Has anyone read or listened #theplot (or currently reading??) by @jeanhanff because if not, you absolutely need to pick this book up! I’m listening to it now (it’s fabulously narrated by @kirbyheyborne ) and I cannot stop!! (Homework be damned, sorry @nyusteinhardt @nyucounseling ) but it’s just so good.... there’s a twist coming... I can feel it. But you need to read it!! It hit the stand this past Tuesday!! This book needs to be picked up by @reesesbookclub or @oprahsbookclub for their next read!!! Love love love! Thanks to @netgalley and @macmillan.audio for the advance copy!!

Wonderfully written. At first, it reminded me so much of Stephen King. Towards the end, it did become a bit predictable, but it was still a fun book to read and I could see it being made into a movie or show. Narration was done great and I think I actually preferred listening than reading on this one.

While I enjoyed the audiobook, this one is a really slow burn. The premise is that Jacob wrote one good novel, then has stumbled with his next attempts to have a follow up worthy of his first. While advising at a writers’ retreat, a student tells him a story that no one else has ever written. When he later learns the student died before completing his book, Jacob borrows the idea and his book is a chart topper earning a motion picture deal and Oprah’s notice.

Since the book moves so slow, it gave me time to think about where is the ethical line for an author. I know the word plagiarism pops up over and over in the book, but is using someone else’s idea really plagiarism if you write the words yourself? And if that’s the case why are retellings so popular? Other than my blog posts and work reports, I am not a writer, but how would you ever come up with a unique idea today?

One of the coolest things about the book is there is a book in a book. While the story is about Jacob’s book, The Crib, there are many excerpts from The Crib interspersed in The Plot. And it builds what you actually know about the story in The Crib. It is masterfully planned out.

I’ve never listened to Kirby Heyborne as a narrator before now, and he does a terrific job with the pace and setting a tone for Jacob. His voice and inflection really helped me fully imagine Jacob.

I would have loved this book if the pace had been a little quicker and I hadn’t figured out where the author was going long before the end, but the cleverness of the plot won me over. If you are a writer, I think you will really feel this plot, and even if you aren’t a writer but like a slow burn, you’ll enjoy the book.

Plagiarism is a serious issue no matter the situation. One should never ever steal other person’s work. This is the core message of The Plot. Though the story started slow, I was able to connect with Jake and understand him as a struggling author / writing coach. Not justifying what he did, but Jake sounded like a sensible person who should have guessed the *someone* since he knew the story of *something turned* why did it occur to him only at the end rather than sooner?

When I got ahold of the plot, I guessed the virtue of a certain character long before Jake did. This made me loose my grip with the story, but since it was an audiobook I continued to listen just to know how Jake comes to “know”. It was an okay revelation - guess this is what happens when one reads too many thrillers!!

The writing was decent and the narration was pretty good, but I felt the voice modulations could have been better. If you don’t read much suspense novels, this might impress you. 3.25/5

Thank you Macmillan Audio & Netgalley for the ALC

I had to give up on this book at about the one-third mark. It was dreadfully slow and lacked any real tension. The narrator was especially hard to listen to. It seemed like they were concentrating so hard on enunciating every word that it sounded computer-generated and was filled with unnatural pauses. Speeding up the playback helped but did not improve the experience enough. I've seen some reviews suggesting the pace picks up in the latter half of the book, but glacial pacing through the first third is just too much. Unfortunately, I could not enjoy or finish this book.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an advanced copy of this audiobook. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I did not finish this audiobook. Unfortunately I did not enjoy the narrator. His voice felt very monotone and lacked inflection. I could not get fully into the story.

I will try reading the book or e-book format of this book in the future, as I am very interested in the description.

This is one of those suspense/thriller books that really is hard to put down. As the story unwinds, I found myself engrossed in the story within the story and how things with our author friend are going to play out. Does fiction really mirror real life? Is that what makes a story great? The Plot is well narrated and I especially loved the mention of goodreads and how the site tells you how many books you read each year, so fun! Fans of suspense/thrillers will really enjoy this one, add it to you list!

I love when there is a book within a book and you go back and forth between the stories. And although it takes a while to get there in this one it really took the book to the next level for me.

Beware, you should never steal a story. Especially, if you don't know where it came from. A struggling writer Jake Bonner finds out a former student, Evan, died years ago reminding him of the original and captivating plot Evan shared with him on the book he was writing. But as Evan died shortly after without writing that book Jake takes it on himself to use the same plot catapulting him to success.

Unfortunately, it was not Evan's story to tell and now someone is coming after Jake for sharing it with the world. Jake goes on a journey to find out who knows about his theft while as we also get experts from Jake's book with the stolen plot.

This book has a slow burn start that requires some patience as it takes time to develop but there is a payoff for your efforts. When it finally takes a turn to the point where it’s hard to stop reading (or in my case, listening), the foundation that was created provides that insight into the characters you’ll need to keep up. Similar to a dual timeline the story transitions between Jake’s present day movements and excerpts of his famed book. Those transitions were well crafted as they become more meaningful as Jake delves deeper into Evan’s life.
For me the most intriguing question raised was the one about ownership of an idea and owning your life story. Copying writtten words is of course plagiarism but in Jake’s case, he has written the book himself, he has put in the writing hours, revisions and all and had only a fragment of his student’s story premise revealed orally but is exploring on that premise enough for it to be considered a theft of someone else’s story? You’ll be left to decide that for yourself.
I listened to the story and it took me a moment to adjust to the narrator, Kirby Heyborn, because he was so low key. But, after a bit I realized he was just being Jake who consumes most of the beginning of the book and he did that very well.
I also have to admit to having guessed the surprise revelation but not the ending. I enjoyed this slow burn novel with the exploration into theft in the literary world.

Thank you NetGalley, MacMillanAudio and Celadon Books for an Advance Listener Copy in exchange for an honest review !

Audiobook Review: The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz, Kirby Heyborne (Narrator)
(Published by Macmillan Audio, May 11, 2021)

Audiobook: ★★★★☆ (4.25 Stars)

Audiobook narration and flow: Narrator Kirby Heyborne, whose credits include LDS religious literature, carries the day with an aptly lethargic voice true to the protagonist's state of mind, and makes the most out of what generally appears to be a plodding, slow-burn narrative.

All the way through the book's conclusion - a riveting crescendo in what turns out to be anything but subdued!

-----

Jacob Bonner, a once noted novelist with a bestseller or two in the bag, finds inspiration in what appears to be a "sure-fire" plot concocted by Evan Parker, a creative writing student he'd once mentored.

Bonner, erstwhile depressed in the throes of chronic numbing writer's block, decides to pen his next novel using the student's plot's general premises.

And reaches the pinnacle of his career in newfound celebrity.

Then an unknown troll accuses Bonner of plagiarism and threatens to expose him as a "fraud". His wife and publisher duly stand by him.

But, to his chagrin, Bonner finds out he only got to hear the first part of Evan Parker's "plot".

Because someone else has the full script and is determined to see it fulfilled to its final outcome.

In one form or the other...

-----

This is one finale I didn't see coming!

Riveting!

Review based on an audiobook galley from Macmillan Audio and NetGalley.

I was provided with a complimentary copy of this book so I could give an honest review. The opinions are entirely my own, and any quotes are taken from the ARC and may be different in the final published copy.

At what point does a good story idea become a person's own for them to write? When it is published? Merely written? Does anyone really own a plot? Those are the questions that surround the premise of The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz. However, The Plot is much more.

Jacob Finch Bonner, a once-promising writer, is now a failed author teaching third-rate MFA program when he meets Evan Parker, an arrogant student, who tells Jacob the plot of a story that is sure to become the next "big thing." Jacob waits for Parker's masterpiece, but it never is published. When Jacob learns Parker is dead, he writes Parker's plot. Everything is perfect, that is, until a troll posts Jacob stole the plot. Here the story becomes a mystery.

My problem with the audiobook was I wanted to finish it. However, it's challenging to listen while at work. I sat in my car to finish it before coming home and dealing with life.

The narrator, Kirby Heyborne, is considered one of the finest narrators working. Listening to him was like listening to Jacob tell his own story.

Heyborne's narration and Korelitz's plot make The Plot one of the best of 2021.

This 200-word review will be published on Philomathinphila.com.

Wowee! “The Plot” is a total thrill ride. It’s a terrific, edge-of-year-seat story about a fledgling teacher and writer, Jake, who “borrows” a scintillating plot from his former MFA student. After all, that guy has since died. (And supposedly the plot died with him).

Plus, who really owns a story anyway?

Well, all is good and well with Jake. He publishes his book, Crib. Hits the NYT Bestseller list. Gets on Oprah’s Book Club. And sells millions of copies. He even finds true love. Then all hell breaks loose when someone starts sending him messages, threatening to expose his big, terrible lie.

Does he come clean or ride it out? No spoilers here. You’ll have to find out!

While I do not find the ending terribly shocking, it’s a crazy-fun journey getting there. Even the almighty Stephen King describes this book as “insanely readable.” And I concur. Thanks to the talented narrator, Kirby Heyborne, I devoured the audiobook in less than a day.

I’m very grateful to Macmillan Audio for granting me a copy of the audiobook, via NetGalley. And kudos to Celadon Books for buying a winning plot! Jean Hanff Korelitz’s mystery is on all the must-read lists and I’m all about it.

What do you do when you know you have the plot for a best seller, but the idea for that plot belongs to your student, who you now discover, is dead? Obviously, you steal the plot. That is what Jacob Finch Bonner does, and he writes "The Crib", an instant best seller. Will he get away with stealing the story?

The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz is a thriller with some amazing twists. I listened to the audio, narrated by @kirbyheyborne, and I could not stop listening to find out what happens to Jacob Finch Bonner.

Thank you @macmillan.audio and #netgalley for my complimentary audiobook of #theplot in return for my honest review. #5⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#jeanhanffkorelitz @jeanhanff

Wow. The ongoing story and plot twists in this were terrific. This was a book that kept me interested throughout.

It began as the story of a struggling author, Jake, who has had some notoriety with his first novel and then the sophomore slump. Jake then turned to teaching students at a mini-MFA program in the Northeast. While he was teaching, he meets an obnoxious student in his program who shares a bit of his plot with Jake. Several years pass and Jake continued to struggle but then comes to find out that his old student has passed away. So, Jake decides to take the plot of an unwritten novel and make it his own.
There are so many twists in this novel that it will keep you engaged throughout. I really enjoyed the story and the way the plot unfollowed.
The narrator was Kirby Heyborne, who did a wonderful job with the various characters. The story was well paced and well read.
#ThePlotBook #NetGalley #CeladonBooks #MacmillanAudio

Rating: 8.75/10

Thanks to the publisher and author for an advance copy of The Plot for review consideration. This did not influence my thoughts or opinions.

The Plot takes imposter syndrome on a national book tour and proceeds to set it on fire; a fascinating, page-turning read that will keep you guessing until the very end. This and The Last House on Needless Street are THE books that need to be on your wishlist for 2021.

I have to admit: I tend to be cautious when books are lauded prior to release, so I wanted to make sure I wasn’t going into something I would end up DNF’ing. I read some early reviews from people I trust and, well, it ended up being fairly positive.

Feedback was along the lines of “It starts out very slow, almost like a completely different story. Just when you think about putting it aside, THAT is when the story really begins to ramp up. IT’S SO GOOD.”

Needless to say, I had to check it out, and boyyyyyy howdy. I FINISHED IT IN LIKE 4 HOURS.

People tend to hate the term “slow burn”, but The Plot is exactly that. Building up the character of Jacob Finch Bonner took its necessary time for you to become fully invested in him and his motivations. Finding out how much of a POS Evan Parker/Parker Evan (you’ll get the reference when you read) in the beginning sold me on Bonner getting his. The secondary characters Bonner interacts with add just enough seasoning to the story to where they aren’t just surface-level, especially his love interest, literary agent, and a handful of others.

While the story did take some time to get its feet, that payoff at the end was just simply MAH-VELOUS. I did, sorta, kinda call it around the 3/4 mark or so, but it didn’t take away from the satisfaction of a well-played twist on Korelitz’s part.

I did really enjoy how the author ended up telling two (2) stories here: Jacob’s own and the novel he “stole”, CRIB. Seeing how both played off of each other and ended up playing out across Jacob’s timeline was very intriguing. It ends up varying the pace in which you’ll read the book, and as you begin picking up on things, you’ll notice the pages begin to fly by.

I highly recommend The Plot to those looking for another one of those Gone Girl / The Silent Patient / The Girl on the Train-type novels; a fantastic beach read that will keep you up into the wee hours of the night. Also, this REALLY makes me want to check out The Undoing on HBO (based on her novel You Should Have Known).

I have to give props to Kirby Heyborne as well for his narration. This is the first book I’ve listened to that he has narrated, but from the looks of his catalog, it most certainly won’t be my last.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for my copy of The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz Narrated by Kirby Heyborne in exchange for an honest reivew. It published yesterday, May 11, 2021.
This narration of this book was well-done and easy to understand. I just had a hard time with the mispronunciation of Whidbey Island! Wid-bee not wid-bay. It seemed to get better toward the end of the book though! (I'm certain I would mispronounce a lot of place names that aren't from the PNW, by the way!)
This book was definitely unique and interesting, and I've never read a book quite like this before. That being said, I had predictions fairly early on, and I was mostly right, but there was one detail I was very wrong about.
This was a fun and memorable thriller, among a sea of not very fun, and forgettable thrillers, this is definitely worth checking out if you're into them!

This ultimately unput-downable literary, psychological thriller gets off to sluggish start, slowly setting the scene for the intense twists and turns to come. Jacob Finch Bonner, “Jake,” once a celebrated young novelist for his first book, has run out of ideas for novels. All his subsequent efforts have proven lackluster, and he slowly falls down the writer pyramid from being heralded as a rising new talent in the NY Times to teaching writer at a third-rate writers’ program. He approaches his students with the cynicism forged from his career descent, trying to encourage them on in an effort he finds capricious based on getting struck by the right inspiration coupled with writing mastery. Jacob believes that all novels boil down to a few narrative arcs, and there’s just nothing new under the sun when it comes to plots.

Until along comes Evan Parker, a student at the program who arrogantly announces that he has such an original, compelling plot that anyone could turn it into a mega best-seller. Evan’s says he’s keeping this a highly protected secret. Jake, sneeringly dismissive and not overly impressed with a story Evan shares featuring a mother and daughter in a boil of hostility. But Jake suddenly turns transfixed and convinced as Evan shares the larger plot, which we as readers do not become privy to.

Dreary years pass, with Jake’s career demise continuing until he dejectedly finds himself a caretaker of a remote rural New York hotel getaway for aspiring writers. At this point, Jake has stopped his writing altogether. When one cantankerous guest reminds him of the sheer arrogance of Evan Parker, Jacob finds himself Googling to figure out why the best-seller never materialized and learns of Evan’s death shortly after they met. Jacob convinces himself about the nobility of writing a story that must be told, especially if much of literature involves stealing ideas from elsewhere and plots that that keep getting recycled. So Jake “cribs” the plot of Evan Parker’s story Crib, and writes the inevitable best-seller.

The predicted best-seller and rise to the heights of fame ensues for Jake. But amidst of his return to glory, Jake constantly angsts about potential exposure by someone in the know of Evan Parker of having stolen the plot. After the book has been published and well-publicized, Jake finally gets an anonymous email accusing him of being a thief. At last, the pulse-throb of this tense, dramatic literary and psychological thriller kicks in. Who’s threatening to reveal Jacob as a plot thief, and what is the true back story of Evan Parker? Jacob races to unmask who’s threatening him and becomes more and more terrified as he learns Evan Parker’s backstory.

Clever twists ensue as the book races to its perfidious ending.

Thanks to Netgalley and Celadon Books for an advance reader’s copy.

This book was a quick read, I did a mix of audiobook and digital copy, that kept me intrigued and guessing until the very end. There were several times when I thought I might have it all figured out, and then another twist popped up.
Jacob Finch Bonner has gone from a one to watch, up and coming author to teaching creative writing in Vermont. Jacob can’t help but feel bitterness when one of his most conceited students shares the plot for his yet to be written novel. Both Jacob and his student, Evan Parker, agree, when published, this novel, will be successful and life changing. Years later when Jacob learns of Evan’s death he decides to take the plot, and write the novel. As promised, it is successful...and his life will be changed forever.
I love the cover of this book, and how it ties in to the multiple interpretations of the book’s title.
Solid four star read. I loved the uniqueness. Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for a digital copy in exchange for my honest review.

I'm going with 3.75 stars rounded up for The Plot

How many definitions of the word Plot are there? This book utilizes it in every imaginable way and there was something that struck my fancy and I enjoyed the play on the word.

I would also totally read Crib the novel that our main character Jacob Finch Bonner wrote after picking up (stealing) the plot idea from a pompous former MFA residency student that he briefly worked with and has since passed away. What could go wrong with that plan with cribbing a plot guaranteed to garner attention?

The book was a slow burn of a read that I was completely engrossed in and enjoying. Then I figured out where the story was heading and the story lost some steam in my mind and I found myself ready for the wrap up and conclusion and a little underwhelmed at the ending. I think had I not figured it out the book would have been a solid 4.5 star book for me. All in all still a very enjoyable, well-written read.

I thoroughly enjoyed the audiobook narration by Kirby Heyborne and would recommend that format to anyone who is looking to pick this one up!

Reading Between the Wines book review #52/115 for 2021:
Rating: 🍷 🍷 🍷
Book 🎧: The Plot
Author: Jean Hanff Korelitz
Genre: Mystery & Thrillers
RELEASED on May 11, 2021!!!

Sipping thoughts: Slow burn for sure and I mean SLLLOOOWWW burn. I almost had to categorize this book as a DNF which I never do. Luckily, I kept pushing through and ending up liking the last 30%. It has a story within a story and the reveal was very easy to figure out early on, IMO. A lot of people really liked this book so check it out for yourself. The last part pushed it from 2 stars to 3.

Cheers and thank you to @NetGalley and @MacmillanAudio for an advanced copy of @ThePlot
#ThePlot #MacmillanAudio #NetGalley #advancedreadercopy #ARC #Kindle #Booksofinstagram #readersofinstagram #bookstagram #nicoles_bookcellar #bookworm #bookdragon #booknerd #booklover #bookstagrammer #bookaholic #bookreview #bookreviewer #IHaveNoShelfControl #ReadingBetweenTheWines #fiction #thriller #suspense #mystery #MysteryAndThriller