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)

unrealistic ending

Although "Gone Girl's" ending was more preposterous, the ending of this one is pretty far-fetched. It's an ok story til the end. Narrators are fair. Overall an ok book but nothing better.

Excellent narration, Suspenseful

More suspenseful than Sharp Objects due to the subject matter. Here, you are dealing with a gripping "who done it" and you are really eager to get to the end.

At the same time, the narration is fantastic since there are multiple voices and perspectives to fill in the gaps.

And we are flipping between current time and the 1980s and we are hearing from the characters in their youth and adult views.

Well done. Well done.

First rate

While some of the scenes are challenging for vegans or PETA folks, this is a well written, well paced, well narrated piece of fiction. Difficult to put down--intelligently written.

A win

Ever since Girl Gone I want to read anything by Gillian. This book was good. It was layed out well and I liked how the story came together.

A Transfixing Story Line leading to Final Peace

What did you love best about Dark Places?

How the author wove in and out of the history of the characters, all building up to the final twist and climax of the story. A Masterful 'Who was the Killer', all bound in the agony and lost life of the one suriving child.

What about the narrators’s performance did you like?

This was one of the few books with male / female readers. It worked wonderfully to give added light to the story line. I always wonder why they don't do this more.

The readers pulled this off wonderfully!

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Oddly Yes. It kept the pace up very well.

Any additional comments?

It is a Dark Book, Graphic at Points, visceral in others, sweet and charming in most places.

I highly recommend this book.

Title Says it All

The scenes and story line of this book were too dark for my liking. I found myself wishing the story would wrap up so it would be over, rather than enjoying the narrative and plot twists of her other books. I can't recommend this to others though and I might be done with Flynn all together.... seriously dark story lines in all her stuff. it's just too much for me, but others may love it.

A Mystery With a Twist

Many of the reviews about Dark Places that I have read on Goodreads questions the state of Gillian Flynn's mind. One reviewer stated about the ending, "Who would have seen that coming." I did... so what does that say about the state of my mind?

I had no idea of what to expect at the beginning of the book other than wondering whether or not Ben was guilty. However, Gillian cleverly plants the clues throughout the story.

I enjoyed this mystery and found myself eager to be in the vehicle so I could continue the suspense. I even sat in the parking lot, not wanting to go into the office, while I stole a few extra minutes to listen.

The story is about Libby, a survivor of a horrific crime when her mother and two sisters were murdered. She was an impressionable seven year old and her testimony put her 15 year old brother in jail for life. Disfigured emotionally and physically by the events of that night, she existed for years refusing to go to those 'dark places' in her mind that held the memories of the murder of her family.

About the time that her trust fund ran out, she received an invitation to be a special guest of the Kill Club, a club of people obsessed by real life crime. She discovered a way to profit from their obsession. She embarked on a journey to find out what really happened that night. Initially, she was just in it for the money, but quickly became immersed in her quest in ernest. She needed to know what happened that night.

The narration was done by four people and all four did an excellent job creating the individual characters with their voices.

A word of warning. There are some disturbing graphic descriptions in the book that may be traumatizing to some readers.
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Too Dark for me

What did you like best about Dark Places? What did you like least?

The protagonist was interesting. The story was a bit redundant peeling back the layers by repeating incidents from all the angles.The ending was unsatisfying. The narration was good.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

Change the ending. It was very sad and did not, after all the sturm und drang searching and searching, give a real ah ha moment.

What do you think the narrator could have done better?

Narration was fine. I liked the different voices.

Did Dark Places inspire you to do anything?

Not read any more books by this author.

Well written

Not one character in the story was likable. None were sympathetic. A mysterious who done it. The book could have been three hours shorter.

Not To Be Missed

Could not turn this off. One cold winter's night 7-year old Libby's mother and two sisters ae murdered. Her brother is convicted and sentenced to life in prison. Twemty years later Libby begins to look into the circumstances surrounding the tragedy, unravelling a complex history woven by a mixed cast of dysfunctional characters. The narration is excellent. As the story is told first by Libby and then by the men and other women involved in the action, male and female narrators provide their voices. It is immensely effective.