Which one leans closer to the truth in Verity – the letter or the manuscript? This question has officially split readers into two camps. Some argue that what’s written in the letter is the real truth, while others believe the manuscript holds the entire truth.
So, what’s the reality?
Reading Experience
While reading Verity, I was torn up about what story to actually believe. First of all, the book is a thriller-suspense and it’s not like I don’t enjoy reading this genre but this book has left me with a heavy bitter experience.
I was really traumatized after reading it. Firstly, it has no pleasant scenes or decent plot. The only thing that made the hype for this book is Letter vs Manuscript. Moreover, Letter is the only thing that had made the whole story interesting.
Synopsis
Lowen Ashleigh is a struggling writer on the brink of financial ruin when she accepts the job offer of a lifetime. Jeremy Crawford, husband of bestselling author Verity Crawford, has hired Lowen to complete the remaining books in a successful series his injured wife is unable to finish.
Lowen arrives at the Crawford home, ready to sort through years of Verity’s notes and outlines, hoping to find enough material to get her started. What Lowen doesn’t expect to uncover in the chaotic office is an unfinished autobiography Verity never intended for anyone to read. Page after page of bone-chilling admissions, including Verity’s recollection of the night her family was forever altered.
Lowen decides to keep the manuscript hidden from Jeremy, knowing its contents could devastate the already-grieving father. But as Lowen’s feelings for Jeremy begin to intensify, she recognizes all the ways she could benefit if he were to read his wife’s words. After all, no matter how devoted Jeremy is to his injured wife, a truth this horrifying would make it impossible for him to continue loving her…
I hear the crack of his skull before the splattering of blood reaches me.
Book Discussion
Plotline
After a few more reads, the plot suddenly changes a little, now she loves one of the twins but hates another one. Because of the dream she had, she now thinks that her own daughter is trying to kill her own sister and she wanted to protect her. I mean, how the heck is that possible and how in the world can she think like that? They are just babies and their brains are still developing. I really thought she is mentally sick and someone please send her to the mental hospital when I was reading that part.
Usually, I don’t really like reading or watching where children are harmed in any way. But still, a lot of people like this book and enjoy it too. I really don’t see why is that though.
The last three to four pages are dedicated to the Letter part and I swear these few pages change the whole dynamics of the story. At first, I was shocked and was in confusion as to what to believe and what not to believe. Up until, when I thought I was reading the real story now suddenly becomes a half-truth and the truth is something else but this truth also doesn’t hold the reality. It’s like an open end in the last. You got to decide what really is real and I choose to believe the Letter.
You seek out people like you ..people worse off than you and you use them to make yourself feel better about the terrible things that have happened to you.
Letter vs Manuscript
So, which one do I believe is true? Honestly, I believe in Letter. I choose to believe in Letter for my own sanity. Verity as a character made me disgusted and frustrated. The things she did to her own children and even murdered one of them is so sick and disgusting. Yes, she had a loving husband before having children and loved him very deeply. But, it also doesn’t give her right to hate and kill her children.
The parents are the most genuine being. They love their children more than anything and can do anything for them. They even turn blind to the bad things their children have done. In contrast to this pure love, this book has shown a filthy plotline of a mother becoming jealous of her own children.
Verity has done so many bad deeds that I can’t even believe a mother can really do such things to her children. She literally tries to kill her own child when she was pregnant. Even after a giving birth, she tries to kill them when the twins were toddlers and again and again she didn’t give up. On top of that, she acted so fake when Jeremy was near the children. She acted like she really loved them.
Some families are lucky enough to never experience a single tragedy. But then there are those families that seem to have tragedies waiting on the back burner. What can go wrong, goes wrong. And then gets worse.
I really can’t imagine that a mother will actually kill her own children. Even if she has that intention, I don’t think it will ever be because of jealousy that her own husband loves their own children more than his wife. For my own sanity, I believe Verity had actually written those manuscripts as a part of her writing inspiration and method.
Why Letter?
I refuse to believe she had tried to kill her children when she was pregnant or anything like that. Also, I thought it was weird that Jeremy had no idea about her when they had been living under the same roof for so long. So, it might be true that he had actually read those already and was pretending that he was helping his wife. But, the truth is he has been using her fame as a writer to earn money.
Verity was not a patient. She had to pretend that she was ill to protect herself. Her husband had tried to kill her after reading those manuscript. But, according to Letter, all those manuscript written were fake.
I really want to believe that Verity wanted to protect her son in the last after losing her twins daughter and had thought about running away from that home. (or can I say more like a cage) But at the same time, the ending irks me because Lowen says about how Verity is good at manipulating the whole truth. And, it made me compelled to think if Verity was actually a villain rather innocent in the story because the impression of Verity from the beginning of the story is manipulative.
After a lot of thinking, I choose Letter, I want to believe that Verity was a good mother and had written all that manuscript for her writing inspiration only. She had no ill-intention towards her children and loved them.
What you read will taste so bad at times, you’ll want to spit it out, but you’ll swallow these words and they will become part of you, part of your gut, and you will hurt because of them.
Let’s Chat
What did you think? Which one holds more truth to the story? Do you believe in The Letter as I do? or Do you choose to believe in the manuscript? If it is so then why do you choose to believe it? Let me know in the comments!!
Read my other book review – Malibu Rising and The American Roommate Experiment
