52 in 52: Book 3 - Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn

Gone Girl.  It grabbed my attention and kept me on the edge of my seat.  I loved it.  Although I haven't seen the movie yet, I am excited that it was released on DVD last week and plan to grab a bottle of wine, a bowl of popcorn and revel in watching the words that Gillian Flynn wrote come to life on screen.

I must say that I read Gone Girl a long time ago, so it's a bit of a head-scratcher as to why I didn't try other Flynn novels sooner.  I mean, she was  a fellow inhabitant of the flyover states, growing up in Kansas City.  She attended Kansas University (as a KSU Wildcat fan that's the only strike against her) and sets her novels in midwest towns.   She's relevant, interesting and her female character development is nothing short of brilliant.  Take this quote from Sharp Objects:

“Sometimes I think illness sits inside every woman, waiting for the right moment to bloom. I have known so many sick women all my life. Women with chronic pain, with ever-gestating diseases. Women with conditions. Men, sure, they have bone snaps, they have backaches, they have a surgery or two, yank out a tonsil, insert a shiny plastic hip. Women get consumed.” 


Wow, right?  If you want to know more about her, here's a video from CBS Sunday Morning.

Now for Sharp Objects...honestly it had quite a bit to live up to, but after the first few pages I realized that would not be an issue.  The novel find Camille Preaker reluctantly heading back to her hometown to cover the grisly murders of two young girls.  While that is enough to make your average crime reporter cringe, add to that the fact that Camille was just released from a stint in a psychiatric hospital.  Her addiction?   Cutting.  This was a bit shocking to me because not only does she cut, but she carves words into her skin when she can't handle what's happening in her life, largely due to her upbringing.  From Sharp Objects:
          
“I am a cutter, you see. Also a snipper, a slicer, a carver, a jabber. I am a very special case. I  have a purpose. My skin, you see, screams. It's covered with words - cook, cupcake, kitty, curls- as if a knife-wielding first-grader learned to write on my flesh. I sometimes, but only sometimes, laugh. Getting out of the bath and seeing, out of the corner of my eye, down the side of a leg: babydoll. Pull on a sweater and, in a flash of my wrist: harmful. Why these words? Thousands of hours of therapy have yielded a few ideas from the good doctors. They are often  feminine, in a Dick and Jane, pink vs. puppy dog tails sort of way. Or they're flat-out negative.  Number of synonyms for anxious carved in my skin: eleven. The one thing I know for sure is that at the time, it was crucial to see these letters on me, and not just see them, but feel them.

Sharp Objects is a tale of  how twisted the human psyche can be and takes the reader on a journey as Camille relives her childhood and reconnects with those who helped make her what she is.  Her discoveries regarding her personal demons as well as the murders made me want to avoid reading what was coming next but unable to stop myself.  To say it's creepy is an understatement.  The twists and turns in this novel that are both compelling and mind-boggling.  Give it a read; it's worth your time!