I read this book and was gripped by intense envy. This is the reason why you didn’t get an Innkeeper installment yesterday.
I wish I had written this book. I wish I had written it half as well as Victoria did.
A double life with a single purpose: revenge.
Jane’s days at a Midwest insurance company are perfectly ordinary. She blends in well, unremarkably pretty in her floral-print dresses and extra efficient at her low-level job. She’s just the kind of woman middle manager Steven Hepsworth likes—meek, insecure, and willing to defer to a man. No one has any idea who Jane really is. Least of all Steven.
But plain Jane is hiding something. And Steven’s bringing out the worst in her.
Nothing can distract Jane from going straight for his heart: allowing herself to be seduced into Steven’s bed, to insinuate herself into his career and his family, and to expose all his dirty secrets. It’s time for Jane to dig out everything that matters to Steven. So she can take it all away.
Just as he did to her.
Once upon a time there was a girl called Meg. Meg was was kind and sweet. She brought joy to people who knew her and she was a ray of sunshine in their lives. Meg was also insecure and didn’t have a good taste in men. What Meg wanted most of all was to meet the love of her life and start a family. She would’ve been an excellent mother. Her children would be nurtured and loved and never neglected.
Meg met a man called Steven, who was funny and cute. Meg wanted love. Steven wanted a whipping girl to indulge his own insecurities.
Two years later Meg is dead. Steven has accepted the world’s sympathies and moved on. He didn’t know about Jane. Jane, the self-diagnosed sociopath. Jane, the ruthless , deep-water shark, who works as a lawyer for an international corporation, who rubs elbows with diplomats, who has no insecurities, and whose only friend in the entire world is now dead.
Jane has taken a leave of absence. She has flown into town. She dyed her hair. She bought meek flower dresses. She got a job at the corporation Steven works for. Meg was the closest thing Jane had to a soul. Jane is coming.
I have never enjoyed a revenge fantasy more. Monte Cristo is crying tears of joy. This should be required reading for anyone intending to date. The depth of characterization, the nuance, the details, the dry analysis Jane performs as Steven is trying to manipulate her is delicious. I don’t remember the last time I wanted the character to get his comeuppance more. I stayed up till 3:00 am waiting for her to nuke this guy.
I stop at my door. “This is me.”
“Must be noisy here by the stairs.”
I let him get his dig in. Yes, I was too stupid or poor or weak to demand a better apartment. Another barely noticeable insult to grind me down, but I know his game and I hear exactly what he means.
“Thanks for dinner,” I murmur shyly. “It was really, really good.”
“I had an amazing time. You’re a fun girl.”
Stone, Victoria Helen. Jane Doe: A Novel (p. 41). Lake Union Publishing. Kindle Edition.
Steven is a piece of work. The way he works on systematically trying to dismantle her self-esteem is chilling, more so because he is convinced of his own goodness through the whole thing.
“You have a cat?”
This isn’t a question. It’s disgust.
“I adopted her yesterday.”
“Cats are disgusting.”
“They are not! They’re great!”
“They walk through feces and then jump onto countertops.”
“Cats are very clean. Their saliva has antibacterial properties and they constantly clean themselves.”
He shudders. “Right.”
“I like cats,” I whine defensively.
He laughs. “Yeah, you’d better be careful. You’re on your way to being a fat cat lady.”
Even I’m surprised by how quickly he’s turned from flirting to insulting me. I cross my arms as if to protect myself. “It’s one cat. And I’m not fat.”
He snorts. I look out the side window.
“It was just a joke,” he eventually says. When I don’t answer, he huffs. “Come on. Don’t pout. I was kidding.”
“That was really rude.”
“I’m sorry. You surprised me, that’s all. I don’t like cats.”
He’s sorry, but apparently it was my fault the whole time. I should have known he hated cats and conformed to his preferences. Shifty or not, it’s a peace offering, and I’m supposed to take it. Accept the blame and swallow my hurt and be ashamed of my weight and my cat.
“I’m sorry,” I respond quietly.
He pats my hand. Everything is fine now.
“You’re not still pouting, are you?”
I sit straighter and force a laugh. “I’m not pouting.”
“Good. It was a really nice day.”
It was. And I came so close to ruining it.
“How about lunch tomorrow?” he offers.
I smile in response. “That would be nice.”
He drops me off and I wave as I let myself into the lobby. As soon as the door closes behind me, my bright smile twists into a sneer.
I can’t wait to take him down.
Stone, Victoria Helen. Jane Doe: A Novel (pp. 73-74). Lake Union Publishing. Kindle Edition.
It is a great book. Vicious and smart, and sharp. I loved it. Loved it. The ending was so bloody satisfying. Jeaniene Frost had recommended it to me and when I finished, I sent her an email that said just two words “Fuck yeah.” She immediately knew what I was talking about. I don’t usually make our kids read books as they do a fine job selecting them on their own, but I am forcing this one on them.
At $1.99, it’s a steal. As always, your mileage may vary, so try an excerpt first.
Order: Kindle | Hardcover | Audio
Author’s website: http://victoriahelenstone.com
Whoaa! A revenge themed novel. The description and the snippets piqued my interest, I will try to dive into the book right after I finish typing this comment. I wonder why I rarely (maybe almost never?) found a book like this that might suit my taste in my goodreads’s book-hunting-by-genre selection.
In return, I mostly delve into Chinese-translated novels where the popular genres are mostly divided by revenge-themed story(or usually called ‘face-slapping’ themed story), story of rebirth (where main character usually is near death and regretting some life mistakes that make their life path thoroughly miserable, then they will suddenly find themshelves wake up years earlier when they are younger and the chains of terrible events hadn’t happened yet. Mostly, the main character was at first either naive, stupid, pushover or all those three combined which led to their careless, imminent death. But after rebirth, they start to adapt to the second chance in life they were given. Recommendation: Princess Wei Yang, Rebirth of Malicious Empress of Military Lineage) and transmigration (usually about modern-day main character who travel to different era that resembles ancient china and resume life there as the possessor body of someone else who had been dying miserably due to bullying/unfortunate terms but instead of death, the main character woke up in that dying person’s body and do badass thing especially to those bully the original body’s person. Recommendation: Chu Wang Fei, Poison Genius Consort).
Although there are many good-old normal stories with no fantasy element but just plain face-slapping like Gu Fang Bu Zhi Shang by Feng Non (set in ancient China) and the ones set in modern time like A Slight Smile is Very Alluring (also known as Love O2O), Trial Marriage Husband, Our Glorious Time, Full Marks Hidden Marriage.
P.S: Whoever happened to read and haven’t heard of them, go give them a try when there’s much free time to spare^^
Oo! Thanks! (If there’s life beyond the end of the month, that might be something to consider. I’ve been thinking something light-ish in Chinese would be good5, 2018 at 11 for me, especially since the thunderstorm when my brain decided I should just think in Chinese for the rest of the night.) (One of my best friends seems to be of the opinion I’m going to read Serious Philosophy, but phooey, easy for him, he’s bored with his job…)
((finished reading Jane Doe before bed last night in one sit read –jk, I didn’t read it sitting but rather lying in bed the entire time– and whoaa the feeling, it was very intense! I’m suddenly a bit worried I have quite a scary side in my mind lol X’D))
@Tylikcat whoaa you can read Chinese? Very lucky! Not all the chinese novels I adore are fully translated yet so when I happened to stumble upon a cliffhanger and the next chapters are yet to be translated I usually brave my mind and brain to survive the abyss that is called ‘MTL’ or Machine Translation aka google translate. I guess I lost quite a lot of brain cells in the process but it was that addicting and I’m far too gone with the story :’)
Fuck Yeah! Thanks for the recommendation.
Bought, devoured, wanting more of her books if this is any indicator. I adored Jane…
Oh yes, so well done!! Loved it! I also loved Tsumiko,.even tho.
I absolutely cannot recommend the audiobook enough, even if you’ve already read the book once. The voice actress is out of this world; the way she switches back and forth between Jane’s ice cold, sardonic internal narration and her wounded, insecure act as she tries to lull That Asshole into complacency is AMAZING. The book is fantastic on its own, but Nicol Zanzarella adds mind-blowing depth and nuance and really brings Jane to life. She’s now at the top of my favorite narrators list and I’m on a quest to hear the rest of her work.
I loved this book! So amazingly new and different from what I usually read. Jane was super interesting as a character. I love her fascination with the cat!
Definitely a great recommendation. Couldn’t put it down (even at work ?). Loved how Jane could recognize everything Steven was doing to stay in control. And she was right in the end. If her revenge was handled differently, he would have blamed Meg.
With a recommendation like this, I couldn’t resist and jumped over to Amazon & bought it. Don’t know when I’ll get around to actually reading it – so many books, so little time. Sigh.
thanks, just bought it.
it’s free in Kindle unlimited. Add narration for $1.99. Boom!
Thank you for the recommendation! The book was great!
Zomg, that ending! Loved this book so much <3
I couldn’t put it down! Thanks for the recommendation.
Love when you recommend a book. I read your rpevious recommendation and loved it. I also liked the fact that the lead lady was not described, even if it was a bit strange at first. I liked that the author focused on her personnality and I got the idea that if the author did not give her leading lady a face it was because of her soul, a beacon so bright that her physique had no importance anymore.
Will read this one and let you know what I thought about it.
Many thanks!
This was superb, thank you for sharing.
OMG! I just finished reading this book. It was amazing! I loved Jane’s character portrayal and how she thinks. I couldn’t put it down and the ending was just fabulous!! So vicious, cunning and yet so Jane. I love it. It’s now 5am, just wanted to thank you for your recc. And I’m off to sleep.
I bought it and then spent my entire day off reading it. WOW. Thank you, that book was amazing! I loved every bit of it! I now want to read more from the author!
Thank you SO much for this recommendation. I went back through the whole blog a couple weeks ago to find everything you have recommended and bought almost all of them. This was definitely my favorite. I also am really enjoying The Emperor’s Edge series; I finished book 2 the other day and it’s still going great. I even enjoyed the Tsumiko book.
Please keep reading things and suggesting them when you like them. These are books I most likely wouldn’t have found on my own and they’re often so damn good.
I have to read something in between re-devouring everything you two have ever written. 😀
Loved this book, Jane rocks!
Read it.
Could not stop.
Strong writer.
Thank you for mentioning it.
I am buying the other books.
If you like that The Good Son by You-Jeong Jeong is really good more of a thriller mystery but …. I liked both of them I think they both have a similar feel.
Thanks for the recommendation! So very good!
Like many others, I finished this in one sitting. I couldn’t put it down!!! Jane is fantastic, and I love her cat!
I read this in one sitting- I loved it, spoiler alert: I was terrified for the cat the whole way through,I didn’t think she would harm her but she was pretty cold at times!.
I also love the ending,won’t say too much as really don’t want to ruin it but just happy that she has possibilities.
Thanks for the tip x
I loved a book of hers, written a while ago, about a young woman who inherits her father’s car-repair shop. There was intrigue (people wanted to buy her out and develop the land) and lots of Day to Day details about a young single woman mechanic trying to run a business and maybe having too much on her plate at too young an age, struggling with the responsibility taking over her choices. In the end, the book has a romance. But there is plenty of time to get to know the character and her situation and rural Colorado surroundings. I think back on the book and have an image of the place and an admiration for the character’s perseverance, and appreciate the author taking the time to learn about that life, how the details would hang together, and letting the plot very slowly unfold. No sense of an author rushing or hurrying. No feeling of word count or deadline or editor-hovering anxiety. A writer telling a good story.
This is not at all the sort of book i usually buy but on your recommendation i downloaded a sample and then bought the book. It was excellent. Thank you.
So good – I read the ending twice just to savor it. Thank you for the recommendation, and for the fantastic Innkeeper updates! I enjoyed Tsumiko as well. Can’t wait for next Tuesday! I’m planning to take the day off work to read Magic Triumphs. ?
an author who entertains me bought to the attention of an author who enthralls me a book I had skipped purchase of, for fear that it would not be as good, quirky or different as it sounded. Pfft about face; got it, read it …
GENRE … describe it, group it, try to bring it to the attention of folks who read those same things … my take
Jane Doe is a ROMANCE with a H E A
author is a pen name … (they claim) she’s tripping on the dark side … the HEA brought a smile to my face and I was down wit it!
Hoop, Hype, P O V, Jane Doe is a stand out stand up unapologetic hardcore shameless romance teec teec, handwagging, head shaking, but me no butts
cause lotss of folks will But
J D is a romance; Enjoy the hell out of it, no matter what you end up labeling it especially the HEA
To have finished this book on the same week that the Pennsylvania grand jury report came out . . . * sigh *
you were spot on in your review. i loved this book. thank you!
Great recommendation, thank you!
Outstanding book! Thanks for the recommendation!
Jane Doe is now the #1 New Release. I wonder how much of that is from Jeaniene and IA’s recommendations? Though clearly the book can hold it’s own once the audience arrives, so no credit is to be taken away from Victoria in that regard.
I am heading over to buy the book now – it’s no longer only $1.99 (AUD $6.82), but such is life 🙂
My chuckle for the day. Waiting for some people to leave the office so I can leave too and reading Jane Doe reviews to entertain myself. This one was my favorite. LOL
5.0 out of 5 stars
Makes a great waffle.
ByLorraineon August 15, 2018
Format: Kindle Edition
|
Verified Purchase
Easy to use. Was able to make a whole bunch and freeze some for another day.
Oh my god yes. I love anything that takes down misogynistic men. Fuck yeah is accurate
Thank you for the recommendation. I am reading as fast as I can and Jane is interfering with my bedtime and my work! Steven is such an ass. I can’t wait to see what form Jane’s revenge takes, so I hope to finish tonight. I’m going to go back through the blog and see what else you’ve recommended.
Just finished reading thia. Fantastic book! I loved how she knew the motive behind every move he made.
Did anyone else think the book she was reading at the cabin could have been Innkeeper 2? Or any of the Hidden Legacy books?
“Satisfied, I head back to the cabin to settle onto the couch with the new book I brought. It’s a sci-fi adventure packed with romance and war and intrigue. I love it.”
Ok, this was one of the best books I read this summer and I WISH it was the start of a series. Imagine, undercover Jane making the world a better place, destroying one or two misogynists at a time.
Since you’ve ruined me to most of the books currently on the market, I jumped at the recommendation and got this book. It was creepily good! I have never read anything like it and enjoyed it immensely. Thank you so much for recommending this book and all others. Anything you like, I’m game to try.
Aaaaaaaaahhhhh! Psycho alert!!! That said, she really served up some deserved revenge. Bwah hahahaha!!!!!