AUDIO BOOK REVIEW FOR - DARK PLACES - BY: GILLIAN FLYNN

pic and description taken from amazon.com

DESCRIPTION:

Libby Day was seven when her mother and two sisters were murdered in "The Satan Sacrifice of Kinnakee, Kansas". As her family lay dying, little Libby fled their tiny farmhouse into the freezing January snow. She lost some fingers and toes, but she survived, and famously testified that her 15-year-old brother, Ben, was the killer.

Twenty-five years later, Ben sits in prison, and troubled Libby lives off the dregs of a trust created by well-wishers who've long forgotten her.

The Kill Club is a macabre secret society obsessed with notorious crimes. When they locate Libby and pump her for details, proof they hope may free Ben, Libby hatches a plan to profit off her tragic history. For a fee, she'll reconnect with the players from that night and report her findings to the club...and maybe she'll admit her testimony wasn't so solid after all.

As Libby's search takes her from shabby Missouri strip clubs to abandoned Oklahoma tourist towns, the narrative flashes back to January 2, 1985. The events of that day are relayed through the eyes of Libby's doomed family members, including Ben, a loner whose rage over his shiftless father and their failing farm have driven him into a disturbing friendship with the new girl in town.

Piece by piece, the unimaginable truth emerges, and Libby finds herself right back where she started...on the run from a killer.

MY REVIEW / THOUGHTS:

Obviously, I am in a scary book mood.  This book was dark and twisty, and fabulous. 

Libby has only one remaining sibling left after a horrific tragedy has hit her family.  Libby and her brother who is in jail for killing their mother and sisters.

Libby has lived her life on some trust money that was set up by some well wishers from what happened to her family.    When her accountant lets her know the money is out, Libby is desperate to find a way to make some money.

She is contacted by a group called "The Kill Club" that is obsessed with crimes.  One crime they are thoroughly interested in is Libby's, and they are willing to pay her money to learn more about it.  The Kill Club is wanting to find a way to prove Libby's brother Ben innocent of his crimes.  

25 Years Libby has had to live with the knowledge that her brother brutally murdered her family.  Not once did she think that he might be innocent.  Not until now.  Libby finally decides to visit her brother in prison for the firs time.  She is hoping to get some kind of answers about why he did what he did.

Holy moly, this story is intense.  The characters are so complex, and disturbing.  Every one of them seems to have some kind of issue.  Some kind of story to tell.  Seriously, this book is so twisted and fantastic.

What happens after Libby's visit to the jail, is full of mystery, suspense, and thrills.  There are always two sides to a story, and sometimes the other side is even darker than what you have known your whole life.  Libby finds this out the hard way.

Now, what I think you should know is that in my opinion this is an adult book.  There is a lot of language and some sexual content.  So I would not recommend this book to a teenager.

Source:  I bought this book for myself.  I was not compensated in any way for this review.  These are my own PERSONAL thoughts on the book.

Content:  Language, murder (pretty descriptive at times), sexual content.

MY RATING:

WHERE TO BUY:

    

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

pic and bio taken from Goodreads

Gillian Flynn is an American author and television critic for Entertainment Weekly. She has so far written three novels, Sharp Objects, for which she won the 2007 Ian Fleming Steel Dagger for the best thriller; Dark Places; and her best-selling third novel Gone Girl.

Her book has received wide praise, including from authors such as Stephen King. The dark plot revolves around a serial killer in a Missouri town, and the reporter who has returned from Chicago to cover the event. Themes include dysfunctional families,violence and self-harm.

In 2007 the novel was shortlisted for the Mystery Writers of America Edgar for Best First Novel by an American Writer, Crime Writers' Association Duncan Lawrie, CWA New Blood and Ian Fleming Steel Daggers, winning in the last two categories.

Flynn, who lives in Chicago, grew up in Kansas City, Missouri. She graduated at the University of Kansas, and qualified for a Master's degree from Northwestern University.