Liz Loves Books.Com.

Publication Date: 24th April 2014

Thank you to Harper Collins for the delightfully creepy hints and then the review copy.

His name is Rafe, and he is everywhere Clarissa turns. At the university where she works. Her favorite sewing shop. The train station. Outside her apartment. His messages choke her voice mail; his gifts litter her mailbox. Since that one regrettable night, his obsession with her has grown, becoming more terrifying with each passing day. And as Rafe has made clear, he will never let her go.

Oh. Scary. I mean REALLY. And compulsive. And strangely fascinating that such men (and women, lets be clear) exist. And they DO exist. In a lot of ways this novel comes with a healthy dose of realism.  It is not a unique story by any means but it is a beautifully constructed, intelligent and genuinely disturbing example of its kind.

Clarissa trusted too easily. One night with Rafe and her life is turned upside down. As she becomes increasingly isolated in her attempts to avoid him, she finds herself on jury duty – and begins to realise that if she is to escape a terrible fate she must take control.

This book creeps up on you. Rafe is superbly terrifying, straight out of your nightmares and  onto the page, you may find yourself half expecting to see him lurking on the corner as you head out for a walk. And yet for all that he is absolutely real – with a job and a life and people that respect him. Clarissa feels she has no recourse, that no-one will believe her and that she is on her own. What resonated most with me is how she comes to hate her own name. Rafe uses it in every sentence, in every letter, in an almost caressing way, a twisted love that darkens with every new bump in the road, every new turn of the tale and leaves you wondering if Clarissa can survive this.

Told in both diary format and real time, we watch aghast as one woman has her life ripped away from her, in a kind of car crash can’t bear to look but can’t turn away experience that will haunt you long after you have finished reading it. I’m not sure I want to know what my dreams are going to look like for the next little while!

Intense, utterly compelling, horrifying yet enthralling, it was difficult to leave behind. Having gone through the trauma alongside Clarissa with every breathtaking moment, I almost can’t bear to let her go. A realistic portrayal of stalking, this is one to look out for in 2014.

Happy Reading Folks!