S. F. Prescott

Slow burning suspense.

Olivia Gatwood is the author of two poetry collections, New American Best Friend and Life of the Party, and the co-writer of Adele’s music video for “I Drink Wine.” She has received international recognition for her poetry, writing workshops, and work as a Title IX Compliant educator in sexual assault prevention and recovery. Her performances have been featured on HBO, MTV, VH1, the BBC, and more. Her poems have appeared in The Poetry Foundation, Lambda Literary, and The Missouri Review. Originally from Albuquerque, she lives in Los Angeles.

Published July 9th, 2024.

Olivia Gatwood’s debut novel, Whoever You Are, Honey is an intriguing exploration of femininity, identity, friendship, and artificial intelligence. I knew very little about this book going in. Only that it was marketed as a thriller. After reading, it definitely didn’t feel like that.

I was immediately lured in by the premise of a wealthy community, a mysterious couple next door, and the idea of a possible fembot. But what I found was a story with deeper meaning and suspense bubbling under the surface. It was definitely more literary with speculative elements thrown in. My feelings for the characters didn’t change much over the course of the story. Instantly liking Mitty and Bethel as the quirky pair living amongst the tech elite, determined not to be bought out of the neighborhood. Mitty’s background was intriguing to learn about including her rocky relationship with her mother. The new neighbors, Lena and Sebastian, don’t appear to be different from any other couple, until Mitty and Lena strike up an unlikely friendship. As Mitty learns more about Lena and her fractured sense of self, she realizes their marriage is far from perfect. But it also causes her to reexamine her own unsettling past. In the end I felt sorry for Lena and her lack of understanding around her life, purpose, and identity. The way she identified was always through the lens of others, in particular, Sebastian.

I would have liked more unsettling scenes and a quicker pace. The ending was interesting but I would have preferred more of a conclusion with Lena’s character. I was hopeful that Mitty would reconnect with her mother.

For readers who enjoy beautiful prose, slow-burning storylines, upmarket fiction.

Synopsis:

On the Santa Cruz, California, waterfront, every house is a flawless glass monolith. Except for one. In a dilapidated bungalow, Mitty and her elderly roommate, Bethel, are the oddball pair who represent the last vestiges of a free-spirited town taken over by the tech elite. But their lives are about to be forever changed when a new couple, Sebastian and Lena, move in next door. 
 
Sebastian is a renowned tech founder and Lena is his spellbindingly perfect girlfriend. But Lena has secrets; she feels uneasy about her oddly spotty memory and is growing increasingly wary of the way Sebastian controls their relationship. Mitty is also hiding something, and the way Lena appears to float through her luxurious life draws Mitty inexorably into her orbit. As the two women begin to form a close friendship, they are finally forced to face their pasts—and the urgent truths that could change everything.