Paperback, 320 pages
Published March 14th 2017 by The Feminist Press at CUNY
Rating: ★★
Follow Me Into the Dark reminded me of a lot of other books; a merging of Fall on Your Knees and Sharp Objects in particular, though I never felt like Sullivan managed to bring her novel fully into its own space. Perhaps my largest problem with the book is that the characters are chaotic but largely empty. Comparing to Sharp Objects where Camille Preaker's emotional and psychological emptiness is given shape and voice, Sullivan doesn't quite manage that level of connection between reader and subject, never truly delving into the characters and what makes them tick.
Follow Me Into the Dark was purposefully chaotic and confusing, skipping through time periods, narrative perspectives, and characters, in a way that never allows the reader to fully grasp on to anything. I read on more to find out why the hell it was so vague and choppy, not because I had a connection with any characters. I constantly felt as though Sullivan was at the cusp of something great, but pulled back for a not-particularly-surprising twist and an aura of mystery.
Follow Me Into the Dark left me with no more of idea of who the characters were than I had on the first page. Sometimes that's a totally viable option but in this case, with so few characters, I wanted more, so much more. I wanted to know why Kate chose to act certain ways, why The Doll Collector killed girls, why, why, why? There just never seemed to be enough psychological reasoning. Characters acted that way because they did.
Ultimately, I just felt like I'd read versions of this book before, but enjoyed them far more.
Follow Me Into the Dark was purposefully chaotic and confusing, skipping through time periods, narrative perspectives, and characters, in a way that never allows the reader to fully grasp on to anything. I read on more to find out why the hell it was so vague and choppy, not because I had a connection with any characters. I constantly felt as though Sullivan was at the cusp of something great, but pulled back for a not-particularly-surprising twist and an aura of mystery.
Follow Me Into the Dark left me with no more of idea of who the characters were than I had on the first page. Sometimes that's a totally viable option but in this case, with so few characters, I wanted more, so much more. I wanted to know why Kate chose to act certain ways, why The Doll Collector killed girls, why, why, why? There just never seemed to be enough psychological reasoning. Characters acted that way because they did.
Ultimately, I just felt like I'd read versions of this book before, but enjoyed them far more.
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