Teuflische List

by Hilary Norman

Abigail Allan hütet ein dunkles Geheimnis: Als Dreizehnjährige ist sie für den Tod ihrer Eltern und ihres Freundes verantwortlich gewesen. Es war zwar ein Unfall, aber die schrecklichen Ereignisse haben sie geprägt. Schuldgefühle sind ihr ständiger Begleiter bis zu dem Tag, als sie den Fotografen Silas Graves kennen lernt. Silas weiß um ihre Vergangenheit, und er hat seine eigenen Geheimnisse. Er ist der Meinung, dass ihn alle, denen er bisher seine Liebe schenkte, betrogen haben. Abigail scheint anders zu sein als seine bisherigen Partnerinnen. Sie würde ihn niemals betrügen. Und falls doch, würde sie sich in tödliche Gefahr begeben ...

Genres: Thriller

432 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Born and raised in London, loved reading but deeply lazy about writing at school, preferring drama. A brief acting career, then moved into the production side at the BBC's radio drama department - later at London's Capital Radio, by which time the writing "switch" had been flicked on. Spent as much time as possible travelling in the US, working and writing. First novel, IN LOVE AND FRIENDSHIP published in 1986 after five years of writing. Wrote sagas with big dramatic finishes in the early days, and then, as the body count rose, made the move into psychological suspense and thrillers. Last book LAST RUN soon out in trade paperback, and the latest (and 20th) -RALPH'S CHILDREN - out soon in hardcover.
Living in London with husband Jonathan, and dog Poppy.

Reviews

[Barbara Elsborg · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like Hilary Norman. I'd read this one before but it was just as creepy and chilling the second time around. The end was a touch predictable but it didn't spoil my enjoyment of what went before. The horrors of a controlling partner, the difficulty of extracting yourself from that partner, the way you convince yourself it's not the problem it really is. Love - as obsession. Anything other that utter devotion is a betrayal. Nicely done.

[MRS MARTHA A DSOUZA · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good read

I really enjoyed this book as you never really knew what was going to happen. It even had me missing some of my favorite tv programs

[Amelia · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book got better as I read on.. It took until 2/3 into it though.

[Lorna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Abigail Allen is a solitary figure. She absorbs herself in her music finding solace in the escapism it provides. Abigail has long harboured guilt for an accident involving both her parents and her boyfriend when she was 13 that she believes to have been her fault.
She punishes herself by not allowing herself to get close to anyone, in the belief that she is undeserving of another person's love. Then she meets the charming,handsome and charismatic Silas Graves who far from recoiling in horror at what she's done accepts her into his life and loves her completely in spite of, and maybe even because of what she's done.
However Silas is not all he seems. Beneath that loving exterior there is a twisted individual with a warped sense of love and loyalty. From the beginning of the book you see that the people closest to him become his obsession. His possessions. He has an unnaturally possessive love for first his mother, then later on his sister and finally Abigail. He's a narcissistic personality believing his love to be pure and untainted until other people...other men...get in the way.
This was a superbly twisted psychological thriller, one that kept me gripped from beginning to end. It's been rare for me to find a character as twisted, cunning and manipulative as Silas and I kept wondering to what depths this character would eventually sink. The author has a brilliant way of showing the reader the reasons behind Silas' thinking and you realise that there is a warped kind of logic to his thoughts which explains why he does the things he does.
Towards the end I found myself willing the two female leads, Abigail and her sister in law Jules to get out by any means, just escape! Another thing I found fascinating yet somehow understandable was the love these two women have for Silas despite everything he's done. Even when they realise what they're dealing with they Still love him. That's when you realise just how much power and influence this man has over people and that is possibly the scariest part of a brilliantly written thriller. Highly recommended!

[Literameer · Rating 4 out of 5]

„Teuflische List“ von Hilary Norman“ gehört vom Inhalt her zu den vorhersehbarsten Thrillern, die ich je gelesen habe. Jeder Teil der Geschichte ist vorhersehbar und somit bietet die Geschichte keine überraschenden Wendungen und auch sonst keine Überraschungen. Und dennoch hat Hilary Norman einen Spannungsbogen aufgebaut, der das Buch zum wahren Page Turner macht. Mir ist es schwer gefallen, das Buch aus der Hand zu legen. Dazu tragen sicherlich auch die teilweise sehr kurzen Kapitel bei, denn mich verführen sie immer dazu, doch noch schnell ein weiteres Kapitel zu lesen.

Die Geschichte besticht für mich insgesamt weniger durch die Handlung, sondern wesentlich mehr durch die Interaktion der Protagonisten miteinander. Die Charaktere sind hervorragend ausgearbeitet, so dass man ein sehr gutes Gespür für sie bekommt. Stellenweise hatte ich das Gefühl, keinen Thriller, sondern ein Psychogramm zu lesen. Abigail fand ich einerseits sehr glaubwürdig, andererseits war sie mir etwas zu schuldbewusst und etwas zu jammerhaft. Silas hingegen ist sehr perfide und hat mich immer wieder wütend gemacht. Und genau deswegen hätte ich Abigail gerne geschüttelt und vorgewarnt, denn als Leser weiß man dass sie ins eigene Unglück rennt.

Obwohl die Handlung von Gewalt geprägt ist, kommt sie ohne große Gewaltszenen aus. Insgesamt bleibt die Handlung eher unblutig. Den Schrecken schafft die Autorin einzig durch ihre Protagonisten und nicht durch die Schilderung blutiger Gräueltaten. Dadurch wird das Gefühl der Brutalität, mit welcher Silas vorgeht, noch greifbarer und die Geschichte hat so mehr Gefühle in mir geregt, als hätte ich viel blutiges Gemetzel gelesen.

Fazit:

„Teuflische List“ von Hilary Norman lebt für mich durch die Protagonisten und weniger durch die Handlungen. Was sich für einen Thriller vielleicht langweilig anhört, wurde von der Autorin aber gut umgesetzt, so dass auch die Spannung nicht zu kurz komm

[Shara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Guilt is a can't put down until the last page masterpiece of a mentally deranged and insecure young boy who grew up to become pure self-centered and evil man. Silas Graves uses domestic abuse, physical but mostly mental, to manipulate his sister then later in life girlfriend Abigail to get whatever he wants. He expects them both to love him exclusively and sees everything they do without his permission such as talking to another man or accepting a lift home when he abandons them in the middle of nowhere for acting childish (in his opinion) as utter betrayal. Silas knows he must punish and make the situation right by any means necessary. Guilt is a window into pure evil and domestic abuse taken to its highest level. Sure you won't exactly feel sorry for Abigail as she's not the most innocent person herself (she doesn't feel fleshed out enough and feels a bit to readily accepting of being punished), but you'll see through her acceptances from his words that situations were all her fault, mirrors of real life victims, this realism makes Guilt that much more terrifying, as it could happen to anyone.

[Karschtl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bitterböser Thriller um einen Mann (Silas), der es schafft dass mehrere Menschen (seine Mutter, seine Frau, seine Schwester) ihm so "hörig" werden, dass sie ihm blind gehorchen. Sollte sich jemand in diese Beziehung in irgendeiner Weise einmischen so wird er eher unsanft beseitigt. Doch irgendwann ist die Stunde der Rache gekommen!

Ein "geht so" Thriller.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A bit of a creepy book - enjoy it and it kept me guessing

[JenniferB · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very gripping and fast to read but a bit far fetched. Some characters quite nasty

[Sonja Brose · Rating 3 out of 5]

a great thriller with a unique look inside the mind of a true psychopath