Chilling portrayal of domestic abuse

Having previously read Portraits of the Dead I knew that John Nicholl’s books are not for the faint hearted, and I was right, because this is sometimes a difficult read, dealing with domestic abuse, both physical and mental. The book had me hooked right from the beginning though and I was rooting for Kathy as she planned to escape her abusive husband. I have never been in an abusive relationship, but the way John described what happened, and Kathy’s reactions seemed very realistic which made it even more disturbing to read.

However despite such a strong start, I feel that the book ran out of steam in the last 25%, and I wasn’t keen on the ending. I know this is fiction but that ending was totally implausible, and for this reason I have given the book 4 instead of 5 stars.

I listened to the Audible version of the book, and wasn’t too keen on the narrator, though it didn't stop me finishing the book.

1 person found this helpful

Not a good match between author and narrator

I wanted to like this book, but it was either quality of the writing or the narration or combination of both that made it a poor choice.
The writing style is not (for me) enjoyable, the trite conversations between the characters did not seem believable, also the narration was a bit iffy, some parts were good and some not up to par. Pronunciation of some words blatantly wrong. Not sure of the narration process, but I would hope they read the book once before they actually start recording it to iron out little problems like this.
Cathy and Anne are twins- (enough said)
Cathy is in an abusive marriage to a police officer and he has convinced his colleagues that she is a bit nuts. So when a neighbour calls the cops as he can hear the abuse going on, Mike (the husband) laughs it away saying it is just his "unwell" wife.
Cathy finally finds the balls to do something about her intolerable situation and the cat and mouse starts here.
Overall an OK story but not for me.

OMG

What a fantastic story, it grabs you from the very first page, and doesn't let go until the very last.
I felt so immersed in Cathy's life, and the detail in which it was told, I really felt I was her, and everything, and every emotion she was going through.
Brilliant, Brilliant, Brilliant.

Warning - this is not for the faint hearted !

As a survivor of mental and physical abuse, I personally found this book powerful.

Kudos to John Nicholl for having the skill to create such an emotional rollercoaster of a book !

( More by this author will be added to my library )