Sunday, April 28, 2013

Into The Darkest Corner [Haynes]

Book: Into the Darkest Corner
Author: Elizabeth Haynes

Review: In 2003, Catherine Bailey is young, fun and thrilled to meet handsome Lee Brightman. She and her friends agree, she is so lucky to have found such a great guy. In 2007, Cathy Bailey has a severe case of obsessive compulsive disorder, checking locks, door frames and taking different routes home everyday.  Told in alternating timelines, we follow Catherine's relationship with Lee as it slowly morphs from fairytale to nightmare, and Cathy's story as she struggles to overcome her fears and anxieties to live a normal life. 

Have you ever finished a book and immediately wanted to talk to someone about it? This is one of those books. There is a thin line between love and hate and Haynes does a masterful job tracing the relationship from the exciting beginning to the bitter end. The alternating time lines (there are no chapters) drew me into the story quickly. I was rooting for Cathy to succeed just as I feared what was going to happen to Catherine. The most shocking part of this read is that my perception of battered women (which boiled down to: leave) was altered. I can understand why certain behaviors that raise red flags can initially be seen as flattering and how one can rationalize the behavior as 'simply being over protective' or something of that nature. 

Overall-haunting read. I finished this several weeks ago and I'm thinking about it and recommending it to people. 


Grade: 5 stars