Behind Closed Doors

St. Martin's Press

Behind Closed Doors
B.A. Paris
2016

The Summary
"Everyone knows a couple like Jack and Grace.

"He has looks and wealth; she has charm and elegance.  He's a dedicated attorney who has never lost a case; she's a flawless homemaker and a masterful gardener and cook, and she dotes on her disabled younger sister.  Though they're still newlyweds, they seem to have it all.  You might not want to like them, but you do.  You're hopelessly charmed by the ease and comfort of their home, by the graciousness of the dinner parties they throw.  You'd like to get to know Grace better.

"But it's difficult, because you realize Jack and Grace are inseparable.

"Some might call this true love.  Others might wonder why Grace never answers the phone.  Or why she can never meet for coffee, even though she doesn't work.  How she can cook such elaborate meals but remain so slim.  Or why she never seems to take anything with her when she leaves the house, not even a pen.  Or why there are such high-security metal shutters on all the downstairs windows.

"Some might wonder what's really going on once the dinner parties are over and the front door has closed."

The Good
Behind Closed Doors crossed my desk purely by accident when I glanced through a stack of newly cataloged books--and I was hooked by the first page.  Honestly, I was probably caught a little earlier than that when I skimmed the jacket cover and read:  "The perfect marriage?  Or the perfect lie?"

Moreover, I read this little gem on the back cover that came from Publishers Weekly, which read:

"Appearances can be deceiving[.]  Terror is contagious...and impending peril creates a ticking clock that propels this claustrophobic cat-and-mouse tale toward its grisly, gratifying conclusion."

It sounded slightly scandalous, and more than a little terrifying.  I couldn't wait to dive in.

The plot is simple, straightforward affair.  At its core, Behind Closed Doors is a survival story; however, it hinges upon the suspense which the author builds as she slowly peels back the layers of Grace's story and reveals the monster behind Jack's angelic facade.  (See what I did there, huh?)  It's a psychological thriller and an abuse survivor story rolled all into one--and it will take your breath away.

It was a wonderful book, and I enjoyed reading Grace's narrative.  She's an eloquent narrator who evokes quick emotional responses, because it feels like she could be anyone--a mother, a daughter, a sister, a friend.  Literally, anyone.  And it's so easy to get wrapped up in her story, to feel her gut-wrenching desperation and her dwindling feelings of hope.

And I found it so very, very easy to enjoy the ending.  I don't want to ruin anything, so I won't go into detail, but the conclusion was incredibly gratifying--one would almost say liberating.

The Bad
I like that Paris flashes back to the past, and I like that she gives her readers insight into Jack and Grace's relationship (such as it is).  It helps to flesh out the story, which I really appreciated; however, I couldn't help skimming these chapters for the simple fact that I wanted, more than anything, to find out what happens to Grace.

Yeah, sure, I liked the detail.  It told me a little more about Jack and his psychosis; it told me a little about Grace and her beloved sister.  But I knew Jack was a maniac right out of the gate.  I didn't need more detail telling me what I already knew; instead, I wanted to know if Grace could rescue herself and save her sister.

More importantly, I wanted to know if Jack suffered.

Priorities, you know?

The Ugly
This book made me feel a lot of emotions--and very few of them were good.

If it isn't obvious from the novel summary, Grace's husband, Jack, is not a good person; in fact, he's a horrible person and I despised him from the very beginning.  Even in the first chapter, in which Grace seems to be intentionally vague about her relationship with Jack, you get the feeling that all is not well.  There are red flags that make you perk up, like a dog hearing a whistle, and you can't help thinking, "Something isn't right here."

Well, something wasn't right.

As the story progressed, things went from bad to worse.  Listening to Grace's story, watching with appalled fascination as her terrible ordeal unfolded, I couldn't help feeling very strongly that Jack needed to be stabbed.  Repeatedly.  Possibly drowned for good measure.  As I got to know Grace and her sister, Millie, I couldn't feeling very strongly that Jack needed to die.

Honestly, Behind Closed Doors made me feel very violent, like abnormally violent.  I couldn't stand Jack--and it's all because of an incident with a dog.  I mean, don't get me wrong, I felt so bad for Grace and Millie and the psychological terror they must have endured; however, I was absolutely heartbroken for the dog.

I realize something of this nature had to happen.  It was just one more way of convincing the reader that Jack is horrible and depraved and, in a word, evil.  But I just couldn't handle it.  I can't stand when animals are hurt or killed in books.  My little heart just can't take it.  Besides which, I realize I am not a nice person when something happens to a dog.

I wished all manner of terrible things on Jack.  I even had to skip to the end of the book and find out the ending, so I could reassure myself that I wasn't setting myself up for complete and utter devastation.  Luckily, as one of the book blurbs attests, it has a grisly but oh, so satisfying ending.

That's the only thing that kept me going.