Publication: August 9, 2016, by St. Martin's Griffin
Genre: Adult Fiction, Contemporary, Thriller, Abuse
Pages: 304
Format: ARC
Source: BEA/Publisher
Rating:
Everyone knows a couple like Jack and Grace: he has looks and wealth, she has charm and elegance. You'd like to get to know Grace better. But it's difficult, because you realize Jack and Grace are never apart. Some might call this true love.
Picture this: a dinner party at their perfect home, the conversation and wine flowing. They appear to be in their element while entertaining. And Grace's friends are eager to reciprocate with lunch the following week. Grace wants to go, but knows she never will. Her friends call—so why doesn't Grace ever answer the phone? And how can she cook such elaborate meals but remain so slim?
And why are there bars on one of the bedroom windows?
The perfect marriage? Or the perfect lie?
My Thoughts:
B.A. Paris' Behind Closed Doors is the book I have been recommending the most to every person on this planet (ie. all of my friends and teachers, even) and it is the best psychological thriller I have ever read, seriously, alongside In a Dark Dark Wood. I am in love with the quick pacing, messed-up characters (excluding Grace, of course), plot twists, suspense, flashbacks, ending, everything. I'm amazed by it all, and I still, to this day, cannot imagine how Paris was able to construct such an electrifying story that still gives me goosebumps and chills when I think about the sickness of Jack's character and how poor Grace had to deal with it all. This is unbelievably beautiful, remarkable and seriously amazing. WATCH THIS BECOME A MOVIE. I SWEAR. If I was a multimillionaire, had the time, had the education, knew people and actors, I would turn it into a movie by myself, if everyone else was dumb and couldn't do it on their own.
This was the second book I read from BEA this year, and I decided to pick it up during my psychological thriller phase right after. Well, a friend of mine was reading it after I gave her a copy, and she was going nuts. So I decided that it was my turn to experience such a messed-up story. Thankfully I decided to pick it up at that time or else I would have been miserable before I did my exams because I would've not read a good book. I flew by with this in a day and I couldn't stop reading because I NEEDED JACK TO DIE, GO TO JAIL OR ROT. One of the options. I NEEDED TO KNOW WHAT WOULD HAPPEN. I say that when I write every book review, but with Behind Closed Doors, I am serious. I would have gone psycho if I wasn't able to read the ending and enjoy it as much as I did.
One sentence to describe this psycho story? It's sick. Not in that teenage-boy-slang-way, but in a literal way. It's so messed up that Jack will haunt you at night, and you will be afraid to fall in love. Some authors make falling in love and marrying your true love so beautiful, so real, so easy, but B.A. Paris does the opposite and I seriously now don't know what my future will look like because I don't think I'll be able to trust any man. *looks at my dad cautiously* Hah, no, I'm kind of kidding, but I am still literally scared. I look at the cover of this literary brilliance, and I get scared like that.
I honestly expected this to be an abduction story. I thought that Grace would get abducted or something like that, thrown in a cellar. I wanted to lightly skim through the synopsis so I wouldn't initially make theories and predict how Grace would be able to save herself from this horrifying forced marriage, in a way, so I didn't know what I was coming into. I finished this so quickly, and I wanted to continue reading it forever and ever. Like now, I need to read all of the good adult thrillers: The Girl on the Train, Gone Girl, The Good Girl, anything. Just send me psychological thrillers. If you know me well, you'll know that this book falls in my favourite genre of books. I LOVED THIS TO DEATH.
I just wanted to hand you all an example of how sick Jack is. At the same time, I loved him, because without his screwed up personality, the book wouldn't be what it was. Basically, the plot revolves around Grace and Jack, who are a married couple in England. Grace is being held prisoner, unable to be free in the riches of her own home, stuck in a tiny room where she suffers constantly. She has a little sister, Millie, who has Down's Syndrome, and Grace soon discovers that Jack married Grace so he could have a way to get to Millie, who is vulnerable and easy to scare. Grace struggles with herself, and doesn't want her frantic husband to get to her sister, who is currently living in a boarding school.
The question that lies as you read this book is: how will Grace be able to tell the world that she's being held a prisoner, that her husband is a monster, with someone believing her? You certainly will not guess the answer until the end. That's why I love these kinds of books. The best authors keep it so secretive, so addicting until the last page where there is a hidden message and you need to reread the page over and over again until you completely understand what the author is trying to get at. B.A. Paris is one of those best authors.
I seriously recommend this to everyone, lover of thrillers or not. I am even telling my mom to read this, who rarely reads. You just keep guessing towards the end, and by the end of every chapter, we readers end up thinking that Grace has the chance, that she's able to conquer her battle and finally be able to leave Jack, but then, she doesn't. This proves how us humans are monsters, how there are messed up people wherever you go, and how we must be cautious, how we cannot trust anyone. I have always been told to never trust anyone a hundred percent, and that statement certainly works with anyone, young or old, and even in fiction.
I FELT SO MUCH PITY FOR GRACE. She is such a sweet, successful young woman, and it hurt me reading about her deterioration because of her husband, and how she was unable to be with her sister, friends, anyone. It killed me inside. This whole book did, and I needed to get into contemporary romance afterwards because this made me so emotional afterwards.
Behind Closed Doors will make you (1) cry, because you'll love Grace's character and only want the best for her and her sister, (2) never want to close your doors again—that's pretty self-explanatory, (3) scream, because of Jack's psychopathic-self and (4) fan yourself, because it's a wild ride and it's so damn good. I CANNOT WAIT UNTIL RELEASE DAY WHERE THE WHOLE WORLD WILL FALL IN LOVE. I feel like re-reading this or finding another psych-thriller to read right now. B.A. Paris, you are my favourite author.
*A review copy was provided by the publisher via BookExpo America in exchange for a honest review! Thank you so much!*
This was the second book I read from BEA this year, and I decided to pick it up during my psychological thriller phase right after. Well, a friend of mine was reading it after I gave her a copy, and she was going nuts. So I decided that it was my turn to experience such a messed-up story. Thankfully I decided to pick it up at that time or else I would have been miserable before I did my exams because I would've not read a good book. I flew by with this in a day and I couldn't stop reading because I NEEDED JACK TO DIE, GO TO JAIL OR ROT. One of the options. I NEEDED TO KNOW WHAT WOULD HAPPEN. I say that when I write every book review, but with Behind Closed Doors, I am serious. I would have gone psycho if I wasn't able to read the ending and enjoy it as much as I did.
One sentence to describe this psycho story? It's sick. Not in that teenage-boy-slang-way, but in a literal way. It's so messed up that Jack will haunt you at night, and you will be afraid to fall in love. Some authors make falling in love and marrying your true love so beautiful, so real, so easy, but B.A. Paris does the opposite and I seriously now don't know what my future will look like because I don't think I'll be able to trust any man. *looks at my dad cautiously* Hah, no, I'm kind of kidding, but I am still literally scared. I look at the cover of this literary brilliance, and I get scared like that.
I honestly expected this to be an abduction story. I thought that Grace would get abducted or something like that, thrown in a cellar. I wanted to lightly skim through the synopsis so I wouldn't initially make theories and predict how Grace would be able to save herself from this horrifying forced marriage, in a way, so I didn't know what I was coming into. I finished this so quickly, and I wanted to continue reading it forever and ever. Like now, I need to read all of the good adult thrillers: The Girl on the Train, Gone Girl, The Good Girl, anything. Just send me psychological thrillers. If you know me well, you'll know that this book falls in my favourite genre of books. I LOVED THIS TO DEATH.
"Go on, go and tell that person over there, or perhaps that one over there, that I am holding you prisoner, that I am a monster, a murderer. But first, look around you. Look around this beautiful restaurant I have brought you to, and think, think about the delicious food you are eating and the wonderful wine in your glass. Do you look as if you are a prisoner? Do I look as if I am a monster, a murderer? I think not. But if you want to go ahead, I won't stop you. I'm in the mood for some fun" (153).
I just wanted to hand you all an example of how sick Jack is. At the same time, I loved him, because without his screwed up personality, the book wouldn't be what it was. Basically, the plot revolves around Grace and Jack, who are a married couple in England. Grace is being held prisoner, unable to be free in the riches of her own home, stuck in a tiny room where she suffers constantly. She has a little sister, Millie, who has Down's Syndrome, and Grace soon discovers that Jack married Grace so he could have a way to get to Millie, who is vulnerable and easy to scare. Grace struggles with herself, and doesn't want her frantic husband to get to her sister, who is currently living in a boarding school.
The question that lies as you read this book is: how will Grace be able to tell the world that she's being held a prisoner, that her husband is a monster, with someone believing her? You certainly will not guess the answer until the end. That's why I love these kinds of books. The best authors keep it so secretive, so addicting until the last page where there is a hidden message and you need to reread the page over and over again until you completely understand what the author is trying to get at. B.A. Paris is one of those best authors.
I seriously recommend this to everyone, lover of thrillers or not. I am even telling my mom to read this, who rarely reads. You just keep guessing towards the end, and by the end of every chapter, we readers end up thinking that Grace has the chance, that she's able to conquer her battle and finally be able to leave Jack, but then, she doesn't. This proves how us humans are monsters, how there are messed up people wherever you go, and how we must be cautious, how we cannot trust anyone. I have always been told to never trust anyone a hundred percent, and that statement certainly works with anyone, young or old, and even in fiction.
I FELT SO MUCH PITY FOR GRACE. She is such a sweet, successful young woman, and it hurt me reading about her deterioration because of her husband, and how she was unable to be with her sister, friends, anyone. It killed me inside. This whole book did, and I needed to get into contemporary romance afterwards because this made me so emotional afterwards.
Behind Closed Doors will make you (1) cry, because you'll love Grace's character and only want the best for her and her sister, (2) never want to close your doors again—that's pretty self-explanatory, (3) scream, because of Jack's psychopathic-self and (4) fan yourself, because it's a wild ride and it's so damn good. I CANNOT WAIT UNTIL RELEASE DAY WHERE THE WHOLE WORLD WILL FALL IN LOVE. I feel like re-reading this or finding another psych-thriller to read right now. B.A. Paris, you are my favourite author.
*A review copy was provided by the publisher via BookExpo America in exchange for a honest review! Thank you so much!*
What is a recent good psychological thriller you have read? What is your favourite thriller of all time? What are some good thriller films?
I have an ARC of this one and have been hesitant about it. But I think I'm going to read it after your review! I'm hoping I'll be creeped out LOL...
ReplyDeleteYAY! I'm so happy that you already own it! Just go for it right now! That's the spirit!—every reader must embrace the creepiness XD! :D
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