Jane Doe by Victoria Helen Stone Published by Lake Union Publishing on August 1, 2018
Pages: 268
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A double life with a single purpose: revenge.
Jane’s days at a Midwest insurance company are perfectly ordinary. She blends in well, unremarkably pretty in her floral-print dresses and extra efficient at her low-level job. She’s just the kind of woman middle manager Steven Hepsworth likes—meek, insecure, and willing to defer to a man. No one has any idea who Jane really is. Least of all Steven.
But plain Jane is hiding something. And Steven’s bringing out the worst in her.
Nothing can distract Jane from going straight for his heart: allowing herself to be seduced into Steven’s bed, to insinuate herself into his career and his family, and to expose all his dirty secrets. It’s time for Jane to dig out everything that matters to Steven. So she can take it all away.
Just as he did to her.
Meet Jane. She’s an average woman, blending effortlessly into scenery of her droll life. She wears sensible clothes to work where she does data entry and eats dreary microwaved meals – until she catches the eye of Steven. Seems like a standard office meet-cute, no? Except Jane isn’t who she says she is, and snaring Steven is no happy accident. Because Jane is there to kill him.
Through Jane’s POV, we follow along her plot to avenge her best friend’s death. Months earlier, Meg commits suicide after being used and thrown away by Steven. The story that unfolds is wholly unexpected. It is creepy, yet highly relatable, to the point it may make you wonder if you’re an eensy bit sociopathic. The revenge plot is lurid and enticing. I could not stop listening to the lengths Jane would go to for someone who could no longer fight for herself – someone she loved with all of her cold, cold heart.
Perhaps the best thing about Jane Doe is the most effortless and delicious feminism I have read in recent memory. I can’t even begin to explain how Victoria Helen Stone captures the delicate thing it is to be a woman, especially one who wears hides vicious smile beneath her unassuming mask. It is utter perfection.
I have read a lot of what I consider to be “filler” on Kindle Unlimited. Just a bunch of 3-star meh-to-fine titles. Jane Doe, however, is the shiniest, prettiest hidden gem KU has to offer. If you find yourself on a freebie or cheapie trial, put this at the top of your priority list. In the vein of You, Gone Girl, and Darkly Dreaming Dexter, this book will satisfy your darker cravings for warped justice. As Jane says, “I was seduced by the fun of it,” and I think you will be, too.
XOXO
