Book Review: Absolute Certainty by Gissane Sophia

 

I just finished reading this book and I don't feel my words will make enough justice of it.

"Absolute Certainty" is the second book of the series "Midnights at Pemberley" by the talented Gissane Sophia. You can find my review of the first one - titled "From A Certain Step" - here. The question might arise from any potential readers: do I need to read the first book prior to reading this one? Even when familiar characters appear, both stories would be complementary but not strictly required reading material. However, the reading of "Absolute Certainty" would be tremendously enhanced by being introduced properly to this world the author gifted us with via the previous one. Long story short: you might not need to read it, but you definitely should.

 This book keeps the same warm environment of a fictional Broadway play inspired in Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen and what happens backstage and when the lights are out: we get to witness these characters, the daily lives out of stage and their hopes and fears, pursuits and struggles as part of the entertainment industry. And if the previous book puts the spotlight on two of those actors - Ethan and Willa - now the focus is for Sahar, castmate of both and Willa's roommate. We get to learn more about her and how her story intertwines with the story of Jay, the manager of the coffee shop they go to, who is also a writer and film director. The way their stories come together is so organic and nice to read, while showing the challenges and particular struggles people in the entertainment industry face. 

I appreciate how the author does not shy away from bringing current topics like the harmful effects of AI in the entertainment industry and the lives of those who are part of it, but I found really engaging how this is part of the story and has an effect in these characters but does not take away the focus on the main storyline or overpowers the narrative. And perhaps that's one of the main takeaways you can get from this story: entertainment has such an important purpose in our lives as both creators and spectators but it also has a mission of providing us with hope and understanding, as well as the consideration that even if reality poses a lot of challenges in our lives, and things might be bleak and difficult, entertainment can motivate us and shine a light in our personal journeys.

 And talking about journeys, I truly enjoyed learning more about these two characters, Jay and Sahar, and how they play such an important role in each other's lives. Seeing the way Jay and Sahar complement each other and how especially Sahar's broken heart pieces start mending back together by the presence of Jay in her life as if it were threads of gold - and Sahar has the same effect in Jay - made me think of kintsugi and how the resulting piece is way more precious and valuable. 

As I immediately identified with Sahar's having music as her love language, I decided to create a playlist of songs to accompany me on this journey while I was reading this delightful book. (See playlist in Spotify here.) I cannot claim complete ownership over the song selection since several songs were exquisitely curated by the author in her Instagram posts; the rest were added organically, pretty much based on my reaction while reading the book.

If there is something I didn't enjoy as much was Jay and Sahar's football team of choice lol. (Joking! Not a Manchester City fan). But sport choices aside, I truly enjoyed going back to this Midnights at Pemberley's universe so wonderfully created by Gissane Sophia.

Definitely a must-read book! Truly recommend it!

Absolute Certainty by Gissane Sophia is released on August 19th, 2025 both in physical and digital formats. Thank you Beyond the Books PR and Gissane Sophia for the ARC!