Everyone knows a couple like Jack and Grace.
He has looks and wealth, she has charm and elegance. You might not want to like them, but you do. Though, you’d like to get to know Grace better.
But it’s difficult, because you realise Jack and Grace are never apart.
Some might call this true love. Others might ask why Grace never answers the phone. Or how she can never meet for coffee, even though she doesn’t work. How she can cook such elaborate meals but remain so slim. And why there are bars on one of the bedroom windows.
Sometimes, the perfect marriage is the perfect lie.
My thoughts:
When I was reading the first chapter of Behind Closed Doors everything seemed normal. A successful dinner party hosted by a happily married couple. But just a few pages later I wanted to go back and read it again. So I could see how I was completely fooled. Jack is a monster. Never with his fists, with him it’s all psychological games and threats. The only reason that Grace kept going was her devotion to her younger sister Millie.
The novel switches between past and present so the reader meets Jack when Grace does. And just like Grace did, loves the way that he was with Millie. And also like Grace, believes everything that he says and does. It was a shock how swiftly he showed what he really wanted and the way that he did it. I liked both periods equally, reading the past became much easier to read as Grace learned how to play Jack at his own game.
There was nothing that I didn’t like about this novel, it was a very addictive read that I read in a few hours. It could easily be one of the biggest books of the year.
With thanks to the publisher for the copy received via NetGalley.
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