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A review by nietzschesghost
Over My Shoulder by Patricia Dixon
4.0
'Over My Shoulder' is Patricia Dixon's second psychological thriller after signing a two-book deal with thriller publishers, Bloodhound Books. In theory, this shouldn't have worked for me, but I am pleased to report that it did. Even I was surprised by that! I would classify this as romance/domestic noir/romantic suspense rather than a full-blown thriller. Either way, it worked for me.
Freya meets Kane and falls head over heels for his charm and personality. Little does she know that he is rotten to the core. She begins to fall under his spell, and once she is under the thumb she finds it impossible to escape. This is difficult to read in parts due to some of the abuse Freya is subjected to. Every move she makes is controlled by Kane, and she feels her life is no longer hers any longer. The story reads a lot like a memoir as it is told in first-person narrative and tells the harrowing tale of Freya's ordeal at the hands of a psychotic boyfriend. Compelling, emotionally resonant and very disturbing - I felt I struggled at times with how bad it got for Freya.
Well written, pacy and deeply dark, this is a book I am not likely to forget in a hurry. The characters are realistic and believable and are developed really well. I do feel that you need to be able to suspend your disbelief if you are to enjoy reading it, and if you particularly appreciate crime fiction that is as close to reality as possible, you may want to avoid this. However, I did enjoy it but felt there was a lot of emphasis on the way Kane treated Freya and not enough on helping her to be strong enough to escape from his clutches. I like the idea of books showing confident women who are no-nonsense and don't stand for being treated badly, this then serves to empower real women who may be REALLY going through this situation.
Many thanks to Bloodhound Books for an ARC. I was not required to post a review, and all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.
Freya meets Kane and falls head over heels for his charm and personality. Little does she know that he is rotten to the core. She begins to fall under his spell, and once she is under the thumb she finds it impossible to escape. This is difficult to read in parts due to some of the abuse Freya is subjected to. Every move she makes is controlled by Kane, and she feels her life is no longer hers any longer. The story reads a lot like a memoir as it is told in first-person narrative and tells the harrowing tale of Freya's ordeal at the hands of a psychotic boyfriend. Compelling, emotionally resonant and very disturbing - I felt I struggled at times with how bad it got for Freya.
Well written, pacy and deeply dark, this is a book I am not likely to forget in a hurry. The characters are realistic and believable and are developed really well. I do feel that you need to be able to suspend your disbelief if you are to enjoy reading it, and if you particularly appreciate crime fiction that is as close to reality as possible, you may want to avoid this. However, I did enjoy it but felt there was a lot of emphasis on the way Kane treated Freya and not enough on helping her to be strong enough to escape from his clutches. I like the idea of books showing confident women who are no-nonsense and don't stand for being treated badly, this then serves to empower real women who may be REALLY going through this situation.
Many thanks to Bloodhound Books for an ARC. I was not required to post a review, and all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.