This story follows two very different women, one is a con artist and one who is a mega Instagram influencer. Their paths cross when Nina is looking for her next big target and Vanessa, an heiress who flaunts her wealth on social media becomes the perfect hit.

Nina’s mother is battling cancer so Nina is looking for a way to bring home money and fast. With the help of her friend, Lachlan, they plan a scheme to gain Vanessa’s trust so they can gain access to her Lake Tahoe estate. Nina and Lachlan pretend to be a couple from Oregon, using the names Ashley and Micheal, they rent the cottage on Vanessa’s property so they can do some reconnaissance. Little do they know, Vanessa isn’t as naive as she seems and has plans of her own for these two.

This was a massive book at just under 500 pages, but it was full of twists and kept me intrigued throughout. I listened to the audiobook for many of the chapters and really enjoyed the narrators. This story was so clever and so entertaining! Thank you Netgalley and Random House for this copy, this book was published on 4/21/20. I just learned that Nicole Kidman is set to star in this soon to be TV series and I can’t wait!

I really enjoyed Pretty Things! It was a good character story about family and who you can really trust. Plus there was back and forth on the twist so it felt like a fast read you didn’t want to put down.

I thought the idea was cute but the execution was so hokey. The silly twist at the end, her mother's character. It was so bad. I liked the grifter angle but it fell flat at every point and didn't explore some obvious points of interest.

Pretty Things is a literary suspense told from two POVs - Vanessa, a lonely rich heiress who makes her money as an Instagram influencer, and Nina, the daughter of a con-artist who can’t seem to escape her mother’s grifting ways. With a full cast of complex characters and twists you’ll never see coming, there is no way of knowing who is actually scamming who until the very end.

propulsive and compelling. I could not stop reading and I couldn't tell you the last time I couldn't stop reading a book with such an unlikeable cast of characters! Each was worse than the last but I could not look away.
And then the end! Twist! Twist! Twist! Twist! Well done.

I want to be vague about this book....telling too much would ruin the ending. So just let me say if the jumping around in the story frustrates you, the ending makes it worthwhile.

This book had everything I love—mother daughter drama, relationships, flawed/awful but likable characters, and a hint of glitz and glamor.

*I received an eARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my review. All opinions are my own.*

I've had this one on my TBR pile for a while, and I heard about it quite a bit at PLA, so I was pretty excited to read it. Not to mention, the cover just drew me in. Unfortunately, it didn't live up to the hype for me. Not that it was a bad book, it just didn't keep me enthralled like I thought I would.

The premise of the story is that Nina and her boyfriend decide to pull off a massive scam in order to pay for healthcare for Nina's dying mother (who, conveniently taught her everything she knows about scamming people). Her victim: Vanessa, the clueless sister of Nina's high school boyfriend. The story is somewhat told in alternating points of view between Vanessa and Nina, and honestly both women kind of suck. It's hard to feel sorry for anyone in this book because they're all pretty awful in their own ways.

Nina chose to scam Vanessa because her parents treated Nina badly when they found out she was sleeping with their son. The whole book was based on teenage revenge/angst and it didn't feel like enough of a reason to me to ruin the girl's life. But Vanessa wasn't exactly a peach either. I feel like I knew what was going to happen long before the book ended, and that sort of took the fun out of it for me.

All in all it's not an awful book, and I would definitely try more of Brown's work.

Loved this! Social media influencers, grifters, and a creepy mountain house what is not to love. It immediately drew me in and I couldn't put it down. It did feel a little long at times and some of the sections felt repetitive but overall I really enjoyed it.

Nina Ross is desperate to save her mother's life, but her degree in Art History doesn't really bring in the big money. So she joins the family business of being a grifter. She has paired up with Lachlan, a handsome Irish conman, in order to pay the mounting medical bills from her mother's cancer. Just when Nina thought that they were in the clear and the cancer was in remission, they get devastating news. Nina and Lachlan decide to go for the big whale. A wealthy heiress in Lake Tahoe. They plan and scheme and set off for Tahoe to run the biggest con of their lives. But this isn't the first time that Nina has been to Lake Tahoe, in fact, this isn't the first time that she has been to the majestic Stonehaven on the shores of Lake Tahoe. She isn't there just to land the big whale, she is there to settle some old scores. But is she really ready to risk everything for revenge?

Pretty Things by Janelle Brown is a masterpiece of deception and revenge. Told from the alternating viewpoints of Nina and Vanessa you get inside the heads of two desperate women with secrets they want to be kept hidden. From the very first introduction of Lachlan, I felt that he was a slimeball. Something about him just made me feel icky. There were so many twists and turns in this epic story that more than once I found my gaping open. There was one particular revelation about Nina's mother that just left me speechless. -CLICK HERE FOR SPOILERS. I was very, very pleased with the ending. It felt justified and just right.

Bottom Line - Pretty Things needs to be on everybody's summer reading list. It is an engrossing story that will keep you guessing at every turn of the page. And those kinds of books make for the perfect escape, do they not?

Details:
Pretty Things by Janelle Brown
On Instagram
Pages: 496
Publisher: Random House
Publication Dae: 4/21/2020
Buy it Here!
Thank you to NetGalley for the book in exchange for an honest review.

How on earth did I forget to review this earlier??? This was one of my favorite reads of 2020 so far and I'm thrilled to hear its already been optioned as a movie!
Its another book that is heavily social media influenced and I loved every single minute of it. Yes its long but the story of Nina and Vanessa needs to be told. Its told from both view points and in different timelines and it woven together like a tapestry. Both characters jumped off the pages and I truly became invested in them and in their stories.
Such a great read and I recommend to everyone.

What do you get when you combine a grifter, an heiress, A con job, and revenge? You get an entertaining fast-paced story with well drawn characters and a gripping storyline. This is a 496 page book, 16 hours on audio, and it flew by! I was completely invested with these characters and their shenanigans. Nina knows the con, she was taught by the best, her mother. Nina has tried to avoid the life, but now that her mother’s cancer has reemerged it is time for one last BIG con. Vanessa appears to have it all, but things aren’t always as they seem. She has live a glamorous life filled with money and glitz. Now a popular Instagram influencer Vanessa travels around in gorgeous clothes with the beautiful people. But behind all this is a lot of grief and after her engagement is called off things really start to fall apart. The two women’s lives collide on the shores of Lake Tahoe and what follows is a captivating and compelling tale.

Janellel Brown has crafted a unique and refreshing story of misdirection, betrayal, revenge, blackmail, and contempt. Julia Walen and Lauren Fortgang did a wonderful job with the audiobook narration bringing the perfect voices to these characters. I loved how this story unfolded. So many WTF moments and a perfect ending. This is the perfect poolside escapist read.

This book in emojis 🏔 🎨 🤳🏼 🗝 💅🏻

*** Big thank you to Random House for my gifted copy of this book. All opinions are my own. ***

This one was much more character driven than I anticipated. I was expecting a full blown thriller, but it was much slower than that. I am not a huge fan of detailed writing and this had a lot of detail.

I heard great things about it, but I don’t think it was for me! I enjoyed the ending but felt it could have been 100 pages shorter.

This book blew me away! I loved everything about it! 5/5 and I highly recommend this to anyone who reads!! From beginning to end I was continuously guessing what was going to happen next. Great work Janelle!

Pretty Things by Janelle Brown is a modern, character driven story of class and revenge.

Nina had dreams and aspirations. but as the daughter of a con artist, she eventually falls into her mother's line of work. Nina's world threatens to implode when her mother falls ill. Desperate to save her mother, she and her boyfriend Lachlan plan a job much larger and riskier than anything they have done in the past. A job that will see Nina return to Lake Tahoe where she once lived.

Vanessa was born with a silver spoon in her mouth. Never having had to worry about money she travels the world as a fashion influencer, modeling clothing and products given to her by top design houses in exchange for a spot on her popular Instagram feed. When her engagement is broken, she retreats to Stonehaven - the mansion she inherited on the shores of Lake Tahoe, but was the setting for some of the most traumatic events in her life.

As these women come together, their pasts and the present meld into a tale of desperation and revenge, double-handedness and deceit.

I struggled to get into the story. It wasn't until about half way that it started to pick up for me. Part of the problem was my personal situation and reaction during the COVID adjustments, but I think that only intensified the slow start of this book for me. Once I reached the half-way mark and the story started to take shape, it become more enjoyable, and by the end I was quite enjoying it; so even though slow to start the ending was strong.

Character development for this novel was one of the things about it I did enjoy. As the story unfolds we see in both women aspects of victim and villain. Both have been shaped by their life experiences and seeing each from different perspectives gives depth and dimension to them and to the story.

The plot was strong and had some good twists to keep the reader on their toes. The ending was clean and satisfying.

All in all, while slow to start, this novel was a solid character driven thriller with an exciting and satisfying conclusion.


Happy Reading,
Christine

I finally read the ARC I had of this book, but quite a while after it had already come out because I kept seeing such great reviews on it...however, this book just didn’t do it for me. I enjoyed the unique premise, the snowy setting, and there were certainly a few surprises along the way, but I felt like the ending was predictable and pretty abrupt, given the lengthiness of the rest of the book. It could easily have been at least 100 pages shorter and the reader would have lost nothing of importance. It took me a long time to finish this one because I kept picking up other books to read instead of it, because I just kept getting bored. So many have loved this one though, so please don’t take my word for it, read for yourself if the plot entices you. (I do love that cover!)

This was a fun read. It kept my interest throughout and I enjoyed the main character. If you're looking for a nice, easy distraction -- this is a good pick. I didn't love the way the story wrapped - but I didn't dislike it enough to ruin the fun I had reading and getting to the end.

› Nina is an L.A. swindler. Steals objects from the rich to keep her and her mother afloat. She learned how to con from her mother, who has cancer for the third time and needs expensive treatment. When the police come looking for her, Nina and her boyfriend, Lachlan, embark on their biggest con yet. They rent a cottage on Lake Tahoe. A cottage Nina's been before. A cottage on a family estate that has a secret safe with a million dollars. An estate called Stonehaven, owned by Vanessa.

Vanessa is a "billionaire baby" Instagram influencer. Many of us think rich kids have it easy, but Vanessa's had a tragic life. Her parents are dead. Her brother, Benny, lives in a psychiatric ward since being diagnosed with schizophrenia. After her engagement is called off, she moves to her family estate in the mountains called Stonehaven. Feeling lonely, she decides to rent out the cottage on the estate to a lovely couple, Ashley and Michael...or, as we know them, Nina and Lachlan.

›
Characters: 9 (would have liked more diversity)
Atmosphere: 10
Writing Style: 10 (I love that some passages are told from Nina's perspective, then re-told from Vanessa's perspective)
Plot: 7 (feels long for a thriller)
Intrigue: 8 (meandering plot at times)
Logic: 8
Enjoyment: 8

› Final Thoughts
• At almost 500 pages, Pretty Things is one of the longest thrillers I've ever read. I feel like there are large chunks that could have been left out, and it would have created a more intriguing and faster-moving plot. However, it IS worth it because in the end this is a twisty, atmospheric story about revenge, love, family and legacy. ★★★★ Highly recommend! This kind of reminded me of The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewell, The Last Time I Lied by Riley Sager and The Death of Mrs. Westaway by Ruth Ware.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the complimentary copy in exchange for my honest review.

A grifter, an heiress and a fake boyfriend tangled up in a con of a lifetime. How exciting does that sound?

This was quite the enthralling read where you may just never know who the con or the mark may be and that is just the beginning. This was ingeniously told story about complex flawed characters with amazing back stories. The book was told in the point of view of two women whose paths have crossed once more in a very intricate story telling that was exciting as it was twisted in a very good way.

Nina, raised by her mother who was a small time con, promised to never follow her mother’s future. However, burdened with school loans, unable to find a job, and a sick mom with piling medical bills, Nina pushed to desperation does what she knows best and what seems to run in her blood - run a con.

Vanessa, an heiress to a dwindling family fortune, tries to keep appearances as an Instagram Influencer living the life of luxury by traveling the world, modeling expensive clothes and fancy cars, and living in the mansion she inherited after the recent death of her father. Unbeknownst to the outside world, the coffers were long empty.

I enjoyed reading this book for many reasons: the modern aspect of the story where one of the characters was an influencer, the thrilling and unpredictable plot twists, and the story told in alternating POVs of the women inspiring a story of our generation that is clever and unsettling.

Quick plot driven read. Had several twists that were set up well. Definitely see it being optioned for a movie. Setting was vivid and dramatic.