Sibel Hodge | Stephanie's Book Reviews

I received a copy of this title from NetGalley. It does not affect my review.

Synopsis from Good Reads:

Chloe Benson wakes up kidnapped and bound in an underground tomb with no memory of how she got there.

She escapes through deserted woods with her life, but no one believes her story.

And when she suspects her husband is lying to her, Chloe is forced to retrace her past, following in her own footsteps to find the truth and stay alive.

But who is following Chloe?

Look Behind You. You never know who’s out there.

I was expecting Look Behind You to be a fast-paced psychological thriller. While it had those elements, it was more of an in-depth look at the psychological and emotional effects of abuse, within a mystery.

Chloe wakes up in total darkness, bound and without knowing how she got there. Hodge does a good job of describing the terror and the physical exhaustion Chloe feels as she tries to escape. When she eventually does, she winds up at the hospital where she learns that she had recently been admitted into the psychiatric ward for hallucinations that sound startlingly close to what she has just experienced. When no one believes that she was really abducted, she sets out to prove that it really happened.

While Chloe starts to put together the pieces of the seven weeks she doesn’t remember, she begins to suspect her husband, Liam. Liam is a verbally and emotionally abusive husband. He’s manipulative and controlling and Chloe begins to wonder if he is dangerous, as well. A good deal of the book dealt with Chloe’s feelings of loneliness and lack of self-worth that led her to initially fall for Liam. It gave a realistic view of living with abuse until something happens to eventually make her believe she’s deserves more and wants to do something about it.

While the story was a little slower paced than I would’ve liked, there were some good twists that I enjoyed and didn’t always see coming. I suspected several different characters throughout the story and was ultimately satisfied with how it ended. Overall, I enjoyed Look Behind You. I would recommend it to those interested in psychological exploration and mystery.

Rating (out of 5):
Plot: 3.5
Characters: 3
Readability: 3
Enjoyability: 3.5
Overall Average: 3.25 stars