Thank you, Park Row Books and NetGalley, for the advanced copy of The Fiction Writer.

What did I just read!? The twists this novel took kept me flipping those pages as fast as I could. This one kept me guessing. Told from the POV of our main character, Olivia Fitzgerald, with excerpts from a novel by an unknown narrator, this book kept me on my toes. I screamed for Olivia to turn tail and run! Felt like watching a scary movie where you know they're going to get whacked for running towards the knife-yielding psycho instead of hightailing it the other direction! Pick this one up. It's a fun page-turning thriller that's perfect for the season.

Olivia Fitzgerald's debut novel was at the top of all the literary lists. Her sophomore novel, a retelling of Daphne du Maurier's Rebecca, not so much. While trying to break through her writer's block and the blow of a breakup, she gets the opportunity of a lifetime to ghostwrite for super sexy, reclusive billionaire, Henry "Ash" Asherwood. After signing her NDA and making her way to LA, Olivia finds out that things aren't quite adding up with Ash's story, but she can't quite tear herself away until she finds out the truth. Famous last words or an escape to remember? Pick up The Fiction Writer and find out!

My thanks to Net Galley, Park Row Publishers, and Cindy Burnett with Thoughts From a Page.

When I hear about any retelling of a book I love, I have my doubts if I'll like it. This book had me so interested in the story line despite it being a "retelling" of the classic Daphne du Maurier novel Rebecca. It was different enough to keep me wondering as I read.

Olivia, a published author but with diminishing popularity in her books, is contacted by agent about being a ghostwriter for a very wealthy, successful man in Malibu. When she hears the price she will be paid, she doesn't ask questions (big mistake!) and flies out to meet this man, also known by People magazine as "the sexiest man alive". He wants her to tell the story of his grandmother who he is convinced first wrote the story of Rebecca and knew Daphne du Maurier in a French school. Questions abound as she tries to find out this story and what he wants written.

I found this book interesting and didn't conflict with my love of Rebecca but had shades of the classic story told in a modern setting.

Olivia is a struggling writer whose last novel, a retelling of Rebecca, was a failure. Then one day her agent calls with a great offer, go to LA, and work on a secret writing assignment for Ash, the very sexy and very wealthy widower. When she arrives, she learns that he wants her to tell his grandmother’s story – the real story of Rebecca which he claims Du Maurier had stolen from his grandmother who actually lived it. However, as she digs into Ash’s family (both past and present), things just don’t add up quite right and his grandmother’s missing journals mysteriously never show up for her to read. There is also the persistent rumors that Ash’s wife may be alive, and a copy of her book with the word “THIEF” written in it is waiting for her on the night stand. This and many other bizarre things leads Olivia to be suspicious of Ash’s motives for bringing her to LA, but also not enough to leave since she is still drawn to him (because again, he is the sexiest man alive).

I enjoyed the novel, it was a quick read and I do love Rebecca so anything with a bit a retelling of the novel I will be drawn to. I also found Cantor’s way of dealing with the concept of plagiarism interesting and well done. The concept of stolen manuscripts and ideas brought me back to reading Yellowface but Cantor did do it with a lighter touch. The novel also touched upon the publishing world and what makes a hit isn’t always predictable. I would say this is a bit of a thriller version of Yellowface but lighter on the other issues that Yellowface addressed (and for me, a bit more enjoyable to read).

3.75 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Park Row for the Arc to review. I was also able to read this as an Early Read with the @thoughtsfromapage podcast and enjoyed hearing Ms. Cantor discuss it.

This is the story of author Olivia Fitzgerald who is struggling to find her next winning novel. Her last novel failed, and she is eager for any work that her agent can find her. A ghostwriting opportunity comes up, and Olivia finds herself flying to Malibu, signing an NDA, and learning more a job from "Ash" who has previously been named as People's Sexiest Man Alive.

Ash wants help in writing his grandmother's story which he claim is the true story of Rebecca and was stolen by author Daphne du Maurier. Olivia starts to do a little bit of her own investigation while she is awaiting certain pieces of the puzzle, and she wonders if everything really is as it seems.

This story picked up its pace in the final third of the story, but was slower to develop for me before then.

The Fiction Writer by Jillian Cantor is a Rebecca retelling. This is the story of Olivia, who is trying to revive her failing writing career by ghost-writing Henry Asherwood (Ash) III’s grandmothers memoir. Here’s the twist: Ash claims Daphne du Maurier stole his grandmother’s story!

Thus begins a novel asking when is it ok to use someone else’s story, are there any really unique plots left, and when does theft occur? These were very interesting points Ms. Cantor proposes in this story. Interspersed are interesting facts about the publishing world, and about Ms. du Maurier herself.

I love Rebecca and I had high hopes for this book. I think if the romance has burned a little slower, or if Olivia wasn’t so taken so fast with Ash, this may have been better. There’s also some plot points that were confusing to me.

The end was very satisfying, though.

I was able to read this as an Early Read with the @thoughtsfromapage podcast and enjoyed hearing Ms. Cantor discuss it.

Thank you to @parkrowbooks for the e-copy of #thefictionwriter . This book publishes November 28, 2023.

What if Daphne du Maurier stole the story of Rebecca from someone else? Olivia Fitzgerald is hired to write about this possibility by Billionaire, Henry “Ash” Asherwood. What she discovers is more complicated than she imagined. While most of the characters were not likable (some downright toxic), there was still a compelling story being told. The book within a book format is one I like and the way the reader is led to think about stories and who owns them or who gets to tell them was interesting. The setting of Malibu really worked for the story as well. The downside was that the initial story was a bit confusing and it was difficult to understand why Olivia would really consider staying despite all the red flags and troubling events. However, the way the truth was finally revealed was well done and I found the ending especially satisfying. Overall, I enjoyed the story even though I struggled with some of the plot points. Thank you to Net Galley and Thoughts From a Page podcast for the opportunity to read and review this novel.

Pub date: 11/28/23
Genre: domestic suspense, books about books
Quick summary: Writer Olivia thought that her second novel, Becky, based on DuMaurier's REBECCA, would be a bestseller. After it flops, the only work she can find is as a ghostwriter - for Ash, a billionaire convinced REBECCA was stolen from his grandmother.

This cover just screams Malibu and rich people behaving badly - I love the mysterious vibes. I finally read REBECCA earlier this year - it's not 100% necessary to read it first, but the ending will be spoiled if don't, so choose your own adventure!

I liked following Olivia as she fell under Ash's spell, and the story of the stolen novel was compelling. There were plenty of twists and turns to the text to keep me guessing. The narrative is interspersed with another book, THE WIFE, by an unknown author, and I was eager to put all the pieces together. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4, and I think fans of THE PLOT will enjoy this one!

Thank you to Park Row and @thoughtsfromapage podcast for providing an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

There were many things I enjoyed about The Fiction Writer by Jillian Cantor. Although it has been 20+ years since I read Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier, I recalled enough to enjoy Ms. Cantor's story within the story and to make comparisons and contrasts between the two books. The question of to whom stories belong and who gets to write them is a timely one and is a central theme of the novel. Any book club that reads The Fiction Writer will find much fodder for their discussions in this question alone. Olivia Fitzgerald's voice as the main character was authentic, and I found it intriguing that she was an author wrapped up in a story about authors. I also enjoyed the southern California setting for the story.

I enjoyed this modern take on a retelling of Rebecca. Instead of a gothic English manor we get sunny Malibu, California. I liked the more in depth look into Olivia personal life and why she made some of the admittedly poor decisions she makes. I also enjoyed the theme of who really owns an idea and do you get to claim it if someone else writes it before you do?

If you enjoyed the themes of who owns the rights to a story that The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz or A Likely Story by Leigh McMullan Abramson had, then you will most likely appreciate this novel as well.

Olivia's most recent novel, a retelling of Rebecca, was a flop. When she is offered a secretive but lucrative job as a ghostwriter for a millionaire, she has to take the job. When she arrives in California to meet with Ash, he tells her that he wants her to write about how Daphne du Maurier had stolen his grandmother's story. Olivia starts to dig into the wealthy family's past and finds that both Ash's grandmother and his wife died under mysterious circumstances. As Olivia gets more involved with Ash, will she be able to stay objective and will she come out of this entanglement alive?

I wanted to like this book more, but it was so messy. It had what I'm sure were meant to be twists and turns and red herrings, but I found it to be completely predictable and it couldn't decide if it wanted to be a Rebecca retelling or something different. I liked it fine but didn't find it to be anything special.

Thank you to Netgalley for the advance copy for review.

Great propulsive mystery with ties to the gothic classic, Rebecca. I read it in one sitting, not able to put it down until I found out what happened! The mystery kept me guessing until the end and will be completely enjoyable to those who love gothic suspense like Rebecca and Jane Eyre. Those who love books about the bookish world will enjoy all of the details about agents, book deals, and what is writerly inspiration versus plagiarism. As an aspiring writer, I especially loved the peek behind the curtains of the publishing world and the portrayal of the real angst that is ever-present in writers’ minds. It’s creepy without being scary, perfect for HSPs!

The Fiction Writer by Jillian Cantor had a story within a story, and I always love those. This novel was no exception. I love novels that include authors and the publishing industry in the background. I had read previous novels of this author, and was looking forward to this story.

The main character was difficult to relate to with her perpetual ability to go straight into harm’s way (with her employer that she ended up having feelings for). With Olivia constantly ignoring her friend’s worries about her employment with Ash as her boss –it was a tough to see these events go down. Ash gave on full creepster vibes from the start, and it is sad for women today who give their male boss the benefit of the doubt due to their power/privilege/financial status.

Ultimately, Olivia ended up learning from the mistakes, but it still was difficult to rectify the story of a young female falling for the employer from hell (full on mood swings, no respect to anyone but himself, would not respond or answer her questions regarding the research she was trying to accomplish). For those reasons, I would give this novel a 3.5.

Thank you to Cindy Burnett with the Thoughts From A Page podcast / page turners Patreon group for arranging ARC copies. Thank you to the Author, Netgalley and the Publisher for an ARC in exchange for a review.

Books about books are so much fun to read and a re-telling about a re-retelling is even better! Author Jillian Cantor did a wonderful job of writing a gothic mystery story about a fiction writer that is hired to be a ghost writer. I have never read the classic Rebecca but I was immediately drawn into the mystery of family secrets, possible plagiarism and enough twists to make this a page turner.

Does Charley really think Olivia will be able to write this book for billionaire and sexiest-man-alive Henry Asherwood about a secret about his late grandmother and Daphne du Maurier?

Charley called Olivia with this great idea for a book in hopes that Olivia would jump at the chance to take it since her most recent book was a flop.

Olivia was skeptical, but flew to California to meet Mr. Asherwood in his mansion.

When she got there, he was very vague about what he wanted her to write and kept stalling.

As she met with him, things went a different way than research for the book.

I didn't like Ash or trust him. Was he reliving the book Rebecca with Olivia.

Would he follow through with the story line?

Very clever story line, but THE FICTION WRITER was confusing and a bit on the slow burn side, but I couldn't stop reading because I needed to find out what really was going on and who the unidentified narrator was. 3/5

Thank you to the publisher for a copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

The Fiction Writer is a clever retelling of Daphne de Maurier’s Rebecca. Now, set in Malibu and featuring a rich “Sexiest Man Alive”, the tale has a modern spin but with all of the twists of the original. The characters, the setting, and the pacing of the story are all Rebecca-esque, and I truly enjoyed it!

Thank you to Cindy Burnett at Thoughts From a Page and Park Row for the advanced ecopy of this book. Publish date is scheduled for November 28, 2023.

I liked this but didn't love it the way I hoped I would. Full marks to Jillian Cantor for an excellent premise and for creating a first-rate Gothic atmosphere. I wish I'd felt more connected to Olivia — she often left me feeling frustrated — and the twists were a bit too much for me.

I really enjoyed my time reading The Fiction Writer, which pays homage to the classic novel, Rebecca, but is still fully its own story. The gothic vibes are alive and well in this story, and the author was very creative in her creation and delivery of the elements of this novel. Our main protagonist is an out-of-work author whose sophomore novel had less than stellar sales and reviews. She is offered a dream opportunity to serve as a ghostwriter / write-for-hire author for a famous but reclusive multi-millionaire. She jumps at the chance to revive her floundering career, but once she gets to California to start working on the book, she realizes very quickly that sometimes things are not at all what they seem, and that when things sound too good to be true, they probably are. I do not want to spoil any of the delicious fun, so I will leave it here and strongly encourage you to pick up this spooky, twisty mystery which is a perfect read for October or anytime you need a good whodunit story.

The Fiction Writer is a great take on Daphne du Maurier's classic, Rebecca. The pacing is swift, the plot is fun, and the scenery is gorgeous and gothic. The main character, Olivia, is extremely flawed but I could relate to her dilemma. She's at the bottom and trying to claw her way back to the top. What Ash, her mysterious client, offers is too irresistible to resist but also too good to be true, a fact Olivia keeps denying. Several of the characters mirror those in du Maurier’s Rebecca, which felt a bit overly orchastrated. Ash’s motives, too, was over the top. Still, I had an awesome time reading their story. A great guilty pleasure book to read on a plane or lazy afternoon.

I would recommend you read “Rebecca” before reading this retelling. On the other hand, maybe that’s why I found this retelling clunky and lacking because I had read “Rebecca” and enjoyed the original. I was frustrated with the character of Olivia, felt the story was convoluted, and the author missed the mark in this retelling. Thank you Cindy Burnett @ Thoughts From a Page and Park Row.

As a fan of Rebecca, I was intrigued to read this modern retelling by Jillian Cantor. The Fiction Writer is a compelling thriller, incorporating pieces of Rebecca into the present day story of Olivia, a novelist hoping to keep her career alive by serving as a ghost writer for a famous widower. Cantor kept me guessing and I really enjoyed the novel within a novel. I look forward to reading more of Cantors backlist!