Cleverly meta, the title fits the sardonic mood that infuses the two books ... Korelitz gives the novel what many sequels lack: a sense of newness. While the story grows more intricate, she remains in control. Her plot — ha! — is propulsive, her prose precise ... It’s fascinating to spend time inside Anna’s head. Her determination knows few bounds. The story Korelitz has crafted means that we root for her, and fear her, in equal measure.
Readers who enter Korelitz’s fictional worlds should not expect to be coddled ... Anna is a heinous devil who may shock and offend, but never bores ... Droll, cunning.
A fast, engaging thriller ... An evilly fun read ... The movement and pacing of the novel overall are satisfying, but there are infelicities and missteps in the prose ... Overall, The Sequel is a solid, darkly fun follow-up to The Plot. Its shortcomings, though they do leave a bad aftertaste, are not so bad as to outweigh the novel’s many good qualities.
Korelitz presents a compelling and worthy sequel, another rip-roaring thriller full of very amusing scenes of delusional writers and their awful prose and many twists and turns.
Clever ... Follows in the artfully twisted footsteps of her previous thrillers, this time via the very intelligent and deeply angry Anna, who’s determined to preserve authorship of her life at all costs ... A gripping, disturbing and wild ride, with a humdinger of a conclusion that explores just how deadly it can be when someone feels their story isn’t being properly told.
A slew of barbed characterizations—there are no good guys here—add to the mean-spirited fun. The conclusion suggests that Korelitz may decide to emulate Patricia Highsmith and keep her antisocial protagonist around for more enjoyably amoral outings. Wicked entertainment.
