About this book…
A devastating and unsettling story of a powerful and unshakeable twin bond, Too Close is a gripping tale full of twists and turns, secrets and lies. For fans of The Twins by Saskia Sarginson.
Cecelia and Sebastian have a connection like no other – more than just brother and sister, they’ll go to any lengths to protect each other. Growing up in a bleak old farmhouse, their mother gone and their father violent and abusive, the twins have only each other to keep them alive.
But when the secrets of their mother’s disappearance start to emerge, and truth and lies are thrown into question, events take a terrifying turn . . .
As Cecelia tries to break away from the ties that bind her to her brother, Sebastian is determined that the twins should be together – whatever the costs.
My review…
So I guess you all know what attracted me to this book, it’s another book about twins! In this case it’s a girl/boy twin pairing so it has a slightly different twist to that twin relationship I love exploring. I will just say I saw an earlier review of this book that freaked me out a little bit and I was rather worried about reading it. But I put all my trust in the publisher as they have turned out some great books recently and so I put all preconceived ideas to one side and just started to read.
Cecelia and Sebastian live on a farm with their father who was a character I pretty much hated from the start. They endure a family where punishment is handed out in an aggressive form and seems mostly aimed at Cecelia. Their mother has gone away, but Sebastian thinks he knows where she has gone and why whereas Cecelia is convinced she is dead. Cecelia also has an unnaturally close relationship with Sebastian due to this abusive family atmosphere but one day one of the twins decides that enough is enough and the relationship breaks down.
The story starts with a very strange scene where Cecelia convinced her daughter Caroline is sleepwalking but it turns out not to be as clear cut as we are lead to believe. We aren’t really sure whether it is Cecelia herself who is sleepwalking or whether there is something much more disturbing happening to her. She doesn’t really appear to have a close relationship to her daughter or husband which is strange when you know what her background is. The plot then flashes back to 1984 to the twins as 14 year olds at the family farm before coming back to present day with a very different relationship due to the fact that the twins have now been separated for 18 years. I have to admit that I did struggle with the twins relationship most of the way through this book but the way it was adapted throughout the story was perfectly suited to the plot and built up the creepy tension perfectly. When we reach the horrific final chapters, I did feel physically sick at one point.
This was a very difficult book to read at times as it is very dark and violent in places. But Gayle Curtis writes such a great set of unlikable and unsympathetic characters that it is almost impossible to stop reading! I was gripped from start to finish but it was in the same way that you can’t tear your eyes away from a car crash, you don’t want to watch but you just can’t help yourself. This won’t make easy reading for some people especially when the true facts start coming together. But I found it appealed to my thirst for that “something different” and although I can’t say I enjoyed it, it definitely disturbed me which sometimes I much prefer!! I have also just realised that this is the same author who wrote “Memory Scents” as Gayle Eileen Curtis which I read a couple of years ago and was again a deliciously dark and creepy psychological suspense. So if you’ve read and enjoyed that, you will definitely like Too Close.
I received a copy of this book via netgalley in return for an unbiased review.
Too Close: A Dark and Gripping Psychological Thriller
mychestnutreadingtree 