Into the Darkest Corner [Kindle Edition]

Elizabeth Haynes (Author)

Book Description

Catherine Bailey has been enjoying the single life long enough to know a catch when she sees one. Gorgeous, charismatic and spontaneous, Lee seems almost too perfect to be true. And her friends clearly agree, as each in turn falls under his spell.

But what begins as flattering attentiveness and passionate sex turns into raging jealousy, and Catherine soon learns there is a darker side to Lee. His increasingly erratic, controlling behaviour becomes frightening, but no one believes her when she shares her fears. Increasingly isolated and driven into the darkest corner of her world, a desperate Catherine plans a meticulous escape.

Four years later, Lee is behind bars and Catherine—now Cathy—compulsively checks the locks and doors in her apartment, trusting no one. But when an attractive upstairs neighbour, Stuart, comes into her life, Cathy dares to hope that happiness and love may still be possible . . . until she receives a phone call informing her of Lee’s impending release. Soon after, Cathy thinks she catches a glimpse of the former best friend who testified against her in the trial; she begins to return home to find objects subtly rearranged in her apartment, one of Lee’s old tricks. Convinced she is back in her former lover’s sights, Cathy prepares to wrestle with the demons of her past for the last time.

Utterly convincing in its portrayal of obsession, Into the Darkest corner is an ingeniously structured and plotted tour de force of suspense that marks the arrival of a major new talent.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Many times as I was reading Into the Darkest Corner, the refrain from that old R&B song kept replaying in my head: "It's a thin line between love and hate..." Apologies, as it'll now be stuck in yours for the next couple of days, but Elizabeth Haynes' highly suspenseful and cleverly crafted psychological thriller will haunt you for much longer. In it we find our obsessive-compulsive heroine, Catherine Bailey, checking and rechecking her door locks six times, eschewing red clothing, shopping only on certain days--clearly something horrible has happened, and Haynes masterfully teases out the disturbing details, which involve a Jekyll and Hyde boyfriend. As the story unfolds, it provides subtle insight into why, despite red flags and bruises, someone would stay in an abusive relationship, and it makes you root for Catherine all the more to overcome the psychological fallout. If you're a fan of cinematic showdowns, you won't be disappointed. But the quietly powerful moments in Haynes' narrative resonate even more, as she illustrates that one of the bravest things someone can do is lock the door behind her, maybe five or six times, and step out into an uncertain world again. --Erin Kodicek

Review

“Gripping psychological thriller. . . . Haynes puts the reader into Bailey’s mind and the result is a grim, dark and extremely difficult story. The feelings of isolation and helplessness ooze off the page. . . A compelling first novel.” (Associated Press )

“A scary and superbly written debut thriller.” (Library Journal, starred review )

“A harrowing psychological thriller….A terrifying and convincing portrayal of an abusive relationship and a damaged woman’s heroic attempts to recover from it.” (Publishers Weekly, starred review )

“Into the Darkest Corner is a gripping page-turner that will suck you in from the first scene and not let you go you until it reaches its stunning conclusion.” (Chevy Stevens, author of Never Knowing and Still Missing )

“This intense, gripping account of domestic violence and its aftermath is utterly unputdownable. A stunning debut.” (S.J. Watson, author of Before I Go to Sleep )

“A chilling, page-turning read, which charts domestic violence without flinching and portrays OCD with insight and compassion.” (Rosamund Lupton, author of Sister )

“Check the locks on your doors and windows and surrender to this obsessive thriller.” (Karin Slaughter, author of Fallen )

“Gripping.” (The Guardian )

“Fantastic.” (Newbooks Magazine )

“A chilling page-turner.” (Booklist )

“Chilling.” (The Book Case, 20 summer standouts )

“A tour de force début novel that is both creepily disturbing and yet beautifully rendered.” (Sam Millar, New York Journal of Books )

“Unforgettable.” (Kathleen Heady, Deadly Suspense magazine )

“Haynes is a master at building tension to unbearable heights, and her thorough and thoughtful exploration of the psychological fallout of abuse adds a unique layer to the story….Into the Darkest Corner is a terrifying thriller.” (BookPage )

“Gripping….A compelling first novel.” (Jeff Ayers, Associated Press )

“In this violent, gripping suspense novel, a woman with obsessive compulsive disorder lives in fear of her unstable, stalker ex-boyfriend.” (Wall Street Journal )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• File Size: 814 KB
• Print Length: 611 pages
• Page Numbers Source ISBN: 0062201433
• Publisher: Harper; Reprint edition (February 20, 2013)
• Sold by: HarperCollins Publishers
• Language: English
• ASIN: B007HC3LHS
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Enabled
• Lending: Not Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,913 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
  • #45 in Books > Mystery, Thriller & Suspense > Thrillers > Psychological Thrillers

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

195 of 202 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars The title says it all! May 1, 2012

By rgregg VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

This book by Elizabeth Haynes was Amazon's UK Best Book of the Year when it was published last year and has already sold film rights. It deserves to be a best seller in this country in July.
A quick no spoiler recap and a few warnings in this review.
The story begins with a transcript from a 2005 trial in the UK which the reader will be compelled to go back and read a number of times as they travel through this riveting story.
In 2007, Catherine Bailey is a woman inflicted with a severe case of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. She lives in fear of everything including but not limited to serious relationships. Then the story swiftly flashes back to late 2003 where Catherine is a normal business woman living a normal live but seeking to find the right man to fulfill her life.
Every few pages the story moves back and forth through these time phases as the writer fills in numerous gaps to explain how this normal woman became one who epitomizes OCD.
In each of these time frames, Catherine becomes involved with a man. These two men, one a mysterious man with hidden motives and one a doctor who takes a serious interest in her for various reasons are vital parts of this fascinating story. She has no parents so her female friends and a sympathetic police woman also become major elements of her life.
A few warnings. This is a story of violent physical and mental abuse. It incorporates rape and other methods of physical and sexual torture. In many other books these types of plot turns would simply be for sensationalism. In this incredible tale, these plot turns are vital and fundamental to the story that Haynes is telling.
This is a long book (about 400 pages) and at around page 250, I was thinking I had already learned more about OCD than I ever wanted to know. Also the plot seemed to slow down and some of the elements became repetitive. However, the last 100+ pages are stunning and page turning. All of the previous pages then become more important to understand each and every dramatic twist that occurs. And actually one walks away with a strong perspective about OCD and some of the causes and effects and potential cures.
Some may criticize the conclusion as predicable and cinematic but stay tuned to the last pages to understand what separates "Into the Darkest Corner" from other novels of violent relationships. The reader will walk with a better understanding of how women deal with abuse in their lives. This book is worth reading by women and men as the story imparts some valuable lessons.
It's a first novel by this marvelous and creative writer and she is a name to be reckoned with! Order it in advance and be prepared for a few late Summer nights of valuable and unforgettable reading.

74 of 80 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Gripping May 3, 2012

By Amy Leemon VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

This book may be different from any book you'll read this year. It's harsh and gripping. It alternates chapters between two different time periods but with each one you feel you're on a roller coaster heading for disaster.

Catherine Bailey starts out as a happy, carefree young woman enjoying herself and her friends. But she meets the wrong man and slowly becomes a person who is terrorized and almost killed. The descriptions of OCD are gripping. Her fear jumps off the pages and the reader is carried along with it. Sometimes I had to put the book down to come back to my own safe reality.

This book is not for faint at heart but it is a very good book. And the ending leaves you thinking.

51 of 58 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars fascinating suspense May 5, 2012

By Robin Landry TOP 500 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

In The Darkest Corner is a layered suspense novel that will scare you to death. What's so frightening about Darkest Corner is that it can and does happen to people every day. Who wouldn't be attractive to a drop-dead gorgeous man who's absolutely obsessed with you? Who isn't looking for the perfect mate, who cares where you are all the time? Who cares what you wear to the point of distraction? Who makes all your friends green with envy?

And what happens when that obsession turns frightening instead of flattering? Haynes has written an amazing debut novel that will keep her readers up far into the night as they try not to see similar behavior to Lee Brightman in their own mates. A character worthy of the plucky heroine, Cathy Bailey, Lee is the perfect date when she first meets him. Physically perfect right down to his clear blue eyes and golden blonde hair, Lee makes Cathy the envy of all of her friends. The relationship starts out perfect. Lee is the kind of man Cathy's been looking for all her life, until little things start to happen. Maybe the sex was a little rough one time, or maybe Lee is a little tiring about the red silk dress he's first seen Cathy in, insisting she wear it would be inappropriate to do so.

With the line between falling in love and obsession so thin, Cathy doubts herself when she starts to think that Lee might not be so perfect after all. When she tries to tell her friends, they brush her off, doubtless because they wish they had a man was perfect of their own.

While there are many books that follow the same sort of plotting, what sets Darkest Corner apart is Cathy's Obsessive Compulsion Disorder(OCD). Funny when you think about it, she comes down with a disorder that causes her to check the locks on her house to the point of ruining her life, when it's Lee's obsessive behavior that causes the disorder in the first place. Maybe OCD should be labeled Obsessive Compulsive Behavior Caused By Some Jerk With Serious Mental Issues, but that might be too many initials. Getting rid of the idea that someone a person just comes down with crazy coping mechanisms.

OCD is mapped out carefully in Darkest Corner, and shows how it can be overcome, something that sets this book above the usual run-of-the-mill girl being stalked by crazy boyfriend. Also, the time line goes back and forth between before Cathy's near murder by Lee, and her coping with her OCD afterwards. Great plot device.

I really liked this book because unlike other books where a woman is abused and then rescued, Darkest Corner shows the heroine going into the deepest corners of her own shadow side and finding the strength to make it back out to the light. How Cathy was chosen by Lee probably because her parents were dead, leaving her with only her girlfriends for backup, and that didn't turn out well.

Great book to have on a plane, or to give to the girlfriends knowing how much it will spook them. And who doesn't like to be the first to discover a new author?

More About the Author

Elizabeth Haynes is a police intelligence analyst. She started writing fiction in 2006 with the annual challenge of National Novel Writing Month (Nanowrimo) and the encouragement of the creative writing courses at West Dean College. She lives in a village near Maidstone, Kent, with her husband and son. Into the Darkest Corner is her first novel. Visit her website at www.elizabeth-haynes.com.