Say what? Totaling engaging. Page turner, Grabbed me from sentence one. Sinister....Evil....Loved it!!

The premise of this novel is what caught my attention: a handsome, charming children's author beats his wife into a coma. What could have possibly led to this incredible act of anger and violence? The only way to truly know is to delve into the accounts of the people who knew the couple best-- family, friends, neighbors, lovers, and Oliver himself.

By all accounts, this should have been a fascinating look into the mind of a sociopath. In reality, it was extremely boring. I think the issue is that Oliver and Alice themselves are not terribly interesting people. Alice, though described as kind and sweet, is meek and unassuming. She doesn't grab the reader's attention, but rather fades into the background. In fact, even after finishing the novel, I still don't feel I know her very well at all. There was a palpable distance between her and the reader that prevented me from connecting with her or caring about her. And Oliver, despite all of the devilish charm and handsomeness attributed to him, was hardly a compelling villain. Rather, he came across as a narcissistic, selfish bore. I didn't care to read about his background, nor did I find the big reveal at the end very satisfying.

Thank you NetGalley for this advanced reader copy.

Oliver is an unlikeable character, but readers will continue turning the pages to understand what brought him to the point of violently attacking his wife in the opening scene.

A tightly knit psychologic thriller. A complicated plot that comes together perfectly to illuminate Oliver's mental and emotional state; it leaves no loose ends.

Where to begin. This book is so well written, and I liked how the different characters told their story.
It is about a deeply disturbed man whose childhood was the cause of his immoral ways and how it impacted the lives of many. I could not put it down and highly recommend same.

Now that's a great story! Told from various points of view from the characters in the book, the people in Olivers life are trying to make sense out of the brutal attack on his wife after a eating dinner one evening. Oliver and Alice work together, he a writer, she's an illustrator and illustrates his books.
The story takes us back to Oliver's youth, his growing up years, college and then post college up until he beats the life out of Alice.
All told by those in his life, Oliver doesn't really have friends so these are people close enough to him to give us the history. This goes back and forth across the years, right up until that defining moment.
I loved the way the book was written and it flowed. Was easily read and moved you through the story connecting dots as it went. Oh so many secrets and lies.
For me the very best part was the epilogue. I can't so spoilers but when you read it. It's all there in black and white.
I highly recommend this book. It's a must read.

**arc from NetGalley and publisher in exchange for a fair review**