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4.01 AVERAGE
4.01 AVERAGE
This book is incredible and sucks you right in, but holy hell is it stressful! I had to keep taking breaks because I got so anxious.
dark
emotional
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence
I have mixed feelings on this one. It wasn’t so much a thriller as it was a really quite harrowing, difficult story about a woman and her experience with domestic abuse. It’s a dual timeline so the reader sees both the beginning of the relationship and its aftermath. The shift from a loving exciting boyfriend to a horrendous abuser is so subtle you feel like you’ve missed something - I was looking back at the pages trying to see where it had all gone terribly wrong. And I think that was the point Haynes was trying to make: There is no definitive moment where things fall apart and so she really cleverly shows how things can descend, how relationships and friendships can fall apart, and how a person’s sense of self can crumble before they even realise.
Reading Cathy’s POV before and after the relationship is awful; she becomes a completely different person. Before she was carefree, a partier, someone who loved to socialise and go out. After, she is riddled with anxiety and trauma, struggling with acute OCD and unable to go out or trust people at all. I think this is where a lot of people have dropped stars: the first two hundred pages were quite monotonous. The pages are filled with Cathy checking the doors, counting the locks and her steps. So much so that I started skipping over it. But I can also appreciate that was kind of the point. It was meant to be monotonous and cumbersome - that’s the inherent point of her illness. And Haynes really drilled that home.
Her struggling to come to terms with her OCD, the relationship with Lee and her trauma was really difficult to read at times. The abuse she suffered was horrific. But I think this book is really important, especially with a lot of YA and NA books portraying this kind of relationship as “dark” or sexy, protective, thrilling. I think it’s important to see in fiction the negative consequences of these relationships on a person and on the lives of those around them. More conversations on abuse, boundaries and healthy relationships need to be had.
All in all a really difficult but worthwhile read. I knocked off two stars because while it was a good book, there was something missing for me in the narrative voice that prevented me to connect with any of the characters the way I would have liked. Regardless, for the way the subject matter is handled, I’d recommend this highly.
Major trigger warnings for abuse, anxiety, OCD and police corruption.
Reading Cathy’s POV before and after the relationship is awful; she becomes a completely different person. Before she was carefree, a partier, someone who loved to socialise and go out. After, she is riddled with anxiety and trauma, struggling with acute OCD and unable to go out or trust people at all. I think this is where a lot of people have dropped stars: the first two hundred pages were quite monotonous. The pages are filled with Cathy checking the doors, counting the locks and her steps. So much so that I started skipping over it. But I can also appreciate that was kind of the point. It was meant to be monotonous and cumbersome - that’s the inherent point of her illness. And Haynes really drilled that home.
Her struggling to come to terms with her OCD, the relationship with Lee and her trauma was really difficult to read at times. The abuse she suffered was horrific. But I think this book is really important, especially with a lot of YA and NA books portraying this kind of relationship as “dark” or sexy, protective, thrilling. I think it’s important to see in fiction the negative consequences of these relationships on a person and on the lives of those around them. More conversations on abuse, boundaries and healthy relationships need to be had.
All in all a really difficult but worthwhile read. I knocked off two stars because while it was a good book, there was something missing for me in the narrative voice that prevented me to connect with any of the characters the way I would have liked. Regardless, for the way the subject matter is handled, I’d recommend this highly.
Major trigger warnings for abuse, anxiety, OCD and police corruption.
4.5 Stars.
This guy scared me the most! He is quietly scary!!
I listened to the audiobook and read it with book. It was very uncomfortable the word usage is different between the audio and the book. Why does the words have to be Americanized? Audiobook was very British. The intonation really bothered me; Sometime I laughed out loud since it’s so different from what I am used to.
I want to read other books that are written by this author!
This guy scared me the most! He is quietly scary!!
I listened to the audiobook and read it with book. It was very uncomfortable the word usage is different between the audio and the book. Why does the words have to be Americanized? Audiobook was very British. The intonation really bothered me; Sometime I laughed out loud since it’s so different from what I am used to.
I want to read other books that are written by this author!
For the past few weeks I've been on, what I call, a single sister reading binge - only reading novels that will make me appreciate being single and steer me out of the dating scene. Well let me tell you, this book absolutely terrified me and accomplished 100% of my goal. I shall not be dating anytime soon, if ever again!
It's rare that I feel anxiety and fear while reading, wanting to jump ahead to see what happens cuz i just can't take the anticipation. I didnt give into it but I really wanted to!
The narration skipping around in time was perfectly poised and gave just enough detail and exactly the right times.
Wow, I'm blown away by how disturbed I am. BRAVO!!
It's rare that I feel anxiety and fear while reading, wanting to jump ahead to see what happens cuz i just can't take the anticipation. I didnt give into it but I really wanted to!
The narration skipping around in time was perfectly poised and gave just enough detail and exactly the right times.
Wow, I'm blown away by how disturbed I am. BRAVO!!
dark
emotional
hopeful
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Elizabeth Haynes has written the best, most accurate portrayal of mental illness resulting from abuse that I've ever read. "Into The Darkest Corner" lays bare the insidious nature of domestic abuse, via coercive control, gaslighting and all the other horrific things victims experience. Through Cathy we get to see the devastating, life-altering aftermath. The book also explores the flaws in our criminal justice system and the many ways in which a broken mind is worse than a broken face.
I listened to the audiobook which is brilliantly narrated by both Karen Cass and David Thorpe. In fact, the sample featuring David Thorpe sold it to me. I read this when it was first published but I'm so glad I revisited it, now that I have more life experience. Listening to the audiobook is an added bonus. Highly recommended!
I listened to the audiobook which is brilliantly narrated by both Karen Cass and David Thorpe. In fact, the sample featuring David Thorpe sold it to me. I read this when it was first published but I'm so glad I revisited it, now that I have more life experience. Listening to the audiobook is an added bonus. Highly recommended!
I was exhausted after I finished this book. The tension built tick by tick until I was completely sucked in and could not put it down. The author did a brilliant job of illustrating how a "normal", confident woman could find herself in an abusive relationship without realizing it had even happened. The language was a bit coarse and the sex was fairly graphic, but both were germane to the story. I found myself wrinkling my nose in disgust but pushing through and it was worth it. There were a few transitions that I found awkward but overall this is a slam-banging, no breath in your lungs, heart pounding, thrill ride of a book. Recommend for Chevy Stevens fans.
I couldn’t put this book down! Loved the intensity and detail of the struggles the main character faces. The villain was so real, the entire situation is heart wrenching.