WHAT THE HELL I JUST READ!??HOLY COW(that’s me!) What a breath taking, captivating, pitch black dark, dazzling, devious and intense, soul crushing mother and daughter story!
I haven’t read something so scary, disturbing for so long! The growing tension from the beginning, those sick and shocking twists and revelation you find out at each chapter and that epic ending made me get an urgent appointment from hospital. My grey cells burned after over usage so I need an urgent transplant now! Yes, Mr. Marrs, my chin dropped! My eyes popped out of my sockets, my hands are shaky, actually my entire body was shaky and everybody is taking I’m the worse break-dancer. And something smells so bad! No, it’s coming from me. Oh no! Nooooo!!!It can’t be! What have I done!!!
OMG! In the middle of my reading I found myself acting like Regan from Exorcist making spider walk, climbing backwards from the stairs and my head spinning. (Thankfully my vomit color is not green. Not yet! I hate kale and spinach!)
That was true expression and quiet real reflection of my feelings: I was terrified! And you know what I’m not easily scared of anything instead of my image in the morning and my husband’s snoring sound louder than cumulative ten T-rex screaming! But let me tell you something, when I reach the end, my spine was already tingling and there were at least 15 teeth bites on my arm (nope, my dogs are innocent, I did to myself because I have no longer nails which is more disgusting image you may ever imagine.) I was so close to scream for help but I also lost my voice (Yes, in the beginning of the book I already used my right to screaming louder till my sister in-law shoved a sock into my mouth (And it was my husband dirty sock! So yes there are things in the world scarier than waterboarding.)
Without giving too much spoilers I may only say this book’s story is definition of borderline personality disorder and unfortunately Maggie (mother) who is chained at the attic of her own house to pay for her sins and things she’s done to her daughter. (As Chris Isaak sings baby did a bad bad thing! Oh actually she did too many bad things! But I have to stop there not to ruin the surprises and bombs the author leaves into our laps and runs away!) And sweet Nina, at the end of her thirties, librarian is guardian and judge of her own mother’s slow punishment and execution.
Do you want to know why they built this sick relationship? Why Nina’s father leave without saying goodbye? Why Nina is so fragile around little children? Is Maggie innocent victim or pure evil needs to be behind the bars? Can she escape and save herself from captivation?
There are so many twists, so many revelations you cannot foresee their coming! You feel like punching several times from supernatural forces and crying like a baby to make it stop! Sorry our author is evil genius and he keeps sending more bombs and destroys your safe space.
Overall: Sometimes I felt suffocated from tension so I cut only half star but it is still 4.5 rounded up to 5 stars reading for me. I adore this author’s riveting, captivating style. He never ever disappoints me! Salute!
Special thanks to NetGalley and Amazon Publishing UK for sharing this special ARC for me in exchange my honest review.