“The most loving parents and relatives commit murder with smiles on their faces. They force us to destroy the person we really are: a subtle kind of murder.”
If I were to rate this book up until the last 20 pages I would have given it 3 stars, but man that ending deserved a stand alone star of its own!
This book is about a serial killer yes, but it is told from the perspective of the serial killer's sister Karede. Karede dutifully cleans up the messes of her sister Ayoola's victims and then spends a lot of time resenting her sister and feeling traumatized by the trail of victims Ayoola has left behind (who wouldn't be traumatized honestly) That alone is enough to catch me drooling! What a fresh idea.
Braithwaite's style was a little difficult for me to get behind at first. Halfway through the book I realized that her narrative voice is so clean cut and direct. She doesn't rely on flowery prose or carefully crafted sentences. She also doesn't rely on the overly popular tricks of an unreliable narrator. She tells you the story in a blunt manner that packs so much more heat than you would expect. It isn't the full weight of the truth that brings the fire, it is the little truths that make up the whole truth that are the hardest to swallow. There are these moments in between sentences where I found myself sucking in my breath because the straight forward way she states things sets a brutal undertone that is unflinching.
This was really a clever decision on the author's part. She is comparing and contrasting the honesty of Karede against Ayoola's dark secretive hobby and it works, but it also magnifies the elephant in the room and poses the question "who is more to blame? The serial killer or the sister that enables her endlessly?"
It is a very good read. I would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for something fresh and new. It is fast paced and easily binge-worthy!
4/5 Stars
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