It’s trite to say the pages flew by but they really did here. I read the book in two sentences—thats how engrossing and interesting it was. The story of a couple bound by love or insanity or evil, the story involves the murder of a man who allegedly came between the couple and who of the two is actually guilty. The book deals with narcissism, obsessions, mental illness, and the way woman are treated by the legal system. But most of all the book is a damn good thriller and not just another woman in peril book but a story with intriguing characterizations and emotional depth. Read it—to tell more gives too much away.

Our Kind of Cruelty is a character-driven novel based on the intense relationship of Mike and Verity. They come from two extremely different backgrounds, Mike with an alcoholic mother and abusive father was placed into the foster care system, a damaged child who was later fostered and cared for (long past the expiration dates of fostering) by a truly loving couple. He is an angry man who still carries his early childhood hurts and fears of abandonment with him, and seems truly befuddled by the expectations of typical social interactions. Nevertheless, he is capable of affection as shown by his relationship with his foster family and longs for love and a place to belong.

Verity was raised in a well-to-do family and wanted for nothing. But she is bored, and likes excitement. She finds it in spades with Mike. They are intensely and passionately drawn to each other and have an exclusive all-consuming relationship for seven years. Mike has found his soul-mate, and he hangs on to her as if his life depends on it. He is obsessed with her, and she feeds into that, liking the attention, the excitement, and the passionate raw sex. They soon move on to sex games at Verity's leading and then to games including strangers. To Mike, this bonds them even more. They are unique, they are untouchable, he envisions their future together constantly.

When Verity decides to end the relationship and marries Andrew, she knows Mike will not take it well (understatement!!). He is convinced this is all part of another game, and that they will be together in the end as they are meant to be. In his mind, they are still together, and she is using Andrew to make him declare his love more grandly. Things escalate between the now three characters and tragedy occurs.

Wonderfully done, this book was not as dark as I was led to believe it would be; it's rather like a train wreck that you can't look away from. Of the two main characters, I'm in camp Mike; not that I condone stalking or obsession, but because he was rather played masterfully by Verity, who I found not to be as sympathetic or as innocent as she proclaims.

You will find this one truly interesting book. Four stars from me on this one!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Farrar, Straus & Giroux for allowing me to read a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I was really excited about this book. I kept seeing it around as a most anticipated thriller of the year and early reviewers giving it 5 stars and glowing reviews. I was hooked by the synopsis and jumped in to this book with high hopes and excited to be taken for a ride.

Unfortunately, only about 20% of the book lived up to my expectations. It became very repetitive and dragged along. The ending left and lot of thing open ended and you have no idea how others felt about what happened as we only follow the thoughts of the main character. I would have loved at least and epilogue from a different narrator.

Our Kind of Cruelty is up my alley, this book starts out with a bang and keeps going. Our unreliable narrator Mikey tells a very one-sided crazy version. Does V still love him and is this all part of the Crave or is Mikey just a delusional sociopath? This is a must read for any thriller lover out there! Hoping for a sequel!

DNF at about twenty pages in. The main character is clearly delusional and sympathetic, but unfortunately, I found his narration very repetitive and did not care to discover what crime had been committed.

Thanks to MCD/FSG Books for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

When reading the synopsis and the blurb on the back of the book (from Gillian Flynn), I was instantly pulled into this book. When you see that the author of GONE GIRL is calling this one of the most disturbing reads, you just can't not pick it up! OUR KIND OF CRUELTY is a great take on obsession and the stalker thriller genre. While it's not as disturbing as I was anticipating, it was still an eerie and engrossing read.

Mike Hayes had a lonely and quiet life until he met Verity Metcalf. Mike had dedicated his life to becoming the man that V had always wanted and deserved. He just knows that they'll live happily ever after together. Never mind that she isn't returning his calls or emails, or that she claims to be marrying someone else. In his mind, it's all apart of a game they play with each other. If he keeps an eye on her, observes her every move, then he'll know when to come in and save her.

Sounds crazy, right? Well, once you dive into the book more and learn about their game, things get even more interesting. Araminta Hall knows how to write, and she did a fantastic job pulling me along in the story. I love a good unreliable narrator and never truly knowing which character to trust.

While this doesn't bring anything terribly new to the stalker thriller genre, it definitely held its own and I can see fans of that subgenre really enjoying this. This is one I can also see people being split on in terms of how twisty and disturbing they find it. Seasoned vets in the thriller genre may not be as on their toes as other readers, but I think it'll still be an enjoyable and unsettling ride! I can't wait to see what Hall has in store for us next.

Overall, I give this one 4/5 stars!

OUR KIND OF CRUELTY is told from the POV of an obsessed and delusional stalker named Mike. Mike believes he is playing a game of cat and mouse with the love of his life and ex-girlfriend named Verity. In reality, Verity (or V) has moved on from their relationship, fallen in love with "the most eligible bachelor in London," and plans to marry him. When V sends Mike an invitation to the wedding, he is convinced this was a calculated move in their twisted little game of Crave. Now, it's his move.

"They say that hate is the closest emotion to love. And passion certainly exists in two forms. The passion of sex and the passion of arguments. For V and I, one would merge into the other all the time."

I won't delve into the plot specifics because it would ruin the story for you, but the book is divided into three parts.

Part One: consists of inner dialogue that provides the backstory -- details about Mike's traumatic childhood, how he and V came to meet, the highs and lows of their 8 year relationship, the dynamics of their silly games, etc. It sets the stage for what will come later and helps the reader understand his actions, beliefs, and motivations.

Part Two: the story begins to pick up and the main event begins to unfold

Part Three: everything comes full circle as it all plays out in a courtroom

I had a hard time putting this book down but also have a few issues with it. My biggest issue is with Mike. To put simply, the man is certifiable. He has very little social intelligence and misinterprets everyday social cues on a near constant basis. Yet, we are to believe he's a very successful banker who rakes in million dollar bonuses, despite this social ineptitude. My other issue is with Verity. If the author intended readers to sympathize with V, she did a poor job. We don't know enough about her character (her personality, or head space, or what motivates her) to know if she's being genuine. Thus, we are left to wonder if Verity ever cared about Mike at all or if the only person she ever truly cared about was herself.

I've seen this book touted as a work "that puts man's depravity on display". I actually believe the opposite may be true. In my opinion, Verity appears to be just as depraved as Mike in this story (maybe even more so... she is a master in the art of social skills, after all). I was left with too many questions. Did V take advantage of Mike's vulnerability and lack of social skills to mold him into the man that she wanted? Into a man she could easily manipulate? Is it fair to deem someone's behavior as "depraved" if that behavior is motivated by a distorted reality? I'm not sure that it is.

In the end, OUR KIND OF CRUELTY felt more depressing to me than it did disturbing. I also would have preferred a much more resolute ending. Regardless, I feel confident this novel will be popular among book clubs (as there is much to discuss!) and a hit with the fans of Gillian Flynn and Paula Hawkins.

*A big thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Gripping psychological drama that I just couldn't put down!

"I must be cruel only to be kind / Thus bad begins and worse remains behind,"

Michael Hayes, banker, is totally obsessed with Verity Walton. When she breaks off their love affair to marry another man, Angus Metcalf, Mike knows that she doesn't really mean to do it. She's just punishing him for an act of stupidity that he committed when he was working in New York for his job and she was in London.

Mike knows Verity better than she knows herself. He reads between the lines, parses words said and unsaid, and gleans his truth from his absolute conviction that she and he were meant to be together forever. Even when she says they're not. He goes to great lengths to possess her and nothing and no one will stand in his way. Because he loves her and believes that she loves him. Everything she says contains clues that indicate to him that she is his. His unshakeable belief leads them both to a point of no return.

I really liked this book. The writing kept me pulled into the story and never once seemed to veer off track. The characters were quite well constructed and felt real. Despite it being psychodrama, it also had action and touched on other themes that would make great discussion for a book club. I'm sure it's not everyone's cup of tea, but it sure worked for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for the e-book ARC to read and review.

Fans of You, the twisty psychological thriller by Caroline Kepnes are very likely going to be drawn to Araminta Hall's Our Kind of Cruelty. It's a dark tale of obsession that kept me engrossed from beginning to end, but I think it's important to point out that parts of the book did make me extremely uncomfortable. The subject matter is quite disturbing, so if books about stalking are difficult for you to read, you're probably going to want to give this one a miss.

Before I tell you anything about it, I want to explain that Our Kind of Cruelty is not a mystery in the truest sense of the word. We know right from the beginning that something very bad has happened, and we're given a pretty clear idea of who is responsible. What we don't know is what caused this particular set of circumstances to unfold, and it's these small details that set this novel apart from many others I've read this year.

Our narrator is Mike Hayes, a young man who has worked hard to rise above his troubled past, and most people who know him would probably tell you he's done a stellar job creating the perfect life for himself. What they don't know is that Mike couldn't have done it without Verity, the woman he loves beyond all reason. She taught him everything he knows about love and trust, and he's finally ready to show her just how important she really is to him. He's gotten an excellent job, bought a beautiful home, and worked out until his body is as close to perfect as he can get it. Now, all he has to do is convince Verity that he's done all of this for her.

Unfortunately, Verity doesn't seem willing to be convinced. She hasn't returned Mike's emails or phone calls for the past several months - and he's not sure what to make of this. Then, he gets an invitation in the mail to Verity's upcoming wedding. At first, he's completely devastated, but after he's taken some time to cool down, he realizes that all of this is just part of the secret game he and Verity used to play. Surely, if he pays attention, he'll be able to spot the little clues she's leaving for him, and then he'll know just when to swoop in and save her, just the way he always has in the past.

It didn't take long for me to come to the conclusion that Mike is not a very stable person. His thought processes are quite skewed, and some of his actions were abhorrent to me. He sees absolutely nothing wrong with watching Verity without her knowledge. He follows her home from work on several occasions and stands outside her house at night. He lies to his coworkers, telling them that he and Verity are a couple who hope to get married in the very near future, and he doesn't see anything wrong with any of this. After all, he and Verity will be together soon, and things will finally be perfect.

I loved that Ms. Hall takes great pains to show us what made Mike into the man he is today. His childhood was quite horrible, and while this certainly doesn't excuse his bad behavior, it did give me quite a bit of insight into his character. It added a layer of authenticity to an individual who could have quite easily been just another run-of-the-mill villain without these details about his early life.

There were several times when I truly had no idea what was going on in the story. I knew I couldn't fully believe Mike's version of things, but his point of view is the only one we're given. Normally, this would have frustrated me quite a bit, but I don't think this story could have been told as effectively any other way. There was something so compelling about reading Mike's story, even if parts of it made me cringe. It’s like the  proverbial train wreck that is impossible to turn away from, even if you know you're about to see something terrible.

Our Kind of Cruelty isn't going to be for everyone, but I'm glad I picked it up, and Araminta Hall is definitely an author worth watching. If her next book is even half as unputdownable as this one turned out to be, I'll be incredibly pleased.

Buy it at: Amazon/Barnes & Noble/iBooks/Kobo

Expertly written and brilliantly executed, Araminta Hall has written what is sure to be one of the most buzzed-about novels of 2018. A tale of toxic love from a wholly unreliable narrator, OUR KIND OF CRUELTY brings us an anti-hero that you’ll love to hate.

But…he is unreliable if he truly believes everything he’s relaying to the reader? Mike Hayes will get into your head like few characters can. His POV is both unsettling and fascinating. The reader cannot help but to feel sympathetic towards him, while at the same time feeling distrustful of him.

Araminta Hall has left me wondering, even after days spent in Mike’s head, exactly what it was that happened here. Her storytelling is smart and devious, leaving me questioning everything I believed throughout this novel. Is Mike really deluded? Or are there other machinations at work here?

While at times, the story did drag a bit for me, I couldn’t stop turning pages, trying to figure out which way was up, finding myself craving the delicious confusion and needing to know more, more, more.

After finishing this book, I was infuriated, I was confused, I was even a little sad. The climax of this book will leave you reeling. Questions will linger and you’ll find yourself doubting, never quite sure of what kind of cruelty you just witnessed.

From my blog: Always With a Book:

OMG...what did I just read!?! You all know I love my psychological thrillers - I thrive on reading them, and while this one is definitely a thriller, it's more psychological than anything else. If you liked You by Caroline Kepnes or Best Day Ever by Kaira Rouda, than you will certainly enjoy this one - it's a character-driven story from the male point of view, and boy oh boy, do we have one disturbed character taking the lead here!

I think what is most compelling about this book is being inside Mike's head. It's not too often that we get a story like this where not only are we privy to all Mike's thoughts and actions, but with the way at least the first part of the story is told, we get this steady stream of consciousness coming at us. There isn't a whole lot of dialog - and while that might be a bit off-putting, it really does set the scene for what is to come. And believe it or not, we do get a whole lot of information - we find out Mike's backstory and all about Mike and V's relationship. I admit, the whole time I was reading this book, I was wondering if Mike was sane or not, and even after reading, I am still questioning this!

This is a love story...but what kind of love story is what you have to decide. It's definitely about obsession. But how much of what Mike is feeling and thinking is real and how much is fantasy is really anyone's guess and this is where I kept going back and forth. And what about V? What is her part in all this? Is she really as innocent as we are led to believe or has she manipulated Mike in any way? These were the questions running through my mind throughout the book.

This book plays with your mind. It makes you wonder just what is really going on. And then you have the ending...WHAT??? It's not too often that I am left speechless when I get to an ending...I usually sense what is going to come, or at least feel there is a twist. This time, I was stunned. Not that there's a twist or anything. I just felt like it all got turned around. Now I want to go back and reread the entire book!!! But, to me, that's such a good sign. That means, this book was even more intricately plotted than I even realized as I was reading.

This book is certainly not going to be for everyone...it's a dark and disturbing read, yet it's also a highly addictive and compelling read at the same time. I found it brilliantly well crafted and cannot wait to read more from this author!

I'm fairly conflicted about this book. The premise sounded fascinating to me so when I saw it was available on Netgalley I jumped at the opportunity. Plus, it was recommended by Gillian Flynn. I love all things attached to Gillian Flynn.

In the beginning, it reminded me a lot of You by Caroline Kepnes which I LOVED! That made me even more curious to continue, but the more the book went on the less intrigued I became. The dialogue and some of the scenes felt repetitive. It didn't excite me anymore.

There is a huge array of side characters that play small parts in this book. I wanted more interaction between the main characters instead of these side conversations which didn't add much to the overall plot. In the end, it's mainly his inner dialogue that adds a sense of foreboding.

Was it creepy? Absolutely!
Was it predictable? Well, I most certainly did not expect that ending! It took me by surprise!
Was it fast-paced? Eh, it's more of a slow burner.

It had most of what I look for: the chills that the main character gave me from being in his head, the surprise twist, the deception and lies. Yet still, something essential was missing that I can't quite put my finger on.

Ultimately, this book fell flat for me. It had a lot of potential and I think it will be right up some people's alley. The author can absolutely write well. It simply felt anticlimactic for me. I hoped for more.

Despite all of this, most of my Goodreads friends have raved about this book so I'm in the minority.

Special thanks to the publisher and the author for approving my request to read this ARC through Netgalley!

OMG this book! This book is bananas! It's dark and ethereal.. It's like driving past a car accident and you know that you shouldn't look but you do anyway. It's the type of book that you read with the lights on. The type of story that once you start reading there's no way that you can stop until the breathless end. And it's the type of book that will stay with you far longer than you want it to. So yeah pick it up but remember I warned you. Happy reading!

This is an excellent psychological thriller. It has been a while since a read a book that left me reeling.

Mike and Verity met in college and were together for eight years. A few months after the relationship ended Mike received an invitation to Verity's wedding. He had been living and working in New York and had recently moved back to London where V, short for Verity, also lives.

Mike is settling back in London and getting the house ready for V's return because he knows they're meant for each other. This is as much as I want to say about the story.

The novel is narrated from Mike's point of view and the author did an excellent job with the writing and his characterization. I was glued to this dark story from the start. The last pages were the best where the author revealed poignant social message. At the end, you are going to end up hating or loving this book.

I loved it and recommend it to readers of thrillers and contemporary fiction.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via Netgalley

This is a story of a volatile, toxic relationship. Michael Hayes and 'V' (Verity) have lived together since university. I hesitate to say that they were in love, because love to them means something different to what love means to most people. Mike is highly controlling, and absolutely obsessed with the beautiful V. Their sex is fantastic, and to keep it that way they play a devious game. The game consists of them going to a bar, entering separately, then V sits alone at the bar and waits for some unsuspecting male to 'hit on her'. She flirts openly and when the man makes a real move, she touches the silver eagle pendant she wears. This is the signal for Mike to step in and say something threatening like "What do you think you are doing with MY girlfriend?". As the man scuttles away, they find themselves both so charged with lust that they must have sex right away - sometimes in the corner of the bar - up against the wall...

Verity is Mike's anchor. He calls himself her Eagle.

They call this game they play Crave.

"Cruelty was a necessary part of our game."

They are both highly intelligent people and are quite successful in their work. He in banking, she in developing artificial intelligence. When he is offered a job in America, the salary is such that they feel he cannot turn it down. He will stay over there a few years, then return to London and buy a house for them both. She has just been made director of the company she works for, so together they are more than financially solvent.

Long distance relationships are not always successful, and Mike and V struggle to maintain theirs. He has an 'incident' in New York which he highly regrets. When he returns home for Christmas he confesses to his indiscretion, and V breaks off with him. Mike is distraught - for he cannot imagine a future without her in it.

Several months later he gets a wedding invitation. It seems that Verity is marrying a man called Agnes Metcalf - and he has been invited to witness their union. Mike is such a fantasist that he actually tells himself that this is all part of the game they play, it is just another Crave. The ultimate Crave.

Mike has no sense of boundaries and no empathy for others. Verity had taught him some social skills, and has encouraged his physical fitness. She has 'created' the man he now is. Since returning to London, he has bought a lovely house in Clapham for Verity. Although she says she wants nothing more to do with him, he thinks she doesn't mean it. He tells his co-workers that he and Verity live together. He sometimes sets the table for two, pouring two glasses of wine, talking to her over the table. She is not there.

Mike sees an implied meaning in most communications from V. He interprets her words and actions the way he wants to see them. He is delusional and obsessive. He also has gaps in his memory which he finds puzzling and troublesome. He has always been lonely except for the time he was with V. He drinks more than he should AND he has anger issues.

"Sometimes two people need each other so much it is worth sacrificing others to make sure they end up together."

Mike sends V some very disturbing emails. These escalate the fractured dynamic between them...

This novel left me feeling conflicted. On the one hand, the protagonist is without a doubt mentally ill, psychotic and 'over the top' obsessed. On the other hand, though you don't ever feel the need to condone what he does, you do have to feel empathy for his horrendous childhood. He was both physically and emotionally abused, severely neglected, and subsequently separated from his alcoholic mother at the tender age of ten. This upbringing has left him so damaged that it has warped his thinking throughout his life.

"Our kind of cruelty" emphasizes the fact that the justice system does not always deliver justice, and that there is still a dire problem with sexism inherent in the legal process. This thriller is very well written. So well written that it left me feeling very uncomfortable. If that was the author's aim, then she succeeded. It was a thriller that emphasizes the psychological, and one that gives the reader an intense, though disturbing, reading experience.

A chilling look at obsessive love.

4 oh my gosh stars

You can find my review at https://yayareadslotsofbooks.wordpress.com/

This was truly a wild ride into the characters of two people, Mike and Verity. They feed on one another and seem to suck the very life of each other. They have found exactly what they need and that is each other. There are no others, no way in which destiny has not put them together, to be always one with each other. They "crave" each other and as such they devise a game called "the crave" which they play because it excites them

The goal of this game is just that...excitement and in its playing Verity or V as Mike fondly calls her, will go to a bar where she will attract a male and then through a signal, that of pulling on her eagle necklace, will have Mike "rescue" her. Of course this is all in good fun right? This couple explores together things that will turn them on. V and Mike have been together for eight years, meeting at the university. Both of them are very successful in their careers, money is no problem. Both of them can't live without the other until the day when one of them can.

Mike, because of work goes off to America for a year and while there has a one night stand with someone other than V. She, in the meantime, finds someone else to love and Mike believes fully that her finding a new love who does eventually become her husband, is because of his unfaithfulness.

The story of V and Mike's relationship is bizarre and trouble does brew for this couple as Mike descends further into paranoia and delusional behavior. He knew better than anyone that V loves him and only him. They are destined to have perfection and they are almost there Mike thinks. He wraps his very being around V and twists everything to always appeal to his delusions. His mind feeds the delusions so much so that it is his reality.

This book for me was unnerving but it also was one that was hard to put down as the author did a great job delving into the mind of a person who uses his fantasy and deception to develop a relationship that is a figment of his own self deception. "“Delusion detests focus and romance provides the veil.” (Suzanne Finnamore)

Thank you to Araminta Hall, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, and NetGalley for making a copy of this novel to me.

This was an excellent and fun read. I was interested right from the beginning and Araminta Hall does a fabulous job of showing the true thoughts of a twisted and disturbed soul who tries to go around acting like a normal human being. I kept changing my view in this book between what was real and what was made up in the main character's mind and kept me reading till the end to find out. I did find the story to go flat at times as we only really saw the point of view of the main character so it was very one-sided. I can't say if I would have enjoyed getting other character points of view in this book because then it may steal from the reader's own deduction of what is going on. Overall I truly enjoyed this book and love the cover. I recommend!

In Our Kind of Cruelty, Mike isn't taking his break-up with Verity well. She's moved on and he's still convinced that they have a future together, and that her behavior is simply part of the "Crave" game they played during their relationship.

I found the first half or so of this book super engaging. It reminded me of You by Caroline Kepnes, and I enjoyed sitting back and waiting for the details to come together, while getting inside Mike's brain. While Mike is clearly obsessive and his choices very concerning, there are moments where you still waffle on his unreliability. At times I wondered if maybe this really was part of their "Crave" and V would turn out to be in on it all along. At other times, I was shocked by Mike's behavior and certain that he was acting entirely based on his own delusions. I love an unreliable narrator and this book certainly delivers. My only criticism here is that at times it drags. Mike engages in the same thought patterns over and over again, and as a result you sometimes feel that you're rereading the same passages.

The courtroom aspects of the story were less interesting to me, and I much preferred the early psychological aspects of the story to the final segment. That said, it opens up a lot of questions about victim blaming and how a woman's sexuality can be put on trial. Despite having had a front row seat into Mike's unstable behaviors and thought processes, even I found myself questioning V's honesty and choices.

While this type of narrator isn't for everyone, I think this will be enjoyed by many and will definitely be a much discussed book in 2018. Thank you Netgalley for the early copy in exchange for an honest review!

Our Kind of Cruelty was psychological thriller focused on the highly crazy obsession and delusional lover. When the blurb said it’s Mike love story, it truly was from all the angle was Mike’s love story that revolved around his life, his psychology and his love narrated from his POV.

Characters-
Mike Hayes- ‘Placid exterior hides a passionate or subtle nature’ surely defines Mike’s character. He had good and placid face in front of the world but he had disturbing twisted mind. He had bad childhood that had left its impact real deep than he himself realized. He had no empathy, had anger issue and he definitely never learned to respect love or lover and when to let go of them. He was over obsessive and delusional. Easy to say he was highly unlikable, complicated, and strong character but oh my so cleverly created by author. I definitely like the way author represented him throughout the book.

Verity- Bad decision and choices in life can drags you to the worst situation one can ever imagine. That’s what Verity’s life was. There was certainly good qualities about her- clever, caring, confident, and successful, but also had flaws. I said many times that I don’t appreciate weak characters and Verity’s actions made tag her weak.

What I liked-
I just started it on 7th and I finished only 30% book by late evening and it even surprised me that I was up till 4 this morning and I slept after finishing this book. So you can imagine how addictive this book was.

Book was sectioned in 3 parts without any chapter breaks that initially made me put it down or go slow. But the scenes broken into paragraphs was a big relief.

Part 1: first impression- slow. Writing was great and engaging. This part gave a damn good description of Mike and his life. Though it was slow, it was very important part of the book. It told all about Mike’s life, his childhood and how he brought up by foster parents who gave him good education, and how now he turned out successful rich person. Also gave close look on his relationship with Verity, how it started, how they were together, and how it ended. Within few pages or few scenes I could clearly see there was something wrong with this guy. His narration showed his love in creepy way. He definitely was not reliable nor at any point did I think I believe him. End thought of this section- I couldn’t believe the words that their relationship lasted so long and Verity still wanted to be friends!!

Part 2: It was hard not think all sort of possibility in this part. The book had darkness of its own kind that exuded slowly in twisted and creepy way, specifically in this part, that made it so addictive. I was damn curious to know what Mike will do next and equally sure he was going to do something nasty. I wanted to see what steps Verity will take when that happens. I was so surprised by Mike’s delusions. How he just wanted to believe what he thought was right. His thought were so appalling and disgusting, I was really sick of him and the word ‘crave’ by the end of this section. The more shocking and surprising was Verity didn’t take legal help when I guessed at few points. I felt that either she is fool or was too weak for my liking.

Author twisted and complicated this section mindblowingly. She made me think at certain point that maybe I could have some hope in this delusional character and then next minute he did something unbelievable. She made it so unpredictable that all I thought was wrong and the unpredictability was even more in third section.

Part 3: Damn engaging and so so brilliantly crafted part. I seriously liked that trial session. I couldn’t even imagine it was going to end this way.

This book will definitely make you stop reading at certain point and think over deeply on things that happened in the book. It definitely made me think it’s better not to have lover than to have this kind in life or should be careful with people, they’re not always what they look like.

why 4 stars-
I feel few things were unbelievable. Don’t rich people have CCTV camera around their house making their home more secure? If they had it would have been drastic change in story. Don’t big houses have a peephole on the door so that they can see before opening a door? I wish they had and character has used it. I might sounds silly but I just couldn’t stop thinking this.

It was really awkward to believe no one has taken any serious steps after his emotional abusive childhood, how everyone was going on with Mike’s words and how it can be so easy for him to convince what he thought was right. Such person is bound to do mistake at certain point. It was all amazing but I was not satisfied with these things I mentioned and with the end.

Overall, it was dark, engaging, cleverly written book with complicated characters. I highly recommend to psychological thriller lover.

Mike Hayes had a terrible childhood, where he was neglected by his drunken mother and beaten by her string of hapless boyfriends. At ten, he was taken into care, eventually winding up with a nice couple. With their help, Mike went on to a good university, where he met Verity (V), with whom he fell madly in love. V helped Mike learn the ways of the world and society. They also played a sexual game called the Crave that brought them even closer together. However, after Mike went to New York for two years for work, their relationship ended. Even worse, Verity is now getting married to another man, Angus. At first, Mike is devastated. But soon, he realizes that V's wedding invitation is just another piece of Crave. As such, he must watch her, track her, and prepare his home for her inevitable return--all parts of the tense and careful game that is Crave.

Well, this was an interesting one. It was a pretty quick read, yet sometimes felt a bit long. It was definitely creepy, for sure. Hall has created a slow-burning thriller here, and you become eerily mesmerized by Mike's crazy. In fact, at times, I almost found myself rooting for him, despite the fact you knew he was unreliable, delusional, and not at all good for anyone in the novel. The book is less "edge-on-your-seat" thriller and more a character-driven study. Be prepared for Mike, Mike, and more Mike. The novel is told from his perspective and we're reliant entirely on his mindset. Because we know we can't trust said mindset, we're constantly waiting for something bad to happen. It's like watching a train wreck. A very twisted one.

That being said, the novel can be fascinating at times, but it also hard to know where it's going. As you're constantly waiting for something terrible to occur, you're waiting. And waiting. The novel moves slowly, with its intense focus on Mike, and his thoughts on Verity. I would have liked more insight to V, for instance, or the other people in Mike's life. So at that point, things can get feel drawn out. Not to mention, is Mike really this delusional, you wonder? Can he really believe what he's spouting? Needless to say the book is very effective at making you feel uncomfortable. It captures anger, longing, tension, and more (stalking?!) very well.

Overall, this novel drew me in with its creepy tone and compelling character of Mike. It's definitely slow-moving at times, but oddly fascinating as well.