13 January 2015

Today's Read: Unbecoming by Rebecca Scherm

Unbecoming by Rebecca Scherm
What happens when a carefully planned crime goes terribly wrong? Two men go to prison, but a third thief gets away, absconding with some of the loot. Now that Riley and Alls are out on parole, can Grace bury herself in Paris, escaping detection?
The first lie Grace had told Hanna was her name. "Bonjour, je m'appelle Julie," Grace had said. She'd been in Paris for only a month, and her French was still new and stiff. She'd chosen the name Julie because it was sweet and easy on the French tongue—much more so than Grace was. The best lies were the simplest and made the most sense, in the mind and in the mouth. These lies were the easiest to swallow.
Unbecoming by Rebecca Sherm (Penguin USA / Viking, 2015, p. 3)

Quick Facts
  • Setting: modern times; small-town Tennessee; New York; Paris
  • Circumstances: After the robbery of a local historical museum goes bust, Grace escapes to Europe, leaving her friends behind. Now she's working hard to stay hidden, though she's not necessarily living on the straight and narrow. Will Riley and Alls track her down? Does she secretly hope to be found?
  • Characters: Grace, an art school drop-out; Riley her long-term love; Alls, another partner in crime; various people in the United States and Europe who help or hinder Grace's cause
  • Genre: mystery, thriller
  • Themes & plot points: family, double-crossings, theft, love, identity, trust
  • Miscellaneous: Reviews have been mixed; Unbecoming seems to be one of those polarizing novels; most critics have loved the characters and the cat-and-mouse game but felt the plot sometimes got bogged down.
  • Recommendations: None; I haven't read far enough.

25 comments:

(Diane) Bibliophile By the Sea 1/13/15, 7:13 AM  

Love the intro and hope to read this one as well. enjoy

Sarah's Book Shelves 1/13/15, 8:16 AM  

The premise of this didn't sound very original to me, but I loved the intro. So, I'd keep reading...

Laurel-Rain Snow 1/13/15, 8:18 AM  

I did enjoy this one, although I had mixed feelings about the characters.


Thanks for sharing...and for visiting my blog.

bermudaonion 1/13/15, 9:41 AM  

I've seen mixed reviews of this one too but that paragraph would keep me reading.

Catherine @ Book Club Librarian 1/13/15, 9:55 AM  

I started to read this one last year, then set it aside. Undecided if I will return to it.

My Tuesday post: http://www.bookclublibrarian.com/2015/01/first-chapter-first-paragraph-89.html

Faith Hope and Cherrytea 1/13/15, 10:16 AM  

def a good intro and TT.
suspense / mystery at mine
Here's MINE

grammajudyb 1/13/15, 10:46 AM  

I like the intro too. I will await your thoughts. So many good books featured today!

Kim@Time2Read 1/13/15, 11:09 AM  

Sounds like an interesting story, but I'm not sure about it yet. Can't wait to see what you think of it!

sherry fundin 1/13/15, 11:26 AM  

Sounds interesting. I would read on!
http://ourstack.blogspot.com/2015/01/teaser-tuesdays-four-today.html

Sandra Nachlinger 1/13/15, 1:38 PM  

Interesting premise. I like the idea of a story being told from the point of view of a "bad guy" but wondering if I could relate.
Thanks for leaving a comment on my blog post today.
Sandy @ TEXAS TWANG.

Monica's Bookish Life 1/13/15, 1:41 PM  

I've heard about this book. I like the intro and love the setting, so I'd keep reading.

Literary Feline 1/13/15, 2:21 PM  

This sounds like it will be a good one. I like the intro and from your description of it, I'm even more curious about it. I hope you like it!

Unknown 1/13/15, 3:07 PM  

I like the sound of this, I have only seen one other review, and Michele from Reader's Respite liked it. I think I'll be trying it at some point.

Anonymous,  1/13/15, 3:30 PM  

I think I might be interested in this one.

Cleopatra Loves Books 1/13/15, 3:40 PM  

Love that teaser, there is something intriguing about people who change their names... I prefer Grace to Julie though! Thanks for visiting my TT https://cleopatralovesbooks.wordpress.com/2015/01/13/teaser-tuesday-january-13/

Unknown 1/13/15, 3:53 PM  

People have interesting reasons for lying.

This week my teaser is from an apocalyptic thriller, “This Plague of Days”:

http://pdworkman.com/excerpt-from-this-plague-of-days-teasertuesday-robertchazzchute-books/

Unknown 1/13/15, 4:02 PM  

That was a fun surprise. I didn't think the third thief would be a woman. You've got me curious now:)

My TT - http://fuonlyknew.com/2015/01/13/teaser-tuesdays-95-growl/

culturefax 1/13/15, 4:11 PM  

This book is a slow burn, with explosions...three weeks after reading I can't get it out of my head.

Daryl 1/13/15, 4:43 PM  

i think i might go for this one .. thanks!

Anonymous,  1/13/15, 5:09 PM  

This sounds good. Even though I'm usually rooting for the "good guys", I think I'd like Grace.

My TT today: http://wp.me/pZnGI-h9

kayerj 1/13/15, 7:59 PM  

I like the beginning--I'd like to know more about Grace. The title is also a great tease. Have a nice week. kelley—the road goes ever ever on

Yvonne 1/13/15, 9:06 PM  

This sounds really good!

Margot 1/13/15, 10:26 PM  

This is an interesting start to a novel. Does she lie about everything or is this an innocent action? I'm curious about Grace's character so I'd like to read more.

Tea 1/14/15, 8:04 AM  

Have you noticed? There have been many titles in the past year about lies, liars or lying. I think it's an interesting topic. I want to read We Are Liars. This one seems good too. If we had the chance, how many of us would change our names or just lie and give another name?

Sandy Nawrot 1/14/15, 2:00 PM  

I'm definitely interested but I'm going to hold out for a few more opinions!

Thanks for stopping by. I read all comments and may respond here, via e-mail, or on your blog. I visit everyone who comments, but not necessarily right away.

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