Dark Places

"⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2 disturbingly grim and ominous. GF knows how to make you uncomfortable in the best of ways"

"My favorite of Flynn’s books that I’ve heard the least about. So creative and well narrated "

"This book is DARK, no pun intended. Every character was a bad person in some way, shape or form and it almost made the book more compelling? Gillian Flynn was masterful at keeping the reader on their toes. I had my guesses on the truth about the Day murders (and I ended being pretty close), but she still managed to make me doubt and question everyone. She also managed to insert important details just subtly enough that you knew they were going to be important later but you kind of forgot about them until they smacked you in the face. What I enjoyed the most about this novel though were the themes. It thoroughly explored how trauma can stunt a person’s emotional maturity, through both Libby’s need for attention, hiding from her problems and the underlying desire to be cared for and rescued, just like how she behaved when she was 7. Similarly, Ben’s behavior of stubbornly trying to be a man in the most naive manner echoed his 15-year-old self hauntingly. The other theme I recognized and really enjoyed was the pointed criticism of the true crime fan community. Flynn takes every opportunity to make caricatures of true crimes fans, especially when showing interactions between the unfortunately named “Kill Club” and Libby. They dissected and prodded and attacked Libby, treating her like an actor in their favorite show, forgetting that Libby was a human being. That these murders that they have so much fun solving are that of her family that she LIVED through. But they didn’t care: they just wanted a juicy story. I think that echoes through the ending of the mystery. The reader expects this big juicy story about why these three people were murdered and the reality, although bleak, is not as sensationalized. It opens one’s eyes to the fact that they are just like the “Kill Club” by finding entertainment in this story when it is only one thing: a senseless tragedy. "

"This was my first Gillian Flynn novel and I was absorbed the whole time. It did feel dark but I definitely wanted to find out what happened. It was very interesting getting 3 different perspectives. "

"Idk. This one just didn't work for me. "

"The ending…WOW! So good, very emotional."

"Another good story by this author. A little dark, a little sad; but the characters are believable. A young girl is the sole survivor of a horrific home invasion crime that killed her mother and two sisters. Her older brother was convicted of the heinous crime. As a young adult she is now ready to seek the truth…."

"Libby Day is a troubled woman with an even more troublesome past. Dark and twisty, this book really lives up to its title. A real page turner."

"The premise of this book was absolutely perfect for a thriller, mystery, and intense plot. The plot was captivating, but at times I felt uneasy or very disgusted as I read. The description of crimes were very detailed and grotesque. I found the main character, Libby, to be the most surprising aspect throughout the book. Specifically, her brutal honesty about who she was as a person and why she did the things the way she did. I liked that about her and made her search for answers about other characters more enthralling. I’m going to remember how dark this book is which I really should have seen coming based on the title. Thinking about it now, the ending seems absurd, but reading it felt like it fit into the plot and the character’s motives as well. I will probably forget much of the plot in a few weeks but I was hooked during the time I spent reading this book. Due to the scumminess of the crimes I probably will not be picking up another Flynn novel anytime soon. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys crime podcast, thrillers, or fans of Lisa Jewell. 3/5 stars. "

"4.5/5 I couldn't put this down it was so interesting.I was back and forth on how it was gonna end I love our main character her personality was fun to read from she has dry sense of humor.The writing is so descriptive I was easily watching a movie in my head which btw it is an actual movie but skip the movie it was so bad and cringe the book was genuinely so much better. Gillian flynn writes such dark books and themes I would be cautious and always check trigger warnings I loved how intense and thrilling the ending was "