Thank you to Simon & Schuster for providing me with a copy of Jessica Knoll's latest novel, The Favorite Sister, in exchange for an honest review.
PLOT- "Goal Diggers" is a reality show about a group of highly driven and successful entrepenurial women. All are successful in their careers, but the show creates a new format in which they can compete. The women backstab and lie in efforts to show that they are valuable enough for the network to cast them on the subsequent season of "Goal Diggers." Those who do not prove their worth by being entertaining enough are ruthlessly shown the door.
Long time cast member Brett, owns a chain of cycle fitness centers with her older sister, Kelly. This season, we learn that Kelly has been added as a full-time cast member. This shocks the cast because Kelly is a single-mom and being a mother had never been part of the plan for any of the other "Goal Diggers". Kelly's teenage daughter is beautiful, sassy and bi-racial. Stephanie, the only African-American and the oldest member of the cast, immediately feels threatened, thinking that Kelly's daughter might be her replacement.
Early in the novel, we learn through a flash-forward that Brett is dead and there is something very fishy regarding her death. However, to figure out how Brett died and who is responsible, we need to sit back and enjoy the current season of "Goal Diggers": the most vicious and shocking season to date!
LIKE- I loved Jessica Knoll's debut novel, Luckiest Girl Alive and I was thrilled to be granted a copy of The Favorite Sister. Knoll has a fabulous writer's voice and excels at tone. The tone of The Favorite Sister is snarky and bitchy, there are so many cutting remarks. It's a black comedy and often very funny. I don't remember the exact line, but a memorable comment that made me laugh-out-loud, was when one character uses the term "Bae" and another character cuts into her fear of being old, by telling her that no one under thirty uses "Bae" anymore. Knoll's novel is filled with comedic moments.
The Favorite Sister made me feel stressed. All of the characters are constantly struggling to maintain their image and push their brand. Logically we know, and they probably know, that nothing that they ever do will be enough. It's a never ending hamster wheel. However, to a much lesser degree, this is what a majority of us do when we waste time on social media. I think this is why I felt anxiety reading The Favorite Sister, it touches a nerve.
The characters are successful in their careers, yet it seems like none of that success counts, unless they are able to prove their worth on "Goal Diggers". On the surface, "Goal Diggers" claims to be a show that lifts-up women and showcases their successes, but of course that is all a sham for a reality show that is just as dirty as the latest "Housewives of..." series. The participants on the show all willingly play into the charade, all desperate to keep in the spotlight.
I'm a Reality TV fan, so the overall theme appealed to me and I loved Knoll's behind the scenes look at the fictitious "Goal Diggers." It's fun to see the manipulation on the production side. The ending was an unexpected surprise with great twists.
DISLIKE- The Favorite Sister was not an effortless read. It took me about half the book to really keep all of the characters straight. It didn't help that I was trying to read it during my vacation in England: not a distraction free environment. If you plan to read The Favorite Sister, I suggest setting aside a large chunk of time to really get into the story.
Also making it difficult was the pacing. I found the middle of the story to be sluggish. I think it may be in part due to the nature of the story with regard to tone. None of the characters are even remotely likable and their ceaseless negative attitudes is draining on the reader. Don't get me wrong, there are a lot of funny moments that comes with this territory and the story world dictates this behavior, but it's also cumbersome. I couldn't call this a page turner, because I had to set it aside, not wanting to spend too many minutes in this world at a time.
RECOMMEND- Maybe. I highly recommend Knoll's first novel, Luckiest Girl Alive, but I'm hesitant to recommend The Favorite Sister. That said, Knoll is a very gifted writer and I will absolutely read her next book. I appreciate what she was trying to accomplish with The Favorite Sister, but the negative energy drained me.