You-
Caroline Kepnes
You is the first book I have read by
Caroline Kepnes, and I was instantly drawn into wanting to read this due to the
concept of the story. The premise to this story looked creepy, interesting and completely
on the insane side. Yet something that 100% can happen, especially in this
digital age.
‘When a
beautiful, aspiring writer strides into the East Village bookstore where Joe
Goldberg works, he does what anyone would do: he Googles the name on her credit
card.
There is only one Guinevere Beck in New York City. She has a public Facebook account and Tweets incessantly, telling Joe everything he needs to know: she is simply Beck to her friends, she went to Brown University, she lives on Bank Street, and she’ll be at a bar in Brooklyn tonight—the perfect place for a “chance” meeting.
As Joe invisibly and obsessively takes control of Beck’s life, he orchestrates a series of events to ensure Beck finds herself in his waiting arms. Moving from stalker to boyfriend, Joe transforms himself into Beck’s perfect man, all while quietly removing the obstacles that stand in their way—even if it means murder.’
There is only one Guinevere Beck in New York City. She has a public Facebook account and Tweets incessantly, telling Joe everything he needs to know: she is simply Beck to her friends, she went to Brown University, she lives on Bank Street, and she’ll be at a bar in Brooklyn tonight—the perfect place for a “chance” meeting.
As Joe invisibly and obsessively takes control of Beck’s life, he orchestrates a series of events to ensure Beck finds herself in his waiting arms. Moving from stalker to boyfriend, Joe transforms himself into Beck’s perfect man, all while quietly removing the obstacles that stand in their way—even if it means murder.’
I came out
the other side of this book not knowing what to think or feel, this is such an
interesting and completely messed up book that even though I enjoyed reading
it, Caroline left me unsure of how I felt. Especially about the characters,
which I think is completely clever on her part.
To put
it quite frank, Joe is a stalker, an obsessive and violent one at that. He
meets Beck when she ventures into the bookshop he works at and from there he is
hooked on her, and cannot get enough. With the likes of Facebook and Twitter so
openly available for people to access, Joe is able to locate where Beck lives,
and slowly but surely entwines himself into her life. This results in some
rather shocking and disturbing moments, as well as some sweet ones which almost
leave you rooting for him too. You may be wondering how those things can be in
the same sentence, but the way this book is written, you have one bumpy
relationship with Joe.
In the
normal parts you could see through the negatives and see a man who just wanted
to be loved and who was deeply in love with this woman, and to be fair Beck was
a bit of a tease. I really don’t think she helped Joe and his ‘problem’ but
then she wasn’t to know. When Joe was at his most creepy, I found it difficult
to read, as some scenes were horrible, horrific even, the extremes he would go
to just to be with Beck. But when he and Beck were together, you almost forgot
about the bad things he had done, as they got on so well…but then the checking
of the email would pop up and it would be straight back to creepy. I did like
Joes character, I found him so interesting and I would love to know how he got
to be the way he is now and know more
about his past (outside the bookshop and Mr Mooney). I was almost willing him
to get better and to stop throughout this whole book, and he really was on a
serious journey
Beck, I guess
she was supposed to be the victim in all this. But I just did not like her one
bit. She came across as such a push over with her friends, no back bone and completely
reliant on them and Dr Nicky. At first I thought Beck was just a relationship
lover, constantly seeking out a relationship to be in, typically leading her to
the bad boys. However, as her daddy issues become more known we really get deeper
into Beck’s mind set, from that of her stalker. As the story went on I grew to
dislike her even more. Even to a point where I was getting annoyed at her for
brushing Joe off, or lying to him…Joe…her stalker…the creeptacular guy!! We
just had no idea if she was coming or going. I guess it became difficult to not
become annoyed as it is written in first person from Joe’s perspective, so we
are heavily involved in his story, and emotions.
Overall,
You is an incredibly interesting read, I found it shocking in places, and yet
was completely gripped and invested in the story too, it took me a day to read
as I just wanted to know where the story was going, and just what conclusion
would be had from it. I certainly wasn’t shocked by the end, which surprised me
in itself. I feel like this is a perfect autumn/October time read, as it really
is overly creepy, and also makes you hyper aware of just what you share on
social media and just who can access it and see what you post.
I do
have to say this book probably is not for everyone, and I know most will be
shocked to read this, if not disturbed and maybe even offended, I don’t know.
However I did thoroughly enjoy it, it is the first book of it’s kind that I have
read, and I enjoyed every second of it, I truly was on the edge of my seat
waiting for the next unexpected twist or turn that was thrown at us on this
crazy journey we set ourselves on. Joe was the perfect psycho stalker.
I have given this 4 out of 5 stars
