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A Flicker in the Dark
Goodreads Choice Award
Nominee for Readers' Favorite Mystery & Thriller (2022), Nominee for Readers' Favorite Debut Novel (2022)When Chloe Davis was twelve, six teenage girls went missing in her small Louisiana town. By the end of the summer, Chloe’s father had been arrested as a serial killer and promptly put in prison. Chloe and the rest of her family were left to grapple with the truth and try to move forward while dealing with the aftermath.
Now 20 years later, Chloe is a psychologist in private practice in Baton Rouge and getting ready for her wedding. She finally has a fragile grasp on the happiness she’s worked so hard to get. Sometimes, though, she feels as out of control of her own life as the troubled teens who are her patients. And then a local teenage girl goes missing, and then another, and that terrifying summer comes crashing back. Is she paranoid, and seeing parallels that aren't really there, or for the second time in her life, is she about to unmask a killer?
In a debut novel that has already been optioned for a limited series by actress Emma Stone and sold to a dozen countries around the world, Stacy Willingham has created an unforgettable character in a spellbinding thriller that will appeal equally to fans of Gillian Flynn and Karin Slaughter.
Now 20 years later, Chloe is a psychologist in private practice in Baton Rouge and getting ready for her wedding. She finally has a fragile grasp on the happiness she’s worked so hard to get. Sometimes, though, she feels as out of control of her own life as the troubled teens who are her patients. And then a local teenage girl goes missing, and then another, and that terrifying summer comes crashing back. Is she paranoid, and seeing parallels that aren't really there, or for the second time in her life, is she about to unmask a killer?
In a debut novel that has already been optioned for a limited series by actress Emma Stone and sold to a dozen countries around the world, Stacy Willingham has created an unforgettable character in a spellbinding thriller that will appeal equally to fans of Gillian Flynn and Karin Slaughter.
357 pages, Hardcover
First published January 11, 2022
About the author
Stacy Willingham
8 books13.2k followersStacy Willingham is the New York Times, USA Today and internationally bestselling author of A Flicker in the Dark, All the Dangerous Things and Only If You're Lucky.
Her debut, A Flicker in the Dark, was a 2022 finalist for the Book of the Month's Book of the Year award, Goodreads Choice Best Debut award, Goodreads Choice Best Mystery & Thriller award, and ITW's Best First Novel award. Her work has been translated in more than thirty languages.
Before turning to fiction, she was a copywriter and brand strategist for various marketing agencies. She earned her B.A. in magazine journalism from the University of Georgia and M.F.A. in writing from the Savannah College of Art and Design.
She currently lives in Charleston, South Carolina, with her husband, Britt, and Labradoodle, Mako.
Her debut, A Flicker in the Dark, was a 2022 finalist for the Book of the Month's Book of the Year award, Goodreads Choice Best Debut award, Goodreads Choice Best Mystery & Thriller award, and ITW's Best First Novel award. Her work has been translated in more than thirty languages.
Before turning to fiction, she was a copywriter and brand strategist for various marketing agencies. She earned her B.A. in magazine journalism from the University of Georgia and M.F.A. in writing from the Savannah College of Art and Design.
She currently lives in Charleston, South Carolina, with her husband, Britt, and Labradoodle, Mako.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 42,305 reviews
January 18, 2022
I almost always give even the shittiest books at least two stars because the author I'm bashing wrote words and got them published. Good job. However, given that the story has already been optioned by Emma Stone, I don't think the author will be weeping into her labradoodle's fur over my piddly little review. So, fuck it. ONE STAR.
SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS AHEAD
"Psychology," I said. "I'm hoping to pursue my PhD here next fall - then, eventually get my master's."
Reader, my eyes closed in pain. I'd like to call this an editorial error, but I think the main character is actually this stupid. I have a master's degree. I also have a doctorate. Which one do you think came first - the doctor designation, or the dusty, useless piece of paper my mom put in a frame? Hmm.
Where to even start with this book? Chloe Davis, the human equivalent of hold music, is very deeply damaged. She's the daughter of a notorious serial killer, and she's done everything she can to separate herself from that life. Those efforts include the following: not changing her name, moving an hour away from her hometown, giving an interview on how her serial killer father inspired her career, ETC. Girlfriend, have you heard of Google? Everybody knows you. Your Ken-doll fiancé - yeah, you didn't have to reveal nothing, because other people know how the internet works.
Yep, let's discuss Ken-doll: he throws you surprise parties even though he knows you freak out about everything. He unilaterally decides to throw in a little surprise choking during some nice, relaxing morning sex. (Didn't your father's victims die by choking? Huh. Tacky). Dude disappears all the time and you never really bother to ask where he is or what he's doing. Sounds super great. A nice healthy relationship. At least you can call in prescriptions in his name! (Apparently psychologists can do that in Louisiana --solidifying the decision to set the book here, because this girl would have never made it through medical school).
Elevator music drug and alcohol problem: Look, I realize I'm more Hunter S. Thompson than most, but this D & A problem ain't really that bad. I work with lawyers and criminal defendants, and ALL of us are taking benzos legally or illegally and in much higher quantities than Princess Chloe here. You're worried ONE xanax is going to muck up your day? If you're really an addict, you'd have to take half the bottle to even notice you took anything. Two glasses of wine after a xanax, and you wake up not remembering what happened? Two xanax and you lose a DAY AND A HALF? This is some amateur shit right here. Our girl talks about having done all of this since college (10-12 years?) -- this is your tolerance? LEAVE THIS PARTY RIGHT NOW.
Some other random thoughts: they find Valium in the first victim's hair follicles approximately two seconds after they find the body. What coroner on what earth is looking at a hair follicle test first thing? Those things take days to process in a best case scenario. They would use a blood test, a vitreous fluid test, maybe even a urine test if there was any remaining. I've sat through enough expert witness testimony to feel personally affronted by this scene. This inattention to detail covered the entire book. I understand we don't all need to know the science. But if you don't have the science, you need the characters. Ergo, if there is neither science nor character, you have a fucking snoozer, my friends. Who even needs the Xanax at this point.
SHE SLEEPS WITH THE FAKE REPORTER MURDERER. God! Was the choking the day before not enough? Also, there was chocolate on a pillow at a Motel 6? Laugh out loud. This is like Blair from "Gossip Girl" trying to write "poor."
Then, revelation time. Chloe has solved this puzzle! The dang murderer is obviously taking these girls to Chloe's childhood home. She also apparently used to know him, because he's from her home town. EYE ROLL. She is going to drive right to the house and not tell anyone about it. She is also going to leave her phone in the car because why would you need that? (Aside: a famous serial killer's house has been sitting empty for 20 years and it's somehow completely intact, not vandalized, burned down...?) In what world?
Well, thankfully Dr. Brilliant Chloe remembers to take the gun into the house, even though she's never shot a gun in her life. Earlier in the book, she even rues the fact. "Golly gee, I should really learn to shoot this thing." But, in this perfect moment, the benzos have steadied her hands, and she shoots that dumb fucker reporter lover murderer right in the fatal spot. Deus ex 9mm.
But, of course that's not the end, because the killer from 20 years ago was Chloe's weirdo brother. Did that surprise a single person who read this? The serial killer sitting in jail never actually did it, duh. Turns out those porno mags Cooper kept in his room really pushed him over the edge. Wait, that doesn't make any sense. NONE OF IT MAKES ANY SENSE. Cooper feels the darkness, he says. Yeah, dude. We all feel the fucking darkness. Take this bottle of xanax and work it out.
The ending is Chloe arriving at her former(?) fiancé's sister's house. She drove to Mississippi to return the ring (certified mail anyone?), but she doesn't actually want to talk to Ken-doll. In retrospect, and aside from not asking permission for the choking, he wasn't so bad. He's a pharmaceutical rep and she's a drug "addict." Match made in heaven, DUH.
Chloe's dad gets out of jail because, also, DUH. My only emotional response to that was that everyone should watch the show Rectify and forget they read this stupid fucking book. If my kid was murdering people, you better believe I wouldn't take a murder rap for that little psycho!
Emma Stone, my beautiful, husky-voiced girlfriend: I love you, but this book is not your "Sharp Objects."
SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS AHEAD
"Psychology," I said. "I'm hoping to pursue my PhD here next fall - then, eventually get my master's."
Reader, my eyes closed in pain. I'd like to call this an editorial error, but I think the main character is actually this stupid. I have a master's degree. I also have a doctorate. Which one do you think came first - the doctor designation, or the dusty, useless piece of paper my mom put in a frame? Hmm.
Where to even start with this book? Chloe Davis, the human equivalent of hold music, is very deeply damaged. She's the daughter of a notorious serial killer, and she's done everything she can to separate herself from that life. Those efforts include the following: not changing her name, moving an hour away from her hometown, giving an interview on how her serial killer father inspired her career, ETC. Girlfriend, have you heard of Google? Everybody knows you. Your Ken-doll fiancé - yeah, you didn't have to reveal nothing, because other people know how the internet works.
Yep, let's discuss Ken-doll: he throws you surprise parties even though he knows you freak out about everything. He unilaterally decides to throw in a little surprise choking during some nice, relaxing morning sex. (Didn't your father's victims die by choking? Huh. Tacky). Dude disappears all the time and you never really bother to ask where he is or what he's doing. Sounds super great. A nice healthy relationship. At least you can call in prescriptions in his name! (Apparently psychologists can do that in Louisiana --solidifying the decision to set the book here, because this girl would have never made it through medical school).
Elevator music drug and alcohol problem: Look, I realize I'm more Hunter S. Thompson than most, but this D & A problem ain't really that bad. I work with lawyers and criminal defendants, and ALL of us are taking benzos legally or illegally and in much higher quantities than Princess Chloe here. You're worried ONE xanax is going to muck up your day? If you're really an addict, you'd have to take half the bottle to even notice you took anything. Two glasses of wine after a xanax, and you wake up not remembering what happened? Two xanax and you lose a DAY AND A HALF? This is some amateur shit right here. Our girl talks about having done all of this since college (10-12 years?) -- this is your tolerance? LEAVE THIS PARTY RIGHT NOW.
Some other random thoughts: they find Valium in the first victim's hair follicles approximately two seconds after they find the body. What coroner on what earth is looking at a hair follicle test first thing? Those things take days to process in a best case scenario. They would use a blood test, a vitreous fluid test, maybe even a urine test if there was any remaining. I've sat through enough expert witness testimony to feel personally affronted by this scene. This inattention to detail covered the entire book. I understand we don't all need to know the science. But if you don't have the science, you need the characters. Ergo, if there is neither science nor character, you have a fucking snoozer, my friends. Who even needs the Xanax at this point.
SHE SLEEPS WITH THE FAKE REPORTER MURDERER. God! Was the choking the day before not enough? Also, there was chocolate on a pillow at a Motel 6? Laugh out loud. This is like Blair from "Gossip Girl" trying to write "poor."
Then, revelation time. Chloe has solved this puzzle! The dang murderer is obviously taking these girls to Chloe's childhood home. She also apparently used to know him, because he's from her home town. EYE ROLL. She is going to drive right to the house and not tell anyone about it. She is also going to leave her phone in the car because why would you need that? (Aside: a famous serial killer's house has been sitting empty for 20 years and it's somehow completely intact, not vandalized, burned down...?) In what world?
Well, thankfully Dr. Brilliant Chloe remembers to take the gun into the house, even though she's never shot a gun in her life. Earlier in the book, she even rues the fact. "Golly gee, I should really learn to shoot this thing." But, in this perfect moment, the benzos have steadied her hands, and she shoots that dumb fucker reporter lover murderer right in the fatal spot. Deus ex 9mm.
But, of course that's not the end, because the killer from 20 years ago was Chloe's weirdo brother. Did that surprise a single person who read this? The serial killer sitting in jail never actually did it, duh. Turns out those porno mags Cooper kept in his room really pushed him over the edge. Wait, that doesn't make any sense. NONE OF IT MAKES ANY SENSE. Cooper feels the darkness, he says. Yeah, dude. We all feel the fucking darkness. Take this bottle of xanax and work it out.
The ending is Chloe arriving at her former(?) fiancé's sister's house. She drove to Mississippi to return the ring (certified mail anyone?), but she doesn't actually want to talk to Ken-doll. In retrospect, and aside from not asking permission for the choking, he wasn't so bad. He's a pharmaceutical rep and she's a drug "addict." Match made in heaven, DUH.
Chloe's dad gets out of jail because, also, DUH. My only emotional response to that was that everyone should watch the show Rectify and forget they read this stupid fucking book. If my kid was murdering people, you better believe I wouldn't take a murder rap for that little psycho!
Emma Stone, my beautiful, husky-voiced girlfriend: I love you, but this book is not your "Sharp Objects."
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 6, 2024
Even though A Flicker in the Dark has an interesting premise, its reliance on the confused and drugged-up female narrator trope prevented this story from being as great as it could've been.
Chloe Davis has lived in the shadow of fear for a long time. When she was twelve years ago, six teenage girls disappeared in town, one right after another. The nightmare finally ended when her own father confessed to the killings, upending her childhood and leaving her family in ruins. Now twenty years later, girls are going missing again. And Chloe can't help but feel there is a link between what's happening now and what happened so long ago.
I've read plenty of serial killer stories from the perspective of investigators, the victims and their families, and regular townspeople, but I'm not sure I've ever read one from the killer's own daughter. And coming at it from that angle makes this story feel fresh and unusual. Chloe still suffers from the fallout of her childhood, and her narrative envelopes the whole story in her dark and foreboding mood.
Where this didn't quite work as well for me is the pacing. It's very slow, with hardly anything happening in the first 250 pages. Instead, we spend a lot of time in Chloe's head as she ruminates, freaks out, consumes copious quantities of alcohol and prescription drugs, sticks her nose where it doesn't belong, and in general, just bumbles around being confused and paranoid. To be fair, this is a pretty common trope for the genre, but it just isn't my favorite as I find it to be pretty dull and a bit exasperating.
Clearly, this is the sort of psychological thriller that leans heavily towards the psychological side, whereas I like mine to be more on the thriller side. I always enjoy a more active investigation instead of a more active rumination. However, that's just a personal preference. I think a lot of what I found to be slow is what a lot of readers find fascinating, so your experiences may be the opposite of mine.
The pacing does finally pick up in the last 100 pages, and we are treated to one revelation after another. I wouldn't necessarily say any of it is surprising (I've read too many thrillers at this point), but it is exciting. The way everything comes together is really the highlight of the book, and made this a worthwhile read for me.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
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This was a pick for my Book of the Month box. Get your first book for $5 here.
Chloe Davis has lived in the shadow of fear for a long time. When she was twelve years ago, six teenage girls disappeared in town, one right after another. The nightmare finally ended when her own father confessed to the killings, upending her childhood and leaving her family in ruins. Now twenty years later, girls are going missing again. And Chloe can't help but feel there is a link between what's happening now and what happened so long ago.
I've read plenty of serial killer stories from the perspective of investigators, the victims and their families, and regular townspeople, but I'm not sure I've ever read one from the killer's own daughter. And coming at it from that angle makes this story feel fresh and unusual. Chloe still suffers from the fallout of her childhood, and her narrative envelopes the whole story in her dark and foreboding mood.
Where this didn't quite work as well for me is the pacing. It's very slow, with hardly anything happening in the first 250 pages. Instead, we spend a lot of time in Chloe's head as she ruminates, freaks out, consumes copious quantities of alcohol and prescription drugs, sticks her nose where it doesn't belong, and in general, just bumbles around being confused and paranoid. To be fair, this is a pretty common trope for the genre, but it just isn't my favorite as I find it to be pretty dull and a bit exasperating.
Clearly, this is the sort of psychological thriller that leans heavily towards the psychological side, whereas I like mine to be more on the thriller side. I always enjoy a more active investigation instead of a more active rumination. However, that's just a personal preference. I think a lot of what I found to be slow is what a lot of readers find fascinating, so your experiences may be the opposite of mine.
The pacing does finally pick up in the last 100 pages, and we are treated to one revelation after another. I wouldn't necessarily say any of it is surprising (I've read too many thrillers at this point), but it is exciting. The way everything comes together is really the highlight of the book, and made this a worthwhile read for me.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
✧ Connect with me ✧ Instagram ✧
This was a pick for my Book of the Month box. Get your first book for $5 here.
April 25, 2023
3.75 (?)
August 13, 2023
Whoa! This is so impressive, spine tingling and deliciously twisty and intelligent! Let’s make some noise and clap till our hands hurt: we have a brilliant author at smart psychological thriller town : welcome dear Stacy Willingham!
I have to admit: sometimes reading about the family’s traumatic life after a serial killer father is convicted is a great plot idea to work on!
The character driven/ psychological thriller story of this book picked my interest and hooked me up from the beginning.
I liked the emotionally sensitive but also resilient, survivor and sometimes a little unreliable heroine; doctor Chloe Davis: she is a psychologist who also suffers from mental disorders and her fight helps her to become better at her job and change the lives of her patients. She’s dealing with her inner demons since she’s twelve the day her childhood is over because of her father’s conviction from kidnapping and killing six young teenagers in her hometown Louisiana.
You can imagine how her life entirely turned upside down!! As she feels too much, her brother who is 3 years older than her chose to feel nothing, turning into a stone hearted man keeping everything to himself, doing everything to protect her sister and their mother is already a lost case, committing suicide after her husband’s verdict, living in oblivion.
Now Chloe Davis grabs her second chance: working with teenagers as a psychologist and she’s doing far better job than her colleagues because she knows how to be troubled kid. She also found her loved one, is about to tie the knot with Daniel even though her brother Cooper has still suspicious about Daniel’s motives. Does he really know the real Chloe and does he know how she still struggles with her past?
But there are enough predicaments she has to face from her past prevent her move on to her life! A reporter from NY Times demands to interview her about her father’s crimes he committed 20 years ago and the murders of young teenagers strike back: interestingly the killer has exactly same methods of her father!
Is there a copy cat killer imitating her father’s method or was his father convicted to lifetime prison sentence for the crime he didn’t convict!
The culprit was a little foreseeable but most of the twists and big revelations were well constructed. There are some untied loose ends but overall it was gripping, well written, heart throbbing, engaging story makes you sit on the edge, giving you creeps, keeping your attention intact!
I’m looking forward to read her next works of the author. So far I really enjoyed her writing style!
Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press/ Minotaur Books for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest thoughts.
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I have to admit: sometimes reading about the family’s traumatic life after a serial killer father is convicted is a great plot idea to work on!
The character driven/ psychological thriller story of this book picked my interest and hooked me up from the beginning.
I liked the emotionally sensitive but also resilient, survivor and sometimes a little unreliable heroine; doctor Chloe Davis: she is a psychologist who also suffers from mental disorders and her fight helps her to become better at her job and change the lives of her patients. She’s dealing with her inner demons since she’s twelve the day her childhood is over because of her father’s conviction from kidnapping and killing six young teenagers in her hometown Louisiana.
You can imagine how her life entirely turned upside down!! As she feels too much, her brother who is 3 years older than her chose to feel nothing, turning into a stone hearted man keeping everything to himself, doing everything to protect her sister and their mother is already a lost case, committing suicide after her husband’s verdict, living in oblivion.
Now Chloe Davis grabs her second chance: working with teenagers as a psychologist and she’s doing far better job than her colleagues because she knows how to be troubled kid. She also found her loved one, is about to tie the knot with Daniel even though her brother Cooper has still suspicious about Daniel’s motives. Does he really know the real Chloe and does he know how she still struggles with her past?
But there are enough predicaments she has to face from her past prevent her move on to her life! A reporter from NY Times demands to interview her about her father’s crimes he committed 20 years ago and the murders of young teenagers strike back: interestingly the killer has exactly same methods of her father!
Is there a copy cat killer imitating her father’s method or was his father convicted to lifetime prison sentence for the crime he didn’t convict!
The culprit was a little foreseeable but most of the twists and big revelations were well constructed. There are some untied loose ends but overall it was gripping, well written, heart throbbing, engaging story makes you sit on the edge, giving you creeps, keeping your attention intact!
I’m looking forward to read her next works of the author. So far I really enjoyed her writing style!
Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press/ Minotaur Books for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest thoughts.
Follow me on medium.com to read my articles about books, movies, streaming series, astrology:
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January 10, 2023
A Flicker in the Dark by Stacy Willingham
Chloe Davis, a thirty two year old psychologist in private practice in Baton Rouge, has a family past that will haunt her for the rest of her life. What her father did, when she was twelve, tore families apart and terrified a small town. A serial killer kidnapped and killed six girls, that killer was her father, and he's now rotting in prison, having ruined the lives of so many people.
Chloe has tried to move on, with her practice, which reminds her too much of the past, and with her upcoming wedding to Daniel. Really, though, Chloe is a mess, self medicating with prescription drugs and alcohol. She rarely visits her mother, who lives in a care home after trying to commit suicide. Her older brother, Cooper, is dealing with their past in his own way, staying close to Chloe but also adding more stress to her life. For some reason, he's disliked her fiancé from the first time they met and he's always at her that Daniel isn't who she thinks he is. And now, it appears that there is a copy cat killer, going after a girl who was last seen by Chloe.
This story is full of twists, turns, and red herrings. Chloe has tried to keep a damper on her feelings and fears and doing so is going to destroy her if her use of drugs and alcohol doesn't do it first. She has let her paranoia go too far before and she's not sure who she can trust. This all leads to bad decisions, faulty assumptions, and a sense of more danger and death to come, with no way to stop it. The story is riveting although it's hard to put aside the fact that a drugged and drunken main character can only be trusted so far.
Pub: Jan 11, 2022
Thank you to Macmillan Publishers, Minotaur Books, St Martin's Press and NetGalley for this ARC.
Chloe Davis, a thirty two year old psychologist in private practice in Baton Rouge, has a family past that will haunt her for the rest of her life. What her father did, when she was twelve, tore families apart and terrified a small town. A serial killer kidnapped and killed six girls, that killer was her father, and he's now rotting in prison, having ruined the lives of so many people.
Chloe has tried to move on, with her practice, which reminds her too much of the past, and with her upcoming wedding to Daniel. Really, though, Chloe is a mess, self medicating with prescription drugs and alcohol. She rarely visits her mother, who lives in a care home after trying to commit suicide. Her older brother, Cooper, is dealing with their past in his own way, staying close to Chloe but also adding more stress to her life. For some reason, he's disliked her fiancé from the first time they met and he's always at her that Daniel isn't who she thinks he is. And now, it appears that there is a copy cat killer, going after a girl who was last seen by Chloe.
This story is full of twists, turns, and red herrings. Chloe has tried to keep a damper on her feelings and fears and doing so is going to destroy her if her use of drugs and alcohol doesn't do it first. She has let her paranoia go too far before and she's not sure who she can trust. This all leads to bad decisions, faulty assumptions, and a sense of more danger and death to come, with no way to stop it. The story is riveting although it's hard to put aside the fact that a drugged and drunken main character can only be trusted so far.
Pub: Jan 11, 2022
Thank you to Macmillan Publishers, Minotaur Books, St Martin's Press and NetGalley for this ARC.
January 1, 2022
When Chloe was 12 there was a serial killer on the loose, targeting young teenage girls. Her father was arrested for the murders, pleaded guilty and was sent to prison. Now, 20 years later, Chloe is a psychologist and although suffering from her childhood trauma, she is trying to move forward in her life, although, unfortunately, with the help of alcohol and pills. As she prepares for her wedding, a string of copycat murders sends her in a downward spiral. Has her stress and anxiety caused her to see connections where there aren’t any or is a killer coming after her? The story is told in alternating chapters between the present day and flashbacks to her childhood.
However, I’m tired of drunk, pill-popping narrators. I guessed the ending immediately, but the author tried to throw in plenty of red herrings and a couple of other unexpected twists.
The story requires a large amount of suspension of disbelief, which is OK if I find the writing and plotting to be stellar. However, there was a lot of repetitiveness and extraneous details that felt like filler, plus there were a few things that took me out of the story, such as staying at a cut-rate highway motel, then mentioning the chocolate placed on her pillow (really?? Motel 6 places chocolate on pillows? 🙄).
There was the annoying overuse of the word "flicker", and the flowery language with too many adjectives and an abundance of nonsensical metaphors like swallowing pills that “tear down her esophagus like jagged nails trying to claw their way back up”, and “air warm and damp like a boiled egg burp”, "a constellation of freckles scattered across the bridge of her nose, as if someone had taken a pinch and sprinkled them on like salt". His dads whiskey “coated his lips in a perpetual slickness like a puddle of gasoline…."
The mystery could have been strong enough to stand on its own without telegraphing the culprit, the alcohol/drug use, and the flowery language. This is the author's debut and I hope in the future she will tone it down. My reading buddy, Marialyce, enjoyed this more than I did so please check out her review.
· I received a digital copy for review via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
Publication date January 11, 2022 by St Martin's Press
However, I’m tired of drunk, pill-popping narrators. I guessed the ending immediately, but the author tried to throw in plenty of red herrings and a couple of other unexpected twists.
The story requires a large amount of suspension of disbelief, which is OK if I find the writing and plotting to be stellar. However, there was a lot of repetitiveness and extraneous details that felt like filler, plus there were a few things that took me out of the story, such as staying at a cut-rate highway motel, then mentioning the chocolate placed on her pillow (really?? Motel 6 places chocolate on pillows? 🙄).
There was the annoying overuse of the word "flicker", and the flowery language with too many adjectives and an abundance of nonsensical metaphors like swallowing pills that “tear down her esophagus like jagged nails trying to claw their way back up”, and “air warm and damp like a boiled egg burp”, "a constellation of freckles scattered across the bridge of her nose, as if someone had taken a pinch and sprinkled them on like salt". His dads whiskey “coated his lips in a perpetual slickness like a puddle of gasoline…."
The mystery could have been strong enough to stand on its own without telegraphing the culprit, the alcohol/drug use, and the flowery language. This is the author's debut and I hope in the future she will tone it down. My reading buddy, Marialyce, enjoyed this more than I did so please check out her review.
· I received a digital copy for review via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
Publication date January 11, 2022 by St Martin's Press
January 11, 2022
Sometimes when I’m reading a thriller I’ll get a little flicker of how things are going to play out. Then other times, as with A Flicker in the Dark, it’s like someone turned on a megawatt spotlight. So the prevailing question left in my mind after finishing this debut novel is this: Can you still enjoy a mystery that you didn’t find mysterious?
After a bit of a ponder, my answer here is yes. A Flicker in the Dark held my attention, never bored me, and kept me up past my bedtime. That’s all quite remarkable given that there’s hardly anything original about it.
- Self-medicated unreliable narrator
- Serial killer(s) murdering young women
- Civilian main character that inserts herself in a police investigation
- Plenty of controlling, potentially evil men as suspects
It’s possible that my overindulgence in the thriller genre has left me jaded, and those who haven’t read dozens of similar stories this year will find Stacy Willingham’s novel more surprising. Emma Stone must be one of them, since she’s already got an HBO Max limited series adaptation in the works. (I will say that she has to be trying to stretch her range here, because I couldn’t picture her as the main character even knowing her casting ahead of time.)
Speaking of casting, new-to-me narrator Karissa Vacker narrates the audiobook. She’s given the difficult task of performing a book with a first person female lead that dialogues most often with men. Gender voicing can be tricky, and she handles it by using gruff, deeper inflections for the male characters. That’s always a little off-putting to me, but other listeners may not be as bothered. Still, it’s not often I’ll choose to listen to an audiobook over reading a physical book late at night, so kudos to the author and publishers for a captivating experience all around.
Yes, I predicted the who of the whodunnit, but I couldn't get to the end fast enough to see if I was right.
3.5 stars
My thanks to Macmillan Audio for the gifted advance listening copy to review via NetGalley. A Flicker in the Dark is now available.
Blog: https://www.confettibookshelf.com/
After a bit of a ponder, my answer here is yes. A Flicker in the Dark held my attention, never bored me, and kept me up past my bedtime. That’s all quite remarkable given that there’s hardly anything original about it.
- Self-medicated unreliable narrator
- Serial killer(s) murdering young women
- Civilian main character that inserts herself in a police investigation
- Plenty of controlling, potentially evil men as suspects
It’s possible that my overindulgence in the thriller genre has left me jaded, and those who haven’t read dozens of similar stories this year will find Stacy Willingham’s novel more surprising. Emma Stone must be one of them, since she’s already got an HBO Max limited series adaptation in the works. (I will say that she has to be trying to stretch her range here, because I couldn’t picture her as the main character even knowing her casting ahead of time.)
Speaking of casting, new-to-me narrator Karissa Vacker narrates the audiobook. She’s given the difficult task of performing a book with a first person female lead that dialogues most often with men. Gender voicing can be tricky, and she handles it by using gruff, deeper inflections for the male characters. That’s always a little off-putting to me, but other listeners may not be as bothered. Still, it’s not often I’ll choose to listen to an audiobook over reading a physical book late at night, so kudos to the author and publishers for a captivating experience all around.
Yes, I predicted the who of the whodunnit, but I couldn't get to the end fast enough to see if I was right.
3.5 stars
My thanks to Macmillan Audio for the gifted advance listening copy to review via NetGalley. A Flicker in the Dark is now available.
Blog: https://www.confettibookshelf.com/
June 16, 2024
**4.5-stars**
When Chloe Davis was 12-years old, her father was arrested for the kidnapping and murder of six teenage girls, based on evidence that Chloe herself had uncovered.
After her father was taken away, Chloe, her mother and her older brother, were left trying to put back together the pieces of their shattered lives.
It was rough. In their small Louisiana town the shroud of guilt was always upon them. They ended up moving to try to hide from the scandal.
People were suspicious of her Mom, that she possibly knew something she didn't reveal. It wasn't a good situation. Traumatic to say the least.
Twenty years later, Chloe is a psychologist working with young girls suffering through varying levels of trauma, like she did herself.
Chloe is also preparing for her wedding to Daniel, a man she has known for just a year.
Her brother, Cooper, thinks the marriage is too quick. He and Daniel have never been warm and fuzzy with one another, a fact that worries Chloe.
That alone is stressful enough, but when local teen girls begin to go missing, one of them a patient of Chloe's, she's triggered into a really dark place; her past.
Chloe's worked hard to forget her childhood trauma; to move on and find a bit of happiness for herself in spite of all she's been through. Now it seems the past is back to haunt her.
The pattern of the current crimes isn't just similar to that of her father's, it's identical. Is there a copycat working in Baton Rouge?
Before she knows it, Chloe finds herself steeped in the investigation. She needs to get to the bottom of it. It seems too close to home, like it's intentional. Like this new killer is trying to draw her in.
Is Chloe paranoid and seeing connections where there aren't any, or is she dangerously close to the truth?
A Flicker in the Dark is a hugely promising and intense debut. Willingham's writing style is extremely fluid and fast-paced, sucking me in from the very first chapter.
I loved Chloe as a main character. Her flaws made her not just believable, but relatable. Her struggles were real. I felt them; the being particularly impactful.
While I found certain aspects of the story toed the line of predictability, I nonetheless had a fun time reading it.
If this is her debut, I predict a long and successful career in Willingham's future. I definitely plan to be following along.
Thank you so much to the publisher, Macmillan Audio, for providing me with a copy to read and review.
This is a great book. One that every Mystery/Thriller Fan should pick up!
When Chloe Davis was 12-years old, her father was arrested for the kidnapping and murder of six teenage girls, based on evidence that Chloe herself had uncovered.
After her father was taken away, Chloe, her mother and her older brother, were left trying to put back together the pieces of their shattered lives.
It was rough. In their small Louisiana town the shroud of guilt was always upon them. They ended up moving to try to hide from the scandal.
People were suspicious of her Mom, that she possibly knew something she didn't reveal. It wasn't a good situation. Traumatic to say the least.
Twenty years later, Chloe is a psychologist working with young girls suffering through varying levels of trauma, like she did herself.
Chloe is also preparing for her wedding to Daniel, a man she has known for just a year.
Her brother, Cooper, thinks the marriage is too quick. He and Daniel have never been warm and fuzzy with one another, a fact that worries Chloe.
That alone is stressful enough, but when local teen girls begin to go missing, one of them a patient of Chloe's, she's triggered into a really dark place; her past.
Chloe's worked hard to forget her childhood trauma; to move on and find a bit of happiness for herself in spite of all she's been through. Now it seems the past is back to haunt her.
The pattern of the current crimes isn't just similar to that of her father's, it's identical. Is there a copycat working in Baton Rouge?
Before she knows it, Chloe finds herself steeped in the investigation. She needs to get to the bottom of it. It seems too close to home, like it's intentional. Like this new killer is trying to draw her in.
Is Chloe paranoid and seeing connections where there aren't any, or is she dangerously close to the truth?
A Flicker in the Dark is a hugely promising and intense debut. Willingham's writing style is extremely fluid and fast-paced, sucking me in from the very first chapter.
I loved Chloe as a main character. Her flaws made her not just believable, but relatable. Her struggles were real. I felt them; the being particularly impactful.
While I found certain aspects of the story toed the line of predictability, I nonetheless had a fun time reading it.
If this is her debut, I predict a long and successful career in Willingham's future. I definitely plan to be following along.
Thank you so much to the publisher, Macmillan Audio, for providing me with a copy to read and review.
This is a great book. One that every Mystery/Thriller Fan should pick up!
January 11, 2022
***HAPPY PUBLICATION DAY***
I’ve been hearing a buzz about this book!!! It’s a debut novel, a psychological thriller revolving around a serial killer. It has already been “optioned for a limited series by actress Emma Stone and sold to a dozen countries around the world”.
But I’ve become a skeptic, blurbs have disappointed me lately. This time the hype was spot on!!
THIS BOOK IS AN INCREDIBLE THRILLER WITH A PSYCHOPATH OR TWO, A SERIAL KILLER AND AN UNRELIABLE NARRATOR!!
The writing is fantastic. Not only the parts about the murders, and there are murders, though not grisly, but the entire book is beautifully written. The past and present timelines flow beautifully. The characters are well developed, multi-layered, damaged and yet believable and making me feel all sorts of FEELS!!! At one point I was feeling too creepy, and had to take a step back!!!!
Sometimes beautifully descriptive: “I remember wandering by myself through the fairgrounds, the sounds and smells of Louisiana permeating my skin . . .the scents of crawfish being prepared in every possible way; fried, boiled, bisque, boudin”.
Sometimes eerily descriptive: “It’s as if the answers have been in front of me all along--dancing, just out of reach. Twirling . . .like that ballerina, chipped and pink, spinning to the rhythm of delicate chimes.”
The novel is told from Chloe’s point of view in the present.
Chloe Davis is a damaged woman. She was only 12 years old when her father was convicted as a serial killer!! The girls murdered were girls she knew, girls from her small town. Chloe had found damaging evidence. Her father is in prison.
Her mother and brother are left to live their lives, each going off on their own path.
Her mother escapes into herself, doing less and less for herself and her family
It’s 20 years later, Chloe Davis has a thriving practice, she is a psychologist. After fighting off the demons of her childhood she’s finally in a good place. She has found a good man, Daniel, and they are engaged to be married in a few months.
Her brother Cooper also lives in Baton Rouge.
One day a teen girl is missing, the search goes on and on, she is found, strangled. Soon another girl is missing.
Chloe knows that the cycle is somehow repeating itself. She doesn’t know who to trust, her father is in prison, so is it a copycat? She begins to formulate theories, but she doesn’t even trust herself. The police get tired of her hunches and theories, they need some proof.
I thought I had this figured out so many times, but the twists kept coming!!! The ending is stellar, believable, horrible and yet satisfying. Does that make SENSE?
I’m sure this will be a huge winter hit. IT IS SO GOOD!!!!!!!
I received an ARC of this novel from the publisher through Edelweiss.
I’ve been hearing a buzz about this book!!! It’s a debut novel, a psychological thriller revolving around a serial killer. It has already been “optioned for a limited series by actress Emma Stone and sold to a dozen countries around the world”.
But I’ve become a skeptic, blurbs have disappointed me lately. This time the hype was spot on!!
THIS BOOK IS AN INCREDIBLE THRILLER WITH A PSYCHOPATH OR TWO, A SERIAL KILLER AND AN UNRELIABLE NARRATOR!!
The writing is fantastic. Not only the parts about the murders, and there are murders, though not grisly, but the entire book is beautifully written. The past and present timelines flow beautifully. The characters are well developed, multi-layered, damaged and yet believable and making me feel all sorts of FEELS!!! At one point I was feeling too creepy, and had to take a step back!!!!
Sometimes beautifully descriptive: “I remember wandering by myself through the fairgrounds, the sounds and smells of Louisiana permeating my skin . . .the scents of crawfish being prepared in every possible way; fried, boiled, bisque, boudin”.
Sometimes eerily descriptive: “It’s as if the answers have been in front of me all along--dancing, just out of reach. Twirling . . .like that ballerina, chipped and pink, spinning to the rhythm of delicate chimes.”
The novel is told from Chloe’s point of view in the present.
Chloe Davis is a damaged woman. She was only 12 years old when her father was convicted as a serial killer!! The girls murdered were girls she knew, girls from her small town. Chloe had found damaging evidence. Her father is in prison.
Her mother and brother are left to live their lives, each going off on their own path.
Her mother escapes into herself, doing less and less for herself and her family
It’s 20 years later, Chloe Davis has a thriving practice, she is a psychologist. After fighting off the demons of her childhood she’s finally in a good place. She has found a good man, Daniel, and they are engaged to be married in a few months.
Her brother Cooper also lives in Baton Rouge.
One day a teen girl is missing, the search goes on and on, she is found, strangled. Soon another girl is missing.
Chloe knows that the cycle is somehow repeating itself. She doesn’t know who to trust, her father is in prison, so is it a copycat? She begins to formulate theories, but she doesn’t even trust herself. The police get tired of her hunches and theories, they need some proof.
I thought I had this figured out so many times, but the twists kept coming!!! The ending is stellar, believable, horrible and yet satisfying. Does that make SENSE?
I’m sure this will be a huge winter hit. IT IS SO GOOD!!!!!!!
I received an ARC of this novel from the publisher through Edelweiss.
August 30, 2021
Intense
A Flicker in the Dark is a dark psychological thriller about the daughter of a serial killer and the copycat killer who has emerged 20 years later.
On the outside, Chloe Davis has her life together: she is a successful psychologist with a picturesque house in an upscale Baton Rouge neighborhood. She has the perfect, caring fiance and is planning her wedding. But on the inside, she is a hot mess. Chloe’s father is a serial killer. 20 years ago, her father was convicted of murdering 6 teenage girls in Breaux Bridge, LA. With the emergence of a copycat killer, Chloe’s fragile existence is at the point of shattering. When one of her patients goes missing, she is pulled back into her past.
This is a gripping read. Chloe is an unreliable narrator with a compelling voice that sucked me in from the first pages. She is high-strung, tense, and often sees things that are not real. Chloe also self-medicates to keep the past at bay. As a reader, she had me guessing what was actually happening versus what she believed to be happening. At the same time, Chloe makes some dumb choices and doesn’t see what is in front of her face. There were times when I wanted to shake her and others when she took me by surprise. The reader never really knows what Chloe is going to do; she is off-kilter and keeps one on their toes.
The first half of the book is tightly wound. However, it wanes a bit at a certain point, and Chloe and the plot get a little old. The last third of the book gets a little messy. Events happen quickly, parts are glossed over, and others feel contrived.
However, the strengths outweigh the flaws. Chloe is a complicated narrator who commands the plot. In addition to Chloe, Willingham creates a tense atmosphere that gave me the creeps. I guessed part of the ending, but there was one twist I didn't see coming.
All in all, A Flicker in the Dark is a suspenseful and satisfying thriller. This is Willingham’s debut, and I look forward to reading her next book.
I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
A Flicker in the Dark is a dark psychological thriller about the daughter of a serial killer and the copycat killer who has emerged 20 years later.
On the outside, Chloe Davis has her life together: she is a successful psychologist with a picturesque house in an upscale Baton Rouge neighborhood. She has the perfect, caring fiance and is planning her wedding. But on the inside, she is a hot mess. Chloe’s father is a serial killer. 20 years ago, her father was convicted of murdering 6 teenage girls in Breaux Bridge, LA. With the emergence of a copycat killer, Chloe’s fragile existence is at the point of shattering. When one of her patients goes missing, she is pulled back into her past.
This is a gripping read. Chloe is an unreliable narrator with a compelling voice that sucked me in from the first pages. She is high-strung, tense, and often sees things that are not real. Chloe also self-medicates to keep the past at bay. As a reader, she had me guessing what was actually happening versus what she believed to be happening. At the same time, Chloe makes some dumb choices and doesn’t see what is in front of her face. There were times when I wanted to shake her and others when she took me by surprise. The reader never really knows what Chloe is going to do; she is off-kilter and keeps one on their toes.
The first half of the book is tightly wound. However, it wanes a bit at a certain point, and Chloe and the plot get a little old. The last third of the book gets a little messy. Events happen quickly, parts are glossed over, and others feel contrived.
However, the strengths outweigh the flaws. Chloe is a complicated narrator who commands the plot. In addition to Chloe, Willingham creates a tense atmosphere that gave me the creeps. I guessed part of the ending, but there was one twist I didn't see coming.
All in all, A Flicker in the Dark is a suspenseful and satisfying thriller. This is Willingham’s debut, and I look forward to reading her next book.
I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
January 20, 2022
what a solid debut! i love a good serial killer copycat murder mystery.
i was able to figure out everything very early on (im talking like within the first 50 pages), but thats only because ive read loads of mystery/thrillers and can spot the ‘whodunnit’ a mile away. it has nothing to do with SWs storytelling, which is actually pretty strong.
the pacing is good, the reveals are timed well, and the characters have depth to them. the whole unreliable narrator is one of my least favourite tropes, but i honestly didnt mind chloe. she felt real and not gimmicky, so thats all that matters to me.
overall, this is the quite the page turner!
↠ 4 stars
i was able to figure out everything very early on (im talking like within the first 50 pages), but thats only because ive read loads of mystery/thrillers and can spot the ‘whodunnit’ a mile away. it has nothing to do with SWs storytelling, which is actually pretty strong.
the pacing is good, the reveals are timed well, and the characters have depth to them. the whole unreliable narrator is one of my least favourite tropes, but i honestly didnt mind chloe. she felt real and not gimmicky, so thats all that matters to me.
overall, this is the quite the page turner!
↠ 4 stars
March 3, 2023
This is a Psychological Thriller that will keep you guessing. I cannot believe this is a debut book because it was so good. I was pulled it to this story right for the beginning, and I did not want to put it down. This book kept me guessing, and it kept having me changing mine mind on who did it. The main character of this book was not lovable, but she made me root for her by the end. The ending of this book was so great, but I also loved the beginning of this book. If you love a book with a ton of suspense and keeps you on your toes then this is the book for you. I was kindly provided an e-copy of this book by the publisher (Minotaur Books) or author (Stacy Willingham) via NetGalley, so I can give an honest review about how I feel about this book. I want to send a big Thank you to them for that.
This book is a Book of the Month December 2021 Pick.
https://www.mybotm.com/zr12wnytgc8?sh...
Note: I order a hard cover copy of this book because I loved it so much.
This book is a Book of the Month December 2021 Pick.
https://www.mybotm.com/zr12wnytgc8?sh...
Note: I order a hard cover copy of this book because I loved it so much.
September 16, 2022
4.5 ⭐️
Happy Publication Day!
When Chloe Davis was twelve, six teenage girls went missing in her small Louisiana town.
Lena Rhodes was the first. The original. The girl that every girl in Breaux Bridge envied UNTIL her face became the one seen on every TV, and on all of the MISSING posters around town.
Robin, Margaret, Carrie, Susan, and Jill were the others.
Then, Chloe’s father confessed and went to prison, and the killings stopped.
Twenty years later, Chloe is a psychologist in Private Practice. She tells herself that she chose this career to help others-But, it doesn’t hurt that she can prescribe the drugs, that help get her through the day. She just calls in the prescription under her fiancé’s name, and picks them up at the drive-thru on the way home.
She seems to have finally attained happiness, and then a local teenage girl, Lacey Deckler, goes missing. And, then another.
Is history repeating itself? Is there a copycat killer? Or is Chloe imagining similarities that don’t exist?
This is an IMPRESSIVE debut, with well developed characters and lyrical prose.
As I read, I wondered if it would be a character study of how a person can be a serial killer and fool others, or if there would be a twist? Is the tension in the fact that we are one step ahead of our protagonist, Chloe at all times, or is she convincing us to believe one thing, which might turn out to be quite another?
I was never bored as the facts were unspooled, like a ball of yarn-the revelations coming faster as we neared the end. Maybe just a little too fast-as I had some unanswered questions about the final reveal.
The only reason I am rounding down instead of up, is that the ending went ONE STEP FURTHER than I would have liked. Though it’s still plausible-it would have been EVEN more so-if had not gone there.
I can’t wait to see what Stacy Willingham comes up with next!! Highly recommended!
And, just a side note…I am also impressed at how many times she was able to use the word “Flicker” throughout the book!
Thank You to Minotaur Books for my gifted copy, provided through NetGalley! It was my pleasure to offer a candid review!
Happy Publication Day!
When Chloe Davis was twelve, six teenage girls went missing in her small Louisiana town.
Lena Rhodes was the first. The original. The girl that every girl in Breaux Bridge envied UNTIL her face became the one seen on every TV, and on all of the MISSING posters around town.
Robin, Margaret, Carrie, Susan, and Jill were the others.
Then, Chloe’s father confessed and went to prison, and the killings stopped.
Twenty years later, Chloe is a psychologist in Private Practice. She tells herself that she chose this career to help others-But, it doesn’t hurt that she can prescribe the drugs, that help get her through the day. She just calls in the prescription under her fiancé’s name, and picks them up at the drive-thru on the way home.
She seems to have finally attained happiness, and then a local teenage girl, Lacey Deckler, goes missing. And, then another.
Is history repeating itself? Is there a copycat killer? Or is Chloe imagining similarities that don’t exist?
This is an IMPRESSIVE debut, with well developed characters and lyrical prose.
As I read, I wondered if it would be a character study of how a person can be a serial killer and fool others, or if there would be a twist? Is the tension in the fact that we are one step ahead of our protagonist, Chloe at all times, or is she convincing us to believe one thing, which might turn out to be quite another?
I was never bored as the facts were unspooled, like a ball of yarn-the revelations coming faster as we neared the end. Maybe just a little too fast-as I had some unanswered questions about the final reveal.
The only reason I am rounding down instead of up, is that the ending went ONE STEP FURTHER than I would have liked. Though it’s still plausible-it would have been EVEN more so-if had not gone there.
I can’t wait to see what Stacy Willingham comes up with next!! Highly recommended!
And, just a side note…I am also impressed at how many times she was able to use the word “Flicker” throughout the book!
Thank You to Minotaur Books for my gifted copy, provided through NetGalley! It was my pleasure to offer a candid review!
June 1, 2022
Nice popcorn read but predictable and kinda forgettable.
November 18, 2022
When a protagonist is a Psychiatrist or Psychologist.
When a protagonist is an unreliable narrator struggling with substance abuse or Psychiatric problems.
When a protagonist is trying to forget their past due to their dysfunctional family.
These are the common situations seen in most Psychological thrillers in the last five years. The author of this novel sadly used all the above clichés and much more (I can’t reveal it here as it will be spoilers) in this book. Trying to create a novel with these hackneyed tropes in the debut novel is one of the biggest risks that an author can commit.
I was sure that this book would be a two-star or below one just after reading the first thirty pages of it. But I was in for a big surprise after the initial slow-paced narration. The author was extremely confident in her writing skills, and she managed to write an engrossing thriller despite all the clichés. The author is, in fact, brilliantly indirectly addressing these clichés in the second chapter itself.
“My industry thrives on clichés—I know it does. But there’s a reason clichés exist.
It’s because they’re true.”
Stacy Willingham tells us the story of Chloe Davis, a thirty-two-year-old psychologist in private practice in Baton Rouge. Her father was arrested for killing six young girls when she was twelve. Her father is in prison now, and the history is repeating now as many girls start disappearing just like what happened twenty years ago. Who is behind the disappearance of these girls? Are the two events interconnected? The author tries to answer these questions through this book convincingly.
What I learned from this book
1) How can we detect whether a person is having emotional problems?
There are many ways to find out whether a person is emotionally unstable. The author is sharing a few of them in this book.
“When people get hurt physically, you can see it in the bruises and the scars, but when they’re hurt emotionally, mentally, it runs deeper than that. You can see every sleepless night in the reflection of their eyes; you can see every tear stained into their cheeks, every bout of anger etched into the creases in their foreheads. The thirst for blood cracking the skin on their lips.”
2) What is the difference between a home and a house?
House refers to a building in which someone lives. A house becomes a home only when there is an emotional connection. That is why some philosophers say that a home is a place where the heart is. When people can convert physical space into one where they feel safe, comfortable, and loved with their family, it is called a home. We can see the author trying to discuss this difference to make us understand the difficulties faced by people in homes that are not safe.
“Home.
That, too, is a loaded phrase. A home isn’t just a house, a collection of bricks and boards held together by concrete and nails. It’s more emotional than that. A home is safety, security. The place you go back to when the curfew clock strikes nine.”
3) Are psychological novels written just for entertainment?
Stacy Willingham tells us that psychological novels are not just for entertainment but also for education. She tells us how one of the characters in this novel reads psychological novels.
“I remembered, at that moment, that situated next to all of my psychology textbooks were piles of true-crime titles: The Devil in the White City, In Cold Blood, The Monster of Florence. But unlike most people, I didn’t read them for entertainment. I read them for study. I read them to try to understand, to dissect all the different people who take lives for a living, devouring their stories on the page almost as if they were my patients, leaning back in that leather recliner, whispering their secrets into my ear.”
My favourite three lines from this book
“Whoever fights monsters should see to it that, in the process, he does not become a monster. If you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you.”
“My mouse hovers over Delete, but that pesky psychologist voice—my voice—echoes around me.
Classic avoidance coping, Chloe. You know that never eliminates the problem—it only postpones it.”
“There’s always that shred of doubt, that sliver of hope. But false hope is worse than no hope at all.”
What could have been better?
This is not a thriller that everyone will like, as the author explores the psychological aspect more than the thriller aspects that most readers will like. She does that job convincingly and makes us love her writing style, though. In my opinion, it is a tricky and risky job, especially on the debut, to explore deep into the psyche of the confused unreliable protagonist instead of trying to find a balance between the thriller and psychological aspects.
Rating
4/5. The author’s ability to explore the intricate functioning of the mind reminded me of Gillian Flynn, one of my favorite authors. There is a high probability that you will love this book if you have loved the books written by Gillian Flynn.
January 5, 2022
3 Stars
I have mixed feelings about this book.
On one hand, I really disliked the narrator. She was seemingly super unreliable at times and she made what I thought were really, really stupid decisions. All the time. Like the quintessential TSTL ("too stupid too live") female bane of the stereotypical romance novel.
Like, really friggin stupid, folks.
But on the other hand, I really enjoyed certain aspects of the writing, the plot, and the overall feel of the book. In fact, if I sit back and think about thriller-esque novels I have really liked the last couple years, i.e., The Night Swim, The Guest List, The Survivors, I really seem to enjoy haunting mysteries about young missing/murdered girls.
Not sure what that says about me, but not something I'm really all that interested in unpacking right now either.
But I digress.
Mostly though, I really liked the way the author seemed to have a handle on the childhood experience...the sense of fear of the figurative darkness and the pervasive and erroneous idea that adults know everything.
And, as much as I couldn't stand the narrator most of the time, I also felt a...kinship with her in some ways...
Long story, short: I liked this well enough, although I didn't love it either...still, I will definitely check out more from this author in the future.
I have mixed feelings about this book.
On one hand, I really disliked the narrator. She was seemingly super unreliable at times and she made what I thought were really, really stupid decisions. All the time. Like the quintessential TSTL ("too stupid too live") female bane of the stereotypical romance novel.
Like, really friggin stupid, folks.
But on the other hand, I really enjoyed certain aspects of the writing, the plot, and the overall feel of the book. In fact, if I sit back and think about thriller-esque novels I have really liked the last couple years, i.e., The Night Swim, The Guest List, The Survivors, I really seem to enjoy haunting mysteries about young missing/murdered girls.
Not sure what that says about me, but not something I'm really all that interested in unpacking right now either.
But I digress.
Mostly though, I really liked the way the author seemed to have a handle on the childhood experience...the sense of fear of the figurative darkness and the pervasive and erroneous idea that adults know everything.
And, as much as I couldn't stand the narrator most of the time, I also felt a...kinship with her in some ways...
I became a psychologist to help people-again with the cliches, but it's true. I became a psychologist because I understand trauma: I understand it in a way that no amount of schooling could ever teach. I understand the way your brain can fundamentally fuck with every aspect of your body; the way your emotions can distort things-emotions you didn't even know you had. The way those emotions can make it impossible to see clearly, think clearly, do anything clearly. They way they can make you hurt from your head down to your fingertips, a dull throbbing, constant pain that never goes away."
Long story, short: I liked this well enough, although I didn't love it either...still, I will definitely check out more from this author in the future.
January 11, 2022
HAPPY PUBLICATION DAY!
A taut, suspenseful, IMPRESSIVE debut!
Chloe Davis has managed to move on from her past, with mixed results. When she was twelve, six girls went missing in her small town...only to be found dead. The culprit? Her loving father. Charged and convicted as a serial killer, he went to prison to serve a life sentence. Chloe and her family never fully recovered from the repercussions.
20 years later, Chloe is now a psychologist. She’s happily engaged, but still fights her demons in the form of prescription drugs. She feels she’s been coping to the best of her ability.
Then, a young girl disappears. Soon after that, another one does. It feels like deja vu.
Is history repeating itself?
“We live in the flicker...but darkness was here yesterday.” - Joseph Conrad
Color me impressed! Debut author Stacy Willingham paints a tense and original read full of atmosphere. I was gripped from beginning to end. The plot is brilliantly layered while jumping from present to past...and back again.
I guessed a major twist early on, so I’m tooting my own horn (Btw, has anyone else considered how wrong that sounds? Or is it just me?🤷). However, there is plenty of deflection and red herrings that had me second guessing my suspicions. On top of that, there were other welcome surprises in store.
All in all, a super solid debut that answered most of the questions I had. I expected some plot holes, but those gaps were filled.
Emma Stone was apparently impressed too. Her company has optioned the book for a TV adaptation...with Emma starring in and producing it.
4.5 stars, rounded up.
Thank you to Macmillan for providing a free ARC in exchange for an honest review. Expected Publication Date: 1/11/22.
Review also posted at: https://bonkersforthebooks.wordpress.com
A taut, suspenseful, IMPRESSIVE debut!
Chloe Davis has managed to move on from her past, with mixed results. When she was twelve, six girls went missing in her small town...only to be found dead. The culprit? Her loving father. Charged and convicted as a serial killer, he went to prison to serve a life sentence. Chloe and her family never fully recovered from the repercussions.
20 years later, Chloe is now a psychologist. She’s happily engaged, but still fights her demons in the form of prescription drugs. She feels she’s been coping to the best of her ability.
Then, a young girl disappears. Soon after that, another one does. It feels like deja vu.
Is history repeating itself?
“We live in the flicker...but darkness was here yesterday.” - Joseph Conrad
Color me impressed! Debut author Stacy Willingham paints a tense and original read full of atmosphere. I was gripped from beginning to end. The plot is brilliantly layered while jumping from present to past...and back again.
I guessed a major twist early on, so I’m tooting my own horn (Btw, has anyone else considered how wrong that sounds? Or is it just me?🤷). However, there is plenty of deflection and red herrings that had me second guessing my suspicions. On top of that, there were other welcome surprises in store.
All in all, a super solid debut that answered most of the questions I had. I expected some plot holes, but those gaps were filled.
Emma Stone was apparently impressed too. Her company has optioned the book for a TV adaptation...with Emma starring in and producing it.
4.5 stars, rounded up.
Thank you to Macmillan for providing a free ARC in exchange for an honest review. Expected Publication Date: 1/11/22.
Review also posted at: https://bonkersforthebooks.wordpress.com
April 20, 2022
4.5⭐️
Where do I even begin?
So Chloe is the star of this anxiety-inducing show. When she was really young, her father got arrested for the deaths of teenage girls. This is something that really traumatized her, and we see a lot of the effects in her adult years. Her brother and mother were also traumatized and they both also exhibit effects of this. Nevertheless, she is doing better: she is getting married to a really good guy, she has a great job, and she can honestly see her past getting behind her. What could possibly go wrong? Well, teenage girls start getting missing, and the clues being left behind are quite similar to when she was younger when those teenage girls went missing. Are they connected in a way?
I was super anxious while reading this. I’ve never had so many guesses for how a book was going to end. Some of my guesses ended up being right, and that is why I’m being a bit petty with the extra .5. I personally like my mysteries to be completely unpredictable. Is that too much to ask? It probably is, but I can’t help what I want. It was still an amazing book because I kept switching my guesses. So what I’m saying is, some reveals were kinda obvious but also not really. Don’t ask me to explain. It came to a point I just kept internally screaming “I need answers, now!”
I really liked all the characters. They were all really interesting, and they all had something to hide. That really helped with the extra mindfucking. I felt that some of them were introduced at weird times like they just popped out of nowhere. I could still argue that they all had a purpose whether it was to confuse us or to reveal more about Chloe's past, her traits, and fears.
This one will really mess with your mind. In other words, read it.
Where do I even begin?
So Chloe is the star of this anxiety-inducing show. When she was really young, her father got arrested for the deaths of teenage girls. This is something that really traumatized her, and we see a lot of the effects in her adult years. Her brother and mother were also traumatized and they both also exhibit effects of this. Nevertheless, she is doing better: she is getting married to a really good guy, she has a great job, and she can honestly see her past getting behind her. What could possibly go wrong? Well, teenage girls start getting missing, and the clues being left behind are quite similar to when she was younger when those teenage girls went missing. Are they connected in a way?
I was super anxious while reading this. I’ve never had so many guesses for how a book was going to end. Some of my guesses ended up being right, and that is why I’m being a bit petty with the extra .5. I personally like my mysteries to be completely unpredictable. Is that too much to ask? It probably is, but I can’t help what I want. It was still an amazing book because I kept switching my guesses. So what I’m saying is, some reveals were kinda obvious but also not really. Don’t ask me to explain. It came to a point I just kept internally screaming “I need answers, now!”
I really liked all the characters. They were all really interesting, and they all had something to hide. That really helped with the extra mindfucking. I felt that some of them were introduced at weird times like they just popped out of nowhere. I could still argue that they all had a purpose whether it was to confuse us or to reveal more about Chloe's past, her traits, and fears.
This one will really mess with your mind. In other words, read it.
April 28, 2023
This was a stunning debut novel. I loved everything about it; The characters, the writing style and how naturally the story flowed from the past to present. Many books divide the chapters into now and then, embellishing what happened before. There were jsnippets from the past here and there, and that kept the pace, making me forget I was reading a book, instead feeling like I was living inside Chloe’s head.
I would have given it five stars even if there hadn’t been any twists, I found the story interesting in itself. Extremely well done, Willingham!
I would have given it five stars even if there hadn’t been any twists, I found the story interesting in itself. Extremely well done, Willingham!
January 3, 2022
4 stars for a psychological mystery/thriller. Chloe Davis is a psychologist in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
She is wracked with guilt because of the fact that her father is a serial killer. She found the evidence that led to his conviction. She self medicates with illegally prescribed prescription pills. But then the murders of young teenage girls start again. She suspects several people when she finds evidence linking them to the current crimes. Because of the false clues, I was not sure of the actual killer until near the end. She does solve the mystery.
Two quotes:
Chloe's description of Home: "A home isn't just a house, a collection of bricks and boards held together by concrete and nails. It's more emotional than that. A home is safety, security."
Louisiana bayou: "Once we pass the clearing, I can't help but gasp at the beauty of this place. The bayou is wide and lazy, peppered with cypress trees emerging from the murky water, their knees breaking the surface like fingers reaching for something to grab. There are curtains of Spanish moss cascading the sunlight into millions of twinkling pinpricks, a chorus of frogs croaking in unison, with their wet, guttural sounds."
Thanks to HarperCollinsUK for sending me this eARC through NetGalley
She is wracked with guilt because of the fact that her father is a serial killer. She found the evidence that led to his conviction. She self medicates with illegally prescribed prescription pills. But then the murders of young teenage girls start again. She suspects several people when she finds evidence linking them to the current crimes. Because of the false clues, I was not sure of the actual killer until near the end. She does solve the mystery.
Two quotes:
Chloe's description of Home: "A home isn't just a house, a collection of bricks and boards held together by concrete and nails. It's more emotional than that. A home is safety, security."
Louisiana bayou: "Once we pass the clearing, I can't help but gasp at the beauty of this place. The bayou is wide and lazy, peppered with cypress trees emerging from the murky water, their knees breaking the surface like fingers reaching for something to grab. There are curtains of Spanish moss cascading the sunlight into millions of twinkling pinpricks, a chorus of frogs croaking in unison, with their wet, guttural sounds."
Thanks to HarperCollinsUK for sending me this eARC through NetGalley
January 10, 2022
3.5 stars rounded to 4
"I was twelve years old when those shadows started to form a shape, a face. Started to become less of an apparition and more concrete. More real. When I began to realize that maybe the monsters lived among us. And there was one monster, in particular, I learned to fear above all the rest."
While a bit predictable (but still maintaining a twist here and there that surprised me), an astounding debut! It's a true testament to an author's writing style if they can keep you reading even after figuring out the murderer's identity within the first few chapters of the book. The setting and atmosphere of humid Louisiana was tangible, and I look forward to more from this author in the future.
*Many thanks to the publisher for providing my review copy.
"I was twelve years old when those shadows started to form a shape, a face. Started to become less of an apparition and more concrete. More real. When I began to realize that maybe the monsters lived among us. And there was one monster, in particular, I learned to fear above all the rest."
While a bit predictable (but still maintaining a twist here and there that surprised me), an astounding debut! It's a true testament to an author's writing style if they can keep you reading even after figuring out the murderer's identity within the first few chapters of the book. The setting and atmosphere of humid Louisiana was tangible, and I look forward to more from this author in the future.
*Many thanks to the publisher for providing my review copy.
February 14, 2022
Lots of buzz about this one and I didn't want to miss out.
I wasn't very interested in reading this until so many mixed reviews made me curious. I always like to give a book a chance and see where I land. In this case, in didn't work out, but now I know.
I found the first half on the slow side with some pacing issues. The author seemed to get a little wordy and repetitive at times. Once I hit the halfway mark, the pace picked up and I was more interested in how it would end. Chloe was unlikeable, naive and wholly unreliable.
There are red herrings to chase and twists, but also predictability. A little too formulaic, but with a few surprises and some tension near the end. Too many issues for me, but at least I don't have FOMO anymore!
I wasn't very interested in reading this until so many mixed reviews made me curious. I always like to give a book a chance and see where I land. In this case, in didn't work out, but now I know.
I found the first half on the slow side with some pacing issues. The author seemed to get a little wordy and repetitive at times. Once I hit the halfway mark, the pace picked up and I was more interested in how it would end. Chloe was unlikeable, naive and wholly unreliable.
There are red herrings to chase and twists, but also predictability. A little too formulaic, but with a few surprises and some tension near the end. Too many issues for me, but at least I don't have FOMO anymore!
February 7, 2022
“A Flicker in the Dark” by Stacy Willingham is a highly touted debut. Sadly, I was disappointed.
The premise: a loving father of two children was a serial killer of teenaged girls, convicted of the murders after confessing (with little proof); now 20 years later there is a copycat. From the first chapter, I had a strong hunch who was doing the killing. I was correct. This doesn’t necessarily ruin a novel for me, as I find entertainment in the clever way that authors create their story. I’ll give credit to Willingham in some of her crafting of the story. There were a couple reveals that I did not anticipate.
Where I became annoyed is in the main character and narrator, the daughter of the convicted murderer, Chloe. Not only is she not likeable, but she was not believable. She was too much of a train wreck for me to root for her. She’s a psychologist with script privileges, and she drinks and takes barbiturates daily, while counselling teen girls. She made every wrong, unethical, and illogical decision possible. Reading this was like watching a B-level horror movie where the victims make the most foolish decisions that lead to their ultimate demise.
I do wonder how some books get all the press and some worthy novels do not.
The premise: a loving father of two children was a serial killer of teenaged girls, convicted of the murders after confessing (with little proof); now 20 years later there is a copycat. From the first chapter, I had a strong hunch who was doing the killing. I was correct. This doesn’t necessarily ruin a novel for me, as I find entertainment in the clever way that authors create their story. I’ll give credit to Willingham in some of her crafting of the story. There were a couple reveals that I did not anticipate.
Where I became annoyed is in the main character and narrator, the daughter of the convicted murderer, Chloe. Not only is she not likeable, but she was not believable. She was too much of a train wreck for me to root for her. She’s a psychologist with script privileges, and she drinks and takes barbiturates daily, while counselling teen girls. She made every wrong, unethical, and illogical decision possible. Reading this was like watching a B-level horror movie where the victims make the most foolish decisions that lead to their ultimate demise.
I do wonder how some books get all the press and some worthy novels do not.
October 20, 2022
Four stars might seem a lot for a book where I had figured out the main plot twist a couple of chapters in, but I had such a fun ride reading this that all is forgiven. It pulled me out of the book slump I'd been sinking into.
Simply put: I found A Flicker in the Dark an entertaining thriller with lots going on. There were a number of little twists and puzzles to solve that kept it interesting even when I was pretty sure I knew what was going on in the central mystery.
I liked the main character-- Chloe --and found her struggles with her guilt (about not speaking up sooner as a child when she became suspicious of her father), her battles with substance abuse, and her desire for love and a normal life, made her a sympathetic character. I also generally find it engaging when a book has you guessing whether a character with past trauma has genuine insight into the current case or is just being paranoid.
Scary is a bit of a stretch, but some parts of this were definitely unsettling.
Simply put: I found A Flicker in the Dark an entertaining thriller with lots going on. There were a number of little twists and puzzles to solve that kept it interesting even when I was pretty sure I knew what was going on in the central mystery.
I liked the main character-- Chloe --and found her struggles with her guilt (about not speaking up sooner as a child when she became suspicious of her father), her battles with substance abuse, and her desire for love and a normal life, made her a sympathetic character. I also generally find it engaging when a book has you guessing whether a character with past trauma has genuine insight into the current case or is just being paranoid.
Scary is a bit of a stretch, but some parts of this were definitely unsettling.
March 27, 2022
Chloe's Dad is now in prison, six teenage girls are missing and he is known as the serial killer. Chloe has gone through a lot of trauma being the daughter of a serial killer.
She is now a psychologist and is happy.
Then there are girls going missing again. They also are copy cat murders. What the heck is going on?
I really enjoyed this book. I just could not put this book down! I kept guessing and guessing what was going on and I was wrong every time. This was not a predictable read for me at all.
This was my kind of thriller.
Loved the twists! I loved the second half more than the first half.
I was on the edge of my seat. There are some jaw dropping moments close to the end.
I thought all the characters were done very well.
I want to thank Macmillan for the free copy of A Flicker In The Dark
By Stacy Willingham in exchange for an honest review.
Available Now!
She is now a psychologist and is happy.
Then there are girls going missing again. They also are copy cat murders. What the heck is going on?
I really enjoyed this book. I just could not put this book down! I kept guessing and guessing what was going on and I was wrong every time. This was not a predictable read for me at all.
This was my kind of thriller.
Loved the twists! I loved the second half more than the first half.
I was on the edge of my seat. There are some jaw dropping moments close to the end.
I thought all the characters were done very well.
I want to thank Macmillan for the free copy of A Flicker In The Dark
By Stacy Willingham in exchange for an honest review.
Available Now!
January 11, 2022
3.5⭐
Oh dear... My head! 😲 This was a good ride, a wild one!
Chloe Davis is a psychologist in Baton Rouge and engaged to Daniel. What haunts her in the last twenty years is her family's past. At twelve, her father was arrested for multiple missing girls in their small town of Beaux Bridge. After her father's confession, and has gone to prison, the family starts to fall apart Chole, her brother Cooper, and their mother eventually ends up in a care facility.
And now it's happening all over again.
I hardly guess the bad guy correctly. I did this time, so please let me brag. 😂 It didn't take long, I thought it was a little obvious, although, Ms. Willingham had me doubt myself because Chloe becomes unreliable so I start thinking it could be He #2, He #3, or He #4. Hell, Chloe is losing it too.
I'm impressed with this debut because it got me hooked for the most part and it was a quick and fun listen with an excellent audiobook read by Karissa Vacker. I dropped half a star for the last 15% but will bump it up anyway!
Thank you Macmillan Audio and Netgalley for this audio ARC.
Available January 11, 2022.
Oh dear... My head! 😲 This was a good ride, a wild one!
Chloe Davis is a psychologist in Baton Rouge and engaged to Daniel. What haunts her in the last twenty years is her family's past. At twelve, her father was arrested for multiple missing girls in their small town of Beaux Bridge. After her father's confession, and has gone to prison, the family starts to fall apart Chole, her brother Cooper, and their mother eventually ends up in a care facility.
And now it's happening all over again.
I hardly guess the bad guy correctly. I did this time, so please let me brag. 😂 It didn't take long, I thought it was a little obvious, although, Ms. Willingham had me doubt myself because Chloe becomes unreliable so I start thinking it could be He #2, He #3, or He #4. Hell, Chloe is losing it too.
I'm impressed with this debut because it got me hooked for the most part and it was a quick and fun listen with an excellent audiobook read by Karissa Vacker. I dropped half a star for the last 15% but will bump it up anyway!
Thank you Macmillan Audio and Netgalley for this audio ARC.
Available January 11, 2022.
February 14, 2022
I find myself hovering in outlier-ville with this one. Almost all of my GR friends loved this book, but although the writing is excellent, the plot failed to captivate me as much as I had hoped. This is an impressive debut, so it is totally worth reading, especially if you go check out some of those aforementioned glowing reviews and see that I'm solidly in the minority.
Twenty years ago, Chloe's father was sent to prison for kidnapping and presumably murdering six young girls, although their bodies were never found. Chloe's life is secure and stable now--she's engaged to Daniel and has a fulfilling job as a psychologist. However, her demons lurk just below the surface, and when first one, then another young girl turn up missing, she feels as if her life is repeating itself again. The missing girls have connections to Chloe--is it the work of a copycat? Can she help find who is doing this?
I wasn't really surprised at the identity of the villain, I pretty much called it from the beginning. It made the story a bit more lackluster for me, because I found it all to be rather predictable. Chloe's constant blaming herself for all of the bad things that happened to everyone got very, very old. It was the same thing over and over, the same rehashing of the crimes over and over. Don't get me started on the armchair detecting--anyone who has read any of my reviews knows I think that is just an overused unrealistic plot device. I get that the police weren't really enamored with Chloe, but her hysteria didn't help matters. So instead of passing along evidence she finds, she goes on a hunt herself, even picking up and touching physical evidence during a search.
Yet for the book's shortcomings, it is still an engaging read and kept my interest to see how things would all play out. I listened to this as an audiobook, and did not care for how whispery and breathy Karissa Vacker's voice was, especially when voicing the female characters. I had to keep turning up my volume in order to distinguish what she was saying. I think that the whispers colored my opinion of Chloe in a negative way that maybe wouldn't have happened had I read the book on the page.
I think this is definitely worth reading, and I will definitely read a book by this author in the future.
I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book, all opinions are my own.
December 8, 2021
Twenty years ago, then twelve-year-old Chloe Davis and her older brother Cooper watched helplessly as their dad, the man Chloe ran to every single day for safety and protection, was taken from their home by police for the serial killings of six teenage girls in their little town of Breaux Bridge, Louisiana. In that moment, Chloe learned that monsters aren't always in the shadows or under your bed - sometimes they're right in front of you.
Skip forward to today, Chloe is now a psychologist with a home and private practice in Baton Rouge, planning her upcoming wedding to perfect, supportive Daniel, and helping over-protective Cooper take turns visiting their mother, Mona, in an assisted living facility - a situation necessitated by Mona's mental and physical trauma after her husband was taken away.
Both Chloe and Cooper are fighting their own demons from the past. Chloe is afraid of everything and tries to medicate it all away with pills she surreptitiously prescribes to herself in Daniel's name and the nearest bottle of booze. It isn't helped when a nosy reporter from the NY Times calls one day hoping to revisit the past as part of a 20-year anniversary piece, and is further exacerbated when two new girls - both of whom she knows - go missing within miles of her new home. Is history repeating itself?
Chloe is your classic unreliable narrator, often referencing her difficulty separating what's real from what isn't, which isn't helped by her pharmaceutical habits. She's paranoid, convinced that these new victims are someone specifically toying with her, setting her on her own amateur investigative path to find who's copying her imprisoned father's past actions, since virtually no one else believes her suspicions.
What hidden secrets does she find and what happens when she uncovers them? Peek in those closets and find out! I think you'll like what you discover.
First, let me say: Wow, that was one of the BEST prologues I’ve ever read! It set the mood perfectly and sucked me in from the very first sentence. The story is solid and structured in an interesting way, integrating Chloe’s past memories seamlessly into the current narrative, where she's simply lost in thought, dreaming or having flashbacks, rather than using the stale past/present chapters format. The humid, Spanish moss-draped trees and swamps of Louisiana provided such a visceral, atmospheric setting, and the suspenseful writing kept me glued to the pages. I read the majority of it in one day - I just had to know who did it!
There are a few downsides, but nothing that ruined my enjoyment. I suspected part of the ending reveal very early on and turned out to be right, but getting from suspicion to revelation was still fun as Willingham threw in plenty of red herrings and twists to keep me off-balance and doubting myself. There are plot elements, a couple of which border on ridonculous (ex. the Scrabble tiles and tapping thing ... no. It makes for a good plot device, but again ... no.) There are a few others as well, so just be prepared to suspend some disbelief. It'll be worth it.
All-in-all, I can enthusiastically recommend this wonderful debut. Stacy Willingham has given readers a bright spot in the crowded thriller genre and a promising start to her writing career. I know I'll be eagerly awaiting her future books!
★★★★
Thanks to St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books, NetGalley and author Stacy Willingham for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinions. It's due for publication on January 11, 2021.
Skip forward to today, Chloe is now a psychologist with a home and private practice in Baton Rouge, planning her upcoming wedding to perfect, supportive Daniel, and helping over-protective Cooper take turns visiting their mother, Mona, in an assisted living facility - a situation necessitated by Mona's mental and physical trauma after her husband was taken away.
Both Chloe and Cooper are fighting their own demons from the past. Chloe is afraid of everything and tries to medicate it all away with pills she surreptitiously prescribes to herself in Daniel's name and the nearest bottle of booze. It isn't helped when a nosy reporter from the NY Times calls one day hoping to revisit the past as part of a 20-year anniversary piece, and is further exacerbated when two new girls - both of whom she knows - go missing within miles of her new home. Is history repeating itself?
Chloe is your classic unreliable narrator, often referencing her difficulty separating what's real from what isn't, which isn't helped by her pharmaceutical habits. She's paranoid, convinced that these new victims are someone specifically toying with her, setting her on her own amateur investigative path to find who's copying her imprisoned father's past actions, since virtually no one else believes her suspicions.
What hidden secrets does she find and what happens when she uncovers them? Peek in those closets and find out! I think you'll like what you discover.
First, let me say: Wow, that was one of the BEST prologues I’ve ever read! It set the mood perfectly and sucked me in from the very first sentence. The story is solid and structured in an interesting way, integrating Chloe’s past memories seamlessly into the current narrative, where she's simply lost in thought, dreaming or having flashbacks, rather than using the stale past/present chapters format. The humid, Spanish moss-draped trees and swamps of Louisiana provided such a visceral, atmospheric setting, and the suspenseful writing kept me glued to the pages. I read the majority of it in one day - I just had to know who did it!
There are a few downsides, but nothing that ruined my enjoyment. I suspected part of the ending reveal very early on and turned out to be right, but getting from suspicion to revelation was still fun as Willingham threw in plenty of red herrings and twists to keep me off-balance and doubting myself. There are plot elements, a couple of which border on ridonculous (ex. the Scrabble tiles and tapping thing ... no. It makes for a good plot device, but again ... no.) There are a few others as well, so just be prepared to suspend some disbelief. It'll be worth it.
All-in-all, I can enthusiastically recommend this wonderful debut. Stacy Willingham has given readers a bright spot in the crowded thriller genre and a promising start to her writing career. I know I'll be eagerly awaiting her future books!
★★★★
Thanks to St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books, NetGalley and author Stacy Willingham for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinions. It's due for publication on January 11, 2021.
January 1, 2022
I hated this book and can’t understand how it has a >4 star average. The plot kept me hooked but I couldn’t stand the writing.
Things that drove me crazy:
- The use of dramatic verbs to unnecessarily escalate the tension in the story. It’s okay to say the character removed one pill from the bottle. She didn’t “dump” a single pill into her hand.
- Too much exposition in the form of, “She wasn’t being rude, like I thought. Instead, I realized, she was feeling… [insert significant plot point that no 12yo would have realized/been aware of under the circumstances].”
- The whole thing feels like a cheesy mystery. The cliches are so heavy handed that it’s distracting. From a single page: “And I realize: he isn’t running, because he isn’t done yet. He still has work to do…” “And then it hits me. I know. Somehow, deep down, on a cellular level. I know.”
- It’s like a child wrote this book. “The air is warm and damp like a boiled-egg burp…”
- The overuse of “snake” as a verb. “His lips snaked into a smile…” “He snaked his arm around me…” “I snake my own hands through his hair…” She must use the verb at least 10 times in the book.
- The narrator is an idiot. She’ll say, “Then it hits me. He’s not who I thought he was” two pages after it’s obvious that he’s not who she thinks he is. It’s painfully slow.
- The big unraveling of the mystery is brutally trite and repetitive. The narrator says “And then it hits me” / “And that’s when I realize” / “And now I know…” / “and suddenly, I know…” / “And that’s when I notice…” 9 times in the last 50 pages.
- Weird sibling vibes. “‘I’m not here to fight,’ he says, standing up from the stool and walking towards me. He wraps my body in a deep hug.” That’s her *brother*.
- Ridiculous non sequitor sex scene.
Things that drove me crazy:
- The use of dramatic verbs to unnecessarily escalate the tension in the story. It’s okay to say the character removed one pill from the bottle. She didn’t “dump” a single pill into her hand.
- Too much exposition in the form of, “She wasn’t being rude, like I thought. Instead, I realized, she was feeling… [insert significant plot point that no 12yo would have realized/been aware of under the circumstances].”
- The whole thing feels like a cheesy mystery. The cliches are so heavy handed that it’s distracting. From a single page: “And I realize: he isn’t running, because he isn’t done yet. He still has work to do…” “And then it hits me. I know. Somehow, deep down, on a cellular level. I know.”
- It’s like a child wrote this book. “The air is warm and damp like a boiled-egg burp…”
- The overuse of “snake” as a verb. “His lips snaked into a smile…” “He snaked his arm around me…” “I snake my own hands through his hair…” She must use the verb at least 10 times in the book.
- The narrator is an idiot. She’ll say, “Then it hits me. He’s not who I thought he was” two pages after it’s obvious that he’s not who she thinks he is. It’s painfully slow.
- The big unraveling of the mystery is brutally trite and repetitive. The narrator says “And then it hits me” / “And that’s when I realize” / “And now I know…” / “and suddenly, I know…” / “And that’s when I notice…” 9 times in the last 50 pages.
- Weird sibling vibes. “‘I’m not here to fight,’ he says, standing up from the stool and walking towards me. He wraps my body in a deep hug.” That’s her *brother*.
- Ridiculous non sequitor sex scene.
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