Oh my god???? This was BRILLIANT. Obviously do not want to say too much, because I truly think this is so much fun to go into blind, but this book hooked me instantly. Every single chapter had me questioning who to trust, how much I really knew about these characters, and occasionally even my own sanity. There were so many twists! Every time I thought maybe I was onto something, I found myself to be shocked and incredibly far off within 20 pages.

Although this is set in present-day New York City, it brings an old Hollywood type of vibe (think Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo) with all the scheming and backstabbing, which fits well with the plot of this being centered around the development of a retelling of Fitzgerald's Tender is the Night. All the while baiting you with potentially unreliable narrators and modern, feminist twists. Incredibly captivating and keeps you hooked through every single page.

Thank you to NetGalley, Simon & Schuster, and Sash Bischoff for this ARC!!
(review will be posted on Instagram page below closer to release date, link will be updated when review is posted)

Sash Bischoff has quite a career ahead of her considering this is her debut novel. It is beautifully written - the prose flows in a way that both pays tribute to F. Scott Fitzgerald while remaining fresh and current. Readers with familiarity to Fitzgerald’s work will find this book particularly engrossing.

Despite its slow beginning, the pace picks up in the second part of the story and quickens to a whiplash inducing pace at the conclusion. Bischoff gives us the most unreliable of narrators as she takes on themes of misogyny and justice.

It’s best to go into this one blind to get the most out of this experience. There is no shortage of curves, twists, red herrings, and unexpected reveals. The tension builds and builds again as the author brings the book to an unexpected conclusion. Be patient with the slow build; then hang on tight. It’s quite a ride.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the advance copy in exchange for my unbiased review.

This book is strikingly similar to the novel I've been secretly writing based on my own experiences as a writer/director, so it's hard to get around that disappointment, but for the sake of fairness, we'll set that aside. I'm also raising my rating from a 4 to a 5 because all boats rise with the tide, so I hope this one is wildly successful.

<i>Sweet Fury</i> is a beautifully written debut with characters as strong and dynamic as its twisty (and twisted) plot. During the opening chapter, which is told as if through Jonah's psych notes, I wasn't sure I'd be able to stick with the story as I find that style frustrating to read, even when done well, as it is here. Every time we went back to those fragmented notes, I found myself tested. But I was too intrigued by the story and the quality of writing to put the book down. I found myself highlighting so many moments, from Bischoff's poetic turns of phrase and powerfully resonant declarations, to quotes perfectly plucked from Fitzgerald and given new life in the context of the Lila-Kurt-Jonah love triangle. It is occasionally guilty of gratuitous writerly flourishes, and there are some strands at the end which test believability, but is otherwise enjoyable and brilliantly wrought.

What an outstanding debut!
The prose is beautifully written and succeeds in pulling the reader into the narrative. This is a fantastic character study that wonderfully incorporating Fitzgerald's Tender is the Night while still having its own identity.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was not for me. I found it hard to stay engaged with the characters. Maybe I can try and come back to this story at a later time.

I had such high hopes for this book and I was bored to TEARS with these unlikable characters and just didn't care what happened to them.

A tense, engrossing psychological suspense, Sweet Fury's promo material heavily mentions The Silent Patient, while genre-wise not exactly the same (The Silent Patient a thriller, Sweet Fury a drama—goes a lot more in depth in its characters' psyche), I understand the comparison in that both stories share a brisk pace with relentless tension, as well as gasp-worthy character behaviors motivated by objectionable impulse.

With F. Scott Fitzgerald's work being heavily featured, prior knowledge to his novels would be beneficial (particularly The Great Gatsby, and Tender Is the Night), Sweet Fury does a decent job providing the necessary context, but one will get more out it if already familiar with the source material. For the majority of its length, Sweet Fury has me completely immersed in its tightly-wound mind game, unfortunately, the conclusion tilts the scale a bit too far into silly popcorn thriller zone, with over-the-top action and an oddly placed epilogues that is in stark contrast to the more nuanced construction prior.

As a debut, Sweet Fury sets itself apart by being painstaking with its character work, but incorporating shades of thriller storytelling, making it memorable and unputdownable. There are some minor rough patches that come with a first novel, but overall a completely worthy read—especially if you have enjoyed Alex Michaelides' novels in the past (The Fury is another apt comparison, a title I enjoyed it though universally is less well-liked).

Congratulations to author Sash Bischoff for her debut novel, SWEET FURY. I have always loved Gatsby but never read Tender Is the Night. Lila is a complicated character, an actress who is married to director and philanderer Kurt. The novel opens with Lila in therapy from a childhood trauma, a car accident, that left her father dead.

Written in a dual timeline, the book traces Lila’s journey to stardom interspersed with memories she still carries and her overwhelming need for revenge. I love reading entries from her therapist. This one is going to be a thrill for literature lovers and F. Scott Fitzgerald fans.

I will start off by saying I think it’s a huge disservice to be marketing this book as a thriller comparable to <i>Silent Patient</i>, this is very much a pure psychological suspense and the few ‘reveals’ are pretty easy to pick up on. readers going in expecting this will be disappointed.

I say that because this IS a good book and Bischoff’s writing is really strong especially for a debut. I love stories about the film industry/actors and this scratched that itch for me. It’s some pretty straightforward commentary about toxic relationships and masculinity but the story itself was good and some quotes hit hard.

It took a while for this book to feel as if it was heading anywhere, but I stuck with it because the reviews were so good. The author definitely has a gift for telling a twisty-turney tale that had a lot of curves and red herrings. However, I appreciated the way she pulled these together in a way that made sense and didn't leave the questions other less talented authors do.

5 Stars!

The narrative of the story is really good. It is mostly told from the perspective of the main female character Lila. The plot has many hidden meanings as it slowly becomes clear who is being manipulated. The story has all of the dramatics of Hollywood, however it is set in New York City. Readers may have a hard time sifting truth from lies, but this is a part of what makes the story. Every one of the characters have a part to play and they do it well.

This book has all of my favorite things: commentary on fame, unguessable twists and turns, and Fitzgerald.

Lila is a famous actress filming a re-write of Tender is the Night with her boyfriend, an acclaimed director. She decides to go to therapy to deal with some latent trauma, and from there, a whole new saga unwinds, bringing up betrayal, desperation, and deception.

I loved the way this book was written! The prose was beautiful, and there were all sorts of Easter eggs for the F. Scott Fitzgerald fans out there. At the end, I thought I had guessed the twist, but nope, there was still one more. The characters were all complex and compelling, and the pacing was divine--I read the book in only a couple of days.

A great one to end the year on!

I had to sit with my thoughts on this book for a minute. I am glad I did because the more I process my feelings, the more I realize I enjoyed it.

There were so many levels to the story, and the dynamics between characters. Every time I thought I had a handle on where the story was taking me, something shifted, culminating in this really remarkable thriller that still left me baffled by the end. Perhaps its my lack of knowledge of the Fitzgerald piece this book focuses so much on… I think I missed out by not being familiar with it before hand.

This really gets deep into woman empowerment and the misogyny and corruption facilitated by men in film and theater, but it goes deeper than that. This is twisty and propulsive, with a unique cast of characters with huge personalities. I think this is definitely worth the read!!

Sweet Fury is a psychological thriller following the beautiful and charismatic actress Lila Crayne. She and her fiancé are working on a feminist adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald's Tender is the Night. To prepare for the lead role, Lila begins therapy, trying to understand her unhappy relationship and working on uncovering her childhood trauma with her handsome and charming therapist Jonah Gabriel. As the two work together, Lila unwraps more of her trauma and Jonah keeps secrets about his past, leading to the unraveling their seemingly happy lives.

I really wanted to like this one, but unfortunately I felt like it didn't spend enough time on the things that I wanted it to. I enjoy books set on movies, but there wasn't much on the movie set here, and I like books that have therapists as characters, but it felt like the therapy scenes were more stuck in the past than anything. I could tell that there was a twist coming and I kind of guessed it, but not quite, which was a good surprise for me. However, I felt like the prose wasn't quite right for the type of story that it was trying to tell. There were references to Fitzgerald's work throughout and I felt like Bischoff was trying to write in his style, but that doesn't work quite as well for a book that is trying to be fast paced This book will appeal to fans of Alex Michaelides and people who enjoy stories with unreliable narrators.

Sash Bischoff’s debut novel, Sweet Fury, is a fascinating book about storytelling. Not only are there tales within tales within tales, but it is never entirely clear who is telling the truth.

The novel opens on the making of a film purporting to be a feminist retelling of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s Tender is the Night. The movie stars America’s sweetheart Lila Crayne, who plays Nicole Diver, and is directed by Lila’s fiancé, Kurt Royall. In the process of making the film, Lila begins therapy with Jonah Gabriel under the auspices of retrieving lost memories of trauma. Jonah is a Fitzgerald fanatic and specializes in treating abused women.

The novel is told from the perspective of different characters and even different media (including therapy notes and diary entries), and plays with Fitzgerald and his work. For example, Jonah is Fitzgerald, Jay Gatsby and Dick Diver while Lila plays the roles of Zelda Fitzgerald, Daisy Buchanan and Nicole Diver. What happens when Fitzgerald’s tales are told from the perspective of these women, all of whom are enraged at the patriarchy for various reasons?

The novel is deftly written (with many nods to Fitzgerald), and there plenty of narrative twists and turns to keep the reader fully engaged. There are no easy answers though. Only storytellers and their tales, some more or less true than others.

Thanks to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for a complimentary advanced copy of this book.

4.5 stars / This review will be posted on BookwormishMe.com & goodreads.com today.

I like to think that I can usually puzzle out the culprit in a suspense or mystery novel. Not this one. This one kept me guessing. So many lies and unexpected twists. Hard to believe this is a debut novel.

Lila Crayne is a beautiful, young actress, living a stellar life with her partner, director Kurt Royall. They have just started working on a new film to be based on F. Scott Fitzgerald’s Tender is the Night. It’s an adaptation with a twist. Lila will star and Kurt will direct and it should be the movie of a lifetime.

Lila is also entering into therapy for emotional and physical trauma suffered as a child when her father was killed in a car accident. She and her mother were in the car. Lila has some issues to resolve, and she thinks therapy will help her better understand her role in the movie. Maybe also heal her from the tragedy of her father’s death.

Step in Jonah Gabriel, a psychotherapist who specializes in helping abused women resolve their trauma and leave unhealthy relationships. Jonah and his fiancé Maggie live in NYC in a building that houses both their home and his office. Jonah has an obsession with Fitzgerald. Has for many years. He also has an obsession with a young actress named Lila Crayne. Also for many years.

Here they are, Jonah the therapist and Lila the actress starting this therapy journey together. This, however, will be a journey unlike any therapy journey before it. Especially for Jonah.

Truly brilliantly written. So many loose ends that are not tied up neatly in the end, but leave us wondering and saying holy moly. I loved this one. Such a page turner.

This one was not meant for me, I feel like there was a lot of good stuff going on, but I couldn't submerse myself in the story. You can tell the author is so passionate about Fitzgerald and very knowledgeable.

What a ride this book took me on! Do not miss out on this thriller from first time novelist Sash Bischoff, she had me guessing to the very end who the manipulator of this story really was. I had a hard time finding the true victim in this novel I don´t think any of her characters in this book is completely innocent, which makes it that much more enjoyable. Sweet Fury follows the story of Lila and Jonah and how their lives have entwined since meeting as college students at Yale. Jonah has always been in love with Lila even after losing touch when he left school early to care for his mother. Lila becomes a famous actress and seeks out Jonah to become her therapist and this is where the twists of their relationship began to unfold. Not only did I love this novel but it also makes me want to read more books by F. Scott Fitzgerald there are many references to his novels in this story.

I think the biggest caveat for this book is that you’re going to need to either really like F. Scott Fitzgerald or unhinged women. If neither of those are topics you want to spend a lot of time with, this may not be the book for you. I’m not a Fitzgerald devotee, but I definitely love a woman hellbent on revenge.
We follow Lila, an actress married to an accomplished director, and Jonah, Lila’s new therapist. Lila is working with her husband on a feminist retelling of a Fitzgerald book. With alternating POVs, we learn that Lila is determined to get her movie completed at any costs, and needs Jonah’s help to accomplish that. Luckily, Jonah is just as obsessed with Fitzgerald as Lila, and the two throw caution to the wind for the movie’s success.
This book was a seamless mix of dark academia and psychological thriller. We spend time with two main characters who both acknowledge their mistrust in each other and their own perceptions, doubling the unreliable narrators. Large portions of the story are spent in philosophical arguments about topics ranging from feminism, lust, cheating, and revenge. Throughout the book, the pacing gets quicker and more frenetic, crescendoing in a huge and intense scene fitting of the movie set where we spent so much time.
I enjoyed the plot and quick pacing, and the book kept my attention until the last page. However, I never truly cared about either main character, and didn’t feel attached to their outcomes. I also enjoyed the majority of the twists and turns the plot took, but the ending was almost too overly dramatic. Overall, I think this is a good psychological thriller option, but it didn’t wow me.

It's been a long time since I've read a book with such verve! I was gripped the entire time in this dark and engrossing retelling of Fitzgerald's oeuvre (Tender Is the Night was also MY thesis topic!). Sash did such a brilliant job bringing these deceptive, deeply complicated characters to life. Incredible that this is her debut! I know this book will go far, and it'll have a loud fan in me. Thanks for sharing an advanced copy!