Disclaimer: There is mention of self-harm throughout this review, as well as in the novel.
Published in 2006, Sharp Objects was written by the then 36-year-old Gillian Flynn and while this was Flynn’s debut novel, she is most known for her equally gripping novel, Gone Girl. Sharp Objects follows the story of Camille Preaker, a newspaper journalist in Chicago, Illinois living her life away from her semi-estranged family in Wind Gap, Missouri. Camille is given the daunting task of returning to Wind Gap to cover a brutal murder and a second missing child, as well as having the equally uncomfortable chore of visiting her emotionally high-strung mother, Adora, spoiled half-sister, Amma, and aloof step-father, Alan. While reporting the brutal murder and missing child, Camille is also forced to relive parts of her life that continue to create turmoil inside of her head.
Flynn’s writing is something to be admired and respected. She takes the time to create an intricately sewn story with complex characters, a gripping plot, edgy themes, and she manages to rope you in from the very beginning. Flynn writes exquisitely about uncomfortable themes such as self-harm, family dysfunction, and mental health throughout this psychological thriller. Sharp Objects does a gorgeous job at slowly unravelling Camille’s past while also tying up loose ends in the present. As the story progresses, the reader learns more about Camille’s past instead of finding out all of her background information at the beginning of the novel and this is a wonderful way to be introduced to a character because you get to know her organically and find out shocking parts of Camille’s life in the same way molasses spills off of a spoon, drawn out beautifully to keep you wanting more.
Sharp Objects goes beyond crime and suspense and dives into three main branching themes: family dysfunction, self-harm, and mental health. All three of these themes parallel the main plot and are all important to the story. The relationship between Camille, Adora, and Amma are the main relationships Sharp Objects and Flynn uses these characters to explain and discuss family dysfunction, she even throws in a step-father who occasionally speaks up, but usually turns away from all of the drama in their life. The three women have an intensely complicated relationship with one another and as the story progresses their relationships evolve, intensify, and become even more dysfunctional.
The next big theme that is brought up time and time again is self-harm. Without giving too much away, Camille and her mother, Adora, both suffer from different afflictions which cause them to self-harm in different ways. What is fascinating about this theme is that is tends to be taboo in that it is a sensitive thing to discuss. Flynn takes this uncomfortable theme and writes about it in such an elegant way without making the reader uncomfortable. Of course this is a theme that should not be taken lightly, and any reader who finds the talk of self-harm triggering should be wary of this theme throughout the story.
The final topic that Flynn focuses on is mental health. In 2006, talk of mental health was still a stigmatised topic, and one that was not discussed as much as it is today. Even with that in mind, Flynn uses mental health as a firm theme that is brought up repeatedly throughout the novel. All three of these themes: family dysfunction, self-harm, and mental health all play off of each other creating twists and turns that escalate towards the climax of the story where they all end up colliding together to form some exceptional revelations.
I remember getting to a part in the story and thinking that I had it all figured out, but Sharp Objects twists and turns so much that the reader never knows where Flynn is taking them next. Flynn uses the themes of family dysfunction, self-harm, and mental health to bring her characters and the plot come to life. She is constantly ten steps ahead of the reader, even if the reader believes that they have it all figured out.
For a debut novel that came out 14 years ago, Sharp Objects not only holds up to other books in its genre today, but it still stands up there with Gone Girl as the books other authors want their novels to be compared to. If you have not had the chance to read this stunningly spine-chilling novel, then do yourself a favour and pick up a copy; you will not want to put down Sharp Objects until the very last word (and then stare into nothing with your mouth ajar as you process everything).
Sharp Objects is available from Amazon, Book Depository, and other good book retailers.
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Synopsis | Goodreads
Fresh from a brief stay at a psych hospital, reporter Camille Preaker faces a troubling assignment: she must return to her tiny hometown to cover the murders of two preteen girls. For years, Camille has hardly spoken to her neurotic, hypochondriac mother or to the half-sister she barely knows: a beautiful thirteen-year-old with an eerie grip on the town. Now, installed in her old bedroom in her family’s Victorian mansion, Camille finds herself identifying with the young victims—a bit too strongly. Dogged by her own demons, she must unravel the psychological puzzle of her own past if she wants to get the story—and survive this homecoming.
