Him

by Clare Empson, Clare Leslie Hall

15 years ago, Catherine met the love of her life...She fell into a passionate love affair at university and they were meant to be together forever.13 years ago, she married someone else...She has two children and has moved on from her life with Lucian. Or so she thought.4 months ago, she stopped speaking to everyone...She witnessed something so traumatic that the doctors say the only way forward is to look into her past.This is her story.

Genres: Romance, Fiction, Thriller, Mystery, Contemporary, Audiobook, Suspense

401 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 19, 2018

About the author

Also see Clare Leslie Hall

Clare is a journalist with a background in national newspapers - small business editor, finance correspondent and fashion at the Mail on Sunday and the Daily Express, freelance for The Sunday Telegraph, The Sunday Times, the Evening Standard and Tatler amongst others.


source: Amazon

Reviews

[ReadAlongWithSue recovering from a stroke★⋆. ࿐࿔ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Oh dear. I feel a defeatist.
I feel like I’m letting myself take the easy option and just........
Lay this book down.

I’ve picked it up I don’t know how many times and tried, really tried. It’s a persons work, it’s a debut. I love discovering new authors. I love debuts.

I feel guilty.

But I just don’t think I can carry on now as I’ve got just over halfway.

Too many characters. Too confusing it’s really stretching my mind and imagination.

I have dropped out the tour.

I’m sure there will be others that will love it. Praise it.

Sadly, and very regretfully I cannot be one of them.

Would I read another book by this author?
Yes, I always try another book or two before deciding.

This has something though in the correct hands and with more incitement, but it’s a bit hmmmmm mwwahhh for me I’m afraid.

It might be a case of “ it’s not you.....it’s me”

[Tracy Fenton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Him is a story of obsession, love and guilt.  It's dark and uncomfortable and a great debut from Clare Empson.  Told through the two main characters, Catherine who is currently residing in a hospital in a state of elective mutism and Lucian, Catherine's first and only true love.

Something horrific has happened to Catherine to cause her to shut down entirely, unable to communicate with her husband and 2 children and in order to help her she has to delve deep in to her past to find a way back to her family.

Told through Catherine's point of view in the present and flashbacks 15 years ago when she first meet Lucian and then  to 4 months prior to the trauma, HIM has an underlying theme of an all consuming passion and obsession between the two main characters.  Throughout the book the reader is aware that something awful has happened but it isn't revealed until much later in the story.

This book has all the ingredients for a dark, psychological thriller - intrigue, suspense, trauma, obsession, lies, guilt and shame.  An impressive debut and I look forward to reading more from this author.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

For my full review, visit me at https://mrsbrownsbooks.wordpress.com/...

Admittedly, I found this book tricky to get into. Which consequently made me grumpy as this was bought for me as a Christmas present. However, readers, am I glad that I stuck this one out. If I had stopped reading this book (which rarely happens) I would have missed out on completing a cracking, five-star novel.

For my full review, visit me at https://mrsbrownsbooks.wordpress.com/...

[Nina (ninjasbooks) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my favorite books so far this year. I felt so much reading it. The heartache, the regret. Every word lingered, and for a while I was the protagonist, understanding them completely. The book kept me wondering until the end, and it just made sense to me. I will remember it for a long time, knowing that it touched me to the core.

[Charlotte Annelise]

DNF for now, I might come back to it another day.

[Roman Clodia · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't think the publishers are doing themselves any favours by packaging this as a kind of thriller - it's not: really it's a 'love gone wrong' story, that uses thriller-ish elements, not always particularly well. For example, we start with Catharine in hospital having decided not to speak (selective mutism) though the narrative is told by her so she's 'speaking' to us. Then we inevitably start flipping around in time: 15 years ago when she was at university, 4 months before; then we have another narrator chime in, also flipping back and forth in time - it's all just so tired now with practically every piece of commercial fiction following the same fractured narrative structure.

Personally, I found the characters a bit 1-dimensional: the posh kids at Bristol Uni, the love-of-my-life hero with his 'jade-coloured' eyes - for what is supposed to be a once-in-a-lifetime passionate love, there's no real chemistry or heat between our protagonists so it's difficult to buy into the central relationship around which the book is built.The main character's motivation for withholding a traumatic event from said 'love of my life' just doesn't ring true to me'she's been raped by his best friend but she doesn't tell him because... she's afraid he might commit suicide - what??

I also have a problem with stories where everything has already happened in the past, all the characters know what's gone on and the only tension is the artificial one of withholding the past from us - too annoying. Hardly anything happens in the present storyline at all.

It's a pity as there is something interesting at the centre of all the (melo)dramatics: questions of female shame and undeserved guilt could have been explored with more emotional intelligence - instead they get subsumed beneath a narrative that seems to be trying too hard to pull off twists and thrills. Disappointing.

Review copy via Amazon Vine

[Zoé-Lee O'Farrell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! I really was not expecting that when I read the book. When I signed up for the book I was expecting a thriller of some kind but in fact what I got was such a powerful story of manipulation, heartbreak, loss, wasted time, friendship and love. I am broken at the moment. I was crying by the end of this book. I really could not see how it was going to end, and when I did realise it was too late. I wanted to go back into my bubble but it was too late, way too late, what I had read could not be unseen!

Catherine and Lucian’s lives are shown to you through multiple narrations, the now, fifteen years ago, four months ago Catherine and four months ago Lucian. I loved the style of the narrative as if it was diary entries to each other, never referring to each other by name, just You.

I was hooked from the get-go, Catherine in the now has become mute, an event in her life four months ago has made her this way but why? What? I was screaming at the book to tell me why! To tell me what the hell was going on. Instead, Ms Empson got you more addicted to Catherine and Lucian and the circle of friends from their university days. Picking up and putting down the different timelines kept me invested, yearning to know what was happening. Why had Catherine and Lucian been apart for fifteen years?

The answer to it all is so tragic.

I was also a bit choked up when reading as both characters suffered a loss of parents. After an emotional weekend of loss, I found my dads video camera and some recordings we did and just hearing his voice again after nearly 10 years was emotional. So when you read about their losses it hit me hard. The feelings in this book are so raw and so real it is hard to imagine this not being real. The actions and reactions of each and every one of them are realistic. If I had been in any of their situations with the lifestyle and the money I probably would be the same!

The lifestyle of the rich and famous, the people who never grew up is contrasted with the humble and the make do. In the four months ago, you see Lucian and his friend’s re-addressing life choices when Catherine is back on the scene. The boozy ways don’t seem so fun anymore. All anyone really cares about is Why is Catherine back? Why did she leave all those years ago?

God, I think this is just a ramble. This is most definitely a contender for my book of the year. I absolutely bloody loved it. Such a journey we go on, one we are made to go on whether we want to or not but mainly because Catherine is just that damn beautiful inside and out. You want her to speak again, you want to make everything ok for her and her family and mainly, more selfishly, you want to know the truth.

I loved the cover for Him and I have seen the cover for Clare’s next book Mine and it’s a beauty I CANNOT wait to read!

I know the tag line for Him is #Idestroyedhim but I think it’s safe to say this book destroyed me. Just do yourself a favour and read it!

[Joana’s World · Rating 4 out of 5]

Uma palavra para descrever este livro: uau. Capítulos curtos que alteram entre passado e o presente. Nunca sabemos o que irá acontecer a seguir. Fala de vários temas como o amor, agressão (física e psicológica) e segredos.

[Julie Lacey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book will take you through a roller coaster of emotions and all the while, you’ll be desparate to know what happened to Catherine.
The story is told during different time periods - four months before ‘it’ happened, from two points of view, fifteens years ago and now.
We learn that Catherine is in hospital as she is unable to speak since ‘it’ happened. Her family and best friend visit her but nothing seems to help.
We’re given an insight into Catherine’s thoughts and you really do feel for her and those around her.
I’d love to tell you what happens but I won’t spoil it for you as you need to enjoy every chapter as the book steadily leads up to what happened.
This is a gripping read and I highly recommend it if you enjoy mystery thrillers with a love story at its heart.
Thanks to Orion and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

HIM......HMMMMMM
Firstly this book took me 5 days to read ( inc weekend where I dont read as much mind you ) and thats the longest a book has taken me to read for months...however I did want to finish it and at no time, even when it frustrated me, did I contemplate not finishing it...this book had ‘something’.......
Its NOT a full on mystery/thriller as is billed but more of a modern day Romeo and Juliet set in opulence and ‘old money’,there are elements of mystery and thriller in it but basically it is a love story, gone wrong, gone wrong again and then gone disastrous
I enjoyed, as previous lived there, it being set in Somerset and call me shallow but really enjoyed the ‘money no object’ that ran through the book, the mansions, the food, the lifestyle was fabulously described and you could taste the wealth throughout
Of course with this comes an array of objectionable characters and their whims and fancies and a life far removed from reality, certain characters ( well portrayed ) got on my nerves!!
The story is Catherine and Lucien fall in love......something happens that Catherine cannot cope with and she leaves....marrys someone else and has 2 kids.....then after re meeting they briefly rekindle their love and the ‘secret’ comes out with a horrifying result......Catherine then goes mute with disassociation with the shock and that is how the book starts.... it then ( at times confusingly ) goes back and forth between now, 4 months ago ( when she went mute) and 15 years ago ( when they first met ) and you have to be on the ball to keep up with this constant changing of time zones
I felt there was quite a bit of repetition in the book and in the end I was shouting ( in my mind ) ‘we know’ to Catherines protests of love
It has a surprising end and one I didnt see coming
As I say I did enjoy this book, very different to what I normally read but it pulled me back to the story time and again and by the end felt I knew them all well and was glad had invested 5 days ‘with them’
4 stars 8/10

[Sarah Salazar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mir hat es sehr gefallen. Das Buch wird jeweils aus der Sicht von Catherine und Lucian erzählt. Dazu in drei Zeitebenen: vor fünfzehn Jahren, vor vier Monaten und jetzt. Es gibt viele emotionale Abschnitte und viel Romantik. Alles lässt sich flüssig lesen und ich wollte auch schnellstens immer wissen, wie es denn nun weitergeht. Einzig Lucians Freunde haben mich oft gestört. Vielleicht war es auch deren übertriebener Lebensstil. Letzten Endes hat das aber auch wiederum einen gewissen Punkt in der Geschichte ausgemacht und war mit dem eigentlichen Geschehen eng verknüpft. Denn der Kern der Geschichte ist wirklich traurig. Mit einigen Dingen habe ich nicht sofort gerechnet, obwohl vieles schon leicht vorhersehbar war. Das Ende hat mich dann aber nochmal total abgeholt. Ich fand es wirklich tragisch. Genau wie das Buch: tragisch und doch so voller Liebe.

[Amber · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars ..... I ended up being quite disappointed with this book. I’m not sure what it was trying to be ....a love story ,thriller or an observation on the troubles of the young and rich . Felt little empathy for the main character . Repetitive and I’m not sure why the author chose 4 months & 15 years as the flash back time frames.

[Maria · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,5*

[Mandy White (mandylovestoread) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not for me I am afraid - very confusing

[Eva · Rating 4 out of 5]

This didn’t quite turn out the way I thought it would. I was expecting a psychological thriller and while it does have some of the elements of that genre and a bit of a mystery to solve, at its core Him is a love story gone badly, oh so badly, wrong.

Catherine doesn’t talk. She suffers from elective mutism after witnessing a traumatic event. It all has to do with “him” but the why takes a while for the reader to discover.

Fifteen years ago, Catherine met the dashing Lucian at university. Theirs was a passionate love affair but then Catherine breaks up with Lucian. No explanation or anything. She just disappears and refuses to talk to him ever again, leaving Lucian utterly devastated.

But her obsession with him and what life could have been like by his side continues through the years, through a marriage and the birth of her children. This is a love that can’t be forgotten or denied, but also one with devastating consequences. What exactly happened when Catherine met Lucian again four months ago?

This story switches back and forth between events from fifteen years ago, four months ago and the present day. This may sound a little all over the place but it’s really not. It’s done incredibly well and never gets confusing. Slowly but surely, the pieces of the puzzle come together.

I found the characters hard to connect with though. Lucian and his friends are an elitist and snobbish club of rich and privileged people that Catherine never really quite fits into. Yet some are drawn to them like moths to a flame. And while Catherine wonders what her life would have been like had she stayed with Lucian, I was wondering how different her life with her husband, Sam, could have been had she been able to let Lucian go. To be honest, Sam was the only person I was able to muster up any kind of sympathy for.

Him is a dark and tragic tale of love, obsession and guilt. Despite it’s relatively slow pace, this character-driven story is rather gripping and at times incredibly sad. I was desperate to know why Catherine stopped talking and if she’d ever utter another word again. I enjoyed it but I found the psychological thriller label a tad misleading so my advice to you is to go in with an open mind and let Catherine take you on a moving journey through her memories.

[Liz Barnsley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Theakstons proof 5 was this one and I loved it for its considered engaging characters, the beautifully done past/present vibe and it's strong emotional core.

A love story with a dark dark heart.

Recommended.

[Alayne Emmett · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a cleverly written book. So unusual at first I wasn’t sure whether I would like it. But, I persevered and I’m so glad I did. I throughly enjoyed this book.

[daniela sofia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Consigo definir este livro como uma daquelas leituras que eu não esperava de todo vir a gostar tanto. Dei por mim a comprar este livro por impulso, a chegar à livraria dar de caras com ele e quando me apercebi já o tinha comprado. Parece algo completamente normal para uma amante de livros, mas foi uma escolha por impulso que resultou muito bem comigo (o que ultimamente tem sido muito, mas mesmo muito raro). O Amor da Minha Vida acabou por ser um livro que me surpreendeu, superou as expectativas e ainda deixou um gostinho amargo quando terminou, eu queria mais. Os principais temas que são falados nos livros vão desde amor, violência física e psicológica, segredos nas relações, morte, sexo, depressão, suicídio, drogas, álcool, depressão, etc. Temas muito pesados e que mexem connosco, que nos fazem pensar e refletir imenso. Trata-se de uma leitura que nos emociona. É uma mistura de emoções, é uma leitura incrível, que me deixou agarrada desde a primeira página.

O Amor da Minha Vida é uma história cheia de obsessões, amor e muita culpa. Acaba por ser um pouco meio dramático e com aquela vibe mais obscura. Contado de dois pontos de vista diferentes, a autora conseguiu fazer o leitor agarrar-se à história com unhas e dentes desde o primeiro capítulo. Com capítulos curtos que variam entre passado e o presente, ao início pensei que poderia tornar a leitura chata e mais aborrecida, não foi de todo o caso. As ligações entre passado entre futuro e presente foram bem planeadas e acabam por fazer sentido com a história, ajudando assim no desenvolvimento do enredo. Com ligações fortes entre personagens, senti que tudo havia um motivo para estar na história. As personagens tiveram um crescimento e desenvolvimento incrível enquanto a ação decorria.

Na minha opinião é um livro que tem tudo o que é preciso para agradar um fã do género literário de thriller: obscuro, muito psicológico, intrigante, misterioso, cheio de drama, obsessões, mentiras, culpa e vergonha. É uma boa dose para nos fazer gostar imediatamente de um livro. Não será um livro perfeito, existem alguns erros, dei por mim a achar algumas partes um pouco óbvias. Contudo, a escrita da autora, as personagens e o enredo acabam por abafar o que existe de menos positivo. Uma leitura fluída, na minha opinião conseguimos terminar este livro num dia ou menos. Os capítulos mais curtos facilitam imenso na hora de avançar na história, aviso já que quando terminarem o livro muito provavelmente irão querer mais. Pelo menos eu quis que houvesse mais, por isso, estou a pensar ler mais livros da autora, acredito que vou gostar dos seus outros livros.

Para mim, é mais um daqueles livros que não consigo colocar por palavras o que sinto quanto a ele. Já terminei a leitura dele faz tempo, ainda penso nele às vezes, volta e meia sinto vontade para o reler. Prefiro deixá-lo lá, já o li sei a sua história e existem mais livros por descobrir. Contudo, tenho quase a certeza que se for reler este livro vou com certeza gostar imenso da leitura, mais ou tanto como a primeira vez. É incrível, é daqueles livros que facilmente recomendaria a um fã iniciante de thrillers. Recomendo.

[Vera Neves (Sinfonia dos Livros) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mais uma estreia a nível de autores. Nunca tinha lido nada de Clare Empson e tenho de dizer que fiquei agradavelmente surpresa.
Quem pensar que este é um livro de um policial ou thriller, engana-se. Eu, quando li a sinopse, tenho de admitir que pensava que se tratava de um assassinato ou algo do género, no entanto, este livro traz-nos a história de (des)amor de Catherine e Lucian. Duas pessoas que se encontram numa certa altura da vida e que, por motivos alheios às suas vontades, são separados pouco depois de iniciarem aquele que poderia ter sido o único e verdadeiro amor tanto de um, como do outro.
Ora, este livro tem uma composição que me agrada muito. A alternância com o passado e o presente tanto de Catherine como de Lucian, cada um na sua vez, dando-nos sempre a perspectiva de todas as personagens importantes.
No momento presente, Catherine encontra-se internada e em terapia porque simplesmente deixou de comunicar, seja de que maneira for, com o marido,os filhos, os amigos e parece estar num estado catatónico, mas consciente. Ninguém sabe que ela os consegue ouvir, uma vez que ela não responde nem mostra sinais de que está a ouvir ou a perceber o que se passa à sua volta.

Opinião Completa
https://sinfoniadoslivros.blogspot.co...

[Christina McDonald]

A thoughtful character-drawn book, a tragic tale of love, obsession and guilt. It's packaged as a psychological thriller and didn't seem very psychological to me, but the story itself is beautifully written, fluid and intelligent, with a protagonist I cheered for.

Something so horrible has happened that Catherine has stopped talking. The story then goes back to the past. Catherine and Lucien fall in love. Something happens that makes her abruptly leave him. She marries someone else. Years later she tells Lucien what happened to make her leave all those years ago. Then something happens that causes her to become mute, disassociating from everything.

This is a slow burn story as the author fully and deftly explores each character with a well done past/present storyline.

[Philomena Callan Cheekypee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well done to the author on her debut novel, a novel that will stay with people for quite a while.

The story is told through two points of view. Catherine and Lucian.

After a traumatic event Catherine has become mute. We don’t know what the event was until much later. While reading this I felt it was like one big puzzle... the more you read of it the more the pieces start coming together.

After reading the blurb I couldn’t wait to read this. I did think it was dragged out but I still enjoyed it. I’m looking forward to reading more from this author in the future.

[Maria João (A Biblioteca da João) · Rating 4 out of 5]

8,5 de 10*

Aqui está um excelente livro para ler nas férias. Porque é que digo isto? Porque agarra e apetece ler de uma assentada só e torna-se doloroso para quem, como eu, está a trabalhar e tem que interromper a leitura...
É um thriller descomplicado, que vive em torno de um grupo de amigos e passado em três tempos distintos. Há quinze anos iremos conhecer Lucian e Catherine, dois jovens a chegar aos 20 anos, e imensamente apaixonados.

Comentário completo em:
https://abibliotecadajoao.blogspot.co...

[Asia (zupa.czyta) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Catherine nie mówi. Cierpi na mutyzm, ma za sobą traumatyczne wydarzenie, które ściśle wiąże się z jej wielką, nieszczęśliwą miłością do Luciana. COŚ zdarzyło się w przeszłości i to coś pociągnęło za sobą kolejne wydarzenia (tym razem w teraźniejszości), które wywołały u Catherine tak ogromny szok, że przestała komunikować się ze swoimi najbliższymi.

Chylę czoła przed Clare Empson (to jej debiut!), gdyż napisała bardzo dojrzałą, doskonałą pod względem literackim, przejmująco smutną powieść, którą - mimo, że akcja nie pędzi tutaj na łeb, na szyję - czyta się z wielkim zaciekawieniem. Podczas lektury każdej z tych 400 stron, czytelnik koniecznie chce się dowiedzieć, co przydarzyło się bohaterce i czy jej związek z bogatym, uprzywilejowanym facetem - miłością jej życia, naprawdę nie ma szans na kontynuację. Już w pierwszych rozdziałach odgadłam, jakie wydarzenie mogło wpłynąć na nagłe zakończenie obiecującej relacji na linii Catherine - Lucian. Rozwiązanie wszystkich wątków było jednak zaskakujące i nieoczywiste. Za to ogromny plus!

Absolutnie nie nastawiajcie się na thriller, to dramat obyczajowy z odrobiną suspensu, powieść bardzo nastrojowa, przepełniona nostalgią. Mnie przypadła do gustu i chętnie przeczytam kolejne historie, które wyjdą spod pióra Empson.

[Fabi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Este livro foi uma verdadeira surpresa boa para mim! Gostei mesmo!

[Stef L · Rating 5 out of 5]

Intense & profoundly moving.

This is an astonishing debut. Character driven, intense and profoundly moving.

Catherine is suffering from Elective Mutism - unable to speak, she tells us her story through her memories. Memories of a time fifteen years before when she first meets Lucian and they enter into a relationship that is all-consuming. With breathtaking prose and more than a hint of nostalgia Catherine’s recollections show us exactly what Lucian means to her and the impact this has on the very essence of who she is.

As the story unfolds Lucian is given his own voice and fascinatingly the narrative shifts between the two, flitting backwards and forwards in time, past, present and four months before. Every word, every sentence, captures the intensity of the love they have for each other. As we view events from two perspectives the tension builds as we realise that there is only one truth - a truth so shockingly awful that it has stolen Catherine’s voice.

Him is a beautifully written, cleverly constructed book that filled me with a myriad of emotions. It is a book that will stay with me for a long time - highly highly recommended.

[Rhian Eleri · Rating 3 out of 5]

So this is a trope I think is becoming more and more popular in recent years. You've got the group of priveliged friends who come from money. You've got the one who's never fitted in.
You've got a secret that binds you, and although you kind of hate eachother, that secret means you must stick together no matter what.

This felt like a merging of two books for me, The Reunion, and The Secret History.

One thing I wasn't mad about was the '15 years ago ' chapters, I didn't understand why they were there if, in the '4 months ago' chapters were going to talk about 15yrs ago too!

I liked the second half more than the first.
I didn't find anything twisty about the book, not sure If I was meant to.
An odd process all in all. But I did engage with it and I did invest. I liked the outcome.

[Diana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thriller? Romance? Drama?

Não sei onde enquadrar este género literário! Pra mim foi uma fusão de géneros mas que resultou!

A autora presenteia-nos com capítulos curtos, intercalando a história em 3 tempos, que para mim resultaram muito bem.
Gostei da forma como abordou a questão do mutismo e até ao final não consegui perceber o que tinha levado a personagem a ficar neste estado.
Pelos diversos aspetos acima mencionados, foi uma leitura cativante que me despertou a curiosidade para saber como tudo terminaria.

[matthew m mason · Rating 1 out of 5]

This should be considered torture to read. After the amazing Broken Country, I had high hopes. Unfortunately after serving up that 5 star dinner, this was like eating a day old buffet. Brutally hard to read. Just endless dribble. Spare yourself.

[Vera Brandão · Rating 4 out of 5]

http://verovsky-meninadospoliciais.bl...

[Victoria Hope · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay that took so many turns that I wasn't expecting it to. I wouldn't call it a "dark thriller," per say; but a tragic love story. A lot of tragedy. This one makes you sit and reflect a bit. I wasn't ready for it to end just yet.