From the TBR Pile: Blog Tour: Disclaimer by Renee Knight

Author: Renee Knight
Publisher: Harper
Date of publication: May 2015

What if you realized the terrifying book you were reading was all about you?

A brilliantly conceived, deeply disturbing psychological thriller about a woman haunted by secrets—and the price she will pay for concealing the truth.

When a mysterious novel appears at Catherine Ravenscroft’s bedside, she is curious. She has no idea who might have sent her The Perfect Stranger—or how it ended up on her nightstand. At first, she is intrigued by the suspenseful story that unfolds.

And then she realizes.

This isn’t fiction.

The Perfect Stranger re-creates in vivid, unmistakable detail the day Catherine became hostage to a dark secret, a secret that only one other person knew—and that person is dead.

Now that the past Catherine so desperately wants to forget is catching up with her, her world is falling apart. Plunged into a living nightmare, she knows that her only hope is to confront what really happened on that terrible day . . . even if the shocking truth may destroy her.

There are definitely times when I read a book and it takes me a little while to figure out if I enjoyed it or not. Disclaimer is a book I can't say I "enjoyed" but I can say I liked it. I felt like it was too dark and kind of depressing to really "enjoy". Catherine gets a book sent to her and once she begins to read the story realizes it is loosely about her and something that happened to her years before. Through flashbacks, Catherine's point of view and the writer's point of view, the events are slowly revealed to the reader.

This is a book that will definitely make you think about the consequences of revenge and supposition. It highlights the reality that all events can be looked at from more than one angle, but usually only one way is the correct version of events. There are no "happy" characters in the book. They are all kind of depressing. But the one I felt the most sorry for was Catherine. Even before the reveal of what really happened in Spain, I felt bad for the way everyone treated her. Everyone assumes the worst and no one asks her what really happened. Even her own husband, which I think was the saddest of all.

As I said, this is a book that will definitely make you think. Although the pacing of the book was a little slow for my liking, I would recommend giving it a try. It is the good debut book for this author. I look forward to seeing what she comes up with next.

Purchase Links

Amazon | IndieBound | Barnes & Noble

About Renée Knight

Renée Knight worked for the BBC directing arts documentaries and has had TV and film scripts commissioned by the BBC, Channel Four, and Capital Films. In April 2013, she graduated from the Faber Academy “Writing a Novel” course, whose alumni include S. J. Watson. She lives in London with her husband and two children.

Renée’s Tour Stops

Tuesday, May 19th: Booksie’s Blog

Thursday, May 21st: Kissin Blue Karen

Friday, May 22nd: A Bookworm’s World

Monday, May 25th: No More Grumpy Bookseller

Tuesday, May 26th: Man of La Book

Wednesday, May 27th: Booked on a Feeling

Thursday, May 28th: Staircase Wit

Friday, May 29th: JulzReads

Monday, June 1st: Book Hooked Blog

Tuesday, June 2nd: Kritters Ramblings