The Verifiers (The Verifiers #1)

by Jane Pek

The verifiers didn’t solve crimes, and they didn’t intervene in the course of events beyond reporting their findings to their clients. Think of us, said Komla, as a personal investments advisory firm.

This is a popular highlight. Probably because no one knew wtf the agency did from the book description XDD

“Don’t use that,” says my mother. “They will charge you for it. I have tissue.” “Okay,” I say. I know if I try to point out that Golden Phoenix almost certainly adheres to a once-opened-considered-sold policy, like any sane retail establishment, she’ll just start explaining to me why it shouldn’t since this towelette hasn’t been touched and another customer can have it.

(That really got my hopes up, until Komla started explaining what Veracity did and it became clear that verifier work wouldn’t involve any deaths under mysterious circumstances.)

Or would it? Dun dun dun!!

“You know she can’t give her permission.” This Iris has the voice of a librarian, quiet, unhurried, steeped in the codes of order and knowledge. “She’s dead.”

The book summary should have said "got murdered" instead of "goes missing" because there was like one paragraph where this woman was considered missing and no one really cared.

They generally think it’s hilarious that I’m working in the matching industry—as Julia put it, It’s like a vegan getting into the dairy business.

I register that Max is standing in my doorway, his smile wide enough to span the Atlantic and both his coat and shoes still on. Before I can remind him, yet again, of our no-shoes-inside policy, he grabs on to the sides of the doorframe and says, “I went on the most amazing date tonight.

Ewww, he's tracking in New York street dirt

“Wife of Bath,” I say. One of the truest pronouncements on courtship I’ve ever encountered is contained in The Canterbury Tales, in the Wife of Bath’s prologue: Forbede us thyng, and that desiren we; / Preesse on us faste, and thanne wol we fle.

Was that necessary?

I endured a visit with my mother where she wouldn’t stop going on about how I should find a nice boy (unspecified but understood: Chinese).

Dear god, my life must sound surpassingly dull. I add—not that this will do anything to mitigate that impression—“Rereading Pride and Prejudice for the twentieth time.” It feels like an apt novel to accompany me into my new job, and as I enjoy Elizabeth’s and Darcy’s feinting and parrying, I’ve found myself wondering what Jane Austen would have made of our era’s matchmakers.

Jane Austen used yet again as a personality trait

“You know,” says Lionel, with the first show of liveliness I’ve seen so far, “I could never get into that book.” Not too surprising; Lionel is a devotee of the terse, elliptical, emotionally constipated, quote-unquote masculine style of writing.

Ahh, but this time Jane Austen is a terminal personality trait XD What a shitty comment XDD

“Don’t you trust him?” I say. “I don’t trust anyone. Except you and Charles.”

This whole family got problems Actually everyone in this book is kinda screwed up

I know Becks thinks I’m Catherine Morland in Northanger Abbey, hyperventilating over my own imagination. But. What if I’m Jane Eyre and there is a crazy person banging around in the attic? I want to be the one who finds them.

Staaahp

It’s possible that Sarah’s password consists of a random set of numbers, letters, and symbols, the way all our passwords are supposed to, but I doubt it. She was a writer; she would have gone in for words. A phrase of some significance to her, maybe, or a string of terms related to what she was using this service for.

I reject this typecasting

“If you told me she had been murdered,” he says, “I would find that less unbelievable.” All right, he’s either the cockiest murderer in the world or the dumbest.

OR, not a murderer

Most people probably assume he’s white, but I’m guessing he’s hapa from the shape of his eyes and the beigy tint to his complexion.

What's up with the random Hawaiian word?

“We call them synths.”

Hold on, this isn't the Commonwealth XD

“I think you were right.” “Can I get that on record?” “It’s better to be single. You don’t have to deal with anyone else’s bullshit.” “I never said it was better. I just said there’s nothing wrong with it.”

She receives tens of messages

Thats always so awkward to say in English

I do enjoy heterosexual flirtation when the odd occasion arises. It feels similar to playing blackjack during Chinese New Year with Monopoly money: easy excitement, low consequence.

“That,” says Becks. “I fucking hate crowds.”

You're in the wrong city