Dark Places

A Novel

By: Gillian Flynn

Narrated by: Rebecca Lowman, Cassandra Campbell, Mark Deakins, Robertson Dean

Length: 13 hrs and 44 mins

Publisher's summary

Libby Day was seven when her mother and two sisters were murdered in "The Satan Sacrifice of Kinnakee, Kansas". As her family lay dying, little Libby fled their tiny farmhouse into the freezing January snow. She lost some fingers and toes, but she survived, and famously testified that her 15-year-old brother, Ben, was the killer.

Twenty-five years later, Ben sits in prison, and troubled Libby lives off the dregs of a trust created by well-wishers who've long forgotten her.

The Kill Club is a macabre secret society obsessed with notorious crimes. When they locate Libby and pump her for details, proof they hope may free Ben, Libby hatches a plan to profit off her tragic history. For a fee, she'll reconnect with the players from that night and report her findings to the club...and maybe she'll admit her testimony wasn't so solid after all.

As Libby's search takes her from shabby Missouri strip clubs to abandoned Oklahoma tourist towns, the narrative flashes back to January 2, 1985. The events of that day are relayed through the eyes of Libby's doomed family members, including Ben, a loner whose rage over his shiftless father and their failing farm have driven him into a disturbing friendship with the new girl in town.

Piece by piece, the unimaginable truth emerges, and Libby finds herself right back where she started...on the run from a killer.

©2009 Gillian Flynn (P)2009 Random House

Critic reviews

"Gillian Flynn is the real deal, a sharp, acerbic, and compelling storyteller with a knack for the macabre." (Stephen King)

"A gritty, riveting thriller with a one-of-a-kind, tart-tongued heroine." (Booklist)

“A riveting tale of true horror by a writer who has all the gifts to pull it off.” (Chicago Tribune)

Seemed to drag

I felt like this book just went on and on and on. I could not finish it.

Extremely average. Long run for a short slide

OK description of Life in Missouri. However nothing really happened till the very end. And that was also not too exciting. No significant twists- not very believable. No comparison to Gone Girl.

Great read

I would recommend this book. It was perfectly paced. You really felt for the characters. The narration was good. I know they had a few people narrate, which would have been great if they sounded a little different from each other. Other than that, I was greatly pleased

Dark, disturbing mystery

A good mystery, some characters very well drawn, others less believable. Also one of those stories where you might feel compassion for some of the characters, but they are hard to like.

Gillian gained a new fan!

This was my first Gillian Flynn book and it will not be the last! I highly recommend it!

Enjoyable

This was a really engaging story. I did not like the narrator, but it didn't turn me off from the story at all. There's something inherintly more fascinating about deeply flawed & sometimes unlikable characters driving the plot. Not my favorite book by this author, but still enjoyed passing the time with this audiobook. The performance was great.

Always guessing

This book was well written. Full of twists and a couple parts that made me almost shut it off…. But would read it again

Flynn's endings are weak and shameful...

Brilliant writer, overall story and ideas were really good, but the ending is just painful and disappointing. This is my second story that Flynn wrote and its been the same with both, im really excited about the story and where its headed, then when it finally gets to the conclusion I'm so upset and by that point I don't even feel it was worth my time or credit!!! She's got to work on her endings because when I found out who Killed the "Days" I just laughed and rolled my eyes, it surprised me, yes, but not in a good way, in a way that's like"whatever", it's not believable and it's just pathetic.

Not Exactly a Thriller and not Exactly a Mystery

The story follows mostly Libby and her quest for the truth of her family's murder. A lot of this story was told in flashback, and I loved how the tension slowly ratcheted up as the characters hurdled towards their fate. This isn't an action thriller or a mystery as such. I felt like it was more of a personal transformation story with elements of thriller and mystery woven into it. I liked it. True, the story is gory and gruesome at times, but I doubt you'll put this book down. The author is very skilled at pulling the reader in and taking them to dark places.

Great listen

Riveting and well-written with a fabulous voice cast. Loved listening to this one!