PRETTY THINGS by Janelle Brown

Rating: 4.5 / 5

I picked up a copy of PRETTY THINGS by Janelle Brown when my friend Katie @katieneedsabiggerbookshelf recommended it. When another friend Des @theboozy.reader announced this as her January #theboozybuddyread pick, I knew I had to squeeze one more buddy read into my packed TBR!

PRETTY THINGS gives us two alternating points of view. Nina was raised by a single grifter mom who tried to sell her on the idea that she would live a better life with a real education and a big legitimate future ahead. Unfortunately, her mother isn’t able to make ends meet or keep them in one place long enough to set Nina on a better path and she’s barely making ends meet in an assistant job. When her mother gets cancer and medical bills are out of control, Nina gets sucked into her mother’s former life. Along with her boyfriend Lachlan, Nina sets out to steal from the rich to help her mother get better. For a slight in their past, Nina has set her eyes on Vanessa.

Vanessa is a young woman who grew up very differently from Nina. She was raised in a wealthy, established family and appeared on the surface to have everything. As an adult she’s become Instagram famous for knowing the right people and looking the right way in the right products. Behind the facade is a struggling woman dealing with the mental illness in her family history and loneliness.

I really enjoyed this book so I’m glad my friends steered me into this one! The first half of the book is a bit of a slow burn as we start to get into each of the characters’ heads. There is some duplication of the story line between the POVs, but I actually found this interesting as there are discrepancies in how each character reports their interactions.

The second half of the book really picks up the pace and throws in some great twists. I did make some guesses as to how things would go and I was right in a few places, but the author did manage to surprise me as well! I thought the ending came together really well also to tie up the book perfectly.

I would definitely recommend this one to those who like a good slow burn thriller/mystery!