Official Review: Uglyville by Sawney Hatton

[Thimble]

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Uglyville" by Sawney Hatton.]

---

4 out of 4 stars

---

Share This Review

---

Verona Cassidy is the leading lady in her diary and in her own little world. She sees things as wonderfully dramatic, but it’s obvious that those around her take no pleasure in what happens so tragically. It’s no spoiler to say that she commits a crime. The beginning of the book is a police report for the possession of evidence from her room. The rest of the book is the journey of what leads up to the crime and why. Uglyville is a fascinating true crime-inspired novella and a quick read for the morbidly curious.

According to the author in the Foreword, the book is his transcription of Verona’s diary and no one in the book was available to be contacted to confirm nor deny anything. Therefore, all things written must be taken with a grain of salt. The narrative is the thoughts of a teenage girl, except with a tinge of madness. Verona was fifteen years old in 1986 and the diary definitely reflects that. There are many 80s references and many teenage worries, like getting the lead role in the school play.

Verona imagines herself as an Old Hollywood starlet. This is obvious from the beginning of the book, but is not fully explained why until later. Other than achieving her dream of getting on the big silver screen like the celebrities she admires, she doesn’t have many other interests. Despite the fact that she is unable to empathize with others and doesn’t seem to follow any specific moral code, her life might have progressed normally. That is, until the day she sees the new garbage man named Rick. He is everything she has dreamed of and she will stop at nothing to be with him. Verona uses her ability to charm and deceive at the drop of hat to do so. Is it her fault if it doesn’t go exactly the way she planned?

Along with Rick, other notable characters are Verona’s mom, her dad, and Howie. All four secondary characters are developed well and integral parts of the story. While the divorcee mom and gullible Howie are pretty straight forward, Rick is particularly interesting. He seems to be a certain type of person at the beginning of the story and then changes slightly as the story progresses. By the end, his onion is fully peeled and the reader sees who Rick really is.

The story itself is a dark comedy. It’s a comedy in how Verona reacts to normal things in abnormal ways. Also, she tries to set things up to get Rick’s attention that are along the lines of setups in traditional romantic movies, like leaving notes to meet at a place. It’s funny and realistic how her ideas don’t pan out like she thought they would. This realism is also where the dark part comes in. This is not a happy story. It is, however, an interesting look into a very dark mind. It’s difficult not to keep on reading when Verona’s mind starts to break down. There is actually one particular part where the reader sees her delusions completely break apart from reality. It’s a truly fascinating read.

I rate Uglyville, by Sawney Hatton, a 4 out of 4. I recommend it for anyone that enjoys dark comedies. It would also be great for fans of shows like Dexter and Criminal Minds. I personally have not read any other books like it, but I do enjoy mysteries. This book is like a mystery with the villain as the protagonist.

As for my regular disclaimer, there is some minor foul language, inexplicit sex, references to prescription drugs, references to alcohol, and inexplicit violence. The recommended age would be 14 and up. Some readers under the age of 14 might understand the concepts well enough to also enjoy reading the novella.

******
Uglyville
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon

Like Thimble's review? Post a comment saying so!

[gali]

The book sounds interesting. The combination of dark comedies and mysteries is very appealing. Great review!

[Thimble]

The book sounds interesting. The combination of dark comedies and mysteries is very appealing. Great review!

Thanks! I'm glad you enjoyed the review. I like mysteries, but this was one of the first dark comedies I've ever read. I usually just watch them. I had a good time with it.

[bookowlie]

I enjoyed reading your review! Your line "a quick read for the morbidly curious" really grabbed me. I enjoy true-crime non-fiction and crime fiction so this book looks interesting.

[Rachaelamb1]

I enjoyed reading your review! Your line "a quick read for the morbidly curious" really grabbed me. I enjoy true-crime non-fiction and crime fiction so this book looks interesting.

That line stood out to me as well therefore I didn't think I'd be interested in the book. As I was reading the review though I found myself very interested! So I guess that means I am morbidly curious
Great job on the review...I usually like happy books but I do think it would be interesting to see the inner workings of mind like Verona's.

[kimmyschemy06]

Sounds like a very interesting book. Personally, however, I'm not much into dark-minded characters so I'm not so sure if I will enjoy it. Nice job on the review!

[Thimble]

I enjoyed reading your review! Your line "a quick read for the morbidly curious" really grabbed me. I enjoy true-crime non-fiction and crime fiction so this book looks interesting.

That line stood out to me as well therefore I didn't think I'd be interested in the book. As I was reading the review though I found myself very interested! So I guess that means I am morbidly curious
Great job on the review...I usually like happy books but I do think it would be interesting to see the inner workings of mind like Verona's.

Thanks! The book is actually oddly positive since it's from the perspective of a delusional villain. It's really interesting.

-- 18 Feb 2016, 22:58 --

Sounds like a very interesting book. Personally, however, I'm not much into dark-minded characters so I'm not so sure if I will enjoy it. Nice job on the review!

Thanks . Because the protagonist is a delusional teen-aged girl, her mind is more confused and irrational than dark. At least it feels like that to me compared to other books I've read where there's really terrible things happening and even the good guys are bad.

Without giving away spoilers, something tragic does happen, but it's not as bad as some things that happen in Harry Potter. I hope that helps put it into perspective.