December 1, 2023
Debuting with a slightly surreal story that is BISACed as literary, psychological, and satire, Lytle spins out the story of El, a failed actor who willingly trades her independence for the moneyed world that a man named Bryce can offer. But the deal isn't all it seems, and sinister consequences loom. Prepub Alert.
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Copyright 2023 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
March 4, 2024
Lytle’s underwhelming and disjointed debut portrays a social climber’s dangerous ascent in modern-day New York City. At 29, El, who grew up poor, has given up on her dream of becoming an actor. Instead, she settles for a bakery job and seeks the validation she never received from her absent father by dating rich men. She meets Bryce at a party in the Hamptons, and though he’s neither attractive nor particularly interesting, she’s enamored by his wealth and dedication to her. She soon gives up her job and apartment to live with him, much to the chagrin of her friends and mother, who worry she’s isolating herself by diving into the relationship. El’s insecurities about class and her need for companionship are tested when Bryce installs a tracking device on her phone and stalks her when she goes out on her own. Lytle bookends El’s story with a story from a dog’s point of view about escaping its master. Not only is the metaphor heavy-handed—Bryce treats El like a pet; will she shrug off her master’s control or continue to submit to him?—it feels undeveloped and out of place. This disappoints. Agent: Stacy Testa, Writers House.
March 1, 2024
DEBUT Although El is no longer an actress and currently works in a New York City bakery, her status as a former private-school student, albeit on scholarship, allows her to tag along with the rich kids. Courtesy of her wealthy friends, she enjoys an entitled existence--going to parties in the Hamptons; dining in fancy restaurants. When she first meets Bryce Ripley-Batan, the son of a wealthy pharmaceutical investor, she's repelled by him. But bit by bit, she adapts to his lifestyle and deals with his insecurities. She has had practice: she faces constant turmoil in her relationships with her mother, a single parent with limited resources, and her father, who walked out to start another family. As she begins to piece together Bryce's ugly and troubled past, El becomes hardened and eventually turns the tables. Most of the novel's characters, including El and Bryce, come across as conniving, cruel, nasty, and privileged, setting a negative tone. VERDICT Lytle, who has written for Netflix and Peacock, uses her screenwriting skills to map out a debut novel that could double as a television series. Add this to the recent crop of "creepy girl" novels. It will appeal to readers who enjoyed Emma Cline's The Guest.--Jacqueline Snider
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March 15, 2024
Lytle's debut novel is a thrilling slow burn sprinkled with bewildering oddities that readers won't quite be able to put their fingers on until the end, when everything comes together. The story follows El, who is in the midst of figuring out her life after giving up her dreams of acting. During this time, El is nostalgic for her days as a scholarship student at a wealthy New York private school, where she became friends with two girls who gave her a glimpse of the have-it-all lifestyle. It is one of these friends who invites El to a party in the Hamptons, where El meets rich boy Bryce. After their first date, El doesn't think much of him, but Bryce quickly showers her with love, affection, and monetary gifts. A number of red flags arise, but El excuses each incident. Eventually, the incidents become difficult to ignore and El must decide whether to leave wealth and security behind or to turn a blind eye. This is a gripping novel that will leave readers questioning their own moral compass.
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April 1, 2024
A floundering young woman gains access to a world of privilege through her mysterious new boyfriend. Twenty-nine-year-old El is used to living on the fringes. She spent her teen years in Manhattan in a cramped apartment with her single mother and her mother's best friend, sharing a bedroom with the friend's son. She received financial aid to attend a prestigious private school filled with ultrarich students but had only tangential access to their lives of quiet luxury. Even now, El can't break through in her career as an actor, instead working in a bakery and trying to figure out her next move. When El's old classmate Julia unexpectedly offers an invitation to a party at her family's East Hampton home, El can't resist returning to that tony world, even for just one night. It's there that El meets Bryce, a Cambridge graduate from a filthy rich family who is immediately, and intensely, taken with her. Though El isn't particularly attracted to Bryce's looks or personality, she's attracted to what being with him brings--the life of ease and financial security she's always wanted. When the two quickly move in together, El begins to lose touch with the world outside her relationship, quitting her job, dumping her roommate, and ghosting her friends--just as Bryce's true nature starts coming to light. The author is deft at creating a tense atmosphere--complete with suspicious characters, sinister motivations, disturbing events, and an off-kilter narrator--that will keep readers turning the pages. But the lackluster conclusion strains credulity, and a symbolic thread that runs throughout the novel--dogs across the country are running away from and rebelling against their owners--is unsuccessful and, ultimately, has no bearing on the plot. After a promising start, this debut ends up being all bark, no bite.
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