Failed writer Jacob Finch Bonner has been relegated to teaching in a third-rate MFA program and struggling to maintain what’s left of his self-respect. When arrogant student Evan Parker announces he doesn’t need Jake’s help because the plot of his book in progress is a sure thing, Jake is prepared to dismiss the boast as typical amateur narcissism. But then . . . he hears the plot.
When Jake discovers that his former student has died, presumably without ever completing his book, Jake does what any self-respecting writer would do with a story like that—a story that absolutely needs to be told.
But at the height of his glorious new life, an e-mail arrives, the first salvo in a terrifying, anonymous campaign: You are a thief, it says.
Who was Evan Parker, and how did he get the idea for his “sure thing” of a novel? What is the real story behind the plot, and who stole it from whom?
I love books that deal with these kinds of moral dilemmas. I’ve had one of my own in mind for some time, and I was really interested to see how Korelitz handled it.
One reason Korelitz’s version of this is tricky is that she needs to back up the claim that this plot is fool-proof, earth-shattering dismantling everything we know about genre fiction.
I didn’t feel like she succeeded on that front.
I won’t spoil it, but I didn’t find it as mind-blowing as it was portrayed in the book. Keep in mind that I’m talking about the plot within The Plot. The plot of The Plot was good, it was the plot that set the story in motion — Evan Parker’s plot — that I didn’t think lived up to the hype.
And most books that include excerpts of other books will almost inevitably lose a star in my review. I’m just not a fan. I don’t know why; it’s just one of those things for me.
I did enjoy the fact that it dealt with plagiarism and inellectual property. Jake didn’t plagiarize because the book didn’t exist. It never got written. Evan had verbally relayed the plot to Jake. Who’s to say Evan would have gone the same direction that Jake did? Aren’t we all writing our own versions of someone else’s plot?
These were fun questions to ponder.
The only problem was they weren’t pondered all that deeply in the story.
Well, not the only problem…
The other problem I had was that the surprise ending wasn’t a surprise; it was pretty obvious from very early in the book. So, I spent the second half of the book just waiting for Jake to get there. And it took far longer than I would have liked it to.
The Plot is built on a really interesting premise, but if you’re a regular reader of thriller fiction, then I think you’ll see where this one is going too quickly for any suspense to build.
If you’re interested in seeing how Jake navigates this situation, visit the link below to order from Bookstore.org. Bookstore.org supports independent bookstores across the country, and I make a commission off any sales through my affiliate link.
Let me know in the comments what you thought about The Plot.