Review: Verity by Colleen Hoover (Jessica's Review)

Title: Verity

Author: Colleen Hoover

Publisher: Hoover Ink, Inc.
Rating: 5/5 Stars
Paperback, 314 Pages
Published December 2018

Summary: Lowen Ashleigh is a struggling writer on the brink of financial ruin when she accepts the job offer of a lifetime. Jeremy Crawford, husband of bestselling author Verity Crawford, has hired Lowen to complete the remaining books in a successful series his injured wife is unable to finish. Lowen arrives at the Crawford home, ready to sort through years of Verity's notes and outlines, hoping to find enough material to get her started. What Lowen doesn't expect to uncover in the chaotic office is an unfinished autobiography Verity never intended for anyone to read. Page after page of bone-chilling admissions, including Verity's recollection of what really happened the day her daughter died. Lowen decides to keep the manuscript hidden from Jeremy, knowing its contents would devastate the already grieving father. But as Lowen's feelings for Jeremy begin to intensify, she recognizes all the ways she could benefit if he were to read his wife's words. After all, no matter how devoted Jeremy is to his injured wife, a truth this horrifying would make it impossible for him to continue to love her.

I picked up this book after Emily and Amber both read it and told me that it was a must-read, and I didn't need much convincing. Everyone I know who read this book told me that it blew their minds, and since I'm in the two-week period in between grad school terms, I was eager to dive into as many books as possible to get myself out of my burnout reading/writing slump. Well, it's safe to say that this book didn't disappoint! So without further ado, let's jump into my review:

As the summary explains, Lowen is a struggling writer who gets assigned a huge project -- finishing the final three books in a series by the incomparable, amazing author Verity Crawford, who was injured in an accident. Lowen heads to the Crawford house to dig through Verity's notes to find outlines and such for writing the remaining books, but instead she ends up finding an abandoned manuscript written by Verity with terrifying admissions and insight into the tragedies that previously struck their family. Not only is that a horrifying thing to discover, but at the same time, Lowen starts developing feelings for Verity's husband, Jeremy. Not only does this manuscript paint Verity as an evil, horrid person, but it also gives Lowen an opportunity -- if she shows this to Jeremy, then he won't want to stay with Verity, and they can be together forever.

I finished this book late last night (because of course I couldn't go to sleep right as it was getting good), and I slept on it before writing my review, and I am still at a loss for words with this book. It broke my brain and tore me apart in the best way, and I've already started recommending it to all of my family and friends. I've read some thrillers before, and books with some killer plot twists, but Verity easily blows all of those out of the water. I don't think I've ever really been gripped by a book like this in a long time, staying up to finish it, since I read They Both Die at the End. It felt like around every turn, there was a new plot twist or revelation that kept me on my toes. And being able to get into Verity's head through that manuscript was equal parts fascinating and messed up. Without spoiling anything, all I'll say is that this woman is sick. And the more Lowen realizes that, the more she realizes that Jeremy deserves better...with her. I love the fact that this was a romantic thriller, because while there were some pretty awesome and shocking elements to the book, at its root there was also a love triangle, which caught my heart as a romantic. But overall, just...wow. I don't have any words for what this book did to me. All I can say is that you need to read this book right this very second. Yes, right now. Go download a Kindle copy or go to the store or order it online. Every second that you're not reading this book is a second wasted. 

(THERE ARE MAJOR SPOILERS IN THIS PARAGRAPH! SKIP TO THE NEXT ONE TO AVOID THEM.) Alright, I just have to talk about the ending for a second, where they killed her. I was rooting for Lowen and Jeremy all the way until the end, when they went and killed her. I'm glad she's dead because she's sick, but why wouldn't they just turn her in?! Then she'd be gone and they wouldn't be murderers! But ugh...wow. That ending. I really couldn't go to bed, no matter how late it was getting, because I just wanted to find out what was going to happen next. And the fact that they got Verity to talk?! I wish that had been drawn out more, because oh my gosh, that was such a shock. Toward the end of the book, I was so terrified to even keep reading, because I really had no idea what was going to come next, and what the next strike for these Chronics would be.

(THERE ARE ALSO BIG SPOILERS HERE! KEEP SKIPPING TO THE NEXT PARAGRAPH!) That final part of the book also confused me a bit too. Lowen just gets pregnant and moves in with Jeremy, and nobody notices the timeline? They said they didn't move in together right away because it would look too suspicious after Verity's death, but wouldn't people put two and two together with their pregnancy? The fact that they got away with murder with no foul play was a bit suspicious. So was the fact that Lowen got rid of the letter -- did she do it because she thinks Verity was lying and doesn't want to upset Jeremy, or did she do it because she knows Verity was telling the truth, and she doesn't want to acknowledge that they killed an innocent person? I love that the book leaves off in such an ambiguous spot that readers get to come to their own conclusions (for the record, I think Verity's letter was a lie and that she really did do those things), because now I get to have such riveting conversations with my friends.

Overall, I loved reading Verity. While it's a deviation from the somewhat lighter romances that Colleen Hoover has written in the past (and don't get me wrong, those are some of my favorites), Verity was a whole different animal. This book gripped me from the opening line and kept me hooked (and kept my productivity low) for the entire day and night, because I just couldn't put it down. If you're looking for a whirlwind of a thriller to keep you on your toes and to break you out of a reading slump, then I'd definitely recommend picking this one up!