Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn

This is the first novel by Gillian Flynn I have read, and I really had no idea what to expect. I’d seen the many glowing reviews that Flynn’s ‘Gone Girl’ received, and the blurb of this book looked intriguing – it read like your typical murder mystery thriller, and had a great review from one of my favourite authors, Stephen King. So I thought I’d give it a try.

However, the book itself was absolutely nothing like I expected. A somewhat disturbing and deeply psychological, raw work, I can honestly say I’ve never read anything like it.

Camille Preaker is a 20-something reporter in Chicago, recently released from rehab for a very particular and horrific form of self-mutilation. But when two young girls are murdered in her hometown of Wind Gap, Missouri, she returns to her dysfunctional home for the story. Camille has not been home in quite some time, as home carries the memories of her beloved dead sister Marion, an unknown father and her distant, cold mother. Once back in Wind Gap, Camille gets tangled up in the lives of her unloving mother Adora and psychotic half-sister Amma, and the secrets of the town begin to slowly seep out. This is absolutely not your typical ‘Whodunit’ murder mystery, as it seems to probe into the dark recesses of your mind, drawing out startling emotions and reactions. The mother-daughter relationship between Adora and her children left me feeling weary and somewhat sick, as the repercussions of under or over parenting on Adora’s part can be seen to have deep, lifelong ramifications for those exposed to her poisonous nature.

This book left me hooked until the very last page – even when I thought I had it all figured out, I couldn’t have been more wrong.

Flynn has a particular knack for creating characters that are incredibly deep and lingering: each of her focal female characters have layers upon layers of deep rooted psychological issues, sorrows and past traumas that have all worked together to make them the unstable people they are today. I found the fear, sickness, cruelty and evil laced in the relationships of this family captivating and deeply troubling.

I think Gillian Flynn is an incredibly talented author with the ability to create characters and situations that are so intricately wrought out, and I cannot wait to read the rest of her novels.