Book Review: Behind Her Eyes

BEHIND HER EYES | Sarah Pinborough
01.31.2017 | Flatiron Books
Rating: 5/5 stars

Louise is single mom who works hard to make sure her son is well taken care of, often putting his needs before her own. For a while now Louise has been in a rut, but she is trying to change that. On a night out at a bar she meets a man who she is instantly drawn to. They share a kiss that stays with her long after and she thinks that finally things could be looking up. All of that changes on Monday when she’s back in the office being introduced to her new boss. He’s the man from the bar. David is married and instantly tells Louise that what happened between them was a terrible mistake, but Louise can’t forget that moment and she isn’t sure that he can either.

Secrets, secrets, secrets. People are filled to the brim with them if you look closely.

One day on her usual route of dropping her son off at school Louise bumps into Adele, her boss David’s wife. Louise is at a loss when Adele invites her to coffee and the two hit it off. Adele convinces Louise that they should be friends, but there’s a catch, she wants to keep it hidden from her husband. The David that Adele describes to Louise is much different from the man she thought she knew. It seems they’re not quite the perfect couple that they come off as. Louise begins to grow closer to Adele, while also building a relationship with David, and soon things are spiraling out of control. Louise doesn’t know who to believe or what the truth about this couple really is. She knows every marriage has it secrets, but what is really happening between Adele and David?

Everyone should be allowed their secrets. You can never know everything about a person. You’d go mad trying to.

Sarah Pinborough just blew my mind with BEHIND HER EYES! I went into this book thinking I was in for a wild ride with a psychological thriller and walked away with my jaw on the floor. I heard everyone tell me that the ending was amazing. Well they’re right, but they also forgot to say that the beginning and middle were equally great! The story is told through alternating points of view between Adele, Louise, and remembrances of Adele’s past. I loved getting inside each woman’s mind and watching them both plotting away and trying to figure each other out. I simultaneously felt sympathy towards each woman, but then also hated them. David brought out the same emotions in me. Basically, Pinborough played with my emotions nonstop, while misleading me to think I knew all of the answers. One thing that I think could lead to some readers not loving this story as much as myself is the supernatural aspect of the book. This aspect becomes a key player, so if you’re not a fan of these types of stories, I believe this book might not work for you. If you’re able to suspend your belief, embrace the crazy, and hang on tight for a roller coaster of emotions, pick up BEHIND HER EYES!