Our Kind of Cruelty: A Novel

There us a Latin phrase, "Ei libellum," or "Go, little book," which means that once a book has left the author's hands, its interpretation is out of the author's control. I suspect that is especially true of this book. Ms. Hall said she wrote the first draft of this book in a rage against the male patriarchy. But the real theme of the text itself is the peril of bad sex signaling. Many reviewers have pointed out that there is great ambiguity in this book. There certainly is, but I am not sure that was Hall's intention. For example, the most likeable character in the book, Kaitlyn, dresses like a model, invites the protagonist, Mike Hardy, to lunch, and chats him up whenever she can. Not surprisingly, Mike concludes that she is hot for him. Yet in her spectacularly irrelevant testimony at Mike's trial, she states that she is a lesbian. Hall probably wants to play with the reader -- and Mike -- to show how perceptions can go awry. But the text itself offers another possibility -- that kaitlyn is bi-sexual and is really hitting on Mike. It is not clear whether Hall even thought of this possibility. Again, Hall seems to want us to think that her heroine e( heavy-handedly named "Verity") is the naïve, innocent victim of an evil stalker. But the text suggests that Verity is dishonest, incompetently manipulative, a tease, and emotionally stupid. She is also a little mean, something that Hall's title seems to recognize. She is the victim of some extremely dumb charges and the worst court room farce I read about in fiction, but she is hardly the paragon of truth Hall would have us think she is. Moreover, Mike is not the monster Hall wants him to be, but is sick and pathetic with a streak of decency. As a lawyer, I cringed at a trial where the only real issue is whether Mike used excessive force in defending himself against a home invasion, but here three or four days are devoted to his social and sex life. This does bring up a point thought. Hall could have written a novella consisting only of Chapter 3, and it would have been a better book. all the information in the first two chapters is rehashed over and over again at the trial. The biggest ambiguity of all is that Mike's assessment of V. may not be delusional. I can imagine that when Mike and Verity get out of prision, they will get married, have six kids, and then one of them will kill the other.

I cannot believe the ending, it was a shock! During the entire book,I assumed it would go one way and it did not!!

I was excited to read this book because it was recommended by Gillian Flynn, and "Gone Girl" is one of my favorite books. However, although "Our Kind of Cruelty" kept me interested to the end, I didn't like it nearly as much I expected to. It's definitely not another "Gone Girl," and I will probably soon forget about it. I love dark, twisted, psychological thrillers, and this book was a G-rated version of a dark and twisted thriller. (I don't understand how Gillian Flynn could think it was dark and twisted.) It's written in first person from the perspective of a man who is obsessively in love with a woman named Verity, and I found myself liking the protagonist, Mike, even though he is out of touch with reality. He had a horrible childhood, yet turned himself into a successful man who seems to respect women and who adores Verity in particular. What I didn't like in the book was the character of Verity. I found Verity to be way too bland, "good," "perfect," and predictable. I wished that Verity was more complex, and I think the book would have been more interesting if the author had added chapters written from her perspective that revealed Verity had a dark side, too. As it is, there is nothing to indicate that Verity is anything less than perfect; Verity is a "good girl" who ends up married to a wealthy, wonderful husband that cherishes her. How boring! No twists or turns or secrets in this book; it's all very predictable and straightforward.

Mikey is a person who has mental issues due to a bad childhood. He is so delusional, I do not understand why his lawyer did not try him for a mental insanity defense. Getting him out early without psychiatric help was bad for him, Verity and any other people he becomes involved with after his release. I am not sure how I feel about Verity. Sometimes I felt bad for her and sometimes I felt she was definitely to blame for what happen. She was supposedly a smart person, then why not call the police at the very beginning? She seems to me that she had some mental issues also. An attention seeker, who was a rich spoiled brat. Why would she invite Mikey to the wedding? Who does that? Unless you are a complete jerk. Why would her fiance allow Mikey to attend their wedding? Especially if he knew Mikey was still in love with Verify. Stupid people. I have to say that I enjoyed this book. It is a quick read.

This stellar novel takes stalking beyond the physical and into the mind of a successful banker with a troubled childhood and a naive and delusional fixation on a woman. Mike and Verity meet in college, form a multi-year exclusive relationship that includes sexual games and experiments. He believes these escapades elevate their relationship beyond those of others and that they literally know the other's thoughts. As they advance professionally, Mike is determined to provide what he thinks he must to measure up to her standards and takes a job in New York. As two years pass, Mike thinks of nothing but her, emailing and calling all the time, but she has become weary of his demands to know every move she makes in London. On his first night back in London, he confesses that he was unfaithful to her. ... once. Verity tells him it's over but Mike believes she is just punishing him for his bad behavior. He understands. She is rightfully angry and he will make it right. Mike is in perpetual denial. He calls, he emails, he sends flowers and gets no response. In truth, Verity has met someone else but even when Mike receives an invitation to her wedding to another man, he believes the wording is a message for him to decode and she is telling him ... Something. The wedding is cringeworthy reading as Mike tries to fit the visual of it into his narrative, even waiting in the receiving line to search Verity's eyes for a signal. It is the literary multi-car pile up.. You don't want to read it but can't help yourself. If you think nothing good will come from this, you are right. The author doesn't give the reader one bit of relief as Mike's delusions lead to disaster. The larger lesson in this novel is how often the signs are there for everyone to see .. sometimes for years, but by the time anyone takes action, it is too late. One of the absolute best novels of the year.

This was a good read overall, but I felt it drug out too much. Details are good, but this one didn’t leave me waiting to get back to it quickly anytime I had to get away from it. Verity was not really relatable. Maybe her character wasn’t developed enough for me. Mike was crazy and obsessed but I can see why. And the acknowledgements….blah. No thanks with the #MeToo crap.

Probably unfair to review a DNF, but here goes: So far -- I'm a bit past halfway -- this is endless, repetitive, dull, unoriginal, boring, one-sided narrative. Will it lead anywhere? Who knows. Is there a "twist" coming? Maybe, but who cares. I can't anymore. Just cannot. I have plodded through the first half waiting, hoping, for SOMETHING to actually happen. Given that even close two two-thirds of the way through I still have no sympathy for or interest in ANY of the characters, all of whom, so far, are two-dimensional stock types, I'm not sure anything could really happen now to make me care one way or another about the fate of any of these supposed people. Also, think I'm pretty much done with the "unreliable narrator" trope.

I truly enjoyed this book from beginning to end. It was a story of obsessive love from the man's point of view. Mike had a very hard childhood but became successful. He met Verity, his perfect match, according to him, in university. They had a very twisted relationship. There were parts of the book that made you sad and parts that were just hilarious. Mike's inner monologue was very entertaining at times. We don't know all of Verity's thoughts, since the book is told from Mike's point of view. She comes across as very selfish and he comes across as easily manipulated by her. Some serious issues occur and I must admit that I felt very badly for Mike throughout the book. I absolutely loved the ending. I would definitely read another book by this author.

Well written and constructed thriller with an underlying sexuality manifested via an kinky game - "crave".

I didn't quite know what to expect with with this book. It is very cleverly written ,in that ,the end was unexpected. It makes you realise that you never quite understand exactly what's going on in a person's mind.

Loved it. I can see how some readers compare it to "YOU" but other than the main characters having obsession/delusions, they are different stories. Saying it is a 'thriller' about a guy being obsessed with his ex is doing it a disservice and assigning it an inapt genre. It's more a character piece that is upgraded to 5 Stars by the author's talent and skill at presenting a self-illusory man convincing himself that his dream woman is within his grasp. Throw in The Crave and the reader has to work harder to decipher what/where this tale is heading. It is thought-provoking and also adds a bit of moral double-standard to the mix during the Third Part. I loved that the ending didn't go where I was expecting it to go and will no doubt leave many readers wondering about V's role in the story

Well written and insightful but much too verbose. It could do with a good pruning. The trial is not plausible enough; although manipulated to highlight the plot, that detracts from the credibility of the work.

Didn't finish it as the book became boring. Mikey's delusional belief in V's passion for him simply became tedious.