Even though A Flicker in the Dark has an interesting premise, its reliance on the confused and drugged-up female narrator trope prevented this story from being as great as it could've been.
Chloe Davis has lived in the shadow of fear for a long time. When she was twelve years ago, six teenage girls disappeared in town, one right after another. The nightmare finally ended when her own father confessed to the killings, upending her childhood and leaving her family in ruins. Now twenty years later, girls are going missing again. And Chloe can't help but feel there is a link between what's happening now and what happened so long ago.
I've read plenty of serial killer stories from the perspective of investigators, the victims and their families, and regular townspeople, but I'm not sure I've ever read one from the killer's own daughter. And coming at it from that angle makes this story feel fresh and unusual. Chloe still suffers from the fallout of her childhood, and her narrative envelopes the whole story in her dark and foreboding mood.
Where this didn't quite work as well for me is the pacing. It's very slow, with hardly anything happening in the first 250 pages. Instead, we spend a lot of time in Chloe's head as she ruminates, freaks out, consumes copious quantities of alcohol and prescription drugs, sticks her nose where it doesn't belong, and in general, just bumbles around being confused and paranoid. To be fair, this is a pretty common trope for the genre, but it just isn't my favorite as I find it to be pretty dull and a bit exasperating.
Clearly, this is the sort of psychological thriller that leans heavily towards the psychological side, whereas I like mine to be more on the thriller side. I always enjoy a more active investigation instead of a more active rumination. However, that's just a personal preference. I think a lot of what I found to be slow is what a lot of readers find fascinating, so your experiences may be the opposite of mine.
The pacing does finally pick up in the last 100 pages, and we are treated to one revelation after another. I wouldn't necessarily say any of it is surprising (I've read too many thrillers at this point), but it is exciting. The way everything comes together is really the highlight of the book, and made this a worthwhile read for me.
Readaroo Rating: 3 stars
This was my Book of the Month pick for December. If you're curious about BOTM or want to find out how to get your first book for $5, click here.
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