Review: The Wager

The Wager by Rachel Van Dyken

My rating: 2 of 5 stars



I received this book from GCP via NetGalley.

I am eying Rachel Van Dyken's book since her book "The Bet" landed on New York Time Bestseller List. However, I do not really like love triangle plot so I do not pick "The Bet" up to read yet. However, since this book had been offered on NetGalley and I like the blurb, I decided to request it.

I usually request the book I am more than likely to love. I really hate to write a low star review. It is not easy and uncomfortable. Sadly this book is one of them.

For full disclosure, I think this is the reason why I do not love this book as much as everybody.

1. I am too old for this book.

I have trouble connecting with the heroine, who are in her early twenty. I cannot accept her behavior when she thrown the water at Jake. I understand her anger toward him. But I just think that someone in her position, a TV personality who already have one notorious news, could not afford to be in another notorious news. And getting arrest by a federal air marshal is definitely a notorious news. I think she is too childish.

But that maybe my age talking. Sometime I do not really get what a girl in twenty do at all.

2. I have trouble buying into "best friending" thing.

The blurb says Char (the heroine) is the best friend of both Jake (the hero) and Kacey (Jake's another best friend) but throughout the story there is no best friending (if there is a word like this) at all. I do not see any closeness, comrade, or gossip. Char is just best friend because we were told she is.

Case in point: Char do not know Jake's grandmother. Jake do not know Char's sister. Since those 2 knew each other since kid, how can it possible that they never met each other relative.

3. What is the point of Jake's grandmother plan to "ruin" him.

At the beginning of the story, grandmother complains about Jake's reliability on the family money so she cut him off by firing him from the CEO position. And then so what? Nothing happened. Jake still can live the same lifestyles and enough money to spend and do what he want to do. So I do not get it at all. What add this scene to the story when it did nothing to contribute.

4. I like the humor but I just cannot overcome the silliness.

I love the humor and the banter between characters but the unreasonable (or what I called the "silliness") just ruins it. I cannot simply accept the story and find myself finding faults in every turn. That is not a good reading experience.

5. Back to No. 1

All in all as mentioned in No.1, I think I am too old for this story. I think people need to not take anything too serious in order to enjoy this book. I just cannot do that.



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