Until I Met Her (Emma Fern Book 1)

I truly hate to write bad reviews for any book. I know the author has put some of herself into writing the novel. But, I just couldn't stand the main characters in this novel, and it soured the thin plot. Emma is a whiny, insecure woman, who takes every little remark from her husband as a terrible thing that must mean the end of the world. She reacts this way to her new "best friend", the famous writer, who bullies Emma into agreeing to put her name on the new novel Beatrice is working on. I say she bullies her because she gives her the cold shoulder, until "poor" Emma gives in. These characters would be great in a pre-teen novel about middle school girls, but reading about grown women acting so immature is infuriating. The famed novelist actually says "Do you know who I am?" Seriously, who says this out loud? And after Emma fears her husband is having an affair, (and for really no good reason any intelligent woman would see,) she runs to Beatrice's house where she is allowed to sob in her bedroom until they both fall asleep cuddled in her bed, while supportive Beatrice's husband sleeps in the guest bedroom. Again, really? How old are they, 12? And on in goes throughout the novel. Actually, after page 100 I simply couldn't stomach these two women anymore, so I stopped reading. The immature, whiny main character Emma, and her snobby, condescending "best friend", the famed writer Beatrice, were both too much to take. Very disappointed given the past reviews.

I'm pretty picky about books, and I have no problem quitting one if it doesn't capture me within the first 1/3 of the story. I know this behavior is anathema to most book lovers, but I figure there are lots of books for me to try. My taste runs from Anna Karenina to Dr. Seuss, so I'm not locked into a certain genre and I think I'm pretty open minded. And I really liked this book. I never thought for one moment that it was slow or boring or unbelievable - people hope & people delude themselves, and people crack & shatter their own & others' worlds sometimes.Was Emma's situation odd? Sure, but I think most of us would be a little star-struck if one of our idols came along and showed interest in becoming friends. I mean, if Scarlet Johansson popped by & wanted to take me to lunch, I'd be pretty excited to hang out & ask for make-up or exercise tips or something. Sure, I would really wonder why the heck she showed interest in me, but I'd be able to push my doubts away enough to hit the mall with her every couple of days.I don't want to give anything away, but if I leaned toward Emma's mindset, somebody had better advise Scarlet to stay in line.I plan to watch for more books from Natalie Barelli.

The books description was intriguing enough to download, but I really dragged my feet trying to finish it. The protagonist, Emma Fern, is an author wannabe who stands in for an established crime drama writer (Beatrice) who wants her novel published in another genre without the prejudicial constraint of the publishing world. So worldly Beatrice convinces Emma to publish her work of art novel under Emma's name, and before you know it Emma's ego is out of control.Emma's transformation from puppy dog doormat to brilliant murderer was hard for me to buy. Mostly I really disliked Emma. What a silly despicable protagonist. I liked Beatrice better, even though her role was that of the anti-heroine.

This top notch psycho-thriller brings us face to face with a powerful and deceitful woman, and that is just the victim, the "Her" of the title. The perpetrator, on the other hand, takes the psycho part a few notches higher on the deadly scale and with her and her story, this author transports us deeper into the thrill of a good hair raising drama.Told in the first person, this story of the of a young wanna-be author is a murky mix of good intentions and malevolent betrayals, a world of deceit and self-delusion. The plot twists and turns with a variety of well written conflicts and alliances. Who do we trust? Who should we believe? Where does the power lie? Who is to reap the awards and accolades? Who will still be alive at the end?If you, like me, are a fan of good thrillers, I recommend that you meet her too.

“Why is it always 3:00 a.m., I wondered, when the dark, silent world of naked truth slides in beside us in bed, keeping us from the relief of sleep?”― Natalie Barelli, Until I Met Her3.5 stars.This is a highly rated book and I wish I could have loved it as much as many. While this was an enjoyable read, there were a few things that I did not like.I loved the premise which is why I put it on my list of books to read. I like reading about writers and this premise..a writer asking her friend to assume her identity..seemed fun. And it was at first. I loved the first half. The writing is so good. It's fresh and energetic and makes one want to keep turning the pages. But, for me anyway, things at some point, took a nosedive.SPOILERS:I really did not love the twist. It seems every mystery these days needs a twist and I do not see why. The book went quickly from a fun book about a writer to a Psycho killer book. This type of book I have read alot of but I did not think Until I met her was going to go down that path and I was a little let down when it did.I also found the ending difficult to stomach. I found the whole thing unbelievable and could not buy Emma as a mass murderer. That is not where I expected the book to go and I found that the way things played out was unrealistic to say the least.It was a double let down because, unlike books that are just OK and then goes sideways, this one was absolutely terrific to start. I loved the plot in the beginning and thought it was so fresh and original but then I thought it just turned into another thriller and I really did not like that.Although I did not really care for where this book went all that much I’d still give it 3.5 stars because the first half was riveting. I just felt it went down a path I could not believe.

Emma is a young woman who owns a store and is married and has a secret yearning to write. She has a favourite author Beatrice Johnson Greene who one day turns up in her store. She makes a purchase and asks Emma to deliver it and she obliges.Beatrice then wants to take Emma out as a thank you and over time she befriends her and makes a proposition. She has written a novel which is a departure from her usual crime books and wants to use Emma’s name as the author because she feels it may hurt her reputation if the book doesn’t sell.After much convincing over time Emma agrees. There in lies the problem. The book does much better than expected and we see a change in Emma, she behaves as if she wrote the novel, even her husband is in the dark.Then when the book grows and maybe nominated for an award, Beatrice feels it’s time to come clean, this is not what Emma wants she thinks the book is hers and no one is going to get in her way…… there are a few shocks on the way as we find out exactly how far she will go to keep her secret and in all her angst to do so, what will it do to her marriage…… will her lies finally catch up with her…..

Starting off as a gullible and starstruck fanlet, she quickly degenerated into a grasping psychopath with no boundaries. Obviously hidden talents all along. Especially marrying into downgraded misery and humiliation. Old Jim had a lot to answer for...chipping away at his well honed emotional abuse, though forgot to worry about his wife's new found murderous instincts. The story ended at a cliff hanger, but thankfully there is more...in the next book. Otherwise, you might find me with question marks above my head. The issue of a lack of personal descriptions of their location and appearance did not figure particularly to the story and seemed irrelevant. Character portrayal was sufficient and succinct, with an interesting take on a slow painful descent of the intellect, obsessed, helpless and yet ultimately triumphant; for the moment anyway.

Wow!!!, what a story- excellent. It was so well written, i don't want to give anything away, basically Emma meets a famous author, and they become great friends....and then the author asks her to put her name to her new book. You just wouldn't believe what happens. My heart was in my mouth at times!!! I actually read book 2 straight away- just had to find out what happens!! When I bought this "E" book, I honesty didn't expect to enjoy both books. Just buy the first and I garentee you'll get book 2.

I loved this book. It was interesting throughout and full of twists and turns. I loved the main character and just had to get the follow-up, 'After He Killed Me', as soon as I'd finished.I can thoroughly recommend this author.

I didn't know what to expect immediately; however, this book surpassed my expectations. It takes several twists and turns and I was glad not to have ended up where I had expected to be. Congratulations to Natalie Barelli for writing such an intriguing and brilliant book! I was captivated.