I am back with another book review, Behind Closed Doors by B.A. Paris. Thank you so much to Raincoast Books for sending me a copy of this book for an honest review. As always, all opinions are my own.
OH. MY. GOSH. I CANNOT EVEN BELIEVE WHAT I JUST READ! This book was spectacular, so creepily atmospheric, I only put it down once to eat dinner, and still managed to read all 304 glorious pages in less than three and a half hours.
So basically, this story revolves around a couple, Jack and Grace Angel, and their seemingly perfect lives. Jack is a major lawyer, specializing in domestic abuse cases, helping bring justice to those who have been able to escape horrific circumstances, and Grace quit her job as a grocery buyer, after marrying Jack eighteen months ago, in order to maintain their dream home and work in their perfect garden. They seem great, right? Wrong!
The couples' friends start to grow concerned, Grace never seems to be able to make it to lunch dates with the girls, and if she does, Jack is always glued to her hip. She can't even answer the phone without Jack intercepting. But I won't say much about the plot, because I don't want to ruin this book for you.
The writing was great and the pacing was intense. Despite the fact that this book is a thriller, it is driven by its storyline, and not the thrilling, suspense we typically see of these novels. We know that the situation is, there is not a lot of 'before' build up. We get two perspectives, past and present and while some of the past gets you up to speed on why things are the way they are, for the most part, this book is about what is happening in that moment. I did love however, that the story would get going, you would not necessarily predict, but figure out what was going to happen, and then just have to sit back and watch. There were a couple times when I thought everything would get better, and things just got so much worse.
With all this suspense, there is also Grace's sister, Millie, who has Down's syndrome. I'm not very familiar with Down's, but I thought that Millie was portrayed well, and Grace's love for her was unending, even if it was her biggest weak spot. I'll just leave it at that.
I just can't get over the emotions in this book. I was right there in the story, going from hopeful to helpless within one scene. It was emotionally draining but so well written. The whole situation was definitely something from a nightmare, no one believing what was going on and being stuck, this weight over your head dictating all of your actions.
Additionally, I definitely do not recommend reading this one at night, you will be looking over your shoulder constantly! Even after I finished, some of the scenes were so creepy, I can't help but be a little freaked out.
I think part of the terror comes from the fact that even though someone looks perfect on the outside, doesn't mean that they actually are. You can never know anyone as well as you know yourself, and that is a terrifying thought.
The ending, oh the ending! I couldn't believe it in the end, I was waiting for the "PSYCH!" moment to happen, but thankfully it never did. Even though every thing fit together so neatly in the end, I couldn't help feel relieved and a bit of triumph. But then again, the student often times does become the master.
Before I end this review, I do want to address the whole comparison of this book to Gone Girl and The Girl on the Train. Those books are thrillers, yes, but this one is so much different. In those books, we are waiting to see the ending, the big reveal. In this book, we are waiting to see what happens at the end, yes, but the journey to the end is so much more than just setting up the story for the ending. In other thrillers, each little piece adds up to keep you guessing who the killer was, or why they did it.
In this book, we know who is who, and why they do what they do. The real question is will they succeed in their horrendous plan? This story is not about the journey, it's about the destination. Of course, both at important, in all three of these books, but one is just more important than the other, and that is what makes them different. We are not focused on the little details in this book, because everything is laid out for you. There is no guessing or predicting, it is predictable, but in a way that is terrifying. Because you know, and the characters know what is going to happen, but there is no way to stop it.
Overall, I loved this book and highly, highly recommend it to anyone and everyone, especially if you want a thriller that is great, but different from The Girl on the Train and Gone Girl.