Behind Closed Doors

I have been waiting to read Behind Closed Doors by B.A. Paris, this book for awhile, and it seems to be on every book club list I’ve seen in the past few months. Usually that’s a good sign, but most of the time it also means it’s some sort of melancholy love story that takes place in the 1910s or is a court case from the deep south. Still, the premise sounded interesting, and I like this genre of psychological thrillers from a female perspective. They are fast reads, exciting, and they really hold your attention as long as they’re written well. Thankfully, this is one of those.

Boring cover art, good read

While this story is told only by one narrator, Grace Angel, the timeline moves from the past to the present each chapter. Most of the time it works because you want to understand the secrets and why Grace and Jack act the way they do in public. However, it in the middle of the book it just gets tedious, and I found myself rushing through the “past” chapters to find out what’s happening in real time. It’s almost as if the author knew this was happening because all of a sudden the present timeline becomes the past so it’s like you’re reading the present and the future. It really saved the story.

It also seems to be a theme now that authors have stopped using traditional quotation marks. The last book I read didn’t use them at all, and B.A. Paris decided to use single quotation marks. Is this a thing? Is it cool to use other than standard punctuation? Because let me say, as a reader, it’s obnoxious. Like they think they’re better than using regular quotation marks. Sigh.

I am unsure how to review this book without giving anything away. I have a few leftover questions, mostly about Grace’s friend Esther and the book she lends her. That doesn’t ruin anything, but maybe you’ll remember I said that and let me know what you think. 

It felt like the big secret was revealed too soon. I think it’s what made the middle chapters a little boring — if we still didn’t really know the secrets of their relationship until later on, that may have worked better for the audience. After you learn the big secret, there aren’t many twists and turns. I was fairly certain I knew how the story would end, but once in awhile I think it would be nice to twist it up and end a story more of a cliffhanger or maybe with the other side wining. That would be more like real life anyway. Yet another reason I love The Circle. I think it might be possible for me to mention this every time I post. You’re welcome.

Definitely worth a read. The whole plot is unbelievable but feels real. The character development for Grace is really well done. Enjoy, and try not to let the quotation marks bug you.