A fun, suspenseful novel where nothing terrible, or horrible happens! There were a few twists.
My only real problem was the fact that the plot would thicken nicely, and then the author would switch to a different character POV, which drained all the tension and excitement that had built up. Overall, i did enjoy the book.

"Thank you to the publisher for providing an eARC of this book."

Full of plot twists, it is difficult to decide which of the two main characters to sympathize. One born into privilege one raised on the wrong side of the tracks--but, both paths come with their own set of challenges. Knowing who to trust and trusting who you love can be difficult to navigate. "Pretty Things" keeps you guessing until the end. Throughout, you are left to grapple with who is in the right and who caused the most hurt.

I would recommend this to anyone that enjoys a *light* thriller. It won't keep you up at night or have you double checking that your doors are locked, but it will keep you interested.

This book was received as an ARC from Random House Publishing Group - Random House in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.

At first the description and cover in my opinion was extremely misleading but in the best way possible. Pretty Things tells the story of Nina a criminal destined to continue the feat her mother started years ago, Vanessa an heiress that is set to make her mark on this world and Lachlan Nina's boyfriend and partner and crime. They all meet in Lake Tahoe and realize that they have more in common than they think. They all must band together on the brink of survival and their fate rest in their hands alone. It was such a thrill to read and I could not believe all the plot twists and outcome of this book. I know our community will appreciate this book and we can't wait to share it with them.

We will consider adding this title to our Adult Fiction collection at our library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.

I absolutely loved this book! A fascinating psychological exploration of (mainly) two women that veers into thriller territory at times. It kept me spellbound and interested, and surprised me several times. My one critique- it could have been about 40 pages shorter, particularly at the end, but that didn't detract from my enjoyment of the novel. Well done!

This is going to be one of the biggest hits of the 2020 year in books. It is a fast paced buzz book that focuses on social influencers and all the drama and psychological twists that can come with it, which is THE thing right now. But I am so glad it was written, because it got me hook, line and sinker.

The book is done from different POV and timelines, which is becoming a "thing" recently that I am all for. Nina is a con artist and Vanessa is a rich influencer. How their paths cross and what comes from this collusion will leave you stuck to your seat to the very last page.

I immediately went to grab the other books she has written and I cannot wait for more to come. I don't want to delve to deeply into the plot, because the more blind you go in, the better it will be. What I can say is go, go now and get this book as soon as it comes out.

This isn't a high-minded literary novel, but it is a completely of-the-moment, juicy page turner with true emotional stakes, believable characters, twists that are legitimately surprising but actually make sense, and a satisfying ending. I loved it.

It's rare that tech is woven so naturally into a story - Pretty Things didn't feel forced or clunky and kept me up reading well past my bedtime. So glad to have found this and will be looking for more of Janelle Brown's writing.

I absolutely loved this book! Full of twists and turns, I never knew who was conning who or what to believe by the end! The writing invoked empathy even for characters I wasn't supposed to like, and I became so invested in their lives I was sad to reach the end.
We have a wealthy heiress, her brother in an institution, a mom and daughter who have learned the art of the con, and the daughter's partner in crime. All this adds up to many tricks, surprises, and things I never could have predicted which I love in a good mystery/fiction novel. I found it intriguing and almost refreshing in the world of mysteries these days and I would highly highly recommend it! Good read to start the new year, and thank you for the ARC!

I almost finished this on a long flight tonight.We landed with about 25 pages to go! I was actually mad we landed. I loved it. A fresh thriller with the classic, rich girl, poor girl theme. It is told from both perspectives. It has crime, fraud, revenge and everything you need to keep your interest. I received this with no promise of a favorable review. It bit really wild at the end but has a nice wrap up..I highly recommend it.

This book was all right...It started off slow and picked up as "Ashley" (Nina) and "Michael" (Lachlan) try to hoodwink the older sister of Nina's former flame to steal millions of dollars...but somewhere it felt like the story lost its way. I'd say about 75% was compelling but the beginning 10% and end were somewhat lackluster, as if the author needed to somehow wrap it up and just threw it together. Overall, it wasn't a bad read.

This is a great thriller. It has all the things that you would want in one. So many plot twist and shockers. So many hidden pasts stories. I wasn't sure how I felt about the dual narrative because it just around in the timeline so much but it really does work well once the story progresses and you learn what is really going on and what each of the character's motive are. With each person having their own secrets it is hard to distinguish who the bad guy is.

Highly recommend!

Review Coming Soon. Just finished and kept me interested. I will update shortly with critique of book overall a good read

Holy cow!! Wow, what a book! This is such a great book, that is truly original, realistic, and had so many important topics weaved throughout! One of my top reads this year, so many layers, like peeling an artichoke to get to the heart and enjoying it so much! I highly, highly recommend, especially if you love those books revolving around those on opposite ends of social spectrums with some past they hope to avenge! Don’t delay, preorder today!! This is one you WILL NOT WANT TO MISS! Mind blowing good, unputdownable, riveting, only behinds to describe it!
Will be sure to rave this book up everywhere I can!

This novel could not be more relevant for our time, as it explores the topics of financial strain, the 1%, social media, our deception and disconnection with each other. I especially enjoyed the Rashomon type switching of POVs, which lent insight into the characters' psyche and motivations and highlights the fact that we all experience the same situations entirely differently based off of our own psychology. The plot and pacing keep you racing through the novel, and upon the final twist and completion, you'll find yourself looking up the author's other works.

**Advanced Readers Copy provided in exchange for an honest review**

This psychological thriller is EASILY poised to be one of the best books of 2020! What lengths would you go to to save a life — and settle the score of past transgressions? Janelle Brown offers up a juicy, twisted tale about revenge and redemption, with flawed, complex characters who couldn’t be more opposite of each other: an elite Instagram influencer and a high-stakes scam artist. You definitely need to add this book to your must-read list!

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

A wonderful book ! Nina who is attending a school on scholarship meets her first love, a wealthy young boy and has dreams of attending a prestigious college . These dreams are crushed when her con artist mother abruptly moves them. Nina does attend college an earns an art degree . She returns home when her Mother is diagnosed with cance. Unfortunately, Nina does not have the money to pay for her mothers treatment. Her Mother introduces her to Lachlan and Nina and Lachlan team up together to steal from wealthy individuals so that Nina can pay for her Mothers treatments.
They choose Vanessa who is the sister of her first boyfriend. Vanessa is a heires who is an instagram influencer. When Nina and Lachlan begin to scam Vanessa the plot becomes very interesting with several twists and a good ending.
I enjoyed reading this book very much. And cannot wait to read another book by this author.. a book you do not want to put down.
I received this book from Netgalley for a review.

Mark my words - Pretty Things will be a hugely popular book in 2020 - it has all the trappings of a buzz book right now - social media influencers & backstabbing relationships - BUT, the key factor here is the writing. Janelle Brown has crafted a story that will hook readers from page one and entertain and engage them through the absolute final page.

Told in alternating perspectives and timelines, we meet Nina and Vanessa - a con artist and a rich influencer. But the connections these two have might surprise you and at a minimum, will intrigue & captivate you. Each woman is so finely written that they offer their own voices and becoming truly distinct individuals.

Upon finishing Pretty Things, I immediately ran to check out all of Brown's backlist and will be eager to see what she does next!

I was expecting a thriller, and it certainly had those elements, but at the root it was really a story about two women, Nina and Vanessa, struggling to make sense of their families and pasts and heal from their pain. Nina is a grifter, moving from city to city ripping off the wealthy of their excess, and Vanessa is an Instagram influencer who, shocking, is deeply miserable and dealing with a lot of family trauma. It's no surprise how these two connect, but it was really so much more than that. I was in constant state of oscillation between theories of who is the victim, who to root for, and how things will turn out for these characters. Even though the first chapter opens up with a body being dumped into the lake, it was a little slow in the beginning, but by the time the plot picked up I was very invested in these characters. Also, most of the novel is set in my beloved Lake Tahoe, so reading this one almost felt like taking a vacation to one of my favorite places. You know, without the murder and scams.

Honestly I didn't like this one as well as Watch Me Disappear. The characters didn't seem quite as well developed, and although we get a reasonable amount of info on Nina's background, I never feel like we get to know her, really. Which maybe is the point given her background and "occupation." This seemed to move pretty slowly up until about 2/3 of the way through the book, but then the rest moves quickly to a pretty satisfying conclusion. I would definitely read her next book but would hope for better characters.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the author, for an ARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review.
I thought this book was a very well written, original, twisty and addictive novel.
I will definitely be reading more books by this author.