Trust Exercise
"[4] Choi explained that when she was writing the book, Donald Trump had just been elected and she was also going through personal issues stemming from her separation with her husband.[4] Choi tapped into the reaction following the publication of the Donald Trump Access Hollywood tape, realizing that discussions about sexual abuse and harassment had taken on a new urgency.[5] Sophie Gilbert of The Atlantic wrote, "Trust Exercise is an elaborate trick; it's a meta work of construction and deconstruction, building a persuasive fictional world and then showing you the girders, the scaffolding underneath, and how it's all been welded together."[6] Writing for The Washington Post, Ron Charles noted, "This author never takes you where you thought you were going, but have faith: You won't be disappointed."[7] John Boyne of The Irish Times wrote, "Once in a while, a novel's plot takes such an unexpected turn, breaking the unspoken contract between reader and writer, that it's hard to know whether to fling the book at the wall in anger or proclaim it a brave attempt to push the boundaries of the form.