Social Creature

By: Tara Isabella Burton

Narrated by: Jennifer Woodward

Length: 8 hrs and 34 mins

Publisher's Summary

A friendship to die for. A Ripley story for the Instagram age set in contemporary New York: a world at once sophisticated and sordid, irresistible and irresponsible, unforgettable yet unattainable.

Louise is struggling to survive in New York; juggling a series of poorly paid jobs, renting a shabby flat, being catcalled by her creepy neighbour, she dreams of being a writer. And then one day she meets Lavinia. Lavinia who has everything - looks, money, clothes, friends, an amazing apartment...

Lavinia invites Louise into her charmed circle, takes her to the best parties, bars, the opera, shares her clothes, her coke, her Uber account. Louise knows that this can’t last forever, but just how far is she prepared to go to have this life? Or, rather, to have Lavinia’s life?

©2018 Tara Isabella Burton (P)2018 Audible, Ltd

Slickly dark and deliciously disturbing

Can't wait to read the author's next book! This is a jet black, tightly plotted social satire that's so wrong it's wonderfully right. Not sure why it's flown so far under the radar but I can only assume it's because the story has been told several times before and the allusions to Donna Tartt and Bret Easton Ellis possibly make it seem a little passé (and pointless) in the MeToo era. It's a genuinely good read however so do give it a whirl, darling (as Lavinia would say).

gripping story line

loved this - dark parody on social media and not too fabricated while using cliches

Dark and mesmerising

A story for the modern day. Really enjoyed the web and the characters- and it gets darker and delighted with the ending...

Darling I loved it

Yes it was brilliant and thoroughly fun to read but the ending was soooo disappointing. Looking forward to reading more books from this author!

Brutally good

This was a hypnotic and absorbing thriller that kept me entertained and absorbed. The slightly detached, observational feel to the writing took a bit of getting used to but overall a great listen.

here's the thing

This novel centred around the lives of two young women, Louise and Lavinia. The jacket says It is a Gossip-Girl/ Talented Mr Ripley cross which does give you the right idea of what to expect.
Louise is a wannabe writer, young, struggling in New York. Lavinia, is a rich socialite with personality to spare. They meet when Louise is hired to tutor Lavinia’s sister and Lavinia takes Louise under her wing and into her crazy world of booze, drugs, parties and socialising with the upper echelons. However, it doesn’t end well for Lavinia.
This would be a great sun-lounger read. It is entertaining enough but isn’t particulalrly special. Lavinia’s character has been done before, but better and the telling of the New York party scene has been told before, elsewhere, in more depth, making it seem decadent and exciting whereas here… it kind of fell flat. Also, the dialogue and inner monologue of the characters was painful. It was so run on, fast paced and dizzying that I found it exhauting and needed a lie down after, which made me dislike the characters even though I felt that I would have loved them had they been in someone else’s hands.
Here’s the thing, I will praise it for the narrative style. (Read the book for this joke). I also loved the development of Louise’s character. I also loved how I could perfectly see the ending… if this doesn’t get turned into a series or a film I will be hugely surprised. And honestly? I would go see it!The ending left me wanting more and made me realised that although I hadn’t liked the characters very much, I was obviously more invested in them than I thought.
I saw a lot of parallels between ‘Social Creature’ and the memoir ‘My Friend Anna’ by Rachel DeLoache Williams. You knew what was going to happen but it was still shocking and exciting when it did.
So to sum up,it’s a fairly good read. Is it life changing,, award winning, worthy stuff? No. Is it the very best example of the genre? Sadly, no. But is it entertaining, fun, and something a bit different to what you usually read? Absolutely.