A Good Person

Lillian is twenty-nine, lives in Boston, works in marketing, and believes that she is a good person. The fact that nearly everything she says is either a lie, a manipulation, or a wildly distorted version of reality does not trouble her. Lillian is a truly bizarre character. A narcissist may be the right description, although I’m not even sure that fully explains her. Nothing is ever her fault. She is deeply jealous of anyone prettier, wealthier, more successful, or dating someone she finds attractive. She desperately wants to be loved and surrounds herself with people she can control. Her quiet, nerdy roommate, Elise, is dependent on her, while Jamie, her best friend from college, is secretly in love with her and rarely challenges anything Lillian says or does. Then there is Henry. For four months, he has been arriving at Lillian’s apartment late at night for sex and leaving shortly afterward. They don’t go on actual dates, and he gives her very little reason to believe they are in a real relationship. Naturally, Lillian is convinced that she is in love with him. She desperately wants Henry to love her back, but he is not giving her what she wants or what she has decided she deserves. After a shocking turn of events, Lillian’s life is completely upended, and the story becomes increasingly strange, dark, and unpredictable. Lillian is not a likable person, yet somehow, I couldn’t stop watching the train wreck. I needed to know what she would say, do, or justify next. The story moves quickly and is filled with dry, dark humor, clever banter, and the kind of obnoxious behavior that is both appalling and extremely entertaining. Interestingly, this author is a screenwriter, and this is her debut novel. Once I learned that, it made perfect sense. The dialogue has an almost script-like quality, with witty exchanges that move easily. If you enjoy dark humor, dysfunctional characters, and an unlikable character you somehow cannot stop reading about, this may be exactly your cup of tea, or, in Lillian’s case, your shot of whiskey. ⭐⭐⭐⭐