Dream Girl was a good read, it kept me guessing and I wanted to know what was happening. It was creepy in parts; waking up to see a shrouded figure and not knowing if something is real, the possibility that you are losing your mind.

There was a feeling of accountability to the story; you sew what you reap, even though Gerry states many times he has tried to be a good man.

Dream girl is well worth a read.

Gerry Anderson, author of the best-seller 'Dream Girl', has suffered serious injuries in a fall in his new apartment and is confined to a hospital bed in the apartment. His assistant Victoria and a night nurse named Aileen look after all his needs. Gerry has a lot of time to reminisce about the past and the many women in his life. He's also been getting calls from a woman claiming to be Aubrey, the protagonist in his novel, but Gerry has always insisted that she's fictional and not based on a real person.

There are mixed reviews for this book but I really liked it and thought it was very clever. I loved all the movie and book references and, strange as it seems, got quite a few chuckles out of the story. The story goes back and forth in time and we slowly get a mental picture of Gerry. As the communications from 'Aubrey' continue, Gerry thinks back on his life and wonders whether there's a woman he has wronged but decides his conscience is clear, except for ...., but no, that couldn't be it! This happens a few times and we come to realize that Gerry's perception of himself and his actions is quite different from that of the ladies in his life. The ending caught me unaware but I think it was fitting.

A favourite quote from this ARC: "Jokes that were fine a few years ago are now deemed offensive. Words are being outlawed and weaponized."

My thanks to Netgalley and Faber and Faber Ltd. for the opportunity to read an ARC of this book.
Publication Date: July 1, 2021

A mix of horror and thriller, it slow burning and gripping. I wasn't love at first page but i couldn't put it down as this dark story kept me turning pages.
The characters are well developed but not likeable, the plot is dark and flows.
It would be perfect if it was a bit faster.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Please don't be put off because this review uses words like "slow-burner". Yes, for a thriller the first half of the book is "slow-moving", but in a psychological thriller, it's not a bad thing.

The premise can be pitched as Misery meets Ruby Sparks meets Stranger Than Fiction, with a bit of modern issues thrown in for relevance. Laura Lipmann's prose is so beautiful, it makes the book work.

The story is a good idea, but I found the book hard-going. It was too slow for my liking, and the main character is just too unlikeable. Not one I would recommend.

Dream Girl by Laura Lippman

Novelist Gerry Andersen is bedridden after an unfortunate accident with only contact to the world in the form of night nurse and an assistant. He gets weird phone calls from someone claiming to be the Dream girl from his most successful novel, visits from an unwanted ex-girlfriend and tweets tagged to him! He questions the competency of his people and is not not sure of his own mind.

The book jumps between past and present and has so many referenced characters that I was confused for a part of the book. The protagonist was not showed in a likeable wasy - He had sexual harassment charges, 3 ex-wives, terrible ex girlfriend and so on! Most part of the book talks about the dream girl however she does not have a big part with a point of view at the final reveal.

The book had a clever premise but I couldn't like a book with an unlikable lead character. I could have loved to have more from the point of dream girl. This is a slow burn psychological thriller with a brilliant idea to start and a slightly unsatisfied ending.

Thank you Netgalley publishers for my copy

I like my thriller books to be fast-paced ann have tension. Unfortunately, I felt like this book was lacking both.

This latest offering from Laura Lippmann was marketed as a thriller but didn’t seem to hit the mark under this genre for me. I try and avoid horror as whilst they often sound good I usually find them too far fetched so I wouldn’t have requested it had I know that description matched it better. It wasn’t for me but I have enjoyed this author before so I’m hoping for back to what I’m used to from her in the future.

This book draws you in so you want to find out Gerry’s story. Over different timelines his story unfolds. Intriguing. Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for letting me review this book.

I have previously read books by Laura Lippman so was excited to receive this review copy.
Unfortunately I found it extremely difficult to get into and had to force myself to pick it up. I got as far as 20% on my Kindle and decided to give up. It was very slow and the main character, Gerald, did not appeal so I had no interest in reading more about his life.
This is entirely my own opinion and I’m sure others might have different views.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for my arc in exchange for an honest review.

Excellent addition to the Laura Lippman collection.. Her writing style and plots draw the reader in for a great read.

*I received a free ebook from netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review.

I love Laura Lippman's writing and was excited about this new endeavor but, to be honest, it fell flat for me. I know that she was going for a horror story versus her normal thriller, and in that, she succeeded.

I did not like any of the main characters. I despised Gerry, which made it hard for me to feel any sort of empathy for him. This messed with the intense emotions that could have been evicted during some of the horror scenes.

I liked the bits of the backstory that was included and the way the pieces of who Gerry was came together a bit at a time. I do think that was revealing and interesting. But I didn't like all the extra sex or talk of sex. I could have done without the girl in the bar with the cats and the situation that goes along with it, even at the end. It felt icky from the beginning all the way to the end and did not add anything to the story, in my opinion.

I think that the way that the Aileen and Victoria are set up are interesting, and Margot is also an interesting character. I did not like any of them, but I found the set ups implausible. I am trying to write this without spoilers, but I just did not think that what ended up happening actually made much sense.

I did enjoy moments of suspense, and I still enjoy Lippman's writing. I look forward to her future endeavors.

Really loved this story and did not see the twist coming! It was really well done and while not my first Lippman novel, it may be my favorite of hers!

In her latest novel, Dream Girl, Laura Lippman is able to draw on her knowledge and experience of writing and the publishing industry to offer up a fairly blunt insight into the life of an author.

Through her lead character Gerry, she also offers some commentary on 'cancel culture'. I couldn't quite decide if she was supportive of society's current penchant for calling out bad or inappropriate behaviour and prejudices, or slightly cynical about how easily some to use (the notion of) 'cancel culture' to dismiss stuff that annoys us or with which we disagree. Either way, Gerry finds himself constantly wondering if he's able to say something or think something lest he be berated for its inappropriateness. It's interesting because, as we gain more insight into his character and his background there's a sense that the 'he doth protest too much' thing is actually rather warranted.

Lippman offers up a very interesting premise here and I like that she's regularly able to offer readers something a little different. Her own experience as an author - dealing (presumably) with agents, fans, and the craft of writing - means she effortlessly inserts us into Gerry's world.

I follow Lippman on several social media platforms and am conscious her rather clever prose and sassy / witty narrative very much reflect her personality and own voice. (And it's one that's been very entertaining during Covid!)

We dip back and forth in time, always from Gerry's point of view. His ruminations are uncensored however so we're privy to the good, the bad and the ugly. His backstory doesn't unfold chronologically but is not confusing and its pacing means we very slowly cobble together a picture of the person who becomes the Gerry we meet in the present.

I'm conscious I've used the word clever here a number of times and this book is certainly that. It kept me intrigued for much of it. It does however become a little predictable after a murder takes place. I felt it was obvious where things were heading and though I was surprised at elements, I found it a little unrealistic that one of the main characters (am attempting to be vague!!!) was so easily duped.

At the crux of this book is the character of Aubrey, penned by Gerry in his novel Dream Girl. It's the point of much contention throughout Gerry's career and though we learn of Aubrey's genesis I both: liked that it felt anticlimactic for those who'd made assumptions; but also felt it was a little underdone. In fact I wondered if I'd missed something that made it worthy of such secrecy.

I was also slightly affronted at the ending which was weird (my effrontery not the ending, although...). I'm not necessarily a happily ever after kinda girl. I do like resolutions and we have that - kinda.

This would be an excellent book club read as there's a lot to discuss about Gerry in the present and past. About his behaviour and his attitudes. What is reflective of the time and place? How easily one can be influenced or our heads turned by our circumstances? And then of course the debate about whether our behaviour defines who we are, and... if we're capable of change.

In addition to 'cancel culture', Lippman also shines a light on social media and its pros and cons, particularly the habit of anonymous gaslighting.

3.5 stars

I went through a number of different responses to this book during the course of reading it, enjoyment, frustration, dislike and amusement and in the end that was what made it into a 4 star read for me.

The novel centres around the much-married writer, Gerry Andersen, a writer of the type beloved in America, where their acclaimed body of work seems to allow certain male authors to behave as badly as they like with few consequences. Gerry’s lack of self-knowledge and staggering lack of insight lead to some bizarre situations which the book slowly unravels until we end with quite a different understanding of both men of his type and of Gerry in particular.

There are lots of literary allusions as well as obvious nods to writers like Roth and King as well as, how very meta, an appearance by the aforementioned Ms Monaghan in a guest starring role. This is a slow-moving psychological novel with an unreliable narrator you may well dislike.

I am interested in writing and its process and if you are someone who isn’t, then this book may challenge your patience, especially if you expect to read a Tess Monaghan-type novel. I can imagine that Laura Lippman had a lot of fun writing this.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and the publisher, Faber & Faber Ltd, for an arc of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Oddly Compulsive…
Slow burn, oddly compulsive suspense which soon becomes tense, dark and sinister whilst blurred lines between fact and fiction are explored in unconventional manner. Sharply observed and often darkly witty with a surprising twist. Engaging reading.

Although Gerry, bedridden after a fall, is not very likable, as the main character in this compelling story he works well. It wouldn’t have been such an interesting story with a young, nice and friendly man. Gerry is 61 although in the beginning I thought he must be 80 at least, especially because he treated the women in his life so badly.
Anyway, he cannot do anything now but lying on his back, suffering from the pain in his leg and back. Not to forget all the extra suffering because he doesn’t like his physiotherapist and he practically hates his night nurse. The other two people in his current life are his assistant and the lady that sits behind a big desk in the reception area of his apartment building. No, life is not good for Gerry, who became a famous author practically overnight but has since then never reached such a high level again.
The book started a little slow but nevertheless gave a good introduction to the rest of the story. I’m not someone who waits for the first killing to get into a book but when it happened, it was a big surprise. I liked the many, many references to books and movies although I didn’t read or see them all, of course. On the other hand I think this part is not so interesting for (much) younger readers.
The ending came as a bit surprise (again!). I just loved this book and I will certainly read it again in the future.
Thanks to Netgalley for this digital review copy.

What a delicious read! I am a fan of Laura Lippman's other books and this one does not disappoint. The city of Baltimore is again the back drop for this novel. I felt unsettled reading it in a good way - trying to guess what really is going on and whether the narrator can be trusted. It is definitely a gripping book that was difficult to put down. In particular I loved the references to other authors and books (the main character is a writer and teaches Creative Writing). I was curious about which aspects of the book could be semi-autobiographical (just the writing part) because she really does a great job conveying his point-0f-view.

I highly recommend this book!

I'm conflicted on this one. I liked the book as a whole, I liked the writing, but I'm not sure I really liked the story. It wasn't satisfying to me as a mystery/thriller. It was more of a straight fiction book with a dash of horror. I also didn't really like the flashbacks, feeling like they took away from the forward momentum of the present story.

This story centres around Gerry Andersen, an author, who is s bed bound after an accident. There are hardly any social contacts besides his assistant, Victoria, and his night nurse, Aileen.

His book ‘Dream Girl’ was a big success and somehow he seems to be stuck in his past. At least that’s how it felt to me. This made him hard to like for me as well as interesting! Like everybody had to adore Gerry, the author.
Well this is not the way it goes. On the contrary. Gerry starts to receive messages from someone of his past. And that’s when the story starts to roll. It is getting darker and darker and more and more suspenseful….and kind of freaky. The line between reality and illusion starts to fade. Is it due to the meds or is something else going on?
All in all despite or maybe because of my tense relationship with the main character a very satisfying psychological thriller!
Thanks a lot #NetGalley #Faber and Faber Ltd for an ARC of this book