Book Review: You Will Know Me

You Will Know Me Review by Megan Abbott

Goodreads Synopsis: Katie and Eric Knox have dedicated their lives to their fifteen-year-old daughter Devon, a gymnastics prodigy and Olympic hopeful. But when a violent death rocks their close-knit gymnastics community just weeks before an all-important competition, everything the Knoxes have worked so hard for feels suddenly at risk. As rumors swirl among the other parents, revealing hidden plots and allegiances, Katie tries frantically to hold her family together while also finding herself drawn, irresistibly, to the crime itself, and the dark corners it threatens to illuminate. From a writer with “exceptional gifts for making nerves jangle and skin crawl,” (Janet Maslin) You Will Know Me is a breathless rollercoaster of a novel about the desperate limits of desire, jealousy, and ambition.

My Review: So I was lucky to catch this book on https://thepigeonhole.com/. The Pigeonhole is an online book club. They give you the book in small-sized instalments which they call staves. I was so excited when I saw they were doing this book, I knew I had to check it out. The one thing I did notice is that the website doesn’t work in the U.S.  I ended up downloading the app on my phone and had no problems with reading the book there. I do have to say it took me a couple staves to get into the book but once it had me hooked I was dying for more. I hated that I would have to wait for the next part to come out everyday. I felt that added to the enjoyment of the story. I was anxious and had all these theories that I was dying to know more and couldn’t wait to get the next couple chapters. It did suck waiting but I ended up reading each one everyday when they came out and didn’t fall behind which I enjoyed. I was reading about 10 minutes of the book but I was happy that I was reading everyday. I think next time I will wait until later in the day to read because that was when everyone was sharing their comments. I missed the community aspect of the book. I will be trying this website again if they have a book I really want to read on it.

Now on to the main reason you came to my review, to hear about the actual book. This is the second book I’ve read by Megan Abbott. I have to say I enjoyed this one a lot more.

So the story is about the Knox family. Their whole life revolves around the daughter, Devon. Devon is a star gymnast and is hoping to make it to the Olympics. Her parents, Katie and Eric, have spent more money than they have to give Devon everything she needs to continue the star gymnast that she is. They have a younger son, Drew, but all their focus is on Devon. One day their close-knit gym is struck with a horrible tragedy which hits them hard.  Their close-knit community’s atmosphere begins to change as they try to piece together what really happened in the horrible tragedy. Katie will do whatever it takes to keep her family together and to have her daughter on top.

I have to say that Megan’s writing in this book was excellent. She kept me engaged the whole entire book. The way she described the situation’s were so detailed and I could paint the picture of how the scenes played out. I felt myself going through the staves I was given very quickly and kept wanting more. I almost was ready to see if the libraries I belong to had this book available but I decided to wait it out. I’m extremely glad I ended up doing so. When I finally came to the end of the book I wasn’t ready to let go. It really was such a wild ride seeing how much Katie and Eric did for Devon to make sure she was the best. Megan’s writing portrayed that very well.

I feel overall the book ended up wrapping unanswered but you get to create your own ending with the information given. The more I think of it the more I can piece together what the author would have written if she added more to the book. I think that adds a bit of mystery to the story. I was thinking how I kind of wish we had an epilogue to wrap things up but sometimes things are better left to the imagination and not everything is handed to you.

I am so glad that I finally got around to reading this book. I wasn’t sure at first if this was the book for me but it kept me guessing until the last couple of chapters and had me very anxious. I will be reading more from Megan Abbott. I hope my next read by her will be as enjoyable as this one.

Overall: 4/5

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