Verity

Verity had me in a CHOKEHOLD. I gave it 5 stars because it was dark, twisty, and completely unputdownable. From the first chapter, I was hooked. It has that creepy, suspenseful energy that keeps you guessing the whole time. Every time I thought I had it figured out, something new would hit and I'd be like… wait, WHAT?!
The writing is super fast-paced and the tension builds in the best way. I loved how messy and complicated the characters were, like, none of them are innocent and that just makes the story even more addicting. It’s got thriller vibes, but also some romance and major psychological drama, and somehow it all works together perfectly.

This book had me questioning everything, right up to the last page. It’s one of those show more stories that stays with you long after you finish because you can’t stop thinking about it. If you’re into dark, gripping reads that mess with your head a little (okay, a LOT), Verity is 100% worth the hype. show less

Well, this one was certainly a page-turner. It brought to mind a modern version of Gothic novels ala Daphne DuMaurier and the Bronte sisters with the sweet, young thing and the damaged wife lurking in the background. I just wanted to shake Lowen and tell her to get out of there and leave that whole situation alone. I was completely caught up in Verity's autobiography, but really, murder??? Is that the logical solution? And then, the ending ... what was true, the letter or the autobiography? I was left feeling like it was all unresolved, but I didn't really want to know what happened next.

okay i’m gonna be honest here - please don’t hate me for this - i don’t really like colleen hoover. i don’t even really have a specific reason why, her books just aren’t my fav, BUT this one. THIS one right here. i fuck with. it’s weirdly creepy and i thought i knew how it was going to end - and for the most part i was right - but then she kinda threw it for a loop, and i commend her for that. i read it in less than 24 hours.
it still had the lovey and steamy scenes that she’s known for but there’s also some mystery-thriller-ness to it that makes me like it wayyy more than her other ones. maybe that makes me a psychopath??

What's that? It's Colleen Hoover time again, what's the topic of the week? Her skipping the opportunity to do horror and thinking she can do a thriller or mystery.
It's not dark, it's not erotic, it's just misogyny. Oh, boy, it's more rape portrayed as love. Boy I sure do love Hoover delivering that misogyny.

Nothing more I could want in on the year of our Lord, 2023, then to read terrible books that say people should be abused or sexually assaulted until they like it.

I keep hearing people say this is a rip off of something, I don't know it myself(Rebecca). I can definitely feel familiarity to something else I've read so I'm not sure how many things this is borrowed from. I don't know I feel like all these books at this point borrow from show more something, but do it entirely wrong. Is it really stealing if you can't even steal right?

So there's a lot of love making scenes that are just straight up non-con and rape. That's the thing that we have to deal with, non-consensual sex and rape galore. But it's okay guys, it's a romance book.

I'm a broken record but I got to say she doesn't write romance, aside from one book there has been no romances in this author's products.

This isn't mysterious or deep.

Clap along if you know the words;
If two people are in a relationship it doesn't mean it's a romance.
If two people are in a relationship and it's abusive it doesn't mean it's a romance.
If somebody is pining for someone and becomes abusive that's not a romance.
Rape is not love.
Rape is illegal.
If you rape somebody you do not love them, it's just about power.
If you set someone's house on fire just so you can have them that is abuse.
All of these books are abusive.
Please do not recreate or imitate these books.

There wasn't a single plot twist in it that wasn't predictable, and I guess that's a staple of reading her stuff because at this point I'm four or five bucks in and I've noticed that there is no difference between one book and another book besides what problematic content it'll hold. I ain't even against incest in fiction, or rape in fiction, I just don't like how this is supposed to be a romance and it's clearly not a romance.

I can't handle it being pushed as this romantic book that everybody needs to read and people actually believe that this is a good romance and what their relationship should be. I don't think I would react so strongly if I didn't have actual people saying they wish they had romances like Colleen Hoover books have, you don't want a sexual assault or a incest story to be your life. You want a wholesome story that ends happily and doesn't have terrible implications or problematic romanticized abuse in it.

If you really want to have a happy life, don't use any of these books as guides. Live your life and be happy. If you're not happy with my review and your reading it, understand I want people to have happy positive experiences with books. I don't want this book to influence a teenager down the road and to thinking that they're abusive lover is actually a good partner and they just need the power of love to save them. I read some really messed up stuff growing up and it did affect how I viewed relationships to a degree even if I never followed them.

Stay safe, stay hydrated, and take care of yourselves.

1 star.

It's definitely another Colleen Hoover book! show less

Two words to describe this book: disturbingly good.

I read a CoHo book many years ago and wasn’t a huge fan but have been wanting to give her another shot. I know this book isn’t her typical genre, and it’s definitely not MY typical reading genre, but I am pleased to say I enjoyed it a lot, as disturbing as it was. The plot was engaging, and though I had suspicions about certain things, I was kept on my toes wondering how it was all going to play out. It takes some skill to make me dislike most of the characters (as people) and still enjoy their twisted story.

I like CoHo’s writing style. It makes for an easy read, and this book gives me hope that I will enjoy some of her other works in the future.

A (Great).

A ghostwriter moves into a catatonic author's home and learns unsettling secrets.

This book is consuming. I never wanted to put it down, but when I did put it down it was like waking up from a bad dream. And the more I read, the harder the dream was to shake. Hopefully, now that I've finished it, it will stop haunting me.

(Jul. 2025)

Colleen Hoover books were recommended to me by a friend whose taste in books is clearly not like my own. She suggested I start with VERITY because this is a mystery/thriller, which she knows I like, in addition to romance, which she knows I dislike. But I've heard from more than one person that Hoover's romances are unlike other romances. So I gave it a try even if only to satisfy my curiosity.

A man is married to a successful writer who is now unable to finish a series of books because she is in a coma. So her publisher finds another writer to finish the series. The rest of the book involves this other writer (female, of course) who comes to live in the man's home (thus the sex/romance) and becomes suspicious of the man's wife (thus the show more mystery/thriller).

I don't think I'm a prude, but the sex portions are explicit. If you enjoy this sort of thing, go for it. You'll be glad to know, the sex scenes are also numerous.

The mystery/thriller portions are good but get predictable near the end. I found it best to skim the sex and read only the mystery/thriller parts.

Hoover is not for me. This particular book is, I hear, her best. So I generously give VERITY three stars for its mystery/thriller portions and stop here. show less