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4.01 AVERAGE
4.01 AVERAGE
This book gave me quite an unpleasant visceral reaction all while I read it, and am not quite sure, why, as I could scarcely relate myself to the OCD or circumstances of the female protagonist, who is living in fear of her former psychopathic lover, who is about to get out of prison.
Cathy, a fast girl, falls hard for the suave Lee whose scary, violence filled profession is first kept a secret from her. Slowly she loses control of her life, and is forced to undergo a complete makeover. But things start heating up, and her obsessive disorder and panic attacks heighten when Lee 's release becomes known to her. She depends more and more on her kindly upstairs neighbour, Stuart, who almost seems a rock of support.
I love dark psychological tales, but this one stymied me. I was of course, irritated by the frequent and almost obsessive mentions of Catherine's various OCD behaviours (by the end of the book I could chant what she does from morning to night, without missing a step),but I was frightened by my response to the book - I felt increased cardiac activity, and sort of a constriction of chest, almost amounting to dyspnoea at rest, while reading the book; it was as if I myself was undergoing a mild panic attack. Finished it at almost a stretch as I didnot want this feeling of unease to persist and amplify.
Cathy, a fast girl, falls hard for the suave Lee whose scary, violence filled profession is first kept a secret from her. Slowly she loses control of her life, and is forced to undergo a complete makeover. But things start heating up, and her obsessive disorder and panic attacks heighten when Lee 's release becomes known to her. She depends more and more on her kindly upstairs neighbour, Stuart, who almost seems a rock of support.
I love dark psychological tales, but this one stymied me. I was of course, irritated by the frequent and almost obsessive mentions of Catherine's various OCD behaviours (by the end of the book I could chant what she does from morning to night, without missing a step),but I was frightened by my response to the book - I felt increased cardiac activity, and sort of a constriction of chest, almost amounting to dyspnoea at rest, while reading the book; it was as if I myself was undergoing a mild panic attack. Finished it at almost a stretch as I didnot want this feeling of unease to persist and amplify.
This book was the definition of the word thriller! I thought it was excellent. I liked the time jumps because I felt like had the book run chronologically in a typical fashion, we would have doubted Cathy because she would have seemed overly paranoid, but the way it was presented showed that she was right to seem so 'crazy'. I liked the characters and the progression, I didn't even mind Cathy's constant OCD checking because it just made me feel more tense. I felt like everything was a trap - when we found out Lee's occupation, I thought it was a joke and we would late find it was an elaborate scheme set up by him. Genuinely couldn't recommend this book enough and I can't wait to read her other novels.
Best book I've read in a long while. Not too predictable, well written and left me scared to turn the light off!
Well-written, great characters and very tense but be warned, lots of triggers for controlling behaviour and DV. As I read it, I felt that it was a bit long, and taking its time to get to something which was not going to be a surprise. But perhaps the very slow build-up to the expected denouement was necessary.
I picked this book up at the library this week, I had heard great reviews and wanted to read it for a while. I was not disappointed.
The story is split into two sections, the past and the present. Written in the first person, Catherine's present is significantly different from her past. Current day Catherine is suffering from extreme OCD and anxiety, even getting to work in the morning is a chore. The past Catherine was a completely different person, out every night of the week, basically enjoying her life. She meets a new man, and things change from there. The book continues like this, until eventually the two stories meet.
The story goes into domestic violence and abuse in a lot of detail. Which, some might find disturbing. You start to ask the usual questions, why put up with it, why don't you just leave? But the author, really brings you into this and you understand that it is perhaps not that easy.
This book is no literary masterpiece by any means, but it had me gripped right from the start and I couldn't wait to read more. Which, is really all I ask from a book. I gave four stars as I didn't really like the last page, it didn't ruin the book for me but I wish it had finished on the page before.
I recommend this book, but maybe not for the faint hearted as some scenes could be quite upsetting. I will be looking at more from this author.
The story is split into two sections, the past and the present. Written in the first person, Catherine's present is significantly different from her past. Current day Catherine is suffering from extreme OCD and anxiety, even getting to work in the morning is a chore. The past Catherine was a completely different person, out every night of the week, basically enjoying her life. She meets a new man, and things change from there. The book continues like this, until eventually the two stories meet.
The story goes into domestic violence and abuse in a lot of detail. Which, some might find disturbing. You start to ask the usual questions, why put up with it, why don't you just leave? But the author, really brings you into this and you understand that it is perhaps not that easy.
This book is no literary masterpiece by any means, but it had me gripped right from the start and I couldn't wait to read more. Which, is really all I ask from a book. I gave four stars as I didn't really like the last page, it didn't ruin the book for me but I wish it had finished on the page before.
I recommend this book, but maybe not for the faint hearted as some scenes could be quite upsetting. I will be looking at more from this author.
I read this book in one sitting. It was so good. I couldn't help but wonder what was going to happen to the Catherine 4 years after the ordeal. I kept rooting for her to overcome her "demons" and she did. I loved Stuart and what he was to her.
4.5. Definitely a book where you are invested in the main character, her struggle, and hopeful she will come out on top. The main issue with the book is although you become so consumed in the story, as the book flips back and forth time wise, you have a tendency to forget exactly when is the past and present.
A thrilling page-turner! This book definitely kept me up reading many nights. I definitely recommend!