I was desperate to read the next instalment of Joe Goldberg's chaotic story - the last book, You Love Me, was completely brilliant and gave me a real appetite for another book. Not only did it show character development (Joe happening upon deaths rather than actually orchestrating them), the book was fast moving and addictive. I am so, so sad that this new story just doesn't work.
Joe is now on a writing fellowship at Harvard, and he's going to be a writer. His book, amusingly titled 'Me', is ready to set the literary world alight. But he's met Wonder, and he's back to his obsessive ways.
Unfortunately, I just didn't get this book at all - it doesn't feel like Joe, and the supporting cast is really weak. I couldn't picture any of them in my mind, and this is a talent that the author usually excels with. In the other books, we had almost constant chapter-ending cliffhangers, and were left wondering on an alarmingly frequent basis if Joe would get through his latest dilemma. This book had none of that. There are some deaths, but they feel almost entirely jeopardy-free. I didn't feel that sinister claustrophobia that dominates his previous outings. I never thought he would get caught, and the story really drags.
I also felt like the language of Joe spilled over into other characters in a way I haven't seen before. His constant repetition of phrases is prolific in the other books, and it's here as well - mentions of Goodreads and kool-aid are on almost every page - but when the supporting cast use them too, it really distracts from the narrative. That's his internal monologue, and it shouldn't be replicated.
Exploring Joe's fragile ego in relation to his work was a really interesting angle - and I can well believe that he thinks he's Salinger, but his new strategy with Wonder (no spoilers of course), and his changing thoughts on her ability as a writer felt inconsistent.
The ending made me feel nothing at all.
I really hope we see Joe on the page again soon, but this one was a massive disappointment for me, and it's actually really upset me!

Dark, Wry Humour..
The fourth outing for Joe Goldberg and a change of direction for the main man as he begins a writing fellowship. No more book selling for Joe - he’s going to be a writer and he’s going to be good but what exactly is he going to leave in his wake this time? Joe soon meets with Wonder - will Wonder be his literary soulmate? Joe can imagine it all. With the usual dark, wry and delicious humour, the biting stamp of this series, we hear Joe’s inner thoughts, feelings and wonderings as the reader becomes once again ensconced in his world. Throughout it all, bizarre as it is, no one can help but keep rooting for Joe.

Joe Goldberg is back at it again! I made a reading vlog where I shared my Top5 thoughts about this book 📖💙 https://youtu.be/-B_k0LWyhr4 🌻

1.Bad habits die hard
2.A good twist
3.Same old, same old
4.Slow and drags
5.Not a very interesting love interest

Many thanks to NetGalley, Simon and Schuster UK and Caroline Kepnes for the ARC of 'For You and Only You' in return for an honest review.

Having read the previous three novels from the hit series, 'You', I couldn't wait for the next instalment of Joe Goldberg and it did not disappoint. He has stopped selling books and has managed to get to harvard University in a writing fellowship where he meets Wonder.

His inner monologues and his ability to misrepresent the past are awesome and entertaining.

Another brilliant read from this author. Highly recommended.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this eARC of 'For You And Only You' by Caroline Kepnes.

Sigh.. I really wanted to love this. Anyone who knows me can tell you that I love 'You' and Joe but this book made me wanna throw my phone multiple times. I felt like I was reading an entirely new story, Joe didn't feel like Joe. At first, he felt like a stranger to me and his witty comments and creepy nature was replaced by name dropping GoodReads and Sally Rooney every so often. And I'm gutted because Caroline has never done me wrong before. It felt like she was forced to go back into Joe's fate. And the ending? Back to Joe, back to 0 progress and where he's been for the past 4 books. Hopefully this is the end of Joe because this is not the murderous Joe I loved reading about.

Caroline Kepnes has brought back Joe Goldberg again for our entertaInment. This time, he is at Harvard on a writing fellowship. He is hoping to grab an agent and get published for his book, entitled “Me”. He meets Wonder, fellow writer and outsider. This time he had met the one…or has he?

I was so ready for the next instalment in the Joe Goldberg series, having loved all of the other books, but “For you and you only” just didn’t work for me. Joe’s modus operandi has always been a formulaic - move somewhere, fixate on a girl and kill the people in the way of you being together and to help her be her best self. I have enjoyed this in every other book and rooted for him in spite of myself, but in this book the formula just felt tired and irritating. I still got a kick out of Joe’s inner monologue and his ability to rewrite history “ I know what Roald Dahl would do to you, Wonder. He was like me, nonviolent by nature”. However it just felt like the events of the novel were meandering and at a few points I was very tempted to DNF. Rather than dark and devious, Joe just felt whiny. Sorry Joe Goldberg, it’s not me, it’s YOU.

Thank you to Caroline Kepnes, Simon and Shuster and NetGalley for the opportunity to review an advanced copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

ever since i have read you love me i soend my days counting down the release of fyaoy and im glad that i did.this book wasnt my favourite out of the you series but personally it was better than you love me.its safe to say that joe goldberg has not lost his trademark sense of humour and i highly recommend.

Oh wow. I love the You books. I was lucky enough to fall upon the first one before Netflix filmed it. The anti-hero who you should hate but just love! Kepnes is so good at getting you to see a psychopath as a human being. Never did k think it would be possible. Please more of Joe!

I love the Joe Goldberg series. the first book was so strong and fun. This one, unfortunately, drags on. I liked Joe because he was just so himself.
He wanted someone and he would do whatever it takes. In this 4th installment, he seems watered down. Granted, he has been through a lot in the previous book, but he does not feel authentic anymore

YOU has got to be my guilty pleasure both on screen and in print and it was so good to be back in Joe's crazy mind !
The 4th instalment sees Joe winning a fellowship at Harvard where he meets Wonder who he becomes obsessed with .I'm not saying much else about the plot as lovers of Joe can sort of guess the sort of journey the book takes us on .... The book has the same trademark wit and dark humour that we have all come to love and you read it as if it's Penn's voice talking to you , it's like the pages are coming to life in your mind as the images of Joe doing what he does best are so vivid. It's also a very 'current' read as there's a lot of references to current affairs and modern events so it makes the book all seem to real !
The only negative i would say is that it is maybe just slightly too long and some of Joe's monologues could go on a bit , it could have been condensed by a good 100 pages , but then on the plus side a longer book means more time in Joe's head !
Cant wait to see where the story goes next....

I loved all the previous books in this series & was excited for this. I felt the book wasn't as good as previous ones in series & a little bit forced. Joe's thoughts were really dark & he has become almost pantomime village. I did enjoy it just think it wasn't as good as others in the series

I’ve read all of the You series and I have greedily enjoyed them, this book however was a miss for me.

Joe, seemed completely different, almost like he was ‘calling in’, same premise of course, falls in ‘love’ and does anything to stay with the person, but it fell flat.

Joe is now part of a scholarship at Harvard, which isn’t really explained well enough, and here he finds some interesting characters. There’s a lack of Joe’s dark humour and there is a lack of thrills. Sure terrible things happen, but apparently in this novel, unlike the others, there are very little consequences. There are plenty of literary references which was great but it couldn’t save this.

Great series, sure, but this is a poor addition to it.

Joe has a new job at Harvard University writing books but doesn’t really fit in with the other authors.
When meets a woman called Wonder in the coffee shop he becomes infatuated with her and will stop at nothing until she becomes his.
I didn’t enjoy this book as much as the previous books in this series, I found it slow and Joe’s ramblings much darker.
Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for my e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

I was glad to back in the world of Joe Goldberg!
I loved the commentary we got about the writing world. It was great to see the callbacks of previous books and I enjoyed the references! I miss him already!!! Want more!!!!

Another fantastic entry into the You series, one of my absolute favourite modern book series.

Joe is once again infatuated with a girl, this time in his fancy writing group at Harvard. There are twists you won't expect, and his past will come to haunt him in unexpected ways. Dark and delicious!

This is the 1st I thr series I've read but like a lot of people, am here from the TV show!! And yeah, it's everything I'd expect really. I do read it very much in Penns voice and in my head it's him as Joe but I've no complaints about that. I'd never given much consideration to how true to the source material the show was but I love that it's the same formula. His inner monologue, his rather unique view on the world and on true love and the extents he's willing to go to to get it. The connections he always feels the universe is providing him with and the utter mess he always makes in trying to control every single thing around him and have the world bend to his will. He's just as crazy as ever and I love him for it. Its also even got a similar pacing to the TV show, it's not slow or rushed compared to it. There's still a load of interesting characters that are as well defined In the book as they are on screen. And Joe is Joe. Just as loopy as ever. I loved it! Can't wait to read what comes next

It pains me that I didn't enjoy this as much as I thought I would. I loved the first three books - all easy five star reads for me. One of the things I enjoyed about 'You Love Me' is that it didn't quite follow the formula of the first two books and Joe was starting to show a bit of personal growth. His relationship with Mary-Kay was a lot better developed than with any of the other women. Unfortunately, I feel like in this book he's taken a step backwards, it just feels like reading the same story as the first two books all over again, and as much as I liked those books, that formula is starting to feel tired.

I still love Joe as a character and reading from his point of view will always be fascinating and entertaining. This book did feel a bit over-long with a lot of repetition in Joe's inner monologue. I think about 25% of the book could have been cut for a pacier read.

Wonder is probably the worst so far of Joe's love interests - she was sorely lacking in personality, I couldn't even picture what she looked like and she read as a girl in her early twenties rather than a woman of thirty five. The supporting characters in the fellowship made up for this somewhat - I did find all the book talk a bit too much but the characters were well written and there were some amusing parts.

Overall I did like this, because it's Joe and I always will, but I do think it's time to retire the series as it is getting a little rinse and repeat.

Caroline is back with another installment of everyone's beloved crazy, deranged and insane serial killer Joe Goldberg.

This time we meet Joe we are in the sacred halls of Harvard university where Joe has earned a spot on one of the most coveted writing fellowships.

Joe simply can't wait to start. But when he gets there he realises he is on the back foot. Everyone else seems to have a unwritten rule book and cliques that he knows nothing about. He is a bit of an outside until Wonder enters the picture. Wonder and Joe have a creepy amount in common. But wonder doesn't want to be a writer and it's a little bit of an irritation to Joe. But Joe is ready to sacrifice everything for her including killing for her. Or should I say really for him. Because everything Joe does is really secretly for him. He just likes to make it feel like it's for the other person to keep them on the back foot and owing him. Once again Joe is on his crazy rampage all in the name of love.

Caroline really is a master of her craft and really makes Joe pop of the page. It does also help that you can't help imagining Penn Bradley while you devour the book which helps to bring Joe ever more to life.
Joe is such a unique character, utterly twisted, full of dark grace and with the blackest of humour but also somewhere deep inside him a softer heart. The razor sharp whit and black comedy makes the chapters come to life and makes you come back for more each and every time.

I don't know how she does it. But each and every time you leave wanting more each time you finish the book.