Review - Beneath the Skin by Nicci French

Book Summary on Amazon

Beneath the Skin is a spooky, highly effective psychological thriller. Initially, the women refuse, as do the police, to take the threats seriously--they are happy, they are inviolable; surely these letters are the work of a harmless crank. But the novel watches Zoe, Nadia, and Jenny move from blithely insouciant denial, to frustration, to creeping terror, and finally to the stark realization that neither they nor anyone else will prevent this killer from destroying them. French skillfully evokes the insidiousness with which the letters invade the women's lives, straining and shattering relationships, pushing each toward fearful insanity. Perhaps the novel's greatest appeal lies in its mordant irony: not only do the stalker's threats push and fester "beneath the skin," but they also draw out the flaws and terrors that are already there. French sketches the women's weaknesses and fears with merciless accuracy, stripping them naked long before the killer arrives to finish what his letters have begun.

My Review - 4 Great to the Last Drop

This was my first time reading Nicci French and it won't be my last. 

The killer is obsessed with these 3 ladies.  He sends them threatening love notes, can you imagine receiving something like this.  ...what I'm really interested in is looking at you from the inside, the bits of you that you'll never see but I will.  P.S.  You look happy when you're asleep.  Being dead is only like being asleep forever.

Wouldn't that just spook you out or what.  These ladies had full time police protection but they were no match for the killer.  I enjoyed the characters, they all seemed real to me, even the police and specialists on the case, so I think NicciF did a fantastic job with that.  Each lady was unique and headstrong in ways, feminine but spoke up, I enjoyed their personalities.  The story was in sections, Zoe, Jenny and Nadia and then the climax.  The buildup of the story had a perfect rhythm. 

I thought I had it all figured out but of course I still missed a few important factors, but I don't like to figure it all out anyways.  Reading this book made me think, there is no such thing as consequences.

Knowing someone wants to kill you puts these ladies through hell and back and it is amazing how the men in their lives are not supportive. 

I love the intensity of this book, the buildup of drama, definitely a great thriller.

I read this one for the A-Z Mystery Author Challenge.  Go over to Michelle's Blog - red headed book child to join.