Eyes on Her by Eden Darry is a psychological thriller about a woman trying to escape a terrible past but something bad seems to have followed her.
Cally Pope buys a glamping site near the sleepy town of Halesbrook in her attempt to move on from her emotionally abusive relationship. She puts all her money into her little business in hopes of a quiet life.
Her life is set and plans are moving along nicely. She has sworn off romance and moved to a place that is so small and quiet that nothing bad will possibly happen.
When Cally makes a friend and even finds a romantic connection with someone she thinks that maybe this is the start of her fantastic new life.
But someone has other plans. A series of increasingly terrifying events start to unfold and Cally can’t help but be suspicious of everyone in her new life. The question now is, can Cally find out who is doing this to her before they hurt her or are they going to stay a step ahead?
Writing
I love the way Eden Darry writes. While the author is known for horror writing, this suspense was perfect and thoroughly entertaining as I pored over the pages looking for clues as to what was really going on.
Pros And My Favourite Parts
What a great book. This is a plot-driven book, so the characters are not deep and we have no real character revelations or arcs, which is absolutely fine because the plot was so good that we didn’t need it. I loved every moment.
Heads Up
There is domestic violence and stalking.
Spoiler in the next line so skip to Conclusion if you don’t want a spoiler
The dog gets hurt and it’s awful but she survives.
The Conclusion
Darry is a master of creating suspense. Everything lined up to create an enticing and well-thought-out story. Every plot point, piece of dialogue, flashback and moment in the book was perfectly placed.
If we ever meet in person I will high-five Darry for the masterful writing that goes into every book. Definitely, one of my favourite authors.
Get this book if you enjoy a good suspense with a solid touch of romance.
Excerpt from Eyes on Her by Eden Darry
Chapter One
Cally Pope murdered her wife. She turned this apparent truth over in her mind as she ran, poking at it like a sore spot in her mouth.
She burst out of the trees and back onto the path, her feet beating a steady thump, thump on the hard packed dirt, she murdered her wife ticking like a metronome in her head, feet keeping steady time. She, thump, killed, thump, her wife.
Cally stopped suddenly, a fierce stitch flaying open her side. She bent double and dragged the cold morning air into her lungs. The ground beneath her doubled for a moment, became two paths, then swam out of focus, came back. Her skin prickled hot and cold. Now her lungs itched, and she wanted to reach inside her body and scratch them until there was blood under her nails.
When she knew she wasn’t going to pass out, Cally stood up, bent her back, felt it crack, and almost enjoyed the way her head buzzed and her ears roared with the whoosh of blood. She checked her watch: 0715. Still time. Only halfway done, though she wouldn’t last much longer at this pace. Cally took a quick drink from the bottle she had clipped to her running shorts, hooked it back on, then took off along the path that led down to the lake.
Her legs wobbled for a moment, muscles wanting to betray her and bring her down low. She fought against collapse, picked up the familiar rhythm, forced her feet to pound the earth again.
Down at the lake she finally stopped. This was the place. This was where her ticking mind finally stopped. Sweat ran down her body and cooled instantly as the freezing morning air touched it. A cold wind was blowing off the lake. Cally watched the kayaker out in the middle, their paddle beating a familiar rhythm on the water. She, thump, killed, thump, her wife.
Cally sighed and finished the water in her bottle. Her legs spasmed and almost buckled and she went to the bench and sat down before she ended up face down in the dirt, and wouldn’t that be ironic. Stupid. She still had another five miles to go to get home.
Cally leaned back on the bench and followed the steady progress of the kayaker as they made their way back around the lake.
She wondered why today, of all mornings, she was back on the murdered your wife jag. Cally had never been tried in any court of law for it, but the Great British Public had judged her all the same and found her guilty. The truth didn’t matter, just the will of the tabloids with their lurid headlines, their brand of truth screaming out bile made of thick black ink and puking it onto the pages for everyone to slurp up.
The nation’s sweetheart was dead, and Cally Pope had killed her.
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Bits and Bobs
ISBN number: 978-1636792149
Publisher: Bold Strokes Books
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