A Novel Obsession

A Novel

By: Caitlin Barasch

Narrated by: Kristen Sieh

Length: 10 hrs and 7 mins

Publisher's summary

A Good Morning America Buzz Pick, and a BuzzFeed and New York Post "Best Book of 2022" 

"If you’ve ever felt tempted to ‘keep tabs on’ a partner’s ex on Instagram and then found yourself down a rabbit hole of their vacation posts from three years ago, this debut novel—which follows a 24-year-old New Yorker named Naomi who becomes obsessed with her boyfriend’s former girlfriend—is for you."—Vogue, “Best New Beach Reads”

Twenty-four-year-old New York bookseller Naomi Ackerman is desperate to write a novel, but struggles to find a story to tell. When, after countless disastrous dates, she meets Caleb—a perfectly nice guy with a Welsh accent and a unique patience for all her quirks—she thinks she's finally stumbled onto a time-honored subject: love. Then Caleb's ex-girlfriend, Rosemary, enters the scene. 

Upon learning that Rosemary is not safely tucked away in Caleb’s homeland overseas, but in fact lives in New York and also works in the literary world, Naomi is threatened and intrigued in equal measure. If they both fell for the same man, what else might they have in common? The more Naomi learns about Rosemary, the more her curiosity consumes her. Before she knows it, her casual Instagram stalking morphs into a friendship under false pretenses—and becomes the subject of her nascent novel. 

As her lies and half-truths spiral out of control, and fact and fiction become increasingly difficult to untangle, Naomi must decide what—and who—she’s willing to sacrifice to write the perfect ending.

©2022 Caitlin Barasch (P)2022 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

A Most Anticipated Book of 2022 by BuzzFeed, The Millions, Goodreads, Bustle, BookRiot, and The Nerd Daily

"Barasch has a talent for balancing discomfort and empathy, pushing the reader away and pulling them right back.... The characters are emotionally engaging, beckoning you to rubberneck the inevitable train wreck." —Associated Press

"Wow, if you’re looking for a great book you’ll be instantly obsessed with, A Novel Obsession hits the nail on the head—in both title and story.... I couldn’t put this book down. It became a page-turner on my commute to work (both ways) and there won’t be another one like it.... It’s so spicy." —New York Post

Skip to the last chapter

The protagonist is narcissistic and obsessed with her boy friends ex. That’s all you need to know until the last chapter, where the conclusion is just “ok”

I can’t believe I stuck with it

Wow. I cannot tell you how many times I thought about dropping out of this book. The protagonist is such a narcissist. There is so little about her that is likable or redeemable. The narration is great. The story is not.

cringe

I tried to get into this book but really couldn’t. It’s so poorly written. Do not recommend.

obnxious story but gifted narrator

honestly I keep trying. I just cant finish this thing... I think I expected something other than an absolutely unlikable main character and story that just bogs down and spins it's wheels. I just do not care what happens to her.

The narrator really is gifted and does a lot with the material... so that's at least a small silver-lining.

DO NOT BUY

Literally the worst thing I’ve ever read. No depth, no plot, cringey, horrible writing. Painful to listen to.

So cringey

Yeez this book was horribly cringey, and not in a good way. You can skip this one.

Just fine

I've never understood why so many people are so enthralled by mystery and thriller novels. This was recommended to me as a place to start understanding. It did not help.

The only character I liked was the main character's grandma. She was (occasionally) a little spark of sass in an otherwise dull landscape of flat and irritating characters. Seriously. There was no character development whatsoever in this entire piece. I guessed the ending by chapter 3 and I never found even an ounce of sympathy for the main character.

For a small bit of irony, the author sort of addressed my biggest issues with this novel when two characters were reading samples from each other's novels, which were about the plot of this novel (yes, very meta) but then she didn't address the issues in her actual work. What exactly does that say? I'm not sure. I just know that I won't be revisiting or recommending this story.

Quick Read

This is a quick read. The ending was a bit obvious, but I still really enjoyed the ride!

Not my cup of tea

This book was very boring to me. I was hoping at least for a satisfying ending but no such luck. I kept waiting for something interesting to happen. The person who narrated did a good job.

There was so little to like about this book.

I definitely struggled to finish. Not one character was interesting or likable. I was waiting for them to connect and they didn't.