Behind Her Eyes by Sarah Pinborough, a Review

Behind Her Eyes Review: Back-of-Book Description

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The instant New York Times and #1 international bestseller. “You should read Behind Her Eyes…It’s bloody brilliant.” ―Stephen King

“An eerie thriller…Pinborough keeps us guessing about just who’s manipulating whom – until the ending reveals that we’ve been wholly complicit in this terrifying mind game.” ―The New York Times Book Review

Why is everyone talking about the ending of Sarah Pinborough’s Behind Her Eyes?

 

Louise is a single mom, a secretary, stuck in a modern-day rut. On a rare night out, she meets a man in a bar and sparks fly. Though he leaves after they kiss, she’s thrilled she finally connected with someone.

 

When Louise arrives at work on Monday, she meets her new boss, David. The man from the bar. The very married man from the bar…who says the kiss was a terrible mistake, but who still can’t keep his eyes off Louise.

 

And then Louise bumps into Adele, who’s new to town and in need of a friend. But she also just happens to be married to David. And if you think you know where this story is going, think again, because Behind Her Eyes is like no other book you’ve read before.

 

David and Adele look like the picture-perfect husband and wife. But then why is David so controlling? And why is Adele so scared of him?

 

As Louise is drawn into David and Adele’s orbit, she uncovers more puzzling questions than answers. The only thing that is crystal clear is that something in this marriage is very, very wrong. But Louise can’t guess how wrong―and how far a person might go to protect their marriage’s secrets.

 

In Behind Her Eyes, Sarah Pinborough has written a novel that takes the modern day love triangle and not only turns it on its head, but completely reinvents it in a way that will leave readers reeling.

My Thoughts on Behind Her Eyes

A friend of mine read this book several years ago and then told me at happy hour how amazing it was. She said it was such a good thriller with a twist she didn’t see coming and she thought about it for weeks afterward. I’m pretty sure she even told me the twist at the time, which would explain why I didn’t read it right away.

Fast forward about 3 or 4 years and I saw Behind Her Eyes in a book store and decided to pick it up. I couldn’t remember any specific details my friend told me, but I did remember how much she raved about it.

After the last book I read, I was looking forward to a faced paced thriller and I was delighted that this book mostly delivered on that. I was drawn in right away and I felt gripped to keep reading to know what was going to happen.

The story is told from two different viewpoints, both female main characters. We quickly learn that one of them is hiding something or working on a plan that the other doesn’t know anything about. It felt like each chapter ended on a cliffhanger, and you just kept wanting to read to learn more.

The writing was good overall. There were some repetitive parts, though, as one of the main characters starts to worry about things and constantly questions what has happened. It felt a little dull and annoying during some of those times. But her worrying did set a questioning tone for the book, which was good.

Part of the plot has an element I wasn’t expecting. Nowhere on the book description or the other reviews I’d read does it say anything about it being supernatural or slightly science fiction. But here is a small piece of that. I don’t want to give anything away so that’s as much as I’ll say about it. Now, I tend to like those kinds of books, but when you aren’t expecting them, it can be a little strange. 

Anyway, the dialogue was natural and helped to move the story along. The settings were good and easy to picture. It all took place somewhere in England. All of the characters involved felt real and relatable in their own ways (even the constantly worrying one). 

Something to note…I read a shocking word in this book. I mean, I know it’s a shocking book in general, but I was a little taken aback when I saw the one use of the R-word to describe someone’s intelligence. To be fair, maybe it was intentionally used for shock value? Or maybe because it’s British and they don’t care about politically incorrect and insensitive words over there? A combination of those? Who knows. But you’ve been warned about the one use of an insensitive word.

Favorite Quotes from Behind Her Eyes

“You can never know everything about a person. You’d go mad trying to.”

 

“The course of true love never did run smooth.”

 

“The truth is different to different people.”

 

“Sharing a secret always feels great in the moment, but then becomes a burden in itself.”

Behind Her Eyes Review: In Conclusion

Overall I thought Behind Her Eyes was a really good, interesting read. 3.75 stars from me. It was unique, it had a twist ending, and it definitely held my attention. The only drawback was that there were slightly repetitive moments. There’s also another aspect that if you’re not expecting, you might think it’s implausible or silly. And I can’t even explain what I mean without giving something away so…There it is.

I would definitely still recommend this book to people who like thrillers, love triangles, drama, and suspense. It’s a good story with a lot going on – which is obviously why they made it a movie or a show, that I need to go find now.

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