Okay. I'm going to do my best to summarize this book, although it's one of those twisty stories, complete with an unreliable (or is she actually reliable) narrator. Daphne Marist, along with her infant daughter Chloe, are starting their lives over. Having used fake credentials and an assumed name, she has secured a live-in position as an archivist to an author who lives next to the grounds of an asylum. As the story continues, we discover that Daphne has tried to be a good mother but from the beginning, has been plagued with self-doubt and dark moods. When she's diagnosed with Post-Partum Mood Disorder, her husband suggests a local mother's group --- where Daphne meets Laurel. Laurel is everything Daphne isn't: smooth, sophisticated, and totally on top of the new mother thing. Or is she? Anyway, Laurel's daughter is also named Chloe. And as Daphne and Laurel start to mirror each other, the story is off and running . . . in a totally crazy direction.
It's very difficult most of the time to know if Daphne is telling the truth, if she is who she says she is, if we can believe her version of what happened, etc. This lends a completely off-kilter effect to the story, which, combined with the steadily increasing pace and sense of danger, made for a compelling read. Aforementioned mental hospital does (of course) come into play here, lending an ominous tone to the story. By the time I was reaching the climax of the story, I wasn't sure who was who or what was what, but I was completely hooked.
No comments:
Post a Comment