Book Review: The Fiction Writer by Jillian Cantor

 

Title: The Fiction Writer

Author: Jillian Cantor

Pages: 304

Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2023

Source: NetGalley

GoodReads Description: From the USA Today-bestselling author of Beautiful Little Fools, Jillian Cantor's The Fiction Writer follows a writer hired by a handsome billionaire to write about his family history with Daphne du Maurier and finds herself drawn into a tangled web of obsession, marital secrets, and stolen manuscripts.

The once-rising literary star Olivia Fitzgerald is down on her luck. Her most recent novel—a retelling of Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca—was a flop, her boyfriend of nine years just dumped her and she’s battling a bad case of writer’s block. So when her agent calls her with a high-paying ghostwriting opportunity, Olivia is all too willing to sign the NDA.

At first, the write-for-hire job seems too good to be true. All she has to do is interview Henry “Ash” Asherwood, a reclusive mega billionaire, twice named People’s Sexiest Man Alive, who wants her help in writing a book that reveals a shocking secret about his late grandmother and Daphne du Maurier. But when Olivia arrives at his Malibu estate, nothing is as it seems. The more Olivia digs into his grandmother’s past, the more questions she has—and before she knows it, she’s trapped in a gothic mystery of her own.

With as many twists and turns as the California coast, The Fiction Writer is a thriller that explores the boundaries of creative freedom and whose stories we have the right to tell.

My Review:

I love me a book about books!

This was a fun and entertaining read, inspired by Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier. The author in the book is also inspired by her, so it is ironic that she finds herself in a Rebecca-esque situation herself with the "sexiest man alive."

As a side note, I got very annoyed with how many times she referred to Henry Asherwood as the "sexiest man alive."

Olivia is the main character and her re-telling of Rebecca just failed miserably. Now she can't even get anyone to publish her third novel. So when Henry Asherwood comes knocking offering her a writing job, she can't turn it down. Even as things get weird...

As the title hints, this book is a book for people who love reading about writers and classic novels. However, even if that's not your thing, this book was entertaining as a thriller as well. Solid 4 stars.