Book review: Look What You Made Me Do by John Lanchester

By Philippa Tracy

Lanchester’s hit novel, Capital, came out in 2012. It was a dark comedy about the financial crisis and inequality, about the residents of one South London street. Look What You Made Me Do is again a dark comedy and satire on our times. It is the story of two women, Kate and Phoebe.

They appear to have very little in common apart from the fact that both are distinctly unlikeable and seem keen to abdicate responsibility for their own, shockingly bad, behaviour. At the heart of the humour is a running joke about the generational divide between Kate as a Baby Boomer and Phoebe as a Millennial. But it is, of course, much more complicated than that.

Kate, a philanthropist, of sorts, believes she has a successful, decades-long, marriage to architect Jack. Among other shared benefits, they enjoy their own private language and secret “kinky treats”. At the start of the novel, they are seen enjoying a retro dinner with their equally successful West London friends. They make “architecty small talk” and discuss a shared loathing for Yotam Ottolenghi; the introduction of Za’atar and pomegranate molasses on British menus has “done more damage to this country than the Luftwaffe.” They secretly think their friends’ house is vulgar, but, naturally, wouldn’t tell them that. So far, so smug.

Floating between the vol-au-vents, prawn cocktails and Black Forest gateau, Kate senses “an intergenerational dislike” from a younger guest. She is part of a group that apparently “cruised through life sitting on the great sofa of baby boomer entitlement and economic good fortune”.

This all happens before Jack suddenly dies and Kate becomes aware of the hit TV show, Cheating, written by Phoebe, a Millennial. Watching the show Kate sees and hears her marital private language and some of her most intimate moments reflected back at her. The problem is that at this point, Jack can no longer answer for his suspected betrayal. And everyone is talking about the show, including Kate’s book club.

There are a number of digs at the boomer generation in this dark comedy. And the millennials hardly come off any better. Both seem entitled, to say the least. Taking it in turns to narrate their stories, Kate tells us how she has little time for “conspicuous displays of female solidarity.” Phoebe, during her narrative bursts, often focuses on how much she hates her mother, her friends’ mothers and “their generational narcissism.”

I can’t say too much more about the plot without giving away the many twists and turns in this story about betrayal and revenge in a digital age. Both main women are entitled. While Kate may benefit from Boomer “economic good fortune,” Phoebe is “filled with the deep, oblivious complacency of her generation.” It also includes a romp through Oxford University student antics in the 1980s, which reveals the back story of how Kate and Jack got together.

It is all wrapped up in a modern satire on middle class London life, from therapy to Soho Farmhouse, and the shock of having to interact with the police when accused of something you say you didn’t do. Then there is the pressing question of why there are so many people out there “whose whole world view could be summed up as ‘there’s no smoke without fire’.”

It is a very funny read.