Can you truly escape from a nightmare?

Synopsis

Passion, obsession, cruelty, control. There is no limit to how far some people will go for love.

Duncan Stone is one of the country’s most eligible and handsome bachelors, and he wants to take me, Callie Parker, on a date.

At first I am surprised and flattered, the envy of my friends. Then when our whirlwind romance escalates and he asks me to move in with him, it’s like a dream come true.

But as I get to really know my new boyfriend, my fairytale turns into a nightmare. Duncan is no Prince Charming. He is the Devil.

Isolated from my friends and family, watched day and night, a prisoner in my own life, I know if I am going to survive, I need to escape.

When a chance encounter with an old friend throws me a lifeline, I realise this is my live or die moment, and I find a hiding place deep in the Norfolk countryside.

I’m supposed to feel safe here, so why do I hear footsteps outside my hideaway late at night, and sense that someone is watching me?

Is it paranoia, or has Duncan managed to find me?
Or perhaps the danger is closer to home than I realise.

My review

Callie Parker cannot believe it when Duncan Stone, one of the most eligible bachelors, shows an interest in her.
What starts as an amazing romance, quickly turns into something else. Because from the moment Callie moves in with Duncan, her life turns into a living hell.
Duncan is anything but a caring boyfriend, and isn’t adverse in using force to turn Callie into the compliant woman he wants.
Even if Callie totally isolated from everyone and everything, she knows that she needs to escape, or that things will end very badly.
With the help of an old friend, she manages to hide in the Norfolk countryside. Callie should be safe, but she cannot shake off the feeling that she is being watched… Is it just a case of paranoia? Or has Duncan found her, despite the measurements Callie took?

Sometimes, when I read a book, I hope that the author had a lot of imagination while writing is, as it was way too shocking to read how some characters behaved.

And in this book, Duncan shows the ugliest possible side of people. Not only his violent streaks or his bullying are terrible to read, but also the way how he manages to gaslight Callie…

Because as a reader, as an outsider, it’s easy to tell Callie to get away from Duncan. But we see here clearly, how such a manipulator is able to make Callie doubt herself, how to alienate Callie from everyone, family and friends.
It was even heartbreaking to read how such a confident young woman like Callie turned into a terrified woman, having to endure everything Duncan puts her through, and not having one single person on her side.

That is also unfortunately the truth, as even the people the closest to you, aren’t able to see what you are going through, and believe the lies that are being told, or even believe that there is something wrong with you.

Yet while most of the time I pitied Callie, I also admired her when she finally decided that she had enough. It must not have been easy for her to take that step, but after everything she had to endure, she knows that it could only end in one way, a bad one.

Once she gets away, it was again heartbreaking seeing her so terrified of every noise, every sudden moment, even every act of kindness…
But it was lovely to see how slowly, very slowly Callie opens up, becomes her former self again and learns to trust again. Yet she has been through a lot, and she never loses her wariness.

And it’s that same wariness that keeps her on point of everything… that same wariness that makes her realize what truly is going on even in the quiet countryside of Norfolk.
I was a bit shocked when that specific truth came out, especially as initially we see a different side… only shows that you can never really know a person…

This book is anything but an easy book to read, as we see how someone with cruel intentions is able to turn something as beautiful as love into a real nightmare. A nightmare that doesn’t seem to stop, no matter what Callie tries to do.
It’s terrible to see how one person is able to break another person, pure out of selfishness and feeling superior…

Yet there is also a positive turn in this book, because help can come in unexpected ways, and even the most hideous bruises, physical and emotional ones, can be healed with having the right kind of people by your side. People that are ready to help you, fight with you, no matter what. And in the end, it’s that kind of people we need in our lives, the good ones, the ones that are able to chase away all the bad ones.

Keri Beevis wrote for sure a difficult story, as I could almost feel Callie’s pain myself. But sometimes we need books like this one, to remind us that it’s easier said than done to just walk away, that gaslighting is something all too real (unfortunately…). But that we also have learn to actual listen to the signals and offer a helping hand to those that are screaming for help…