A Flicker in the Dark by Stacy Willingham

       While I do dabble in mystery, this was my first time reading a psychological thriller, and I have to say, I’m a fan. While the beginning of this novel was off to a slow start, it picked up speed very quickly. The story is told in a dual timeline. We follow Chloe in the present day, working as a psychologist and planning her wedding, and we also watch 12-year-old Chloe experience a set of harrowing kidnappings and murders that happened in her small town. At the beginning of the story, we don’t know the full extent of what happened in Breaux Ridge; the only information we have is that Chloe’s father was a serial killer. We soon find that Chloe was a lot closer to the victims than we realized. When two shocking murders pop up in Baton Rouge, Chloe’s current residence, she starts to find some parallels to the murders from 20 years ago. She teams up with a New York Times reporter to find the copycat, and she realizes that the danger is a lot closer than she ever could have imagined.

       I have never been great about guessing the culprit of these murder mysteries, so take what I am about to say with a grain of salt. This mystery had me guessing till the very end, and I never suspected the real killer. I think I’m a little too trusting of book narrators, because Chloe’s own thoughts were what really deceived me. Chloe has an addiction problem; she exploits her position as a psychologist to prescribe drugs that she uses. Her drug of choice is Xanax. This, partnered with her trauma-induced paranoia, makes her a very unreliable narrator. But without these factors, the novel would have lost a lot of its mystery, and it wouldn’t have been a thriller. Chloe’s paranoia creates some bone-chilling scenes unlike anything I have seen before (I would like to reiterate that this is my first thriller). I’m not joking when I say that I had heart palpitations while reading this; there were a number of times where I truly feared for Chloe’s life. I absolutely adore books that evoke an emotional response, whether that be joy, sadness, or horror. In my opinion, the best books are the ones that make you feel. And I can say with confidence that this book made me feel. I felt terror in those intense scenes where Chloe was in the face of danger, and realization when I finally put the pieces together in this insane mystery, I felt Chloe’s frustration and struggle with her mental health. I felt a lot.

       Despite my appreciation for this novel, some people oppose my stance. Some readers noted that a lot of the decisions made by Chloe seem completely irrational and inaccurate, but I disagree with this standpoint. I think people forget that Chloe is under the influence for most of the novel, whether that be drugs, alcohol, or both. These vices are bound to cloud her judgment, not to mention her own memories and mental health struggles, which probably influence her decision-making skills. While I did get frustrated with some of the decisions made by characters in the books, I do understand that they were ultimately necessary to advance the plot and create a climactic scene for Chloe to unmask the real killer. My only other complaint would be the ending. I felt like the author left so many questions unanswered. I know some readers would appreciate the open-endedness of this novel, but I am not one of those people. The epilogue left a lot to be desired. It didn’t really answer any of my questions about the killer or Chloe’s life after the novel; it just felt rather unfinished. 

       Overall though, this was a great book; I couldn’t put it down, and the mystery kept me guessing till the very end. It definitely lived up to its thriller name. I was shocked to find out that this was a debut novel, so props to Stacy Willingham for such an amazing first book. And if you’ve been on the hunt for your next mystery/thriller I would totally give A Flicker in the Darkness a shot.

Some of My Favorite Quotes:

“When people get hurt physically, you can see it in the bruises and the scars, but when they’re hurt emotionally, mentally, it runs deeper than that. You can see every sleepless night in the reflection of their eyes; you can see every tear stained into their cheeks, every bout of anger etched into the creases in their foreheads.”

“monsters don’t hide in the woods; they aren’t shadows in the trees or invisible things lurking in darkened corners. No, the real monsters move in plain sight.”

“that I had a taste of what it really felt like: control. Of not only having it, but taking it from somebody else. Snatching it up and claiming it as your own. And for one single moment, like a flicker in the dark, it felt good.”

Thanks for Reading!

Published February 4th 2024