Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn

Sharp Objects: A Novel
Synopsis:

WICKED above her hipbone, GIRL across her heart 

Words are like a road map to reporter Camille Preaker’s troubled past. Fresh from a brief stay at a psych hospital, Camille’s first assignment from the second-rate daily paper where she works brings her reluctantly back to her hometown to cover the murders of two preteen girls.

NASTY on her kneecap, BABYDOLL on her leg 

Since she left town eight years ago, Camille has hardly spoken to her neurotic, hypochondriac mother or to the half-sister she barely knows: a beautiful thirteen-year-old with an eerie grip on the town. Now, installed again in her family’s Victorian mansion, Camille is haunted by the childhood tragedy she has spent her whole life trying to cut from her memory.

HARMFUL on her wrist, WHORE on her ankle 

As Camille works to uncover the truth about these violent crimes, she finds herself identifying with the young victims—a bit too strongly. Clues keep leading to dead ends, forcing Camille to unravel the psychological puzzle of her own past to get at the story. Dogged by her own demons, Camille will have to confront what happened to her years before if she wants to survive this homecoming.

With its taut, crafted writing, Sharp Objects is addictive, haunting, and unforgettable.

Review:

I had a very hard time getting into Sharp Objects. In fact, I never really did. I just finished it to see what would happen and if I were correct in my thoughts on who the murderer was. I didn't expect to be right since I have not been able to figure out the ending of the other two books by the author, both of which I really enjoyed. 

Camille gets sent back to her hometown to report on the death of two young girls. She stays with her family who are all crazy and messed up. A lot of people in the town are just...really most of the interactions with most of the people are so strange. It is like a town full of strange people. Pretty quick I had my suspicions as to who the murderer was. It never really changed throughout the book, even though the author tried to make it seem like someone else close to that person was doing it. I never really bought that, even though they were responsible for other harm and death to someone else.

I never really connected with any of the characters and I think that might be why I had a hard time connecting with the book in general. As I said everyone is so strange. I couldn't identify with most of the people in the story. I couldn't quite grasp why they were so odd for me, why everything that happened was so off for me. Camille's mom just seems crazy, her step dad like he is just in his own world, her half sister is ferocious and scary, everyone just...I wouldn't want to spend any time in this town. The detective brought in from out of town to help with the case...well he wasn't really any better. I could never get a feel for him, or as I said already anyone. It was very confusing for me as I didn't get it. 

The one thing I did like about the book was Camille's obsession with words. I found that very interesting. It was interesting how she started just writing down everything, how she would then cut words into her skin, how she clung to words. It was my favorite part of the story. I didn't like Camille though. She was so weak and needy. I understood why, but she never really seemed to grow or anything. She was just all over the place for me and I didn't understand why she did some of the things she did. 

Overall it was a very strange read for me. The killer was who I thought it was from the start. I just could never get into the story or identify with anyone. I really have no real feelings toward the book. I didn't hate it, I didn't really dislike it, I didn't love it or even like it either. It is one of those books that will just fade into the background for me. Very odd. 

Rating: 2/5