"Anatomy of Desire" by LR Dorn offers a chilling exploration of obsession and manipulation set against the backdrop of a prestigious medical school. The characters in the novel are deeply flawed and morally ambiguous, making for a captivating and unpredictable read. Dorn excels at creating a tense and atmospheric setting, immersing readers in the cutthroat world of academia where ambition and desire collide with devastating consequences.

Dorn's writing style is sharp and incisive, with prose that crackles with tension and suspense. The plot of "Anatomy of Desire" unfolds with a series of twists and turns, as secrets are revealed and alliances shift in unexpected ways. While the logic behind some of the characters' decisions may strain credulity at times, the overall intrigue and suspense of the novel keep readers hooked until the very end. The relationships between the characters are fraught with power dynamics and hidden agendas, adding depth and complexity to the narrative.

Overall, "Anatomy of Desire" is a gripping and thought-provoking thriller that will keep readers guessing until the final page. While the novel may not break new ground in terms of its plot or themes, Dorn's skillful storytelling and richly drawn characters make for a thoroughly enjoyable reading experience. Fans of psychological suspense and medical dramas will find much to love in "Anatomy of Desire."

Initially, I was disappointed when I saw the format that this was written in but it was actually easy to follow and understand how the story was unfolding. This did end up being a little middle of the road but overall I enjoyed my experience with this book and would potentially read from this author again.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for gifting me an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Ahhh I really wanted to like this. This book was all over and, I believe, it was a book of the month pick. I really wanted to read it because of that, and I was lucky enough to get it on here. Unfortunately, I did not enjoy the story or the characters. My hopes were a little crushed.

*Thank you @williammorrowbooks for the copy in exchange for an honest review. Review not posted to Amazon/Goodreads because less than 4 stars or DNF.*

At first I had trouble getting into the book as it was written as a retelling of the events that occurred in documentary style through interviewing the various characters. It kept my attention though and was a fast paced story which allowed the reader to draw one’s own conclusions as to truth or lie. It was a “reimagined” telling of the novel “An American Tragedy” putting a different and more modern spin on this take which was originally based on true events. I can’t say that I ever truly emphasized with any of the characters but that was really the author’s intent, I believe. I enjoyed the book.

I am a huge fan of alternative storytelling styles in books, so epistolary novels, scripts, etc are a big draw for me. Especially if the author can still infuse enough personality given that format and this was fascinating.

Being told through interview and podcast narration, this is a very timely take on a timely topic. The research into the influecer side of our current culture was clear, which gave this book a lot of authenticity, This also meshes current culture, legal thriller, and suspense with a drama filled cast of characters.

The full cast narrated audiobook also comes highly recommended from many other reviewers, but I found I enjoyed reading the script and would like to listen sometime too.

Written in the style of a docu-series, the story takes you through the investigation and trial of Cleo Ray, an up and coming social media influencer who’s on trial for the murder of her former girlfriend. Was Cleo looking to get rid of Beck because her new boyfriend, Sandy Finch, could help her achieve the social media success she was looking for, or was Beck’s drowning just a terrible accident? A great story with an interesting premise. I listened to some of the audiobook while reading this and, with a full cast, it was really well done.

Wow! That’s the first word that comes to mind after listening to the full cast audiobook production of L.R. Dorn’s The Anatomy of Desire. I wasn’t sure what to expect going into this novel, but was surprised by what I encountered. The Anatomy of Desire is a modern retelling of Theodore Dresier’s An American Tragedy, which was inspired by the 1906 murder of Grace Brown at the hands of her lover. Literally told in the form of a TV doc-series, The Anatomy of Desire follows the trial of Cleo Ray, social media fit-fluencer, who is accused of murdering her girlfriend Beck Alden on a canoe excursion. Narrated in an interview style by the many friends, relatives, and lawyers involved in this case, The Anatomy of Desire is quite unlike anything I have ever had the privilege of reading.

While not everyone is a fan of retellings, I think it works exceptionally well in this case, as L.R. Dorn has completely modernized Dresier’s 1925 novel of the 1906 murder. Telling this story through the lens of a docu-series camera was a fantastic way to bring this century-old tale into the modern age. While the original murder was prompted due to unmarried Grace Brown’s clandestine pregnancy, the scandal at the heart of The Anatomy of Desire is Cleo and Beck’s secret lesbian relationship. Additionally, letters written from Grace Brown to her lover were used in the trial as evidence, whereas in The Anatomy of Desire, emails exchanged between the two girls helped paint a picture of what transpired between them. While many of the details between the Grace Brown murder and this novel remain the same - the murder takes place in a canoe on a lake; the accused murderer used an alias to rent the canoe; both suspects’ accounts of what happened on the lake place the blame on the victim and proclaim it was an accident - The Anatomy of Desire feels fresh enough to make this story feel wholly new and original.

The Anatomy of Desire is a must-listen-to! I am not sure how well this novel would translate to a print format, as the many narrators are constantly changing and telling their version of events. I imagine that it would make for a confusing reading experience, but as far as listening experiences go, The Anatomy of Desire takes the cake! This audiobook utilizes a talented full cast to tell the story of Cleo and Beck, and is so realistic, I felt as if I were actually listening to a true crime docu-series produced for Netflix. The Anatomy of Desire is ear candy, and comes highly recommended for an audiobook aficionado.

It took me a little while to settle into The Anatomy of Desire’s format, as it was so unlike anything I had ever listened to before, but once I was in, I was all in. I found this audiobook to be engaging and interesting, and especially appreciated that it was based on a real-life case. I enjoyed discovering the parallels between the real case and the imagined, and I recommend this book to any and all fans of true crime.

After reading the blurb, I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect from this book, but I ended up enjoying it quite a bit. It tells the story of the Cleo Ray murder trial, with Cleo being a popular fitness “influencer” on social media accused of killing her girlfriend.

THE ANATOMY OF DESIRE is like a true crime podcast/documentary, and I knew after seeing the format of interview transcripts that I should switch to audiobook. The audio was so well done! Even with 14 different narrators, it wasn’t difficult to tell the many characters apart. The performances made the characters seem very real.

A large part of this book is the courtroom drama and ensuing social media circus. Though not usually my thing, I found Cleo’s trial quite fascinating. I kept going back and forth over whether I thought she was innocent or guilty as the trial progressed. The ending took me by surprise, for sure. Recommended to fans of unique and thought-provoking mysteries.

I was immediately pulled in by both the description and cover of this novel. As a true crime fan, it had me hooked before I even started. The Anatomy of Desire is told uniquely like a documentary or episodic true crime story. It was essentially like reading the transcript of a true crime documentary. For the most part this held my interest, but at times the pacing was slower than I was hoping for and I struggled to get through to where it picked back up again. Overall the story and plot were interesting and it was delivered in an interesting way. Overall this book was interesting but I am not sure if I would want to read another novel written in the same formatting, unless the pacing was faster overall. Interesting love to hate characters and plot. Thank you NetGalley and William Morrow for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Sometimes you can just look at a cover, and you have a feeling. # The Anatomy of Desire by author #L.R. Down is one of those. It's such a wonderful novel.
Description:
A modern tale of crime and punishment. This is told in the form of immersive investigative docuseries. Reimagining of Theodore Dreiser's classic crime drama, An American Tragedy. This will keep you guessing......
Thank you for the advance copy,
#Netgalley, # L. R. Down, and # William Morrow 💜🐾🐾

This was SUCH a fun read, I could not put it down! Tons of red herrings and delightful misdirection, I loved the unique writing style. I would love to read more by this author.

This story seemed to check most of my boxes. Murder, check. Dark side, check. Let’s get started. Right away I noticed how the book would be told. Documentary style, which took some getting used to. Two people go out in a canoe and only one comes back, alive. The story was interesting even though it had a lot of lull scenes. Despite that, it kept me reading more. Cleo Ray wasn’t a likable character to me. In fact, I thought she was horrible. We keep bouncing between did she really do it to who could have done it? As the story progressed, I found myself getting bored. I reached a point where I didn’t care who had done. The ending fell flat. There wasn’t any surprise or wow factor and I was disappointed.

The story is an okay read. I expected more and it’s most likely my fault for being disappointed. I recommend checking out this book for yourself. It may be the read for you! I give this two stars.

Wow...

I received both ebook and audiobook copies of this book from NetGalley for review.

Anatomy of Desire is a very unique book due to the fact that follows a true crime documentary/episodic format, which I had never encountered before and really enjoyed. We hear from lawyers, investigators, and families of the parties involved; just as it would be in a true crime documentary you would watch on Netflix. It follows Claire Griffith/Cleo Ray who is a social media influencer who ends up the subject of a murder investigation. Claire and her "friend" Beck go canoeing one summer day and Claire ends up missing and Beck ends up dead, but how did they meet these ends? There's also a lot of speculation as to the nature of Claire and Beck's relationship, even though Claire is already engaged. As we move through each "episode", we find out more about Claire and her secrets. Did she murder Beck or was this just the result of a horrible accident? This book keeps you guessing until the very end.

Unfortunately, THE ANATOMY OF DESIRE didn't pull me in as I thought it would. I wanted to like this book because so many people recommended it to me, but couldn't connect with the characters nor the story.

Claire Griffith was eager to escape her religious upbringing and she hightailed it to California. She's built a name for herself as a fitness social media influencer. One day Claire goes out for a canoe ride with a woman named Beck Alden. What should have been a fun outing ended when Beck is found dead in the water and Claire goes missing. I found the way this story was told to be confusing, disjointed and trying to hard to be catchy. told in oral history/interview format like a podcast and it didn't work for me. I found I didn't care what happened to Claire

I'm not the biggest courtroom drama fan, but this story really intrigued me. I ended up listening to this audiobook more than reading it, so that's what I'd recommend. They have a full cast narrate the book, and it really brought the characters to life.

Like, I am so torn on whether or not Cleo did it!!! And I wish I had answers. also (no spoilers) but the ending was just amazing.

Cleo Ray is a very popular social media influencer, who has worked hard to build her brand. Cleo is ready to take her fitness site to the next level and expand her base to reach and even broader audience. Cleo has been in a relationship with Rebecca (Beck), but it has turned into a toxic relationship that Cleo is ready to end. Beck is in love with Cleo and wants to marry her, but knows Cleo has her eyes on someone else, another major influencer named Sandy. Sandy has a much larger fan base than Cleo does and he feels like he’s found the girl of his dreams in Cleo. Cleo decided to take Beck on a canoe ride to break up with her unbeknownst to Beck. Beck thinks they’re going to get engaged, but an accident ensues and Beck ends up dead. Cleo is seen leaving the scene and soon police are looking for her. Cleo however has met up with Sandy and his friends in the mountains to go camping, never letting on that she was just in an accident and saw her girlfriend drown. When the police arrest Cleo for Becks murder Sandy is shocked, and Cleo is scared. Cleo is claiming her innocence, but she also knows her past may come out with these murder allegations and shes not ready for people to know who Cleo Ray really is.
**TRIGGER WARNING book contains scene of gang rape and domestic violence

Thank you Scene of the Crime, Netgalley, and William Morrow Books for this ARC

This was a very unique read. I actually enjoyed it very much. A mystery with some twists. Just mixed media.

There is only one thing I can say to this book and it is “Wow”.
First, the whole book was written in a documentary-style transcript, which I loved because it was unique. Very rarely is a thriller or suspense driven novel done without some first-person point of view. As someone who enjoys true crime documentaries, I loved this. It was basically reading a crime documentary.
This story is also different in that you know what happened right away, but you never find out exactly how it happened. We know Cleo Ray went out on a canoe in a remote lake with her girlfriend Beck, and that somehow Beck ended up drowning and dying.
This whole books explore everyone involved thoughts and opinions: their experience of what happened after the crime occurred and they role they had in presenting their own truths as evidence. We learned how this act effected so many people outside of just those involved. And how no matter what actions have consequences.
Dorm left it up to the reader to decide how emotional invested they got in everything. I felt myself sympathizing with Cleo and doubting her intent.
The verdict was not altogether shocking, how everyone ended up dealing with it gave me hope, but that in the end every action someone takes has consequences. It was a wonderful opportunity for the reader to be introspective and contemplate how they viewed their own world and outcomes. If it sounds philosophical, that’s because it is - this one got deep.
NOTE - I had never heard of the original story and or even the movie retelling. As a first time reader/viewer I felt this retelling to be authentic to our current society.

The Anatomy of Desire is perfect for fans of true crime media. The novel is written in the form of a true crime podcast or docuseries transcript. The writing style is easy to get engaged in and not want to stop reading to do even the most mundane things like eat or sleep. Claire Griffith moved to LA and completely recreated herself. She is now a popular fitness coach and social media influencer called Cleo Ray. Then, one day, Cleo goes canoeing with a woman named Beck. Beck is found dead and Cleo goes missing. When Cleo is found by the police, she becomes the main suspect and gets charged with murder. Who is Beck to Cleo? Was Beck's death an accident or a murder? Full of twists and strong characters, readers will be addicted to the plot of The Anatomy of Desire. Highly recommended!