Everyone Knows How Much I Love You – Kyle McCarthy

Another finished this holiday weekend!

Thanks to Random House for the free copy in exchange for my honest review

EVERYONE KNOWS HOW MUCH I LOVE YOU – Kyle McCarthy (Paperback Released June 22nd, 2021)

Book Description:

At age thirty, Rose is fierce and smart, both self-aware and singularly blind to her power over others. When she moves to New York, she is unexpectedly swallowed up by her past, reuniting with Lacie, the former best friend she betrayed in high school. Captivated once again by her old friend’s strange charisma, Rose convinces Lacie to let her move in and the two, now roommates, fall into an intense, uneasy friendship.

While tutoring the offspring of Manhattan’s wealthy elite, Rose works on a novel she keeps secret — because it stars Lacie, and details the betrayal that almost turned deadly. But the difference between fiction and fact, past and present, begins to blur, and soon Rose finds herself increasingly drawn to Lacie’s boyfriend, exerting a sexual power she barely understands she has, and playing a risky game that threatens to repeat the worst moments of her and Lacie’s lives.

My Thoughts: 3/5 stars

Debut novel from Kyle McCarthy, EVERYONE KNOWS HOW MUCH I LOVE YOU, was really well-written and a book you could easily fly through in an evening. I think that was the best part of this book, there was something so addictive about the writing, that despite not loving every aspect, I couldn’t put it down. The opening gets things going with a bang and the ending was also gripping and I loved where the author took it.

Talk about a toxic friendship. I mean, obsessed doesn’t feel like an adequate word for how Rose is with Lacie. Best friends since the age of 10 and then back together again years later. Convincing Lacie to let her move in, they become roommates and so the obsession, secrets, lies, and all kinds of other craziness begins.

I think what didn’t work for me was that Rose wasn’t an easy character to try and connect with or even feel for. Rose is also writing a book, so some elements of a book within a book are included. There were times this felt a little odd and got confusing but it all ended up coming together in the end. Overall, a solid debut novel and I definitely plan on picking up more from McCarthy in the future.