Dark Places in Around the World in 80 Books

Mar 12, 2018 Pam rated it really liked it

Shelves: crime-fiction, audio-book, kansas, 2018-books-read

AUTHOR Flynn, Gillian
TITLE: Dark Places
DATE READ 03/12/2018
RATING 4.5/B+
GENRE/ PUB DATE/PUBLISHER / # OF Crime Fiction/2009/Random Audio/ 11 CD's
SERIES/STAND-ALONE SA

CHARACTERS Libby Day/ youngest of the Day family -- survivor; her mother and 2 sisters were murdered
TIME/PLACE: 2009 Kansas
COMMENTS Dark and twisted. Did not see the ending coming. Libby Day was about 7 when her mother and 2 older sisters were brutally murdered. Her older brother Ben has been imprisoned for 24 years for this cri ...more

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Feb 10, 2015 Scott Flicker rated it it was amazing

Shelves: completed-2015, thriller

I'm reading the Gillian Flynn books in published order as some youtube book reviewers have recommended. I really enjoyed this one. I've also read sharp objects by the same author. It's hard to say which I like better there were aspects of this I liked over Sharp Objects and the reverse for others.

This protagonist, Libby, in this book survived a family massacre when she was 7. Her brother, Ben, was convicted of the murders. 24 years Libby has been living off donations but the money is coming to a ...more

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Mar 07, 2013 Nadine in NY Jones rated it it was amazing

Shelves: mystery, broken, psych-psych-psych, oh-unlikeable-you, grit-lit, f-ed-up, darkntwisty-badass-women

I was not prepared for how completely dark and twisted this story would be. (And yes, I've read Sharp Objects and Gone Girl and The Grown Up.). Almost everyone in this story, including the MC, is thoroughly unlikeable. Everyone one of them makes a series of awful decisions. It's rare for me to enjoy a story when I don't like the protagonist, but Ms Flynn is a master at this sort of thing. I didn't like Libby, but i empathized. I had a distinct "there but for the grace of God" take on Libby's dis I was not prepared for how completely dark and twisted this story would be. (And yes, I've read Sharp Objects and Gone Girl and The Grown Up.). Almost everyone in this story, including the MC, is thoroughly unlikeable. Everyone one of them makes a series of awful decisions. It's rare for me to enjoy a story when I don't like the protagonist, but Ms Flynn is a master at this sort of thing. I didn't like Libby, but i empathized. I had a distinct "there but for the grace of God" take on Libby's disaster of a life, similar to how I felt about the main protagonist in The Girl on the Train. No, my family wasn't murdered, and I have a degree and a job and kids and all that fun stuff, but I could see myself sliding into Libby territory if I just .... stopped ... trying.

Short review for now. Maybe I can tidy it up later.

A few excerpts:

This was one of those moments where I wished I had more friends. Or, friends.

***

After another forty minutes of driving, the strip clubs started showing up: dismal, crouched blocks of cement, most without any real name, just neon signs shouting Live Girls! Live Girls! Which I guess is a better selling point than Dead Girls. I imagined Krissi Cates pulling into the gravel parking lot, getting ready to take off her clothes at a strip club that was so entirely generic. There's something disturbing about not even bothering with a name. Whenever I see news stories about children who were killed by their parents, I think: But how could it be? They cared enough to give this kid a name, they had a moment - at least one moment - when they sifted through all the possibilities and picked one specific name for their child, decided what they would call their baby. How could you kill something you cared enough to name?

***

Patty fished around in her pocket for some change and got a pink frosted donut, gave it to Libby on a napkin. She could not deal with Libby feeling denied, staring mournfully at all those pastel shades of sugar while they tried to have a conversation about whether her son was a Devil-worshipping child-molester.

...more

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Oct 24, 2010 Agatha Donkar Lund rated it really liked it

Shelves: fiction, mystery, 2010

Hated the ending but loved the rest of it.

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Jun 25, 2015 Jen rated it really liked it

Shelves: small-town, fiction, misfits, twisted, murders-mysteries-thrills, growing-up, crazy-families, midwestern, z-2015-read

One of Flynn's pre-Gone Girl books. I'd really give this a 3.5 rating; since we can't give 1/2 stars, I decided to round up because I love Flynn's sense of twisted. ...more

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