Thursday, July 22, 2010

Beautiful Malice by Rebecca James

Beautiful Malice by Rebecca James



About Rebecca James


Rebecca James was born in Sydney and spent her twenties teaching English in Indonesia and Japan. She currently lives in Armidale, Australia, with her partner and their four sons.



You can visit Rebecca online at http://www.rebeccajamesbooks.com/.



About Beautiful Malice

An international sensation that The Wall Street Journal called a “publishing phenomenon,” this layered, poignant, and chilling novel of psychological suspense is the year’s most stunning American fiction debut. From its wrenching opening to its shocking climax, Beautiful Malice unfolds a haunting story in which people, motives, and circumstances are never what they seem.

Who is Katherine Patterson? It is a question she hopes no one can answer. To erase her past, Katherine has moved to a new city, enrolled in a new school, and even changed her name. She’s done the next best thing to disappearing altogether. Now, wary and alone, she seeks nothing more than anonymity. What she finds instead is the last thing she expected: a friend.

Even more unlikely, Katherine’s new friend is the most popular and magnetic girl in school. Extroverted, gorgeous, flirtatious, and unpredictable, she is everything that Katherine is not and doesn’t want to be: the center of attention. Yet Alice’s enthusiasm is infectious, her candor sometimes unsettling, and Katherine, in spite of her guarded caution, finds herself drawn into Alice’s private circle.

But Alice has secrets, too—darker than anyone can begin to imagine. And when she lets her guard down at last, Katherine discovers the darkest of them all. For there will be no escaping the past for Katherine Patterson—only a descent into a trap far more sinister . . . and infinitely more seductive.

My Take:  Beautiful Malice is a great study in what can happen when you let people into your life easily and when you are in a vulnerable state.  
There is alot of mystery swirling around Katherine.  What happened to her sister that made her move to another town away from her parents and to live with her Aunt?   
Katherine feels special when Alice takes notice of her and befriends her. She makes excuses for Alice's behavior and sudden mood swings .  But when Katherine meets Phillippa who introduces Katherine to Her brother Mick things change.
I had figured out the twist at the end by about midway through the book but that didn't make it any less impactful.  
Everybody has secrets, just some are darker than others.  

The one thing that I didn't really like about the book was the shift in different time periods between chapters.  I found myself having to shift my thinking alittle to often for accommodate this. 

I would highly recommend this book if you like stories that keep you wondering.   

Thanks to Pump Up Your Books for a copy of this book for review purposes.

1 comment:

  1. Thanks for the great review of Rebecca's book. I read this one during vacation. Creepy the way things worked out. I had it pegged about partway through too, but the ending was superb.

    Thanks again.

    Cheryl

    ReplyDelete

Due to a recent large amount of spam comments I have decided to start comment moderation. I love comments so please leave them.