Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn
Publication Date September 26, 2006
Source: Bought
Genres: Thriller
Goodreads
WICKED above her hipbone, GIRL across her heart
Words are like a road map to reporter Camille Preaker’s troubled past. Fresh from a brief stay at a psych hospital, Camille’s first assignment from the second-rate daily paper where she works brings her reluctantly back to her hometown to cover the murders of two preteen girls.NASTY on her kneecap, BABYDOLL on her leg
Since she left town eight years ago, Camille has hardly spoken to her neurotic, hypochondriac mother or to the half-sister she barely knows: a beautiful thirteen-year-old with an eerie grip on the town. Now, installed again in her family’s Victorian mansion, Camille is haunted by the childhood tragedy she has spent her whole life trying to cut from her memory.HARMFUL on her wrist, WHORE on her ankle
As Camille works to uncover the truth about these violent crimes, she finds herself identifying with the young victims—a bit too strongly. Clues keep leading to dead ends, forcing Camille to unravel the psychological puzzle of her own past to get at the story. Dogged by her own demons, Camille will have to confront what happened to her years before if she wants to survive this homecoming.With its taut, crafted writing, Sharp Objects is addictive, haunting, and unforgettable.
Sharp Objects is a well-paced novel keeping the reader in suspense throughout. I tried to savor the last thirty pages but became such a page-turner as the murderer became uncovered I had a hard time doing so. Even after it appears that it is solved, cased closed, the Epilogue tells us differently, it uncovers an accomplice of sorts and reveals a last mystery in the novel.
You liked this one slightly more than me but I did like the writing/pacing. I think my problem with Gillian is she just never gives me anyone to root for. I end up disliking all her characters *sigh*
All the protagonists in her books annoy me to some degree, although despite being despicable I've always thought they are well developed. Gillian Flynn's subject matters and pacing is what really drives me to her novels.
Loving the sound of this. I have been meaning to read some of her books. i might start with this 🙂
Because Sharp Objects is Gillian Flynn's first novel I think it would be good starting place, but I think Dark Places and Gone Girl are just as good.
I liked this one, too, just as I enjoyed Gone Girl. But yes, the characters are definitely dark and somewhat unlikeable.
I think almost (if not all) the characters in Gillian Flynn's novels are unlikable, but I think they meld well with their dark story lines.