a bit farfetched, and not consistent with the book she
quotes as her recipe to exact her revenge. There is a turning point in the story
about ¾ into the book that led to a discordant and unsatisfying ending for me.
Summary:
In summary, I felt that The Sunday Girl was a well-written
story with some original concepts that will undoubtedly make a fun read for
many. For me, the make-or-break of any story is how well I relate to the
characters, and this is where this one fell short for me. Taylor’s life choices
and decision-making felt alien to me, and ultimately cost me my connection to
the story. That’s not to say that I didn’t feel like throttling Angus myself, I
would just have gone about it a bit differently! However, whilst it may not have been my cup of
tea, I am sure that it will make a fun romp into the world of a woman scorned
for many readers, so if the concept of the story appeals to you, you should
give it a go! In any case, an impressive debut and I look forward to reading
more from this author in future.
Thank
you to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster Australia for the free electronic copy of this novel and
for giving me the opportunity to provide an honest review.
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The Perfect Girlfriend by Karen Hamilton
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