Behind Her Eyes

Not a lot I can say about this book without spoiling it. But man, do I want to tell you everything.

Yes, there are twists. The publisher created a whole media campaign for this book with #WTFthatending, for crying out loud. I almost would have enjoyed it more if they hadn't though. It's a slow plot, winding back and forth from the past and the present, jumping from character to character. At times you have to stop and wonder what is going on--what timeline are we in? Can we believe the narrative? And with a whole host of unlikeable characters, it's easy to take away a star.

I was intrigued through the end, and then it was ruined for me. I was with you, oh dark, psychological suspense. Bad people doing bad things. Never knowing who to trust. But I like being able to piece together the clues afterwards to see what I missed, and I just wouldn't have been able to get there with this one. Much like Adele, this book suffers from an identity crises.

I wanted to give it 4 stars but the ending pissed me off. Sticking with 3 for the gimmick more than anything.

When a blurb on a book says "The most shocking ending you will read all year" and "Read it before someone tells you the ending" I am hooked. I saw "Behind her eyes" browsing in a store, bought it and, being curious, finished it today. The hefty promise it makes can only be kept if you don't know anything at all about the book and that includes the genre.

As soon as it is clear where the journey goes, the possibility of shocking endings are very limited,, especially if you read your share of horror and supernatural novels. The second twist comes a bit more surprising but gets also strong hints a few pages before the end (and of course from the title of the book itself).

As such, "Behind her Eyes" is not a bad book. It's a fast paced, entertaining read with engaging characters and a strong "villain". The wrong advertising doesn't do it good, though. It is marketed and sold as a psychological thriller (and I should have been suspicious why such a book would have reviews by Neil Gaiman and Joe Hill quoted) and as that alone it is too weak. There are similiar books that manage to be dark, twisty and surprising without the help of supernatural elements, "Gone Girl" and "The Girl on the Train" come to mind.

As a horror story it's without any doubt very cleverly crafted and I for sure will at least browse it a second time with the ending in mind before throwing it in the "to be sold" box. But I was promised an innovative and shocking story and that falls flat if you are familiar with the plot device. Maybe readers who never read any horror or supernatural stories will genuinely be horrified. I felt rather cheated