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)

Gillian Flynn never disappoints

another great perfectly written book. you just never know how it is going to end.

Could not finish - made me depressed

So I can’t say if this is a good book or not, but after 2 hours of listening, I just had to stop - very dark book and the performance is also dark.

Other 2 books were better

I loved Gillian Flynn’s other 2 books (Sharp Objects and Gone Girl). I started this one on Audible, but it was going by too slow, I borrowed the book from my daughter and finished it in a night. The reading of the book is great, but the plot drags and I can read so much faster than listening at 1.3x. Any faster and it sounds too much like gibberish. I was engaged enough to want to know what happened, but the plot and twist weren’t as elaborate as the other books she’s written. I’d recommend to is one if you had some time to spare and need a filler novel to listen to.

Excellent

The performance is unparalleled, bravo. The story is riveting and superbly written. I suppose the likelihood of both sides of this crime happening in the same night is ultimately unlikely (once the plot twist is revealed), however it fits the family and main character’s narrative perfectly. While the whole thing feels desolate, dismal at many turns, that is the point and it is exquisitely captured in detail. Will be reading more Gillian Flynn.

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.

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.

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

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

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.