The Sequel

 

The Sequel by Jean Hanff Korelitz

The Book Series #2

Mystery/Thriller

2024

Finished on February 7, 2025

Rating: 4/5 (Very Good)

Publisher's Blurb:

(Spoiler Alert - Don't read this publisher's blurb if you haven't read The Plot)

Anna Williams-Bonner has taken care of business. That is to say, she’s taken care of her husband, bestselling novelist Jacob Finch Bonner, and laid to rest those anonymous accusations of plagiarism that so tormented him. Now she is living the contented life of a literary widow, enjoying her husband’s royalty checks in perpetuity, but for the second time in her life, a work of fiction intercedes, and this time it’s her own debut novel, The Afterword. After all, how hard can it really be to write a universally lauded bestseller?

But when Anna publishes her book and indulges in her own literary acclaim, she begins to receive excerpts of a novel she never expected to see again, a novel that should no longer exist. Something has gone very wrong, and someone out there knows far too much: about her late brother, her late husband, and just possibly... Anna, herself. What does this person want and what are they prepared to do? She has come too far, and worked too hard, to lose what she values most: the sole and uncontested right to her own story. And she is, by any standard, a master storyteller.

With her signature wit and sardonic humor, Jean Hanff Korelitz gives readers an antihero to root for while illuminating and satirizing the world of publishing in this deliciously fun and suspenseful read.

I don't have any trips planned that involve flying, but if I did The Sequel would be the perfect book to read while confined inside an airplane. I was immediately drawn into this sequel to Jean Hanff Korelitz's previous book, The Plot, and the pages practically turned themselves. I only wish that I had read both books back-to-back. While Korelitz provides details to the backstory of her original work, I had to stop and think about that timeline and the details in that novel as I worked to untangle Anna's meticulously woven web of deceit and guile. Korelitz kept me guessing, taking me down multiple paths that I was certain would lead to the big reveal (I even grew suspicious of Anna's editor!). The ending is well-executed; no plot holes in this one! If pressed, I'd have to say that I enjoyed The Plot a tad bit more than The Sequel, but they are both very entertaining (and would make a great TV series).

Fun feature: Korelitz cleverly assigns the title of a real sequel to each chapter. 

The Sequel is most assuredly not a stand-alone. Highly recommend after you have read The Plot.