Into the Darkest Corner

By: Elizabeth Haynes

Narrated by: David Thorpe, Karen Cass

Length: 13 hrs and 58 mins

Publisher's summary

AMAZON BOOK OF THE YEAR 2011

WINNER OF AMAZON RISING STARS 2011

AMAZON EDITORS' CHOICE BEST CRIME NOVEL OF 2011

LONGLISTED FOR CWA JOHN CREASEY (NEW BLOOD) DAGGER 2011

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

But there is a darker side to Lee. His erratic, controlling and sometimes frightening behaviour means that Catherine is increasingly isolated. Driven into the darkest corner of her world, and trusting no one, she plans a meticulous escape. Four years later, struggling to overcome her demons, Catherine dares to believe she might be safe from harm. Until one phone call changes everything.

This is an edgy and powerful first novel, utterly convincing in its portrayal of obsession, and a tour de force of suspense.

©2012 Elizabeth Haynes (P)2012 Audible Ltd

Critic reviews

"Check the locks on your doors and windows and surrender to this obsessive thriller." (Karin Slaughter)

“This intense, gripping account of domestic violence and its aftermath is utterly unputdownable. A stunning debut.” (SJ Watson)

“From its uncompromising prologue - a young woman being bludgeoned to death in a ditch - Haynes's powerful account of domestic violence is disquieting, yet unsensationalist. This is a gripping book on a topic which can never be highlighted enough.” ( Guardian)

“A very impressive first novel. The pain and frustration of OCD is brilliantly evoked and I winced every time Cathy embarked on yet another ritual. The contrast between Cathy's two lives is cleverly drawn and the hesitancy in her new relationship is very believable. This is a fantastic personal read with plenty for a reading group to discuss.” ( NewBooks Magazine)

“Within ten minutes I couldn't put it down. I've always said that I would never be caught in an abusive relationship, as I'd be out of it at the first sign of a problem but after reading this book I realised that it really isn't that simple. There's a superb picture of the burdens of OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder). It's not enough to check once that the door is firmly locked. What if you didn't lock it properly? There's real dramatic tension in this book and when I got to the end the first thing that I did was to turn back to the beginning again.” ( The Bookbag)

“A tense and thought-provoking début novel with dark moments. Its portrayal of obsession is one that will send a shiver down your spine and you'll hope that you are never in that position. But don't look for a "pat" ending - it seems that things never end the way one hopes! This début novel by a police intelligence analyst is certainly well worth the read.” ( Shotsmag)

“Our South coast-based book group had been starved of a good book for a month or two, so it was with some excitement that we stumbled across the buzz on Twitter about Elizabeth Haynes' compelling debut novel Into the Darkest Corner. Thankfully starvation swiftly changed to gluttony when we got our hands on the book, as this is a compulsive thriller with sufficient twists and plot turns to keep the most action-avaricious of readers satisfied.” ( Bookgroup.info)

Excellent read

Dark and well written. Edge of the seat. Gripping storyline with we rounded characters. If you enjoy a good thriller get this.

Psycho Thriller

Great book - keeps you on edge for the entire story. Perfect story for walking and listening. Keep the lights on.

Domestic Violence with a Psycho

One of the other reviewers actually captured the essence of this story best of all "An OCD stalked by a Psychopath". The story is a classic one of woman abused, runs away, and never knows when the stalker will appear - however the twist is that the stalker is a psycho. The author really captures how domestic violence is a gradual and ensnaring, so that as it builds the abused does not see the escalation for what it is, and how the abuser is a master manipulator, isolating the abused partner so that she appears to be the crazy- when in fact she isn't. The only complaint I have about this book are that there is far too much detail about sex, that does not really do anything to add to the story, in fact it gets to be too repetitive and irritating - hence the 3 stars.

My darkest corner

Where does Into the Darkest Corner rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

it's the 1st one i got & would purchase more if i could afford them

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

not really. i read alot of books like that but its ok cause i liked it anyways

What does David Thorpe and Karen Cass bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

he didnt do nothing. she has a soothing voice & i read to go to sleep so i thought i would try audio & i liked it

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

when she breaks up w/him but keeps going back for intimate moments

fantastic!!!

The narrators did a wonderful job with this story. I lost a lot of sleep because I didn't want to stop listening. I am hoping there are more novels like this from the author in the future.

great narration

Two great narrators make the book come alive. you won't be able to stop listening.

Slow start.

Good parts amidst lots of unnecessary parts. Increased the speed to 1.2x, which helped get through the slow parts. Overall, good read/listen. Really enjoyed the narrators.

Spine Chilling

If you liked the movie Sleeping With The Enemy, I believe you will like this book. It is a spine chilling psychological thriller that kept me awake at night and had me checking the door locks. Although some reviewers found the switching between two time periods confusing, I believe Elizabeth Haynes handles the movement between past and present well. The suspense in each period adds to the other, resulting in a story of rising tension. This book is well researched and gives good insight into PTSD and OCD as a result of domestic violence. The strength of the writing and dialogue ensured I found the characters believable. Into The Darkest Corner is a dark and twisted tale. It contains profanity, violence and some moderately graphic sexual content. If these things bother you, then this is not the book for you. The narrators were good, I found them easy on the ear though not the best I've ever heard. I recommend this book and in fact this author. I have since listened to two more of her books and enjoyed both of them.

Slow Paced and Predictable

Frankly, I was so worn out by the descriptions of OCD behavior I could hardly focus on the story. I kept saying to myself "enough already, let's move on with the story!" It isn't a bad story, it just goes on too long. Despite my conviction that it could have used a LOT of editing, I did listen through the entire book. The writing was decent enough, but the ending was predictable...something I would have forgiven if I had invested about half as much time in the story.

Listening in the garage

Couldn't stop listening. I loved it. I want more. Great book. Great narrator!
Would listen to more from this author