This retelling of Vanity Fair works perfectly, putting ethically ambivalent Becky Sharp into the late 90s's world of tabloid journalism. While I didn't particularly like her, I was invested in the story of her rise and fall and crazily enough time has passed to feel nostalgia for the 90s!

Becky was one of my most anticipated books of this year and I’m happy to confirm it is just as fantastic as I’d hoped! As a big fan of Vanity Fair, I was so excited to read a take on the classic set in 90’s London. Becky completely stays true to the spirit of the classic but it is very much brilliant in its own right as well. We follow Becky through the highs and lows of her life as her ambition and cut throat drive takes her to the top of where she thinks she wants to be. She is not always easy to like, but she is a force to be reckoned with that I couldn’t help but be totally compelled by. Becky is an unbelievably addictive read which I was totally gripped by from start to end. It is written with a sharp and witty intelligence which is exactly the kind of book I adore. It is also darkly amusing along with the intense drama. It is only January but I can already tell Becky will be one of my favourites of the year! Shrewd, witty and utterly entrancing - I couldn’t recommend it more highly!

Becky is a re-telling of Vanity Fair now set in the 1990s. I haven't read the original but don't know if that would have made a difference.

It's a tale of corruption, jealousy and greed based in the world of tabloid journalism. Becky is determined to get to the top no matter what it takes.

The flashbacks are an insight into Becky's childhood but I still didn't really connect with her, or any of the other characters, although I think that might be the point.

So, although the story was written well, it wasn't the book for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and Pan Macmillan for the ARC

I didn't really like Becky the character. She only thought about number one - herself. I've not read Vanity Fair which this is supposed to be a modern day version of. I did read to the end and enjoyed the story enough.

An interesting back and forth look at the life of our main protagonist as you follow her on journey through many different opportunities and trials throughout her life
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I can see why I have read so many rave reviews, but for me, this one wasn’t necessarily the one. But that is a personal preference and for others I can see this being a shining star and have some friends I know for sure I’ll be recommending this to!
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Thanks to the publisher and netgalley for the arc!!

This book left me feeling disappointed. Perhaps it's because I've never read Vanity Fair! The writing was good, but I couldn't connect to Becky at all.

I'm sure others will make the connection & enjoy!

This was a really enjoyable novel which kept me gripped the whole way through. There are a couple of changes in direction which seem like detours into different stories and one gets a bit tired of the constant relational challenges, but for the most part it delivered on its potential.

I firstly have to admit that I’ve never read Vanity Fair, but that in no way detracted from how much I enjoyed this book. What an anti hero this author has created, you are on her side all the way through. I loved the real life news stories with the details slightly changed; very cleverly done. I totally immersed myself in this book and was sad when it ended. Perhaps the author could write a sequel?

Described as a modern day version of Vanity Fair I can't say whether this is true because it is very many years since I read the original. What does come across is the stories that appeared in the press in the 1990s - stories involving the Royal Family, Princess Diana, phone hacking.
Rebecca Sharp is determined to succeed. After a very difficult upbringing, snapshots of which are interspersed in the story, Yes, she will do anything and use anyone to get the front page stories that will increase circulation of her paper. She is selfish, relentless and determined to succeed - but who can blame her?
Well portrayed, well written and definitely a good read.
Many thanks to Netgalley/Sarah May/Pan Macmillan for a digital copy of this title. All opinions expressed are my own.

A modern day (1990s) retelling of the fictional Vanity Fair mixed with inspiration from the real life of Rebekah Brook and her rise and fall in the world of tabloid journalism. The MC is unlikeable, selfish, devious, scheming and determined to climb to the top no matter what.
A fun casual read but just didn't hook me or grab my attention.

I love the premise of Becky by Sarah May: Vanity Fair but set in the 1990's tabloid era of disgraced Sun editor Rebekah Brooks complete with Princess Diana and phone hacking. The characters share names and basic plot points with the characters of Thackeray's classic novel, but the setting is definitely late twentieth century.

An easy read with a deliciously unlikeable protagonist, recommended for people who remember the 1990's and fancy a return to those heady days for a little while. I think I ought to read the original Vanity Fair at some point!

Becky is meant to be a modern re-telling of Thackerey's Vanity Fair, bringing the story into modern times and based in the 1990s/2000s.

The story keeps a lot of the same names as the original and loosely the same timeline of key events, based in the cut-throat world of tabloid journalism. I found that Becky's working life mirrored the real-life events and journalism scandal involving Rebekah Brooks, although fictional Becky's home life seems to be entirely of the author's invention and is suitably grim to apparently be the catalyst for the character's actions and drive.

Becky is not a likeable character, although there are no real 'winners' in this tale of greed, jealousy and corruption. Nobody seems to have any real redeeming qualities and will always look out for themselves alone above all else.

The use of flashbacks does help to build the backstory for Becky, but its not always made clear in the narrative when this happens and as the reader you suddenly find yourself back in another time/flashback. I found this a bit disconcerting, although I managed to get the gist of what the author was trying to do.

The premise of the story is a clever idea, however I don't feel it has been executed particularly well in this instance. As a standalone story in its own right Becky works pretty well, if you haven't read Vanity Fair and aren't familiar with it then this won't detract from it. I felt that the link to Vanity Fair was quite contrived in places and the author had to work hard to make the story 'fit' - it's clearly been inspired by VF but for me personally I don't think it fully works as a true modern re-telling.

Overall I did enjoy the book and found the story quite entertaining, would be good as a beach read.

A modern, 1990’s, day retelling of fictional Vanity Fair, mixed with the factual tale of Rebekah Brook’s meteoric rise at The Sun newspaper and her subsequent fall from grace. It’s cleverly done with the main protagonist Becky Sharp portrayed as a scheming, self serving woman determined to get to the top, no matter who she has to walk over to get there. Despite all the name, and sometimes gender, changes it is pretty clear who the various characters are the author is talking about throughout.

Briefly, Becky arrives in London to work as nanny for a newspaper mogul’s children but her only reason for taking the job was to get him to notice her and give her a journalist job at The Mercury. This she does and 6 months later she is on her way. As she rises to the top of the tree she is heavily involved in some of the most shocking and scandalous stories of the time: a princess having an affair with a polo playing army officer, a missing girl found dead and the subsequent phone hacking scandal.

The narrative moves between the present, and the past where Becky is growing up in a dilapidated home with a mother who is reliant on Becky, this clearly affects Becky’s view on love, wealth and popularity- something she never enjoyed as a child or teen. Despite this I didn’t like her, there are no excuses for some of her deplorable actions. In the main I did enjoy the book but some of the rehash of the stories that were in the papers at the time did make for very uncomfortable reading and you should be aware. Well written and compulsive reading that I finished in one afternoon, yes I enjoyed it.

A fun read of the highs and lows of the tabloid era in the 90's. Becky based on a real character has a tough life which gives her the determination to get to the top of her game. Entertaining and educational about this crazy world of the media.

Having no knowledge of Vanity Fair (another classic I feel that I should have read but have never got round to) it’s hard to pass comment on the success of this modern retelling.
In ‘Becky’ our main character is journalist Becky Sharp. Determined to escape her home-town and poor childhood, Becky wants to be noticed. A quick learner, Becky is adept at getting what she wants. We follow her through her rise through the ranks, to her ultimate involvement in some murky events that bring many of her contemporaries (and her) down.
From the details we get it’s clear that Becky is a character who is ruthless in her quest to make a better life. She is used to using situations and people to her advantage. While these are unpleasant qualities, as we learn more about her life and see those around her I found myself less judgmental.
I’m unsure about the character who seems to be regarded by many as the heroine of the original, Amelia. In this she was insipid, we saw little of her to be able to really form an opinion of her and she did little to suggest she was there as anything other than to show an alternative to the behaviours exhibited by Becky. For all her faults, Becky was a much more interesting character.
Thanks to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read and review this. And now I suppose I should think about reading the original!

Becky Sharp wants to move away from where she grew up. She is a journalist and wants to climb the ladder to the very top, no matter what.

I did find the book quite slow to start off but it did pick up. I found there were a lot of characters which ended up getting a bit confusing on remembering who was who.

There is a lot of content that can cause triggers which readers should be warned about. If I’m honest, I didn’t really enjoy this book, mainly due to some of the disturbing content.

My thanks to Pan MacMillan and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

I would have enjoyed this more if I hadn’t been familiar with premise before I began.
I don’t think the author’s note at the beginning was necessary for me personally.
An okay read, propped with scandal and unlikeable characters. A good choice for this year’s beach read., particularly if you’re not familiar with VF or Rebecca Brooks.

Unfortunately, this book fell victim to me resolution to bail more this year - too many books, too little time!

It wasn‘t that bad - just not good enough when I have so many other books to read. It‘s an updated Vanity Fair and the MC is supposedly based on Rebekah Brooks, of UK newspaper infamy.

To me it read like a trashy tabloid and there wasn‘t enough to hold my interest. It‘s a long time since I read VF too so it just didn‘t connect as a retelling either.

I may return to it sometime, it strikes me as a good 'beach' read.

2.5 stars rounded up to 3

Becky is a modernised Vanity Fair, keeping the same names as the original and loosely the same key events and timeline. The story has been moved to the 1990s/early 2000s and set in the world of tabloid journalism. Sarah May is very keen in her introduction to tell us that her updated characters are all her own invention, and it would be a better novel if they were. However, halfway through Becky it suddenly becomes clear that Becky is a fictionalised version of another Rebekah - Rebekah Wade (Brooks). The key events in Becky’s career in the novel are the same even if events in her personal life are not.
The premise of updating Becky is strong, and certainly the first half of the book is clever and is enjoyable to see the original characters brought to life in the 1990s. If Sarah May had stuck with this idea and not veered off into such a detailed expose of 1990s tabloid journalism if would have been so much better. Some of the characters introduced in the beginning get lost and have to be shoe horned back in to make the novel fit back into the Vanity Fair narrative. I enjoyed the book but it reads like 2 different books put together, rather a shame.

I'm afraid that I did not really enjoy Becky. I didn't find any of the characters likeable and that made it that I didn't really care for the story.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my ARC.