Book Summary and Reviews of The Cost of All Things by Maggie Lehrman

The Cost of All Things by Maggie Lehrman

The Cost of All Things

by Maggie Lehrman

  • Critics' Consensus (5):
  • Published:
  • May 2015, 416 pages
  • Rate this book

About this book

Book Summary

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind meets We Were Liars in this thought-provoking and brilliantly written debut that is part love story, part mystery, part high-stakes drama.

What would you pay to cure your heartbreak? Banish your sadness? Transform your looks? The right spell can fix anything…. When Ari's boyfriend Win dies, she gets a spell to erase all memory of him. But spells come at a cost, and this one sets off a chain of events that reveal the hidden—and sometimes dangerous—connections between Ari, her friends, and the boyfriend she can no longer remember.

Told from four different points of view, this original and affecting novel weaves past and present in a suspenseful narrative that unveils the truth behind a terrible tragedy.

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $60 for 12 months or $20 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Reviews

Media Reviews

"An engrossing, emotionally resonant spin on the old adage: Be careful what you wish for." - Kirkus Reviews

"The premise of Lehrman's debut is quite intriguing. Unfortunately, the novel does not deliver due to stereotypical characters and a story that turns convoluted very quickly." - School Library Journal

"Lehrman's prose pulses with dark emotion…and the steady desperation of her characters is both disturbing and compelling." - Publishers Weekly

"A memorable debut, one that reminds readers to be careful what they wish for, because, yes, they may just get it." - Booklist

"The most creepily awesome cautionary tale ever. Magic—or hekame—does exist, and wishes can be granted...but always at a cost. Brilliant, provocative, and absolutely spellbinding." - Lauren Myracle, New York Times bestselling author of The Infinite Moment of Us

"Maggie Lehrman nimbly reveals secrets wrapped around our most basic need. The Cost of All Things is a walk of the soul." - Rita Williams-Garcia, Coretta Scott King Author Award Winner

This information about The Cost of All Things was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.

Reader Reviews

Click here and be the first to review this book!

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $60 for 12 months or $20 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

More Information

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $60 for 12 months or $20 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Read-Alikes

Read-Alikes Full readalike results are for members only

If you liked The Cost of All Things, try these:

  • Beauty in the Broken Places jacket

    Beauty in the Broken Places

    by Allison Pataki

    Published 2019

    About this book

    A deeply moving memoir about a young couple whose lives were changed in the blink of an eye, and the love that helped them rewrite their future.

  • Dragonfish jacket

    Dragonfish

    by Vu Tran

    Published 2016

    About this book

    A thrilling and cinematic work of sophisticated suspense and haunting lyricism, set in motion by characters who can neither trust each other nor trust themselves.

  • The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo jacket

    The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

    by Stieg Larsson

    Published 2009

    About this book

    A spellbinding amalgam of murder mystery, family saga, love story and financial intrigue.

We have 10 read-alikes for The Cost of All Things, but non-members are limited to three results. Join free to see the complete list of recommendations.
Search read-alikes
How we choose read-alikes

More Literary Fiction

Browse all Literary Fiction books

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $60 for 12 months or $20 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!
Win This Book
Win Theo of Golden

Theo of Golden by Allen Levi

One spring morning, a stranger arrives in the small southern city of Golden. No one knows where he has come from…or why…

Enter

BookBrowse Book Club

  • Book Jacket
    Days of Sun and Shadow
    by India Hayford
    A young woman’s coming-of-age story set in the early American frontier, shaped by tragedy, nature, and resilience.
  • Book Jacket
    Chelsea Girls
    by Catherine Lloyd
    A glamorous biographical novel on Mary Quant, whose daring design of the miniskirt revolutionized fashion.
  • Book Jacket
    Merry-Go-Round Broke Down
    by David Woo, Margalit Shinar
    Nine linked stories reveal how globalization sparks life-changing consequences across continents.

Members Recommend

  • Book Jacket
    An Infinite Love Story
    by Chanel Cleeton
    “A tender, romantic drama that soars as high as it’s astronauts.” —Kate Quinn
  • Book Jacket
    Summer of Love
    by Kerri Maher
    Three women reshape their family's Napa Valley winery after the 1967 Summer of Love.
Book
Trivia
  • Book Trivia

    Can you name the title?

    Test your book knowledge with our daily trivia challenge!

Wordplay

Solve this clue:

The C is A R

and be entered to win..

Your guide toexceptional          books

BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.