I don’t normally venture into this genre but this Goodreads Choice Awards runner-up for Best Mystery and Thriller 2023 intrigued me. I’m glad it did because it was such a fun read. It was fast paced, creepy, and had me on the edge of my seat. I highly recommend this book to people who want an engaging read and are prepared for some difficult and heinous topics.

Favorite Quotes

“She was really very odd. Wouldn’t say boo to a goose.”

Roxy had once existed in three dimensions; there is no reason why she shouldn’t exist in three dimensions still, and no reason furthermore why those three dimensions should not be here, on Salusbury Road, inches from where she sits.

(minor) Spoilers Ahead

The central concept in this book is that a semi-famous podcaster is collecting elements of a documentary that she will unwittingly become the main topic of. Snippets of Netflix trailers, interviews, news reports, and podcast recordings from the documentary about the events currently taking place in the book are sprinkled in throughout the chapters, Inception-style. It’s kind of hard to explain but the recursive nature of the whole things was really fun to read.

This book was a real thriller and I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. Some of the really creepy parts I mistakenly read at night made me look over my shoulder to make sure that Josie or anyone else weren’t spying on me. As things got weirder and creepier, I wanted to stop reading but just couldn’t look away.

The author’s writing style is very easy to read (besides a few British references that I didn’t get). It was vivid and conveyed emotions really well. There’s a wonderful quote where Jewell wants to show that Josie is excited and she does it with this long, rambling sentence:

Then she tries on one of the dresses that Alix chose for her, soft floral jersey with a V-neck, fitted to the knee, and she checks the price tag and sees that it is £49.99 and that she can afford it and then feels a shiver of excitement because the dress is exquisite and because it makes her look pretty and shapely and young and because it is not made of hard-wearing denim but of a soft, silky fabric that feels beautiful to touch, and she takes it off and then tries on another and another and another and all of them make her look like a woman she has never met before and would like to know better, and she takes all three dresses, both pieces of knitwear, and the red cotton blazer to the till and watches in breathless awe as all six items are rung through by one assistant while the other assistant wraps them in tissue and the total is £398.87 and that is more than Josie has ever spent in one go on anything ever in her life but the atmosphere feels celebratory, somehow, as if Alix and the sales assistants are all cheering her on, as if the purchase is an achievement of some kind, a reward, an award, a prize for good behavior

This was also the first time I’ve ever seen “I’d’ve, or really any word with two apostrophes, written out:

“Oh, lucky you. I’d’ve loved a sister.”

Speaking of Josie, what a manipulative character. She manipulates and tries to control everyone in her life, the reader included. At first, I fell for her sob stories and felt bad for her. Some parts of her story started to fall through and I got really weirded out by her before hating her. By the end, I couldn’t decide what was true and what was lies and I don’t think she could tell either.

I was so curious about Erin, Josie’s daughter, the whole time. The only information we got was that she never leaves her room, it’s disgusting in there, and all she eats is baby food. The author, and presumably Josie, didn’t seem to care and just mentioned her in passing even though it was really strange. It caused a lot of suspense.

None Of This Is True was a snappy and engaging read that I really enjoyed reading. I’ll be dipping into the psychological thriller category more often.

Created: 2024-03-07

Last modified: 2024-09-17