don't waste your time with chuck palhiniuk's latest novel, tell all. i kinda had a hunch i would yet again fail to be wowed with his newest release, given that i hadn't heard the slightest buzz about a new book period, but then again after the weak terrorist pygmy and even weaker pornstar smut snuff, i'm not surprised. and to think, with such genius reads as choke, invisible monsters, haunted, lullaby, hell even survivor and diary, (although ironically while fight club tops my fave movie list, it's the only novel i couldn't even finish of his). i don't know, he used to easily be my favorite author. but now, it seems dude's more set on pushing out a new book every year like clockwork. as a result, he's just clinging to his whole kitsch, off-beat if-you-don't-get-it-then-you're-just-not-understanding-my-hip-art whateverness and is overproducing shitty reads.
who knows, if you're a die hard palhiniuk fan, maybe you will dig tell all, but i know i didn't. then again, i need to remind myself why did i just spend my entire sunny summer friday locked in my bedroom, holed up under the covers with the a/c blasting reading this 179 page number front to back in one sitting? because i'm unemployed. and bored. and hopeful. was hoping it would at least turn into something worthwhile. but really, once you're halfway into this tale, you know the ending/twist. it's so palihiniuk formula predictable. narrator isn't who she/he says she/he is. turns out to be what you would NEVER (or i guess now, what your first guess would be) guess they would turn out to be. HOW SHOCKING. oh, and throw in a bunch of annoying narrative tools where homeboy describes any conversation other than what the narrator (the maid) is conversing as animal sounds. *cluck, moo, growl* annoying and unneccesary.
basic premise is: aging out of limelight movie star. she has a live-in maid/friend/caretaker, whatever. a slew of ex-husbands ('was-bands'). she hasn't had any relevant work in a while. meets some hot-to-trot younger dude who romances her. blah blah blah. the beau writes a novel about her, exploiting actress and plots her death, with a new revision every few days of a new twist of death. actress gets work in a broadway type play. successful. looks like her psycho killer boyfriend is bringing her back to life with her fear. and then oh my god guess what????? (SPOILER ALERT). boyfriend never wrote book. maid/friend did. and then she kills them both so it looks like he did it. maid/friend writes her own book claiming it an autobiography. success. oh, how sneaky palhiniuk, you totally had me foiled there.
goddamn it all to hell. why didn't i just go to the beach? even missed salt n pepa at taste of chicago. that's it, i'm never reading another book EVER AGAIN.
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