Shelfology Book Pairing

by Lucy Foley

A REESE'S BOOK CLUB PICK THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER ONE OF THE NEW YORK TIMES BEST THRILLERS OF THE YEAR "I loved this book. It gave me the same waves of happiness I get from curling up with a classic Christie...The alternating points of view keep you guessing, and guessing wrong." -- Alex Michaelides, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Silent Patient "Evok the great Agatha Christie classics...Pay close attention to seemingly throwaway details about the characters' pasts. They are all clues." -- New York Times Book Review A wedding celebration turns dark and deadly in this deliciously wicked and atmospheric thriller reminiscent of Agatha Christie from the New York Times bestselling author of The Hunting Party. The bride - The plus one - The best man - The wedding planner - The bridesmaid - The body On an island off the coast of Ireland, guests gather to celebrate two people joining their lives together as one. The groom: handsome and charming, a rising television star. The bride: smart and ambitious, a magazine publisher. It's a wedding for a magazine, or for a celebrity: the designer dress, the remote location, the luxe party favors, the boutique whiskey. The cell phone service may be spotty and the waves may be rough, but every detail has been expertly planned and will be expertly executed. But perfection is for plans, and people are all too human. As the champagne is popped and the festivities begin, resentments and petty jealousies begin to mingle with the reminiscences and well wishes. The groomsmen begin the drinking game from their school days. The bridesmaid not-so-accidentally ruins her dress. The bride's oldest (male) friend gives an uncomfortably caring toast. And then someone turns up dead. Who didn't wish the happy couple well? And perhaps more important, why?

by Oscar Wilde

The Picture of Dorian Gray is the story of one beautiful, innocent young man''s seduction, moral corruption, and eventual downfall. We meet our three central characters at the beginning of the book, when painter Basil Hallward and his close friend, Lord Henry Wotton, are discussing the subject of Basil''s newest painting, a gorgeous young thing named Dorian Gray. Basil and Henry discuss just how perfectly perfect Dorian is--he''s totally innocent and completely good, as well as being the most beautiful guy ever to walk the earth. Lord Henry wants to meet this mysterious boy, but Basil doesn''t want him to; for some reason, he''s afraid of what will happen to Dorian if Lord Henry digs his claws into him. However, Lord Henry gets his wish--Dorian shows up that very afternoon, and, over the course of the day, Henry manages to totally change Dorian''s perspective on the world. From that point on, Dorian''s previously innocent point of view is dramatically different--he begins to see life as Lord Henry does, as a succession of pleasures in which questions of good and evil are irrelevant. Basil finishes his portrait of Dorian, and gives it to the young man, who keeps it in his home, where he can admire his own beauty. Lord Henry continues to exert his influence over Dorian, to Basil''s dismay. Dorian grows more and more distant from Basil, his former best friend, and develops his own interests. One of these interests is Sybil Vane, a young, exceptionally beautiful, exceptionally talented--and exceptionally poor--actress. Though she''s stuck performing in a terrible, third-rate theatre, she''s a truly remarkable artist, and her talent and beauty win over Dorian. He falls dramatically in love with her, and she with him. For a moment, it seems like everything will turn out wonderfully. However, this is just the beginning of Dorian''s story. Once he and Sybil are engaged, her talent suddenly disappears--she''s so overcome with her passionate love for Dorian that none of her roles on stage seem important to her anymore. This destroys Dorian''s love for her, and he brutally dumps her. Back home, he notices a something different in his portrait--it looks somehow crueler. In the meanwhile, the distraught Sybil commits suicide, just as Dorian decides to return to her and take back his terrible words. Sybil''s suicide changes everything. At first, Dorian feels horrible... but he rather quickly changes his tune. On Lord Henry''s suggestion, Dorian reads a mysterious "yellow book," a decadent French novel that makes him reevaluate his whole belief system. The protagonist of the book lives his life in pursuit of sensual pleasures, which intrigues Dorian. From this moment on, Dorian is a changed man. Dorian starts to live as hedonistically as his wicked mentor, Lord Henry, does. The only thing that documents this turn for the worst is the portrait, which alarmingly begins to exhibit the inward corruption of Dorian''s soul; the beautiful image changes, revealing new scars and physical flaws with each of Dorian''s dastardly actions. As years pass, the man in the picture grows more and more hideous, as Dorian himself stays unnaturally young and beautiful. Rumors start to spread about the various people whose lives Dorian has ruined, and his formerly good reputation is destroyed. On Dorian''s 38th birthday, he encounters Basil, who desperately asks his former friend if all the horrifying rumors about him are true. Dorian finally snaps and shows Basil the portrait, in which the horrible truth about his wicked nature is revealed. Basil recoils, and begs Dorian to pray for forgiveness. In response, Dorian murders Basil, stabbing him brutally. He blackmails another of his former friends into disposing of the body. Dorian retreats to an opium den after dealing with all of the evidence, where he encounters an enemy he didn''t know he had--Sybil Vane''s brother, James...