Sharp Objects

There's something almost magnetic about this book. It quickly becomes hard to listen to and impossible not to. The author has virtually every family disfunction ever featured on Lifetime in this book and I did not roll my eyes once. I can't tell you what or how without ruining the agonizing unraveling for you but I think it takes a very skilled pen indeed to make so much seem so natural. At the end I felt real grief for the central character.
The narrator's performance is flawlessly understated and adds to the mesmerizing almost 'real-time hyper-reality' of this unbelievable story.
If you've any interest at all in the dark side of small town life and of the american family, I think you will love this book.

Blunt. Deeply troubled. Intense. The main character of this story is, as many of us are, wounded. When she returns to her hometown, she uncovers just what the nature of that wounding is and who abused her. Intertwined is a whodunit murder mystery.

I couldn't stop listening. I spent extra hours in my art studio (that's where I listen)just to hear the story. This is the first book I want to listen to for a second time.

There's so much more here than an absorbing mystery. Flynn really captures the dynamics of a small town. The characters, even those who only appear briefly, are layered. Plus, the main character is as intriguing as she is unusual. The narration is perfect. I'm looking forward to the next Gillian Flynn.

This book showed up on so many best-of-2006 lists. It's unlike anything you've read,perhaps a bit of a thinking woman's Silence of the Lambs? Creepy but astonishingly smart and beautifully written and very compelling. Can't wait for her next book.

Having discovered the author (Gillian Flynn) when reading her newest release, I promptly decided to try one of her other 2 books. I selected Dark Places, and found it to be one of the best books I've ever read. That is how I found myself here with Sharp Objects; looking forward to the anticipated quality of the work, but already bracing myself for the emotional hit this author packs.

Just as Camille violently cuts her chosen words into her skin, permanently etching them into herself, so does the author, Gillian Flynn, violently cut HER chosen words into the reader; permanently etching them into you. Each cut hurts; but like Camille, we continue on; by continuing to read the story.

This is not a happy book. Not all all. Not one little bit. It's about petty people, hurtful people, evil people...and all the one-time innocents they have damage so badly, they grow into the next generation of hate. And the cycle, in the forsaken town of Wind Gap, continues on through generations.

And still, we read on; because the author has pulled us into this hypnotic web. We continue with the cutting words.

I found this book excellent. The story seemed to have a life of it's own, moving in unexpected directions and growing into the final chapter; by which you understand that no other ending would have been possible.

If the description above hasn't put you off, and you are prepared for the language, violence, and disturbing sexual content, then this book may be for you. I found it haunting and very well done.

This is the 3rd book by Gillian Flynn that I have read. I started with the most recent and worked backwards but it made no difference.
Ms Flynn's writing style is excellent and Sharp Objects is no exception.

Ms. Flynn is tuned into the emotions and feelings of her subjects and makes them come alive on the pages. It is as if I "knew" the protaganist, Camille, or I know someone like her.
I personally could relate to the small Midwestern town, the violence, the closeness.

Once again, I thought I had the story and the ending figured out and with a quick twist, it was completely different.

Ann Marie Lee did a great job with the narration.

Not only would I recommend Sharp Objects, but also any other book penned by Gillian Flynn.

I loved everything about this book. It's dark and unhappy but told beautifully. I felt like I could step into Camille's shoes and really understand her.

While many will find this book too creepy or morbid, I think it speaks to the real truths of the nasty things that happen in the world and their consequences.

As a side, if you're a cutter, this book may trigger you.

As was the case with other reviewers, I listened to "Gone Girl" first. Given how dark that novel was -- and based on some of the other reviews -- I was almost hesitant to read this one... afraid it might be way too depressing. I am glad I listened! Of course, the story IS dark. The darkest. But Gillian Flynn (I almost wrote "Ms. Flynn" and shuddered, thinking of what she might make of the affectation!) has the power to make all of her very dark characters come alive. Whether or not you grew up in a town as inbred and putrid as the one she describes, you will feel that these people are people you KNOW....and how can you think that a story about people you KNOW is too depressing? You know them, after all!

So, why four stars and not five? I guess some of the "coincidences" (the fact that Camille happened to be sent to cover the story) were a bit too hard to believe. Still, perhaps I am now demanding 'perfection' out of the author simply because her obvious control of the scenes and the people are so masterful...It's like giving the A+ student a B+ simply because you know she could have done better if she had tried a little harder (even though you would have given a lesser candidate an A+ for effort...and I guess I am attempting to make up for what might be perceived as less-than-full enthusiasm by the "Excellent," with an exclamation point in the 'headline' for my review.

I think there's third Gillian Flynn out there. I will definitely download it...and flinch at what the author unleashes.

I just HOPE that her books are not too closely related to her real life!

Sharp Objects is a good book, but one that is clearly not for me. It lacks two critical characteristics that I require to enjoy a story.

The first is likable characters. Nearly every major character is so deeply, fundamentally flawed that I could not relate to them nor care about them. If I don't have characters to root for, I cannot become fully emotionally invested in their plight.

Every bit as important is the overall emotional curve of the book. The entire book simply feels miserable. There are no moments of joy, happiness, or love that aren't wholly corrupted by their circumstance. Because of this, the darkness loses its edge - there's nothing to contrast the darkness to. It is dark, lonely, and bleak, from cover to cover (so to speak).

If these aspects do not turn you off from the book, you're in for a good if somewhat predictable mystery with a few twists and turns and with a peculiar focus on smells. Be forewarned though, if you look up what mental disorders the book deals with, you will have the book's mysteries solved before you're halfway through.

Just simply beautifully written. Never does she take the easy or painless path - - despite my desperate need for relief. I literally squirmed as I listened to parts, waiting impatiently for this book to be over. So no, I can't explain why I could not stop listening nor why I so highly recommend it. To be fair, this book is not for the squeamish. But if you can stomach it, you'll experience some really exceptional writing.