I’m an Alice Feeney superfan reporting for responsibility with my Assessment with Spoilers for Lovely Ugly. How does this e book examine to Feeney’s different books and extra importantly, will you prefer it? Let’s talk about!
Jen’s Fast Tackle Lovely Ugly
- A basic Alice Feeney with psychological suspense, a pair with points, presumably untrustworthy characters, a Scottish setting, and plenty of Feeney-esque creepy and macabre particulars.
- New to Feeney: this can be a Suspense Story About an Writer
- I wasn’t completely offered on the ending (I’ll clearly talk about that within the spoiler part)
- However total, followers of Feeney’s expertise at gaslighting the reader and generally her personal characters is in full power right here.
- Reader advisory: there are some references to sexual abuse and violence within the e book
- To be printed on January 14, 2025 by Flatiron. Because of the writer for the advance copy for assessment.
- Additionally by Alice Feeney: Generally I Lie (2017), I Know Who You Are (2019) His & Hers (2020), Rock Paper Scissors (2021), Daisy Darker (2022), Good Dangerous Lady (2023)
- What’s the greatest e book by Alice Feeney? Let’s talk about!
Assessment with Spoilers for Lovely Ugly
Lovely Ugly begins on a really poignant be aware: writer Grady Inexperienced is ready for his spouse Abby to return house in order that they’ll rejoice his new bestselling novel.
As an alternative, she vanishes, leaving an deserted automobile with an eerie doll inside, its mouth sewn shut.
One 12 months later, Abby continues to be lacking.
Grady, affected by grief and author’s block, accepts his literary agent Kitty’s supply to make use of The Edge, her remoted writing cabin on the Isle of Amberly, Scotland.
In a typical suspense story, Grady would:
- head to the island
- attempt to clear up a many years previous homicide
- discover clues to his spouse’s disapparance
However that is an Alice Feeney e book and issues don’t transpire in any typical method!
Total, I felt this e book had similarities to Daisy Darker and Rock Paper Scissors, books with creepy, remoted settings, characters with secrets and techniques, and a LOT of gaslighting.
I’ll solely say extra in my protected spoiler part beneath!
Assessment with Spoilers for Lovely Ugly
Desk of Contents:
- Fast Plot Abstract: What Was Going On in This E-book?
- What Does Lovely Ugly Imply?
- Lovely Ugly: The Ending Defined (type to)
- How do YOU interpret the ending?
Fast Plot Abstract for Lovely Ugly
The Isle of Amberly, a part of the Scottish Hebrides islands, was a bizarre place, proper? Issues that appeared stranger and stranger:
- a ferry to the island twice every week, however no return ferry
- no phone or web
- solely twenty-five residents
After which issues get weirder:
- Shortly after his arrival, Grady finds a human hand beneath a unfastened board within the cottage.
- He additionally finds a manuscript written by Charles Whittaker, the author who owned the cottage earlier than Kitty.
- Then we be taught that, earlier than Abby’s dying, she was mendacity to Grady. About every little thing!
- AND Abby calls him from a damaged phone sales space. Okay!
- Then one of many residents tells him a man’s physique was discovered on shore a 12 months in the past
Different clues within the story:
- Grady retains seeing girls in crimson coats, similar to the one Abby wore
- The residents additionally put on silver rings with a thistle on them
- In some unspecified time in the future I observed Grady was the one man on the island
- The residents (besides Grady) comunicate by walkie-talkie
We get extra backstory on Abby:
- She was sexually abused by her piano instructor. When her mom found this, she hit the instructor over the pinnacle and he was by no means seen once more.
- Abby wrote a narrative about Cora, one of many island residents, who was despatched to jail for killing the person who sexually assaulted her daughter
- She wished a toddler however Grady didn’t
Grady comes to a decision
- As in lots of suspense books about authors, Grady decides to steal the Charles Gallagher’s story and rewrite it for himself.
- He then learns that Charles Whittaker took his personal life AND
- Sandy learn all of Whittaker’s first drafts. Did she learn the e book he stole? (YES!)
Grady learns extra of the island’s secrets and techniques
- Sandy tells Grady why there are not any kids on the island. Years in the past, there have been 13. Unsupervised by a drunken instructor, they hid in a sea cave and have been trapped by the tide and drowned.
- Grady leaves Sandy within the cave. If she drowns, he received’t get uncovered for stealing the manuscript
Abby reappears!
- Grady almost runs her over within the street.
- She doesn’t acknowledge or keep in mind him
- Abby is the proprietor of Lovely Ugly, the city pottery store
What’s Lovely Ugly?
The pottery store on the island. (Additionally the title of Grady’s new e book.)
Abby (Aubrey) says the identify is as a result of “life is gorgeous and life is ugly and we’ve got to be taught to stay with each side of the identical coin.”
What are the Buried Lovers?
When Abby and Grady have been renovating their house, the builders discovered “buried lovers,” a two-hundred 12 months ritual through which a pair would every put a set of garments plus cash and meals beneath a blanket after which bury it beneath the ground. This might assure they may discover it within the afterlife.
Grady informed the builders to throw every little thing out.
Grady places extra items collectively
- He finds a photograph of two residents of the island, plus Abby as a toddler
- He meets Travers, the lady Abby/Aubrey says she’s now married to
- BUT Abby isn’t actually Aubrey
- Grady additionally confesses that he had a vasectomy and might’t father kids
- And Grady reaches out to Kitty
Abby lastly DOES present up
- She tells him what occurred the evening she disappeared. Their marriage was failing however she was driving house to rejoice his bestseller
- She noticed a girl mendacity within the street
- Abby says SHE was accountable for the youngsters drowning. (She appears to have survivors’ guilt as a result of she was there and survived.)
- Arabella, the lady who killed her daughter’s attacker, runs the tavern.
- All the ladies on the island are there to begin over … with out males
- Abby gave beginning to a daughter, Holly, who will not be Grady’s little one
What Was the Ending of Lovely Ugly?
- Abby reveals that Grady was the one mendacity on the street the evening Abby disappeared. He then drugged her and threw her over a cliff.
- Kitty reveals up. She raised Abby after Abby’s mom took her personal life.
- Kitty was the lady abused by her piano instructor and Kitty’s mother reduce his palms off with an ax
- However thirty years later, he got here again to the island to be a substitute instructor.
- He got here again to Kitty’s cottage and located Abby, who fought again and injured him. Then Abby went to cover within the cave with Sandy’s daughter
- After the youngsters drowned, Sandy killed the instructor.
- Charles helped Sandy bury the physique
- Kitty and Abby left the island, and Kitty married Charles Whittaker
- After Abby disappeared, Kitty got here again to the island and located her.
- Kitty vowed to destroy Grady
What?? I do know. However there’s extra:
- Grady explains why he tried to kill Abby: he discovered a optimistic being pregnant check within the trash and knew the infant wasn’t his
- Abby did IDF with a donor and was going to inform Grady concerning the child
- Kitty says he can keep on the island and write books if all the cash goes to the island. Since Charles died, the island wants cash, as his e book proceeds had been supporting the island
- A 12 months later, Grady is writing books
- Then Grady thinks he wakes up in a coffin. He informed Abby that his best worry was being buried alive. Is it a dream? Or is life simply Lovely Ugly?
What do you consider all this?
- Is the entire thing simply Grady hallucinating on Lavatory Myrtle Tea?
- Is the entire thing Grady’s e book, Lovely Ugly?
- Or is all of it a feminist vengeance story and did Grady actually get buried alive? Is that this punishment for his destruction of the Buried Lovers (and attempting to kill Abby?)
Inform me in feedback!