Darkest Place in Aussie Readers

Dec 22, 2015 Brenda rated it it was amazing

Shelves: own-read, arc, thriller, psychological-thriller, sent-by-publisher, net-galley, reviewing-by-request, aussie-authors, 2016-release

Wow! Jaye Ford has done it again! So very good!

Carly Townsend had only been in her new warehouse apartment for three days when she was woken in the early hours of the morning to the presence of a man, standing over her, watching her. Terrified, she immediately called the police – subsequent searches of the apartment came up empty; when it happened again a few days later, then again, the police didn’t believe her. She was attention seeking; she had a mental problem; she would be charged with publ Wow! Jaye Ford has done it again! So very good!

Carly Townsend had only been in her new warehouse apartment for three days when she was woken in the early hours of the morning to the presence of a man, standing over her, watching her. Terrified, she immediately called the police – subsequent searches of the apartment came up empty; when it happened again a few days later, then again, the police didn’t believe her. She was attention seeking; she had a mental problem; she would be charged with public nuisance if she kept it up…

Carly had left her home town in rural New South Wales after being swamped in guilt for the past thirteen years – determined to make a new life for herself, she saw Newcastle and studies as a new beginning. She loved the apartment she’d purchased – four floors up, the views were spectacular. But the unsettling events caused a change in Carly – would she revert to the Charlotte she had been previously, cowering and unable to face anyone?

As days turned into weeks, Carly began to make friends with other residents in the block. The elderly but sweet Elizabeth, bruised and damaged Brooke and Nate her next door neighbour to name a few. But still the night time visits occurred – her locks had been changed, the security was tight; how was he getting in – or was it just a terrible dream? Carly felt the need to find out what was occurring and especially how – she knew she would get no help from the police. But what would happen as she searched for answers? Would Carly have to leave her dream apartment and start over once again? And was her life in danger?

I absolutely loved Darkest Place by Aussie author Jaye Ford; so much so that I devoured it in one day! A brilliant psychological thriller, the heart stopping moments were intense! A gripping plot that is extremely fast paced, I have no hesitation in recommending Darkest Place highly. Jaye Ford just gets better with every book; she’s an author at the top of her game!

With thanks to Random House and NetGalley for this copy in exchange for my honest review.
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Feb 24, 2016 PattyMacDotComma rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: aa, australian-author, kindle, mystery-crime-thriller, arc-netgalley-done

4.5★

Frying pan to fire. Cliff face and climbing tragedy in the country to stalker/intruder terror in the city. After the tragedy, she’s become infamous in her hometown, and her mother is so unsupportive she tells Carly “’It’s time you thought about something else. You might never have children, you need to come to terms with that.’” Gee, thanks a lot.

I liked Carly, and I could picture her friends and how and where they live. They seem like real people with their own real back stories. People yo ...more

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Oct 27, 2021 Helen rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: review-copy-from-author

Wow this is a physiological thriller that will keep readers turning the pages, twists and turns had me wondering right till the end, the very suspenseful end, I really felt for Carly she has been through so much and then to have this happen it is enough to send anyone around the twist, I do hope you pick this one up it is a great read.

Carly Townsend has spent the last thirteen years thinking about all that has happened to her but now it is time to start fresh a new Carly, move where no one knows Wow this is a physiological thriller that will keep readers turning the pages, twists and turns had me wondering right till the end, the very suspenseful end, I really felt for Carly she has been through so much and then to have this happen it is enough to send anyone around the twist, I do hope you pick this one up it is a great read.

Carly Townsend has spent the last thirteen years thinking about all that has happened to her but now it is time to start fresh a new Carly, move where no one knows her and start over again. She has bought a beautiful apartment in and old renovated warehouse building, started a course at Tafe and is feeling good, that is until three days after moving in she wakes to find a man standing over her bed.

Carly calls the police and after a search they find that there is no way anyone has come in but when it happens a week later and this time he is touching her, when the police arrive and again find nothing after a third time the police tell Carly that she will be charged with mischief if she calls them again. What is happening to her is she going mad after talking to a physiologist he suggests a sleeping disorder and to try sleeping pills.

Carly is making friends with her new neighbours but still she is waking with such terror with a man in her apartment, she has changed the locks put chains on, can it really be a terrible nightmare, Carly decides that she is strong and is going to get to the bottom of this even if it is the last thing she does and with help from her neighbour Nate who she is forming a relationship with she unravels the mystery in a suspense filled story that had me on the edge of my seat and gasping for breath.

This is a fabulous story one that I would highly recommend to anyone who likes a lot of suspense and lots of twists and turns and a fabulous strong heroine, Carly was so good she showed courage beyond courage to do what she did and I really loved Nate as well such a supportive hero.

My thanks to the author for my copy to read and review.
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Feb 03, 2016 Shelleyrae at Book'd Out rated it it was amazing

Shelves: arc-are, netgalley-reviews, aussie-author

I should have known better, being familiar with Jaye Ford's previous novels. I picked up Darkest Place at 2am to read a few pages before bed and didn't put it down til I finished the last page, just minutes before my husband's alarm woke him for work at 5am.

After enduring years of guilt, heartbreak, and regret, Charlotte Townsend has finally found the strength to leave her past behind. In a new town, with a new apartment, and a new name, Carly has enrolled in college and is looking towards her
I should have known better, being familiar with Jaye Ford's previous novels. I picked up Darkest Place at 2am to read a few pages before bed and didn't put it down til I finished the last page, just minutes before my husband's alarm woke him for work at 5am.

After enduring years of guilt, heartbreak, and regret, Charlotte Townsend has finally found the strength to leave her past behind. In a new town, with a new apartment, and a new name, Carly has enrolled in college and is looking towards her future, but three days into her new life she wakes to find a stranger in her bedroom. When the police answer Carly's call for help, they find no sign of the man and assure her it was likely a crime of opportunity. Though shaken by the intrusion Carly refuses to let the incident destroy her fledgling confidence...until then it happens again, and then again.

Darkest Place is an absorbing tale of psychological suspense. The tension builds slowly, gathering momentum until you realise you are holding your breath in anxious anticipation.

"She wants to scream. It’s building in her chest. Trapped there, scratching at her lungs as though her ribs are the bars holding it back. She hears breathing. Not her own. Deep and unhurried. It whispers across her face like a warm cloth. It turns her skin to ice. She lashes out. Hits, twists, kicks. She sees it in her mind, feels it in her muscles. But it doesn’t happen. She doesn’t move. Neither does he. She sees him now. A shape in the darkness. Above her, black and motionless. He is watching. She watches back. Fear roaring through her bones, pulse thumping in her ears. Her voice is wedged in her throat now and choking her. No. Something else is squeezing, pushing down, making blood pound in her face. Warm hand, hard fingers. She doesn’t want to see. Doesn’t want to feel. She shuts her eyes. Waits. "

Carly is a complex character, and given her emotionally fragility, I was never quite sure if I could trust her perception of events as the story progressed. The police certainly have their doubts about the reliability of her reports, and Carly's psychiatrist offers a rational opinion that could explain her experiences, but I was sympathetic to her distress.

"She caught sight of herself in the mirror. Hair a mess, face tear-stained. Dark-ringed, pale, wild-eyed. And she spun away, the image burned onto her retinas. Distraught, panicked, confused. She looked like Charlotte. No, worse than that. She looked crazy."

I have to admit I was ambivalent about the ending, though it works within the context of character and story, I didn't find it wholly satisfying, though I can't really reveal why I feel that way without the risk of spoilers. Nevertheless, there is closure and a sense of triumph and hope.

Darkest Place is Ford's fifth novel and I would say her best to date. Clever, thrilling and gripping.
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Feb 23, 2016 Bree T rated it it was amazing

Shelves: aww2016, kindle-version, netgalley, arc, australian, suspense, psychological-thriller, crime, survival

I went to university in Newcastle many years ago now and I love reading books set there. I loved my time living there, it’s a wonderful place, lots of funky suburbs, good facilities and beautiful beaches. When I lived there, it was cheap, you could rent a place close to the university or on a good transport line for next to nothing. It was my first real experience with “my own place” after living in dorms and I really enjoyed it. I was sad to leave Newcastle and I always love being able to get b I went to university in Newcastle many years ago now and I love reading books set there. I loved my time living there, it’s a wonderful place, lots of funky suburbs, good facilities and beautiful beaches. When I lived there, it was cheap, you could rent a place close to the university or on a good transport line for next to nothing. It was my first real experience with “my own place” after living in dorms and I really enjoyed it. I was sad to leave Newcastle and I always love being able to get back for a visit. I’ll gravitate to anything set there and that plus the fact that Jaye Ford is a must read for me had me putting this one high on the priority list.

Carly has had some very bad things happen but she’s moved from the country to Newcastle in an attempt to start over, in a lovely apartment in a converted old warehouse. The problems begin when she wakes to find a man standing over her bed and even though she calls the police, they can’t seem to find any evidence that anyone was in the apartment, nor any way in which he could’ve gotten in. After several of these calls, the police become frustrated and warn her sternly about wasting valuable police time. Carly has had prior mental health issues and with nothing to suggest anyone is breaking in, it’s hard for them to believe Carly is experiencing what she claims. Her psychologist puts it down to particularly vivid dreaming and for a while, Carly is able to convince herself that it isn’t happening. That when she feels as though she’s waking up, hearing a person breathing in the room with her, feeling them lie on top of her, it isn’t real.

The suspense builds in the most awesome way in this novel and Jaye Ford weaves in several different elements of escalating tension – is there someone really breaking into apartments undetected in some way and if so, how are they doing it? Or is this a product of Carly’s fragile mind, is she feeling guilt or trauma at things that have occurred in her past and punishing herself somehow? Is she slowly losing her grip on reality? Or is there something so sinister going on that even the police have no idea where to look?

I’m a bit of a wuss, so I’m glad I read this in the daytime because my husband works nights and I’m often home alone well into the early hours of the morning and I often start a new book when I go to bed. If I’d picked this one I would’ve been in for a long and sleepless night for 2 reasons – one because it’s impossible to put down, I had to know what was happening and two, because I’d be jumping at every noise, real and imaginary! There’d be nothing worse than going to bed and not knowing whether or not someone was going to be able to get inside your safe space. If she’s imagining it, what does it mean for her journey and starting over? And if she isn’t….exactly what sort of sinister thing is happening to her and is she the only one experiencing it?

This book kept me riveted and kept taking me to unexpected places with each new plot development. I really found myself getting behind Carly as a character, feeling for her for what she’d experienced in her past but it didn’t stop me wondering just how much toll that’d taken on her psyche. I admired the way she was determined to get to the bottom of what was happening, whether or not it was her mind or if it was something else.

I’ve read nearly all of Jaye Ford’s books now – somehow I’ve missed the first one but have read the next four after that and they just keep getting better. Her protagonists are always believably flawed and have experienced things that leave deep impressions. The plots are tightly constructed and there’s always just enough creep factor to make the hairs on the back of my neck stand up when I’m reading. I find them very satisfying and I hope they keep coming. ...more

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