Genuine Fraud by E. Lockhart ~Goodreads~
Published by Hot Key Books 5th September 2017
Paperback edition 272 pages ~Book Depository~
Thank you to Hot Key Books for sending me this ARC for an honest review.
The story of a young woman whose diabolical smarts are her ticket into a charmed life. But how many times can someone reinvent themselves? You be the judge.
Imogen is a runaway heiress, an orphan, a cook, and a cheat.
Jule is a fighter, a social chameleon, and an athlete.
An intense friendship. A disappearance. A murder, or maybe two.
A bad romance, or maybe three.
Blunt objects, disguises, blood, and chocolate. The American dream, superheroes, spies, and villains.
A girl who refuses to give people what they want from her.
A girl who refuses to be the person she once was.
Previously reading reviews of this book written already they have noted that it relates to another book, The Talented Mr. Ripley. Thankfully I haven’t read the book to have make any comparative notes, and I’m grateful for that because for me it was a different book to what I have read before. For instance the structure of it, the beginning is the end of the novel and as the chapters go on we go back in time to where all the drama started. I think this was perhaps a little bit of a drawback for me because I was aware of what has happened so there wasn’t much suspense or tension that I was expecting.
However because of this structure we’re much more interested in the characters themselves rather than the plot, and I don’t think I’ve been so puzzled by a character such as Jule before. Throughout the novel we know Jule to be a compulsive liar throughout, as she dresses up as her friend Imogen and lies to their friends of her whereabouts. I was constantly asking myself why? Is Jule in love with Imogen? Is she jealous of her? Why Imogen? All of this becomes clear as the book progresses. I enjoyed the revelations that unfolded and getting to known Jule, and you definitely feel sympathy towards her from the beginning but even more so towards the end. You can see why Imogen was perhaps her target, the girl is simply up herself. A girl who takes everything she has around her for granted, and I think anyone would be sick of her throwing around money like it grows on trees. Both characters were polar opposites, and it seemed upsetting to me that Jule would want to become someone she isn’t.
I wasn’t a huge fan of We Were Liars but E. Lockhart’s style and social commentary is always enticing and addictive, and I simply couldn’t put this book down!
Genuine Fraud is about the outcasts, kids who are from very plain backgrounds and who aren’t rich or perfect in every way. To an extent it is about how far someone could go to achieve their own happy and wealthy life in bitter and twisted ways that are realistic. If you like books with a bit of mystery then this is a book you should certainly pick up.
