A review by wordsgirlie
The Perfect Child by Lucinda Berry

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot

4.5

psychological thriller.
— slow-paced, multiple povs

“why did the universe allow people who hurt kids to have them? why couldn’t give them to people like me, who wanted them?”

this is my first lucinda berry book and i absolutely ate it all up. the story follows hannah and christopher, a happily married surgeon and nurse with picture-perfect lives. all that’s missing is a child. when janie, an abandoned six-year-old, turns up at their hospital, christopher forms an instant connection with her, and he convinces hannah they should take her home as their own.

first of all, i finished the whole story in just a few hours because it is literally a page-turner. the plot was indeed amazing. i got immediately interested after reading the first few chapters. i like the writing style and it was very easy to understand. it actually had the ‘orphan’ movie vibes in it, and i love how the mystery and suspense built up as the story goes. the characters are so effectively irritating and they definitely tested my patience. hannah is the only character i like in this book. on the other hand, christopher is so stupid and blind when it comes to hannah’s struggles and it made me loathe him more. 

to be honest, i somehow dislike the ending of this book because it was a cliffhanger and i am looking for something more. but overall, this is still one of my best psychological thriller reads so far. i am horrified, mad, and frustrated the entire time i was reading this book. if you’re looking for a psychological book that’s horrifying but emotional at the same time, you should definitely pick this book up.
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