Reputation
by Sarah Vaughan
4 stars
Emma is a new political figure and is now facing more judgment than she's used to from the public. Emma has gone through a lot while trying for this position from getting divorced and trying to spend time with her fourteen-year-old daughter. When Emma hears that a young woman took her own life after an ex sent out an x-rated video of her, the ex only got a slap on the wrist. Emma lobbies for a new law to protect females from online abuse. As the story continues, we find that Emma's daughter is getting bullied by her classmates and has taken on her revenge and sent a naked photo of the bully out.
As Emma is handling all the stuff going on at home and the threats she's getting from the public another slam in the face happens and a reporter is found dead at Emma's home. The investigation continues and Emma is arrested for murder. Time to find out the truth of what happened in that house from when the reporter entered to when Emma had found him.

The book is multiple POVs and is a little confusing at times, I had a hard time keeping up with everything that was going on one minute here then the next here. The trial reminded me of all the courtroom dramas and the ruthless defense. I liked how in-depth they got but it just loses me at times I didn't fully care for the multiple POVs but in the end, I understand why it was necessary. I didn't see the ending coming and how it all ended so that was a nice surprise.
This is my first Sarah Vaughan book, I watched the series of one of her other books before I knew it was a book but hopefully this book will get picked up as a series too.

Thank you, Net Galley, and Atria Books for this eARC for an honest review.

I was expecting to be thrilled by this and I was in a way . . . but most of the book actually takes place during a trial. I am a trial lawyer so I thought this part would be interesting but it was a bit too emotional. I did enjoy this but I thought it could have been so much better for lack of a better description. I hope you have better luck!

Reputation comes out next week on July 5, 2022 and you can purchase HERE.

The body lay at the bottom of the stairs. An untidy heap in this house that had been gentrified beyond all recognition. A jumble of clothes just waiting to be tidied away. His trouser leg had ridden up, and his ankle gleamed under my iPhone's flashlight. I couldn't bear to look at his face, turned away as if refusing to acknowledge that something like this could have happened to him.

Emma, as a Member of Parliament, has been fighting for women's rights and to make revenge porn and revealing the names of the victims illegal. Her 14-year-old daughter Flora is struggling with her friends at school and makes a split decision that puts her future in jeopardy. When the reporter who threatens to expose Flora is found at the bottom of Emma's stairs, both Emma and Flora's reputations are at stake.

This was more of a slow-burn psychological thriller. You knew there was more to the story that we were getting, but you have to wait for it all to come out. The dynamics between Emma and her ex-husband's wife are an interesting storyline.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for providing me an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Available July 5, 2022.

If you've just binge-watched Anatomy of a Scandal and you want more Sarah Vaughan, this is the book for you. A slow burn thriller infused with issues that feel like they were ripped off the front pages of the newspapers. I found Reputation uneven compared to Anatomy of a Scandal, but well worth the read.
#netgalley

I received a free Advanced Reading Copy via NetGalley in exchange for a complete and honest review.

One of the best books I've read in a long while.

I have a confession to make- I never read a book blurb, and typically just dive in. I thought this book was going to go one way completely, and then was pleasantly surprised when it went a different way. When Emma, a member of the Parliament, finds herself in an almost impossible situation regarding her daughter, tragedy then strikes. She worries about the consequences of her actions and how those actions will affect her reputation. I don't want to give too much away, because you HAVE to read this book!

The story is told in several different points of view, but mainly focuses on Emma. I think this kept the story moving quickly, and set up so many good plot twists and points. The characterization in the book was fantastic, and we learn more about the motivations of each character and how they are then driven to do the things that they do. I also love a strong female lead, and I enjoyed Emma as a lead. When a book ties together all its loose ends by the end of the book it makes my heart sing, and this one did just that. I left feeling satisfied that I got the entire story from different view points. This was my first by Vaughan, but I will certainly be looking for more.

I received a review copy from Atria via NetGalley and I voluntarily provided an honest review. This does not affect the opinion of the book or the content of the review.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an ARC ofReputation by Sarah Vaughan!!!

This book is a psychological thriller that starts out with a bang. It does get slow and very repetitive in parts, so I did have to push myself to finish reading. So, if you are a fan of slow burns, than this would be the book for you.

2.5 rounded up.

OK - this started so freaking strong! My watch recorded my heart rate spiking during the beginning when things felt thrilling and exciting.

Then Vaughan hit the brakes and man did this story go from unique, thrilling and exiting to slow and overly repetitive. When I say repetitive, I mean repetition to the point of me almost DNFing this book. And slow burn to the man…slow, slow, slow burn. I think because of this I never connected with any of the characters even though the story felt incredibly unique!

Thank you Netgalley and Atria for my advance copy.

I was a massive fan of Anatomy of a Scandal (if you haven't read it then you need to before you watch the bingeable Netflix series!), so I was looking forward to reading Sarah Vaughan's newest novel, Reputation. It started off with a bang and pulled me in but then it became slower than the slowest burn--I mean, I love a slow burn novel, but I felt like the book should have been called Repetition instead because it felt like Vaughan kept repeating the same things over and over, especially in the middle of the book. Honestly, the book could have been cut by about 100-150 pages and been much more readable and would have improved the narrative, the plot, and the character development immensely. I almost DNF'd it but kept pushing through that's how difficult a time I had focusing on the story.

What I loved about Anatomy of a Scandal was how the author used the multiple POVs to tantalize and tease the reader into the clever reveals instead of throwing shocking twists at them, this time it fell short and the mystery/court trial aspect of the story was quite predictable. What worked: the writing was solid and most definitely intricately detailed about British journalism (thanks to Vaughan's prior experience as a journalist), the British judicial system, and Parliament; the plot also felt like it was taken straight from the headlines, which is something that Vaughan does well--again, her experience as a political journalist serves her well here; I also thought Vaughan did a great job exploring the themes of cyber-bullying, revenge porn, and single parenting.

I wish I could have rated this one higher and bumped it from 2.5 stars to 3 stars since it was just an okay read.

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

This was a middle of the road read for me so I’m gonna do a what I liked/what didn’t work for me style today.

What I liked
✔️Strong writing
✔️Multiple POV
✔️Relevant current events that could be ripped from the headlines
✔️Strong opening that pulled me in

What didn’t work
👎🏻Too much of a slow burn after an exciting beginning
👎🏻Felt repetitive during the middle
👎🏻Predictable parts that didn’t surprise me
👎🏻I didn’t really connect with the characters


See what I mean? Too all over the place for me so I’m gonna go with ⭐️⭐️⭐️ and call it a day

A propulsive, heart-pounding courtroom procedural, "Reputation" takes its time setting the stage for the drama that ensues. Emma is a powerhouse politician, a recent divorcee, and a mom struggling to stay connected to 14 year-old Flora, whose struggles with being bullied turn her into someone Emma hardly recognizes. The first good bit of the book is the day-to-day world-building of Emma and Flora's lives, riddled with interesting peripheral characters that give them both more depth.

I found myself really intrigued by (although not always invested in?) Emma as a protagonist because of her relentless professional ambition and her borderline-obsessive preoccupation with her public perception and...you guessed it, reputation. As the plot pulses on, I found myself noticing just how much Emma reflected on her reputation and even used the word; a bit of overkill there, but the story itself remained very plausible and held me in suspense until the end.

With "Reputation," Vaughan undoubtedly delivers a solid courtroom drama and domestic suspense piece. Readers looking for a domestic thriller won't necessarily find one here, I feel that's important to emphasis. I can't compare this to "Anatomy of a Scandal" as I haven't read it yet, and so I'll say that "Reputation" was a very good (not quite great) read. At times, I felt there were so many intersecting plot points that it reads as almost overambitious on Vaughan's part; I feel the story could have developed with the same degree of suspense even with some of the background plot.

Overall fresh and original, I'd recommend this to readers looking for a strong female protagonist, a courtroom drama, or a politically-centered suspense title. Emma is a complex, powerful, deeply-human character who has to fight to keep her reputation alive in the midst of a giant scandal; after all, we're so much more than public perception...or are we?

2.5 rounded up.
Reputation is a political/courtroom/domestic suspense/thriller that centers around Emma, a female politician and her young teen daughter Flora. It is definitely a slow-slow burn and I found myself often having to re-read sentences and entire paragraphs as it was so slow I wound wander. I did not particularly like Emma, which sometimes works for me (not liking the main character). I expected to enjoy it more as Emma is a strong female in favor of women's rights but I really could never get invested enough for this to have a wow factor. If you enjoy slow-burn British thrillers, it may work better for you. Thank you to NetGalley and Atria books for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion. Reputation will be available on 7/5/22.

I was so excited to read this book, especially after how much I loved Little Disasters! While this book was not my favorite, I still very much enjoyed reading it.

This story follows Emma, an English politician and strong women's right's advocate, through family drama, death, and political scandal.

I had mixed feelings about this book. I feel like I flew through the first half, then struggled to keep myself interested until the very end. I didn't feel very connected to many of the characters, and the slow pace made it hard for me to stay engaged. The storyline was drawn out and I would have enjoyed it more had it been condensed. I really enjoyed seeing Emma's life as a feminist member of Parliament and single mother, as it was a fresh perspective I haven't read before. If you like political thrillers or courtroom dramas, you'll love this book.

Thank you to Netgalley, Sarah Vaughan, and the publisher for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

This was an interesting story of a murder trial in England involving a political figure. It illustrated how misuse of social media can be dangerous and used illegally. I saw the differences in the way court cases are presented in England and I thought they seemed limited in what they present as evidence. Story was good, with an e expected twist that I really didn’t believe.

This political thriller was different for me. Not only because it was full of British law and vernacular, but also because much of it took place in a courtroom. The plot was interesting and became increasingly convoluted. The ending was satisfactory. I didn’t love the main character. It was a decent read. 3.5 stars. Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy!

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria books for providing me an Advanced Review Copy of Reputation by Sarah Vaughan.

The book begins in a gung ho fashion and I truly thought I'd be caught up in it. However, that didn't come to pass. It is perhaps the most repetitive novel I've ever read. Almost every chapter recapped the rest of the book and it felt like filler, At least half of the book could have been edited out with no harm to the narrative. In fact, a good editor would improve the book.

The primary protagonist of the novel is Emma, an English politician who is working hard on issues of women's rights. Because of this and her focus on female victimhood, she deals with vile and ugly emails, texts, twitter comments and feels like she's being stalked. She is a divorcee and does not get to see her 14 year old daughter, Flora, except on weekends. She makes the mistake of mixing business with pleasure by having a one night stand. From then on, her life is chaos and she gets accused of murder.

The novel explores bullying and sexual assault, especially in the age of media and technology. Flora gets into trouble by fighting back after being bullied. There is a question of whether she will face criminal charges and Emma is beside herself.

The novel has two main themes. It is a twisty mystery and the story of a trial. I found the trial interesting and the mystery too diluted for my tastes. I was able to guess some of the denouement and was not surprised enough by the ending.

As a stickler for grammar, I was negatively impressed by the very frequent use of conjunctions to begin sentences. Many of the sentences in this novel could delete the conjunction as the first word in a sentence without damaging the sentence's integrity.

Thai book had me flying through the pages. I originally requested it because of the Anatomy of a Scandal show but honestly prefer this much more. Love the tie ins to ex teacher and current problems in schools.

Reputation is a political drama/legal thriller that is definitely a page-turner! At stake is the reputation of Emma, an MP who fights for women’s rights but becomes embroiled in a political and legal scandal — and her fight turns to saving her reputation. The story is told from various perspectives, including Emma’s, that of her young teenaged daughter (Flora), and and that of her ex-husband’s current wife (Caroline). This novel has lots of heated courtroom action, which I enjoyed, and the storyline just screams to be made into a movie. All in all, this was a very good read.

This was a good book. I might have enjoyed it more if I had a better sense of the British political system and media, but overall I enjoyed it. The author does a really good job of portraying the sides of both mother and daughter. Both characters' guided and misguided understandings of one another seemed really authentic. The premise was a bit too convenient with the mom's legislative priorities and the daughter's bully/actions, but it came together nicely.

3.5 stars

I've now read three books by this author and once again, I'm impressed with how she incorporates thought-provoking subject matter into her stories. That's not something you get all that often in the thriller and mystery genres. While Reputation might not be my favorite read, I definitely have more positive feelings than negative towards it.

I strongly recommend going into books blind when possible so that way you can see everything naturally unfold rather than knowing parts of the plot ahead of time. Go ahead and read the publisher synopsis if you want more details because all I'm going to mention is the book features a female politician from the UK. It's a psychological thriller that starts off strong. I did struggle with the pacing around the midway points and I could feel my interest level taking a dive. But there's a respectable comeback towards the end so all was not lost.

If you have enjoyed other books by Sarah Vaughan, give Reputation a chance. If you are a first time reader, I'd recommend Anatomy of a Scandal as that's her strongest work in my opinion.