Book Review - Under Your Skin
Under Your Skin by Rose McClelland is a thriller that takes place in Ireland. This would be the first psychological thriller by this author who previously has written "chick literature". I was invited to read and review this new novel. I enjoy many different genre's but something about domestic thrillers always captures my attention.
This post may contain affiliate links, including Amazon for which I may be compensated, at no additional cost to you. Please see our Disclaimer & Privacy Policy page for more information.
Book Review - Under Your Skin
SUMMARY:
When shy, insecure Hannah meets charming, attractive Kyle, she thinks he is her dream come true. Kyle approaches Hannah one afternoon at work and asks her to join one of the Friday evening Happy Hours with their co-workers. She agrees. Friday of the same week, Kyle is waiting for Hannah after work and they walk to the Pub together. This would be the beginning of a whirlwind romance.
Before long, Kyle and Hannah are engaged and get married. It is on their honeymoon that Hannah sees another side to Kyle. A dark, aggressive side that will change the way Hannah lives with her new husband.
Although, due to Kyle's business success they live in a beautiful home and she wants for nothing, Hannah now lives on eggshells as she never knows when Kyle will "snap" and show his dark side and hurt her.
When Hannah meets Guy at work, she forms a new friendship. Guy is someone Hannah can talk to. It takes a while for her to feel secure in this friendship, but Guy persists in proving to Hannah that he only has her best interest and offers her a listening ear. This friendship grows and Hannah shares with Guy everything about her life with Kyle.
LOCKED IN THE BASEMENT
The story begins with Kyle calling in a Missing Persons to the local police department. He appears frantic that when he came home from work, his wife Hannah was not home. He indicated that she is very routine and her not being home or able to be reached was not typical of her behavior. The police detectives, Simon and Kerry come to Kyle and Hannah's home to question him.
Hannah, locked in a basement with only her thoughts to entertain her appears to be OK, but wonders how long she'll be locked away from normal life. Someone is keeping her fed and providing some sort of medication to keep her anxiety level at bay. She does not seem to be harmed in any way.
Kyle appears to be the doting husband, organizing a "Find Hannah" search walk. It is there that he meets Julia. Julia, after coaxing from her therapist to get out and live life decides to join this cause to find a missing woman. She is recently out of a relationship and has been struggling to get back into living again since her breakup. When she begins talking with Kyle, something clicks. He's very charming and seems to enjoy chatting with her.
Soon, Kyle is asking to spend time with Julia, seemingly forgotten about Hannah. They begin sleeping together and one day the police show up to Kyle's house to ask some additional questions and search his home. Julia doesn't know what to think about this situation and questions her decision to fall into a "relationship" with Kyle while Hannah is still missing. Therefore, she decides to distance herself from him.
DOESN'T TAKE "NO" FOR AN ANSWER
Kyle continues trying to keep Julia in his trenches. He texts her (typically after having a few drinks) and shows up at her place. When Julia realizes she would be better off with Kyle out of her life she asks him to leave her alone for a while. One night he shows up at her place holding bottles of wine, convincing Julia that he just wants to talk. Soon, he's forcing himself on her and having sex with her without her consent. She realizes something is not quite "right" with him and speaks to the police about the incident the following morning.
Julia begins to feel unsafe in her home because she thinks she sees Kyle outside watching her. One evening while walking home from work, she is attacked by a masked man who forces himself on her sexually. She believes it was Kyle because she recognizes his scent and the sound of his voice.
Julia decides to do some digging herself to determine where Hannah might be. After coming up with some theories, she decides to speak with the female detective, Kerry, about her situation with Kyle. As well as what she thinks she has learned about Hannah.
MEET THE CHARACTERS
Without wanting to spoil the ending, you'll get to know about many characters in this story. Simon and Kerry have a great working relationship. Simon (Kerry's boss) is her mentor while she gets her feet wet with this "Missing Persons" case. He is very impressed with Kerry's intuition and ability to interview witnesses, getting them to open up.
Guy and his long-term girlfriend Kate have a committed relationship, but Kate struggles with committing to marriage after Guy has proposed a few times. She begins to question if her heart believes that Guy is the person she is meant to spend her life with. Her perception of him changes toward the end of the story. Find out why!
Spoiler Alert - Hannah is found, unharmed. In an unusual twist, she and Julia form a bond that will probably last a lifetime. Hannah's friendship with Guy is probably what saved her life.
REVIEW:
I do enjoy psychological thrillers, especially domestically related thrillers. This story did not disappoint and had my interest from the first chapter. It did not end with quite as much of a shocking twist as some stories I've read but I enjoyed it nonetheless.
I am American and this story is written about Irish characters so some of the dialect was very different than how we speak and what words we use here in the US, but it wasn't difficult to understand. This was the first story I've read by Rose McClelland.
I enjoyed the story as a whole, but I do feel that there could have been more detail and gaps filled. I don't recall learning about how Kyle and Hannah ended up working in different companies. This is an interesting detail because they met at work (same company). But then she befriended Guy at work after she and Kyle were married, and Kyle clearly was not working at the same place as her then.
Summaries were offered towards the end of the book, providing some necessary information to make the story come together. However, I would have enjoyed reading the details that kept the story together. In a way, you might say that this story reads like a movie would summarize a complete book.
It is an easy read and I would recommend it.
Until my next review...
