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Fabulous Things: A Slightly Twisted Love Story
Published as Josie and Jack in the United States. From its earliest pages to its shocking climax, this contemporary Hansel and Gretel story is mesmerising and hugely entertaining.
Braffet’s talent for dialogue is brought to the fore in this audio edition.
Beautiful and brilliant, Josie and Jack Raeburn are closer than they should be, and run riot in their father’s isolated house. But as his behaviour becomes more unpredictable, they are forced to leave, and face a world for which they are utterly unprepared. Jack’s love for Josie has always been her safety-net. However, as his world grows wilder and more dangerous, she finds herself struggling: should she escape his control, or help him? It is only when they are united again, in the company of Jack’s astoundingly rich girlfriend Lily, that she understands what she must do.
‘A creepy, captivating debut … darkly gothic and supremely readable’ — Publishers Weekly
‘Mesmerising … recommended’— Library Journal ‘Gripping … top dialogue, strong storytelling’ — Kirkus Reviews
Braffet’s talent for dialogue is brought to the fore in this audio edition.
Beautiful and brilliant, Josie and Jack Raeburn are closer than they should be, and run riot in their father’s isolated house. But as his behaviour becomes more unpredictable, they are forced to leave, and face a world for which they are utterly unprepared. Jack’s love for Josie has always been her safety-net. However, as his world grows wilder and more dangerous, she finds herself struggling: should she escape his control, or help him? It is only when they are united again, in the company of Jack’s astoundingly rich girlfriend Lily, that she understands what she must do.
‘A creepy, captivating debut … darkly gothic and supremely readable’ — Publishers Weekly
‘Mesmerising … recommended’— Library Journal ‘Gripping … top dialogue, strong storytelling’ — Kirkus Reviews
311 pages, Paperback
First published February 4, 2005
104 people are currently reading
2821 people want to read
About the author
Kelly Braffet
13 books789 followersKelly Braffet writes stories about unhappy people making bad decisions, occasionally with magic. She is the author of The Unwilling (available 2/20 from Mira Books), Save Yourself, and Last Seen Leaving; her first novel, Josie and Jack, has been made into a feature film starring Olivia DeJonge, Alex Neustaedter, and William Fitchner, and directed by Sarah Lancaster. Her writing has been published in the Fairy Tale Review, Post Road, and in several anthologies, as well as on Salon.com. She is a graduate of Columbia University and Sarah Lawrence College.
She is married to the tall and immensely talented writer Owen King. He's dreamy. For more, see www.kellybraffet.com.
She is married to the tall and immensely talented writer Owen King. He's dreamy. For more, see www.kellybraffet.com.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 310 reviews
February 10, 2017
Well. That was a wholly weird reading experience. I devoured the entire book in under 24 hours and feel as though I've actually been to the places where Josie and Jack lived. But...I'm unsatisfied, in the end.
The story of the twisted lives led by the titular Raeburn siblings is told in first person by teenaged Josie, which affords us a fascinating look at her charming sociopath of an older brother. We can see why she adores him and how he brings so many others to their knees. And we are alerted from page one that theirs is not a normal relationship.
Without giving too much away, I feel I must qualify one major thing that I suspect draws a lot of readers to this novel in the first place:
There is, technically, no incest to behold...depending on how stringent your definition of "incest" is.
Now, at the risk of sounding deranged for even bringing that up, I'll add that a bunch of us are reading it as our monthly pick for our Disturbing Books club, so when it was first pitched to us years ago it was said that the incestuous angle was in large part what made the story "disturbing." Add to that the number of Amazon reviews that (interestingly - I'm not judging) speak of disappointment at the lack of brother/sister action and...well. It's not crazy to assume many folks who survived V.C. Andrews in their preteen years - myself included - would arrive at Braffet's book with a hefty dose of morbid curiosity. I'm here to tell you that there's no attic scene on a grungy old mattress for Jack and Josie. (There's even an overt reference to "Flowers in the Attic" by one of the later characters, so at least we know the nods were intentional.)
That's not to say their relationship is healthy. Oh, hells to the no. There's dysfunction on every conceivable level between these siblings, abandoned by their suicidal mother and abused for years by their psychotic drunken physics professor of a father, and left to grow up essentially alone together in the middle of nowhere. They believe that each other is the only person worthy and capable of loving and being loved. They absolutely have a sexualized view of each other and have no concept of appropriate boundaries. By the time we meet them - Josie at 16, Jack at 18 - you can imagine how mentally stable they aren't.
The frustrating thing for me about their story, though, is not that we don't get to rubberneck at any taboo sex scenes between them (although confirmation of such a thing would've served to better justify the ending). Rather, it's that Braffet spends so much time weaving this rich, dark tapestry - one I could smell and taste and hear much of the time, unnerving as it was - only to leave just about every thread dangling in midair, unfinished, unresolved, leaving one to wonder what the point of introducing nearly any character outside of a central few really was. I suppose some of them (like Josie's first "boyfriend") are devices meant to show us Jack's true colours and how much Josie is willing to take. Others, though - their father's hated but kindly colleague, a string of Jack's conquests, various young men who catch Josie's interest - are built up as though they'll play a part in how this sibling hell will surely collapse on itself...but they're dropped without another mention. I'm left wondering why we spent any time with them at all.
Ultimately, by the last couple of chapters, a few too many nasty turns take place, and as we see brace for the inevitable crash and burn of the life Josie and Jack have built (or stolen), when it comes it doesn't feel authentic somehow. Despite knowing for 90% of the book that these two are generally pretty horrible people, the build-up to the grand finale seems too insignificant to result in such a dramatic end for them. It's as though the final couple of twists come out of nowhere, and just about any other outcome would've felt more likely.
(There's also reason, in the final act, to question my opening statement about what *isn't* featured in the book; a few throwaway lines make you wonder if maybe it was actively happening all along and Braffet just chose to keep it offscreen for whatever reason...but I don't know what to think about that, and I am dismayed by how little I care after having watched their story limp across the finish line in such a simultaneously underwhelming and over-the-top manner. How it could be both, I cannot explain. It just was.)
Admittedly I was totally absorbed in their world for the 24 hours it took me to consume this book. It earned its three stars for that alone. I just wish it hadn't made me stop caring about the fates of Jack and his "smaller sister" before it turned me loose from its grip. Because for the first two-thirds of their tale, I cared far more than I ought to have done. I was ready to be shocked or heartbroken or horrified or depressed or all of the above.
I am, instead, wishing I'd stopped reading fifty pages ago, just so I could always have the impressively vivid Raeburn lives whirling about in my head...not beaten into the ground and brought to an anticlimactic halt.
The story of the twisted lives led by the titular Raeburn siblings is told in first person by teenaged Josie, which affords us a fascinating look at her charming sociopath of an older brother. We can see why she adores him and how he brings so many others to their knees. And we are alerted from page one that theirs is not a normal relationship.
Without giving too much away, I feel I must qualify one major thing that I suspect draws a lot of readers to this novel in the first place:
There is, technically, no incest to behold...depending on how stringent your definition of "incest" is.
Now, at the risk of sounding deranged for even bringing that up, I'll add that a bunch of us are reading it as our monthly pick for our Disturbing Books club, so when it was first pitched to us years ago it was said that the incestuous angle was in large part what made the story "disturbing." Add to that the number of Amazon reviews that (interestingly - I'm not judging) speak of disappointment at the lack of brother/sister action and...well. It's not crazy to assume many folks who survived V.C. Andrews in their preteen years - myself included - would arrive at Braffet's book with a hefty dose of morbid curiosity. I'm here to tell you that there's no attic scene on a grungy old mattress for Jack and Josie. (There's even an overt reference to "Flowers in the Attic" by one of the later characters, so at least we know the nods were intentional.)
That's not to say their relationship is healthy. Oh, hells to the no. There's dysfunction on every conceivable level between these siblings, abandoned by their suicidal mother and abused for years by their psychotic drunken physics professor of a father, and left to grow up essentially alone together in the middle of nowhere. They believe that each other is the only person worthy and capable of loving and being loved. They absolutely have a sexualized view of each other and have no concept of appropriate boundaries. By the time we meet them - Josie at 16, Jack at 18 - you can imagine how mentally stable they aren't.
The frustrating thing for me about their story, though, is not that we don't get to rubberneck at any taboo sex scenes between them (although confirmation of such a thing would've served to better justify the ending). Rather, it's that Braffet spends so much time weaving this rich, dark tapestry - one I could smell and taste and hear much of the time, unnerving as it was - only to leave just about every thread dangling in midair, unfinished, unresolved, leaving one to wonder what the point of introducing nearly any character outside of a central few really was. I suppose some of them (like Josie's first "boyfriend") are devices meant to show us Jack's true colours and how much Josie is willing to take. Others, though - their father's hated but kindly colleague, a string of Jack's conquests, various young men who catch Josie's interest - are built up as though they'll play a part in how this sibling hell will surely collapse on itself...but they're dropped without another mention. I'm left wondering why we spent any time with them at all.
Ultimately, by the last couple of chapters, a few too many nasty turns take place, and as we see brace for the inevitable crash and burn of the life Josie and Jack have built (or stolen), when it comes it doesn't feel authentic somehow. Despite knowing for 90% of the book that these two are generally pretty horrible people, the build-up to the grand finale seems too insignificant to result in such a dramatic end for them. It's as though the final couple of twists come out of nowhere, and just about any other outcome would've felt more likely.
(There's also reason, in the final act, to question my opening statement about what *isn't* featured in the book; a few throwaway lines make you wonder if maybe it was actively happening all along and Braffet just chose to keep it offscreen for whatever reason...but I don't know what to think about that, and I am dismayed by how little I care after having watched their story limp across the finish line in such a simultaneously underwhelming and over-the-top manner. How it could be both, I cannot explain. It just was.)
Admittedly I was totally absorbed in their world for the 24 hours it took me to consume this book. It earned its three stars for that alone. I just wish it hadn't made me stop caring about the fates of Jack and his "smaller sister" before it turned me loose from its grip. Because for the first two-thirds of their tale, I cared far more than I ought to have done. I was ready to be shocked or heartbroken or horrified or depressed or all of the above.
I am, instead, wishing I'd stopped reading fifty pages ago, just so I could always have the impressively vivid Raeburn lives whirling about in my head...not beaten into the ground and brought to an anticlimactic halt.
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May 19, 2010
Hooked me from the start.....
Weird.Dark.mind tripping BOOK!!
After I began reading this book, I was addicted. I kept thinking about Josie and Jack and about how the hell this story would end. Josie and Jack are sister and brother, primarily isolated from the rest of the world by their mostly absent professor father. Separated when very young, their mother took Jack and left Josie with her father. However, when Jack was eight years old, their mother died, and Jack went to live with his father and sister.
Both Jack and Josie are deeply troubled people, thanks to their crazy father, who basically abandons them all week to return home on the weekends to abuse, berate, and torment them. Eventually, Jack and his father have a falling out and Jack leaves, abandoning Josie. Jack returns six months later to take her with him.
They survive through living off of the women Jack happens to ensnare with his charm. But it is an un-secure and insecure way to live.
The overwhelming feeling that I got throughout reading this novel was one of despair. These two are desperate to remain next to each other in a strange, erotic, co-dependent, and antisocial way. They are the only people who can understand each other, and they desperately cling to each other while hurting each other in the process.
The power of the story comes from rooting for them while knowing you shouldn't; wanting them to be together, even though you know it's wrong and dangerous.
Weird.Dark.mind tripping BOOK!!
After I began reading this book, I was addicted. I kept thinking about Josie and Jack and about how the hell this story would end. Josie and Jack are sister and brother, primarily isolated from the rest of the world by their mostly absent professor father. Separated when very young, their mother took Jack and left Josie with her father. However, when Jack was eight years old, their mother died, and Jack went to live with his father and sister.
Both Jack and Josie are deeply troubled people, thanks to their crazy father, who basically abandons them all week to return home on the weekends to abuse, berate, and torment them. Eventually, Jack and his father have a falling out and Jack leaves, abandoning Josie. Jack returns six months later to take her with him.
They survive through living off of the women Jack happens to ensnare with his charm. But it is an un-secure and insecure way to live.
The overwhelming feeling that I got throughout reading this novel was one of despair. These two are desperate to remain next to each other in a strange, erotic, co-dependent, and antisocial way. They are the only people who can understand each other, and they desperately cling to each other while hurting each other in the process.
The power of the story comes from rooting for them while knowing you shouldn't; wanting them to be together, even though you know it's wrong and dangerous.
February 2, 2024
With a dead mother and a distant, unloving father, siblings Josie and Jack have only each other. They may be brilliant, beautiful, and share a fierce love, but the sanctuary of their isolation is too often penetrated by the outside world, and the siblings begin to show signs of strain. This sort of desert island paradise people by tortured and unusually intimate relationships is a favorite (and none too guilty) pleasure of mine, and Josie and Jack appeals precisely to those tastes - and knows it, going so far as to reference Flowers in the Attic, an iconic (if not particularly good) example of the trope. Initially, the siblings share a paradise of dirty debauchery, and, while the indulgence of their drunkenness and isolation is tempered by unenviable living conditions, there's a taboo, delightful romance to their relationship. The precise nature of that relationship has to be read between the lines, but the gaps between each line are a mile wide. It's dark, indulgent, and thoroughly addicting.
But the book remains aware of the trope it's engaging, and isn't content to play it straight - or, at least, to remain within the confines of indulgent isolation. The real world intervenes and the sibling's sanctuary begins to fall apart - but the true corrupting force may well be the siblings themselves. Jack is less the dashing rogue he appears, and his increasingly unreliable behavior threatens both Josie and their relationship; Josie is more and less the passive victim she appears, and ultimately she is the one to define their relationship - and herself. This isn't a wholly original interpretation, but by questioning the pleasure in its guilty pleasure, Josie and Jack manages, in a way, to have its cake and eat it too. It revels in the dark delight of its premise while questioning its sustainability and desirability, and the combination is addicting to the final page while offering something a bit more satisfying than indulgence alone, even if it doesn't attain significant depth. Braffet's voice is nearly transparent but peppered with the sort of gritty detail that brings the best and worst of the sibling's circumstances to life, and so aids both aspects of the book. The result is perfectly satisfying, and while I have some criticisms they aren't caveats: Josie and Jack offers what it promises, which is a delight to those who pick it up for that reason; it offers also something a little more complex and intelligent than that, which sustains the book just when the intrigue of its premise might begin to fade. It's neither perfect nor astounding, but it's a good read - indulgent, addictive, compelling; dark and delightfully gothic but authentically discomforting; well worth seeing through to the end. Readers intrigued by the premise won't be disappointed by what they find; I recommend it.
But the book remains aware of the trope it's engaging, and isn't content to play it straight - or, at least, to remain within the confines of indulgent isolation. The real world intervenes and the sibling's sanctuary begins to fall apart - but the true corrupting force may well be the siblings themselves. Jack is less the dashing rogue he appears, and his increasingly unreliable behavior threatens both Josie and their relationship; Josie is more and less the passive victim she appears, and ultimately she is the one to define their relationship - and herself. This isn't a wholly original interpretation, but by questioning the pleasure in its guilty pleasure, Josie and Jack manages, in a way, to have its cake and eat it too. It revels in the dark delight of its premise while questioning its sustainability and desirability, and the combination is addicting to the final page while offering something a bit more satisfying than indulgence alone, even if it doesn't attain significant depth. Braffet's voice is nearly transparent but peppered with the sort of gritty detail that brings the best and worst of the sibling's circumstances to life, and so aids both aspects of the book. The result is perfectly satisfying, and while I have some criticisms they aren't caveats: Josie and Jack offers what it promises, which is a delight to those who pick it up for that reason; it offers also something a little more complex and intelligent than that, which sustains the book just when the intrigue of its premise might begin to fade. It's neither perfect nor astounding, but it's a good read - indulgent, addictive, compelling; dark and delightfully gothic but authentically discomforting; well worth seeing through to the end. Readers intrigued by the premise won't be disappointed by what they find; I recommend it.
September 8, 2025
Will they won't they, but make it incestuous.
Read
March 3, 2014DNF... 30%
Ohhh well... How can I say this?
Book... I tried... but...
It wasn't the story itself, was the way it was being told, and the personality of the characters... one worse than the other... so...
Ohhh well... How can I say this?
Book... I tried... but...
It wasn't the story itself, was the way it was being told, and the personality of the characters... one worse than the other... so...
July 10, 2013
I can't believe the great reviews of this book!
I have a few gripes but my biggest one is the main character Josie. I know that not all females are going to be written as strong characters or even likeable characters but Josie was a complete non entity. She just floated through life like a piece of c&ap and just...did....nothing. Never made a decision, never had an opinion. Never did anything that wasn't suggested by others even if it was something she really didn't want to do. And not because she was afraid of what would happen if she didn't, there was no thought process in there at all she just floated along.
Lots of meaningless characters, no real plot due to the complete non entity of the main character. I only finished it because I had to see whether she would actually do something in the end.
I have a few gripes but my biggest one is the main character Josie. I know that not all females are going to be written as strong characters or even likeable characters but Josie was a complete non entity. She just floated through life like a piece of c&ap and just...did....nothing. Never made a decision, never had an opinion. Never did anything that wasn't suggested by others even if it was something she really didn't want to do. And not because she was afraid of what would happen if she didn't, there was no thought process in there at all she just floated along.
Lots of meaningless characters, no real plot due to the complete non entity of the main character. I only finished it because I had to see whether she would actually do something in the end.
January 12, 2009
Read this in one sitting at B&N while I should have been doing my Christmas shopping, it's that quick of a read. It's also that gripping a story, too, if you consider the holiday crowds and chaos that surrounded me as I read. The subject matter is handled well, and the story itself is engrossing. However, the ending was too sudden, and seemed somewhat out of character. Too convenient, like the author went for the easy, acceptable ending that would tie up loose ends and pass some judgment on the relationship between the characters.
Enjoyed the first 3/4, but I hated the end.
(And for the record? I did end up buying this book after I finished reading it. As a Christmas present for a dear friend. Because we're twisted.)
Enjoyed the first 3/4, but I hated the end.
(And for the record? I did end up buying this book after I finished reading it. As a Christmas present for a dear friend. Because we're twisted.)
December 27, 2016
Delightfully creepy and psychologically disturbing á la Anne Cassidy's Looking for JJ. I'm still chewing over the macabre plot twists and the deliciously sinister undertones. Josie and Jack has a parasitic way of drawing the reader in, almost like a leech for the mind. Highly recommended.
October 30, 2007
This book is one of the best I've ever read, and a favorite. It's a lyrical story about an incestuous relationship much like Francesca Lia Block's 'Wasteland' and McEwan's 'The Cement Garden', but is more raw and honest than 'Wasteland' and has better character development and imagery than 'The Cement Garden'. Other than the title, which I feel is weak, Josie and Jack is a read I guarantee you've never read the likes of before.
August 21, 2008
The beginning had me captivated...two lonely homeschooled kids who live atop a hill...The ending however didn't quite ring true.
December 6, 2016
Dnf @ 72%
I really didn't get this book. At all.
Way way too preachy and not quite as dark as I expected. It started off intense then fizzled out half way through.
I really didn't get this book. At all.
Way way too preachy and not quite as dark as I expected. It started off intense then fizzled out half way through.
September 16, 2014
SPOILER ALERT
I don't know what to think about this book. It's still freshly imprinted in my mind.
I have mixed feelings. I just keep telling myself that things could work out better for them, at least for Josie. I mean they had so much potential after they have gone to New York, for example Jack could find himself a job. But why did Josie always followed and listened to him?
Ok I get it, tough childhood, they had only one each other, but stil... she knew when he started to change. I mean even the end kind of doesn't work out the way I thought it will. And I'm not even sure did she even sleep with Jack, were they involved romantically, what happens to Josie, whose child is she carrying? I don't like being left to think about it myself. Josie you could build yourself a better life.
She shouldn't left with Jack after he got back for her. I understand why she done to him what she did, but still...
I didn't give this book a five stars because I don't know, something is missing here.
I don't know what to think about this book. It's still freshly imprinted in my mind.
I have mixed feelings. I just keep telling myself that things could work out better for them, at least for Josie. I mean they had so much potential after they have gone to New York, for example Jack could find himself a job. But why did Josie always followed and listened to him?
Ok I get it, tough childhood, they had only one each other, but stil... she knew when he started to change. I mean even the end kind of doesn't work out the way I thought it will. And I'm not even sure did she even sleep with Jack, were they involved romantically, what happens to Josie, whose child is she carrying? I don't like being left to think about it myself. Josie you could build yourself a better life.
She shouldn't left with Jack after he got back for her. I understand why she done to him what she did, but still...
I didn't give this book a five stars because I don't know, something is missing here.
May 31, 2009
I'm an anxiety prone person who gets way too attached to fictional characters in fictional stories so reading this book caused me as much pain as it did enjoyment. Ugh, but now that the depression has passed I am here to say that it is indeed a very good read. :)
October 20, 2007
Bewitching, but not enough incest for the buck.
March 20, 2016
This is the first novel by Kelly Braffet. I am excited to read more works by this author. Braffett rides a fine line with the intriguing, often erotic, brother/sister relationship in the story of Josie and Jack. The novel builds up through several phases of self-discovery, connecting the reader to the characters with a disturbing curiosity.
Favorite Passages:
.... my stomach rebelled anew at the sight of the separated chicken leg on my plate, the white knob of bone glistening through the cooked tendons. It didn't look like food. It looked like a piece of dismembered corpse. Eating it, I knew, was a practical impossibility.
______
....what I really liked was the feeling that I was exposed and hidden at the same time.
"It's like another world," I said.
______
The night was very quiet. In the distance, on the highway that led to town, a pair of headlights moved slowly and I thought, those people are different from us, those people don't know we exist.
______
"Humanity will not survive as a collective unit, Josephine. It is too deeply infected with stupidity. The only way to survive is to isolate yourself from the diseased cells."
______
Late that night we went for a long drive on the twisting back roads outside of Janesville; the air was bright with starlight reflected from the snow, and the world seemed beautiful.
______
.... anyone who would ride a motorcycle in January, early melt or no early melt, had to be either crazy or desperate ....
______
The gash on my arm was less serious and had already stopped bleeding, but there was drying blood all over my hands and arms and clothes, and thick clots of it in my hair.
______
Once, when we were children, I spilled chocolate milk on the Persian rug in the study and Raeburn shook me until my nose bled. Then he shoved me into the bathroom so I wouldn't bleed on anything important. Seven hours later, after Raeburn had drunk himself into a stupor and I'd cried myself out, it was Jack who pried off the bathroom doorknob with a screwdriver. That was the first time we slept in the same bed. I guess he was probably ten years old then, which would have made me eight. I remember that he put me next to the wall, let me curl up against his chest. I remember his warm body, the stretchy feeling of dried blood on my skin, and the chill of the wall against my back.
If Jack were there, he would have come to help me. But Jack was gone.
______
I guess that there must be all kinds of going crazy. Some people talk to trees; some cook compulsively; some sit and stare blankly at walls for hours on end. Most people retreat into themselves; I retreated into the world, which was as far away as I could get form my own reality. I started hitchhiking.
______
On the sidewalk in front of the store, there was a miniature coin-operated carousel. The battered fiberglass animals were something like ducks and something like dogs; the bright colors had been faded by the weather and the red paint on the base was beginning to rust and flake off. The carousel was revolving slowly, the noise from the engine inside it all but drowning out the tinny music. There was a crying baby with food on its face clinging desperately to the back of one of the animals, while two women talked calmly over its head.
______
"Human beings suck the life out of everything that's beautiful. The only way to keep something pure is to keep it to yourself."
______
She hadn't taken off her makeup before going to bed and it had smeared. I stared down at her blurred features and had trouble remembering what she really looked like.
______
The cheerful blue cabinets were cheerful all right, but they were also painted shut. When Jack finally managed to cut one of them open with a razor blade (cutting his thumb badly in the process), we were greeted by a burst of hot, stale air, massive quantities of mouse droppings, and two cans of what we guessed was tuna fish. We had to guess, because the labels had been chewed off long ago.
______
______
Favorite Passages:
.... my stomach rebelled anew at the sight of the separated chicken leg on my plate, the white knob of bone glistening through the cooked tendons. It didn't look like food. It looked like a piece of dismembered corpse. Eating it, I knew, was a practical impossibility.
______
....what I really liked was the feeling that I was exposed and hidden at the same time.
"It's like another world," I said.
______
The night was very quiet. In the distance, on the highway that led to town, a pair of headlights moved slowly and I thought, those people are different from us, those people don't know we exist.
______
"Humanity will not survive as a collective unit, Josephine. It is too deeply infected with stupidity. The only way to survive is to isolate yourself from the diseased cells."
______
Late that night we went for a long drive on the twisting back roads outside of Janesville; the air was bright with starlight reflected from the snow, and the world seemed beautiful.
______
.... anyone who would ride a motorcycle in January, early melt or no early melt, had to be either crazy or desperate ....
______
The gash on my arm was less serious and had already stopped bleeding, but there was drying blood all over my hands and arms and clothes, and thick clots of it in my hair.
______
Once, when we were children, I spilled chocolate milk on the Persian rug in the study and Raeburn shook me until my nose bled. Then he shoved me into the bathroom so I wouldn't bleed on anything important. Seven hours later, after Raeburn had drunk himself into a stupor and I'd cried myself out, it was Jack who pried off the bathroom doorknob with a screwdriver. That was the first time we slept in the same bed. I guess he was probably ten years old then, which would have made me eight. I remember that he put me next to the wall, let me curl up against his chest. I remember his warm body, the stretchy feeling of dried blood on my skin, and the chill of the wall against my back.
If Jack were there, he would have come to help me. But Jack was gone.
______
I guess that there must be all kinds of going crazy. Some people talk to trees; some cook compulsively; some sit and stare blankly at walls for hours on end. Most people retreat into themselves; I retreated into the world, which was as far away as I could get form my own reality. I started hitchhiking.
______
On the sidewalk in front of the store, there was a miniature coin-operated carousel. The battered fiberglass animals were something like ducks and something like dogs; the bright colors had been faded by the weather and the red paint on the base was beginning to rust and flake off. The carousel was revolving slowly, the noise from the engine inside it all but drowning out the tinny music. There was a crying baby with food on its face clinging desperately to the back of one of the animals, while two women talked calmly over its head.
______
"Human beings suck the life out of everything that's beautiful. The only way to keep something pure is to keep it to yourself."
______
She hadn't taken off her makeup before going to bed and it had smeared. I stared down at her blurred features and had trouble remembering what she really looked like.
______
The cheerful blue cabinets were cheerful all right, but they were also painted shut. When Jack finally managed to cut one of them open with a razor blade (cutting his thumb badly in the process), we were greeted by a burst of hot, stale air, massive quantities of mouse droppings, and two cans of what we guessed was tuna fish. We had to guess, because the labels had been chewed off long ago.
______
______
October 31, 2013
Great first book, by Kelly Braffet - a swanky up and coming author!
I've seen a lot of different reviewers tossing around "Hansel and Gretel" and I have to say that I agree with that, but obviously Braffet went ahead and made a few changes.
For about 100 pages, or so, I really hated the two main characters: two little brats, who think they know more than everyone else and are raised to really believe that as well. A combination of a mentally unhinged parent (too wound up, maybe) and an extremely isolated upbringing, Josie and Jack weren't really prepared for the world outside of their little insular home and quickly found their selves resorting to the worst means for survival (with the exception of grave robbing and necrophilia).
My one complaint, which I do know doesn't exist in her second book "Last Seen Leaving," is that Braffet took too long to get things into motion. It really didn't feel like the story was moving forward fast enough until about 100 (I have a Nook that claimed the book was shorter than good reads, so maybe 120 in paperback) pages when Jack screwed over his father, from then on it stopped being a problem.
Also, since I have seen a lot of people talking about the ending being too abrupt, I do agree and disagree. Yes, it was a bit abrupt, but I think, as a story about 'the things that happen to Josie because of her brother' was over, she realized that Jack needed to go. Once Josie realized that then the story needed to end.
I've seen a lot of different reviewers tossing around "Hansel and Gretel" and I have to say that I agree with that, but obviously Braffet went ahead and made a few changes.
For about 100 pages, or so, I really hated the two main characters: two little brats, who think they know more than everyone else and are raised to really believe that as well. A combination of a mentally unhinged parent (too wound up, maybe) and an extremely isolated upbringing, Josie and Jack weren't really prepared for the world outside of their little insular home and quickly found their selves resorting to the worst means for survival (with the exception of grave robbing and necrophilia).
My one complaint, which I do know doesn't exist in her second book "Last Seen Leaving," is that Braffet took too long to get things into motion. It really didn't feel like the story was moving forward fast enough until about 100 (I have a Nook that claimed the book was shorter than good reads, so maybe 120 in paperback) pages when Jack screwed over his father, from then on it stopped being a problem.
Also, since I have seen a lot of people talking about the ending being too abrupt, I do agree and disagree. Yes, it was a bit abrupt, but I think, as a story about 'the things that happen to Josie because of her brother' was over, she realized that Jack needed to go. Once Josie realized that then the story needed to end.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 22, 2014
This book was perfect!!
Dark, edgy and slightly repulsive - just the way I like 'em!
Dark, edgy and slightly repulsive - just the way I like 'em!
December 19, 2025
[11/12 BOOKS CHALLENGE 2025]
Bogiem a prawdą, z całego tegorocznego wyzwania najbardziej czekałam akurat na tę książkę – i kiedy już do niej usiadłam, praktycznie ją połknęłam.
Znając pewne narracje czy schematy, trudno tu mówić o oryginalności fabuły, jednak postawmy sobie najpierw pytanie, czy każda historia musi być oryginalna? Czy nie ważniejszy jest sposób, w jaki zostaje opowiedziana, jak złożona, niż to, ile razy wcześniej ktoś wykorzystywał podobny szkielet? A muszę Kelly Braffet przyznać, że ona to wszystko, co znamy z archetypów, z lektur, z udramatycznionych filmów telewizyjnych i paradokumentów, przedstawia w sposób, który zdaje się jednak unikatowy i wyłącznie *jej*. Bo pomimo siedzenia cały czas w głowie bohaterki, pewne rzeczy pozostawia w niedopowiedzeniu, posługując się wyobraźnią odbiorcy i jego wnioskami. Bardzo łatwo byłoby z Jacka zrobić idealnego manipulanta psychopatę, zawsze z dokładnym planem, nigdy nie popełniającego błędów. Jeszcze łatwiej byłoby niewinność Josie podkręcić do poziomu parodii, by nadać jaskrawości kontrastowi pomiędzy rodzeństwem. Bardzo wiele razy podczas lektury widziałam, jak łatwo byłoby skręcić w znajomą stronę, która uprościłaby zrozumienie tej historii, nadanie jej z zewnątrz jakiegoś morału – i Braffet zawsze ucinała to znienacka. Były, rzecz jasna, wątki, które dało się wyłapać nim rozkwitły, ale wynikały one z faktu, że zaczynało się już znać bohaterów i to, jak operują w narracji. Ale prawie do końca nie byłam pewna, CZYM ten koniec będzie. I to samo w sobie mnie ciągnęło przez kolejne strony niemal na łeb, na szyję.
Trudno to nazwać idealną powieścią; nawet rozumiejąc zamysł, nie można w którymś momencie nie niecierpliwić się pasywnością głównej bohaterki, która po prostu nie zadziałałaby, gdyby ta książka trwała dłużej. Ale jest angażująca. Podobnie jak dysfunkcyjna rodzina, o której opowiada, czaruje czytelnika słowami, wciąga go w głąb siebie i trzyma w kleszczach aż do końca, jeśli tylko odbiorca jej na to pozwoli.
Trudno mi tak naprawdę powiedzieć coś konkretnego, bo jestem cała w emocjach po lekturze – ale też to naprawdę nie jest książka, gdzie poznanie za dobrze zarysu fabuły czy postaci wcześniej nie zaszkodzi odbiorowi. Bo raz na jakiś czas trzeba przeczytać jakąś dziwną, skrajnie niepopularną pozycję i dać się porwać świeżości, jaką niesie treść nieskażona setkami intelektualnych odcisków palców w różnych sferach, które obcowały z nią przed nami.
Winczys jak zwykle zna mnie najlepiej.
Bogiem a prawdą, z całego tegorocznego wyzwania najbardziej czekałam akurat na tę książkę – i kiedy już do niej usiadłam, praktycznie ją połknęłam.
Znając pewne narracje czy schematy, trudno tu mówić o oryginalności fabuły, jednak postawmy sobie najpierw pytanie, czy każda historia musi być oryginalna? Czy nie ważniejszy jest sposób, w jaki zostaje opowiedziana, jak złożona, niż to, ile razy wcześniej ktoś wykorzystywał podobny szkielet? A muszę Kelly Braffet przyznać, że ona to wszystko, co znamy z archetypów, z lektur, z udramatycznionych filmów telewizyjnych i paradokumentów, przedstawia w sposób, który zdaje się jednak unikatowy i wyłącznie *jej*. Bo pomimo siedzenia cały czas w głowie bohaterki, pewne rzeczy pozostawia w niedopowiedzeniu, posługując się wyobraźnią odbiorcy i jego wnioskami. Bardzo łatwo byłoby z Jacka zrobić idealnego manipulanta psychopatę, zawsze z dokładnym planem, nigdy nie popełniającego błędów. Jeszcze łatwiej byłoby niewinność Josie podkręcić do poziomu parodii, by nadać jaskrawości kontrastowi pomiędzy rodzeństwem. Bardzo wiele razy podczas lektury widziałam, jak łatwo byłoby skręcić w znajomą stronę, która uprościłaby zrozumienie tej historii, nadanie jej z zewnątrz jakiegoś morału – i Braffet zawsze ucinała to znienacka. Były, rzecz jasna, wątki, które dało się wyłapać nim rozkwitły, ale wynikały one z faktu, że zaczynało się już znać bohaterów i to, jak operują w narracji. Ale prawie do końca nie byłam pewna, CZYM ten koniec będzie. I to samo w sobie mnie ciągnęło przez kolejne strony niemal na łeb, na szyję.
Trudno to nazwać idealną powieścią; nawet rozumiejąc zamysł, nie można w którymś momencie nie niecierpliwić się pasywnością głównej bohaterki, która po prostu nie zadziałałaby, gdyby ta książka trwała dłużej. Ale jest angażująca. Podobnie jak dysfunkcyjna rodzina, o której opowiada, czaruje czytelnika słowami, wciąga go w głąb siebie i trzyma w kleszczach aż do końca, jeśli tylko odbiorca jej na to pozwoli.
Trudno mi tak naprawdę powiedzieć coś konkretnego, bo jestem cała w emocjach po lekturze – ale też to naprawdę nie jest książka, gdzie poznanie za dobrze zarysu fabuły czy postaci wcześniej nie zaszkodzi odbiorowi. Bo raz na jakiś czas trzeba przeczytać jakąś dziwną, skrajnie niepopularną pozycję i dać się porwać świeżości, jaką niesie treść nieskażona setkami intelektualnych odcisków palców w różnych sferach, które obcowały z nią przed nami.
Winczys jak zwykle zna mnie najlepiej.
July 22, 2016
This is one of those stories that are so disturbing, dark and shocking that you just can’t stop reading. You know, like a car crash. You might see some very unpleasant images, but you just keep staring, even though you’re not keen on the idea of seeing a dead body.
Josie and Jack are so wrong for each other, but at the same time so, so right. Reading about them felt like I was some sort of bipolar. Every time his sociopathic tendencies emerged I wanted Josie to run away from him, but a second later all I wanted was for him to change. Stop doing shit like using his sister to get to drugs, and just be happy with her, even though they are related. I kept rooting for them till the very end, which, I must admit, came a little sudden, but I think it fitted the overall story none the less.
It’s a good read, IF you’re in the mood for such books.
Josie and Jack are so wrong for each other, but at the same time so, so right. Reading about them felt like I was some sort of bipolar. Every time his sociopathic tendencies emerged I wanted Josie to run away from him, but a second later all I wanted was for him to change. Stop doing shit like using his sister to get to drugs, and just be happy with her, even though they are related. I kept rooting for them till the very end, which, I must admit, came a little sudden, but I think it fitted the overall story none the less.
It’s a good read, IF you’re in the mood for such books.
October 1, 2012
My all time favorite book. Normally when I find a book, no matter how much I adore it I can only read it through one time. This book, since I read it almost 6 years ago, I have read over 10 times and have given away several copies. I doubt I'll ever be able to find a book that has touched me quite as dearly as this one. I recommend it to anyone who enjoys books that have a dark side to them.
June 23, 2010
A great literary thriller. Josie and Jack are two characters I'll never forget.
July 5, 2024
4.5
devoured this in one sitting oh how i love you toxic codependent doomed relationships
devoured this in one sitting oh how i love you toxic codependent doomed relationships
August 14, 2022
Well this one was a let down. I'm not sure when/how this book was recommended to me, but I jumped at the chance to get it. It was just too tame for me. Even though it had some fairly mature themes, it still came off as middle grade, or young adult at the very least. All of the sexy times were off page, to the point that I wasn't even sure they were happening at all. And honestly, even after the ending, I'm not sure that they happened. And speaking of that ending, it left a lot to be desired. I definitely wouldn't classify this book as a romance, and honestly, not even a love story, which is what I was expecting. That ending made me seriously dislike the heroine telling the story, and I'll be happy to forget that I ever read this book.
March 22, 2024
i'm sick
August 18, 2011
This reminded me of what we left behind in NYC, tho it wasn't OUR will to leave it there.
When I lived in NYC, I lived in the Central Bronx w/ my friend and her husband and barely eked out a living.
I moved away after what happened to my daughter's dad, my former husband. He was at work one day, and a plane crashed into the building he was working in and he never came back home. Not even his remains did, but that's another story altogether.
After that, NYC conjured up nothing but sadness and pain. I quit my job and moved away. Took another job in a city that has better memories of him.
BTW it would drive me insane if the friends of my brother's girlfriend pulled me aside to talk about how much they like my brother. My former sister-in-law used to think I wanted to hear how much she liked my brother-I'm talking details; she provided sordid details, or tried to-and it took all my effort to avoid showing my extreme embarrassment. They do it with my other brother too, the one who went to Iraq and in pictures that I show my friends, he's always dressed in military garb.
It's totally embarrassing to see how they act over looking at an Iraq veteran, especially since I've known him all my life, and thus can see right past his heroic attributes.
I can see why Juli, my colleague and friend, liked this book so much she recommended it to me. And she's right about the author.
Kelly Braffet's work deserves to be noticed by more people. I hope more people will read her books. I tell everyone about her, but I mention only her and HER accomplishments, b/c I believe she should be recognized for her own talents. She's married to a child of a really famous person, but I think that fact shouldn't color how I view her work.
When I lived in NYC, I lived in the Central Bronx w/ my friend and her husband and barely eked out a living.
I moved away after what happened to my daughter's dad, my former husband. He was at work one day, and a plane crashed into the building he was working in and he never came back home. Not even his remains did, but that's another story altogether.
After that, NYC conjured up nothing but sadness and pain. I quit my job and moved away. Took another job in a city that has better memories of him.
BTW it would drive me insane if the friends of my brother's girlfriend pulled me aside to talk about how much they like my brother. My former sister-in-law used to think I wanted to hear how much she liked my brother-I'm talking details; she provided sordid details, or tried to-and it took all my effort to avoid showing my extreme embarrassment. They do it with my other brother too, the one who went to Iraq and in pictures that I show my friends, he's always dressed in military garb.
It's totally embarrassing to see how they act over looking at an Iraq veteran, especially since I've known him all my life, and thus can see right past his heroic attributes.
I can see why Juli, my colleague and friend, liked this book so much she recommended it to me. And she's right about the author.
Kelly Braffet's work deserves to be noticed by more people. I hope more people will read her books. I tell everyone about her, but I mention only her and HER accomplishments, b/c I believe she should be recognized for her own talents. She's married to a child of a really famous person, but I think that fact shouldn't color how I view her work.
March 29, 2011
I liked this book, it was different. It was like a Hansel and Gretel gone wrong. This book was about a brother and sister, Josie and Jack, being secluded in their father, who's stuffs them with physics every weekend until their mouths are full. Later on in this book, they eventually escape but Josie and Jack only have each other, they always have. With no role model, guide, or goals, they live their own lives. This soon turns into the Hansel and Gretel story. Surprisingly, this book turns seductive. Very seductive. Jacks new world soon takes over him, as well as Josie. While a three-some love relationship builds between Jack, new girlfriend, Lily, and believe it or not--Josie. This book talks about their experiences and new lives. I liked this book because of the language, they way Braffet wrote was like she was right in front of me, talking to me. I loved how it glued my eyes to the pages. I t was kind of creepy, but interesting indeed. Good read for my age and older, not really any younger!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 1, 2016
Let me start by saying I never read Flowers in the Attic growing up. I know people compare this book with that one. I loved this book! It is dark and haunting! I tell people to read it all of the time. The complex dynamic between Josie and Jack is unforgettable.
July 5, 2018
The book was interesting and it hooked you but how Josie acted at the end was incongruous to her character throughout. Maybe if her discontent towards Jack was developed more it would make sense. But to kill him? I just can’t see it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 31, 2020
Not gonna lie, it sort of annoys me the way this book presented itself because it barely followed through. I simultaneously expected more and less at the same time even though I guess the blurb does an alright job at summarizing the book. The thing I disliked the most was the MAIN CHARACTER. I hate it when there's only one narrator in stories like this especially when it's the woman (sorry not sorry). It's like authors don't ever know what they want to do with the women in these sorts of stories and even worse, always make the guy unhinged and sociopaths in some way - its tiring, especially because I really enjoy stories with these themes (too close siblings that are secluded somewhere). But even so, this main character was like no other I've ever read - she didn't even really exist and it sucked being inside her head when her brother was the only one with actual ideals, hopes or any personality. There was something she said to describe her feelings in a moment and it was "I felt remote and unaffected" and that is literally how she reacts to EVERYTHING in this book. Such a flat character that I really just couldn't stand, not that I liked Jack that much either, but he at least had depth and I always wanted to know more about what was going on in his head. The best parts of the book were the parts when the two of them were together even though they didn't always bring out the best in each other. I've made my peace with the ending even though it rubbed me the wrong way at first but for me this book will not go down in history as anything other than a dark story with not much substance.
January 6, 2023
✨MINI REVIEW ✨
⭐Stars: 3
🌶️ Spice: 0
•Part of my 12 books challenge.
•Josie & Jack was not what I was expecting.
•I think I went into thinking it was going to be dark. And it wasn't. At least not for me.
•Two teenagers who grew without a mother and an alcoholic father. They where all each other had.
•Josie was a push over. God did I want to just slap her. Jack? Was meant to be charming and a sociopath and yeah I could see it. But it just wasn't executed as well as I hoped.
•It's a fade to black older YA that was a solid mindfuck of a book. The plot was intrigujng and did enough to keep me reading.
•The ending ruined the story for me though.
⚠️TW/TROPES: Dark YA. Abuse. DubCon/NonCon. Violence
⭐Stars: 3
🌶️ Spice: 0
•Part of my 12 books challenge.
•Josie & Jack was not what I was expecting.
•I think I went into thinking it was going to be dark. And it wasn't. At least not for me.
•Two teenagers who grew without a mother and an alcoholic father. They where all each other had.
•Josie was a push over. God did I want to just slap her. Jack? Was meant to be charming and a sociopath and yeah I could see it. But it just wasn't executed as well as I hoped.
•It's a fade to black older YA that was a solid mindfuck of a book. The plot was intrigujng and did enough to keep me reading.
•The ending ruined the story for me though.
⚠️TW/TROPES: Dark YA. Abuse. DubCon/NonCon. Violence
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