BOOK REVIEW - Phantom Limb - Lucinda Berry - Digital Book - 4*

 

BOOK REVIEW

The Phantom Limb - Lucinda Berry (published 2016)

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As you know, thrillers (particularly psychological ones) are my comfort genre. Strange, perhaps, but these are books that feel familiar, snappy, and engaging. The good ones get my heart going, my emotions creeping into my throat, and I love getting my teeth into a new thriller. 

I had seen someone post about this book on Instagram, mentioning it as one of the books that they simply do not accept criticism on and, while you may think I am a little strange, I enjoy reading books that show people dealing with trauma, being vulnerable, coping (or not) and that generally explore the

darker side of life. Some of them feature the bad guys getting their asses handed to them, others leave the reader thinking and I get a real kick out of having a surprise twist, so commonly found in these kinds of books. 

The premise of this one, involving twins, mental health, and trauma, seemed intriguing, and it's quite a short read at just over 250 pages so I was expecting pace and twists galore! 

BLURB

Emily and Elizabeth spend their childhood locked in a bedroom and terrorised by a mother who drinks too much and disappears for days. The identical twins are rescued by a family determined to be their saviours. 

But there's some horrors love can't erase...

Elizabeth wakes in a hospital, strapped to her bed and unable to move or speak. The last thing she remembers is finding Emily's body in their bathroom. Days before, she was falling in love and starting college. Now, she's surrounded by men who talk to themselves and women who pull out their eyebrows. 

As she delves deeper into the mystery surrounding Emily's death, she discovers shocking secrets and holes in her memory that force her to remember what she's worked so hard to forget - the beatings, the blood, the special friends. Her life spins out of control at a terrifying speed as she desperately tries to unravel the psychological puzzle of her past before it's too late. 

AUTHOR

Lucinda Berry is in fact Dr. Lucinda Berry. In her previous career as a clinical psychologist, she was an expert in and spent time researching childhood trauma, something that carries over into her writing. 

She lives in Los Angeles and is a mum and marathon runner.

Her book biography consists of 10 books, all of which have interesting premises with a clear thread linking back to her former career in psychology. Here is her website if you'd like to read a little more about Lucinda or her books. 

PLOT/STORYLINE

This is a tricky one to describe without spoilers so I will keep it very brief! There are many dark and potentially triggering themes throughout, both in the childhood and adult lives of the main characters. 

Elizabeth and her twin sister, Emily, had a traumatic childhood, to say the least. They lived in neglected conditions, and suffered psychological and physical abuse at the hands of their mother who is struggling with addiction. 

Men are also invited into their home by the girls' mother, subjecting the girls to other forms of abuse that, while not explicitly described, is difficult to read about.

The story of their childhood is told primarily through the recollections of Elizabeth, our main character. The twins are adults now, but are dealing with their trauma in very different ways, with varying degrees of success. Elizabeth seems to be moving forward with her life, while Emily seems trapped in a harmful cycle. 

As the blurb suggests, Emily dies and Elizabeth finds herself in a mental institution, broken and devastated. The book is primarily focussed on Elizabeth's journey to recovery, through her grief and distress, learning things about her life, and herself, that her mind had forced her to forget. 

CHARACTERS

Elizabeth's character felt very real to me, her thought processes, decisions and way of dealing with situations were raw, almost desperate, and incredibly emotional. The story was told from Elizabeth's perspective which allowed a real insight into her personality, thoughts and feelings. 

Emily's trauma was clear to see, poignant and effectively described. Although the story was not from her point of view, she also seemed very real, broken and vulnerable. Her loss was devastating to Elizabeth and was poignant and hard-hitting.  

The other characters were a little two-dimensional in my view. The other residents of the institution that Elizabeth is in seemed almost like parodies of the illnesses they were struggling with. That being said, Rachel, who becomes one of Elizabeth's close friends, has much more depth to her than what is initially portrayed though I would have liked to have seen a little more of this. 

Similarly, Elizabeth's boyfriend and adoptive parents came across as lovely people, perhaps too perfect - people are flawed, they get angry, they say the wrong thing or react poorly to difficult situations and I would have loved to have seen a little more rawness to them. 

Elizabeth's long-term therapist is similarly presented, almost on a pedestal from Elizabeth's point of view. 

Bearing in mind that the entire story is told from Elizabeth's perspective, so is based on her own perceptions of her interactions with the characters, her own subjectivity around the events that have happened (and are happening), and taking into account some of the things that are learned later in the book, the lack of "padding" to the characters is understandable. If you're an old hand in the thriller genre, this will be somewhat of a familiar feeling! 

OVERALL REVIEW

RATING: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

SPICE: 🔥🔥(some references and implications, involving young people)

Lucinda's expertise in the fields of psychology and childhood trauma is very clearly on display in this book. It does stretch over into the realms of improbability, especially at the end (although it was an entirely unexpected twist, I like it when an author can do that!) but it was a very thought-provoking take on the overreaching impacts of trauma. 

It's a short book (compared to some of my usual meaty tomes!) so it was fairly fast-moving, no time to dwell on those emotions, and boy did the story conjure up some emotions! 

As I mentioned when discussing the plot, the subject matter is dark and varied across many aspects of abuse, trauma, and mental health both with the main characters and the other residents of the institution that Elizabeth is placed into. 

I genuinely thought I had it all figured out. When I'm reading a thriller, I play a game with my partner by texting him my predictions for the twists (slight side note that there's a chance I'm on a list somewhere in the Big Brother world for some of the messages that (out of context anyway) seem, let's just say, unhinged!) I wasn't too far off, or so I thought. Hidden in plain sight is the phrase that comes to mind. Very well done in my opinion!

The book is very psychological, and although I am not a psychologist and am fortunate enough to not be impacted to any great degree by trauma the part of the book focussing on Elizabeth's treatment sounded true to life, if not slightly exaggerated and sped up for the story writing process. 

I really did enjoy it, it was a quick but impactful read and it's opened the door for me to another author I'd be keen to read more from. 

WHO SHOULD READ THIS BOOK?

Thriller lovers like me would naturally gravitate towards this book particularly if you enjoy something more psychological than action-packed. If you enjoy getting into the nitty-gritty, dark side of the human psyche, no fluff just stuff, this would be a decent way to spend an afternoon! 

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