Category: Mental Illness

A Book Review

If I can be completely and utterly honest, there are probably about six books I can recall from my entire lifetime that have shaken me to the very core and left my mouth agape while I read them, and long after, when I think about them. The Cruelty by Candice Louisa Daquin has been added to that small collection.

As a debut novel, I expected more turns of phrase and moments of slipping into poetry, since this is the author’s main genre, and although there are bits of poetic cameos, this is definitely a novel through and through.

The gory and thoroughly brutal details are so vivid, I cringed during many chapters, and was forced to take my fair share of breaks to avoid sensory overload.

My patience and empathy were tested.

I wanted to fight, to jump into various scenes with guns a-blazing, to light the demon and his demon spawn on fire and watch them burn—anything to provide aid to the story’s protagonists, but they clearly did not need my help.

I got lost in every inch of every page of this book, and I know for a fact that other readers will, too.

Here is the review I shared on Amazon and Goodreads:

The “Cruelty” is an Understatement

I don’t think I’ve ever read something as emotionally stressful, yet incredibly engulfing and enveloping as “The Cruelty.” As her debut novel, Candice Louisa Daquin unleashes an undeniably sound writing style incorporating gore with poetically flowing imagery that managed to keep me glued to the storyline—afraid to look away, but also having to take a few breaks to be able to fully digest the content.

What both Camila and Julia endured surpasses True Crime and Unsolved Mystery episodes. And to come out on top and in love, with hopes of a flourishing future?! That is the Chef’s kiss I didn’t see coming.

I applaud the author for taking a chance on this novel and sharing its intense content. The bite of it is sharp and long-standing, and the characters are layered; feeling like family or the creepy neighbors of which one steers clear.

The way the novel ends signals there could be a sequel? And in all honesty, I am eager to see if that will come to fruition.

After taking a deep dive into a book that is so creatively woven to hit several genres of writing, I now wonder, what would top this?

Will Candice Louisa Daquin give us another piece of Camila’s puzzled life?

I surely hope so.

If you’re looking for a rape-revenge, intense survivor thriller, and a warranted cliffhanger, this should be your next read. You will need a solid stomach for gore, vulgarity, and vivid descriptions that fit extreme levels of mental, physical, and emotional abuse.

This page-turner will do more than enthrall you; it will change you forever.

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Scattered Words: Poems for Jernee Timid Loadholt is available now! Have you gotten your copy? Hardcover|eBook