Verity by Colleen Hoover

“A writer should never have the audacity to write about themselves unless they’re willing to separate every layer of protection between the author’s soul and their book. The words should come directly from the center of the gut, tearing through flesh and bone as they break free. Ugly and honest and bloody and a little bit terrifying, but completely exposed.”

Colleen Hoover is a well known author due to her best selling romance novels. While some of them I enjoy, her mystery novels are BY FAR her best pieces of work to me. She is never afraid to take it there and shock you. She writes mysteries that I have to finish in the same day because I refuse to go to sleep not knowing who did it. When I was thinking of doing a mystery theme for March, I knew I had to include Verity in it. I have met multiple people who have read this book and every single one loved it. We all had different opinions on that insane ending but we’ll dive into that a little later.

Lowen Ashleigh is a struggling writer on the brink of going broke when she accepts the offer of a lifetime. Jeremy Crawford , husband of famous bestselling author Verity Crawford, has hired Lowen to complete his wife’s remaining novels. Verity is badly injured and can no longer write anymore. Lowen arrives at the Crawford home ready to get to work and finish this famous author’s work. But she was never suppose to find the autobiography Verity was working on. Page after page of mouth dropping facts, accusations, and a bone chilling account of what really happened the day Verity’s daughter drowned. Lowen makes the decision to hide this manuscript from Jeremy, knowing it would almost kill him and he’s already in a deep state of mourning. But as Lowen’s feelings for Jeremy grow, she can’t help but see all the ways it would benefit for him to read his wife’s final words. After all, no matter how devoted he is to his wife, reading those twisted words would make the most devoted man run away from his wife.

This book was marketed as a romantic thriller. Let me be very clear, there isn't much romance in this book! This is a love story gone horribly wrong or did it start off wrong? You’ll have to read the book to make that decision. The atmosphere of the book makes you so uncomfortable, just knowing something isn’t right from the start. I don’t want to say too much about the plot because it’s best you go in blind. I went in not knowing much and I was shocked at all the twist. I wasn’t expecting half of what I read! The plot does move between timelines and narrators. Lowen, Jermey, and Verity all narrate, but it is very easy to decipher who is narrating at all times. Different viewpoints are in different fonts which was actually quite nice. The final 3 chapters of this book are some of the best ending chapters to a mystery I’ve read in a long time. The ending is the only part I didn’t love but I understand why it’s written the way it is. It’s a ending that leaves you to your own assumptions but that’s not a bad thing. I normally like a very complete and detailed ending but that wouldn’t go with this book. It keeps you guessing all the way to the last page.

I would give this book a 4.5 out of 5. Easily this book is one of the best mysteries I’ve read in the last few years. Mysteries are a hard genre for me because it takes a lot for me not to see twist coming. With Verity, I did see one or two twist coming but there was so much more I didn’t see! Please read this one! Make sure you’re in a comfy spot with plenty of time to spare because you won’t be about to put this one down!