Official Review: In Her Eyes by Lynn Sutton

Tanaya · Post by **Tanaya** » 12 Oct 2015, 17:53

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "In Her Eyes" by Lynn Sutton.]

4 out of 4 stars

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In Her Eyes is a psychological thriller by Lynn Sutton. At the center of the story is Tyler McCormack. A former defense attorney, Tyler is currently a detective for the Austin Police Department. Well, technically he’s on sabbatical, as ordered by a shrink. His friend Alexander asks for help in the murder case of Damian Jones, who was killed in a drive-by shooting at a gas station. Alexander suspects that it was a murder-for-hire. Damian's wife will most likely be the main suspect in the case. Therefore, Tyler is supposed to follow her and see if it could be true. Instead, he recognizes Damian’s wife to be Mallory, Tyler’s former teenage love. Going against protocol, Tyler confronts Mallory at her husband’s funeral. Mallory believes that this was all the doing of Damian’s crazy ex-wife Kendall. Tyler puts it all on the line to prove Mallory’s innocence and to protect her seven-year-old daughter from harm.

Told in the third person, the story mostly follows Tyler’s perspective. However, it also jumps to Mallory and other characters’ perspectives to provide a full, well-rounded picture. Of course, there are plot twists, most of which are quite effective. There is some redundancy as they try to connect the dots and solve the case. They repeatedly go over the same details and plot points. On the other hand, this makes sense since they have to work with the little they do know or can speculate. There are some erotic scenes in addition to depictions of rape, so be forewarned.

The narrative handling of the murder case was frustrating in more ways than one, particularly when it comes to the book’s conclusion. To me, the characters were more interesting than the crime that they were trying to solve. We learn early on that Tyler was put on shrink leave because he beat up a guy who was trying to rape his date. This is directly connected to why Tyler gave up being a defense attorney. He has a compelling backstory that strongly influences his current actions. He’s a guilt-ridden man who doesn’t know how to fix the mistakes of his past. He’s not the only one whose characterization is deeply psychological. Kendall suffers from antisocial personality disorder, and the reader is led to imagine how badly affected Mallory’s daughter will be by all of the chaos surrounding her. This is also the kind of story where people have realistic marriages, ones in which they “simply coexist.”

I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. This book reaffirmed why I enjoy this genre so very much. While I wasn’t fully on board with some of the choices made in terms of the murder plot, I was still very engaged in what was presented on these pages. It also helps that the book was very well written. Ultimately, it was a great read.

I wouldn’t recommend reading this book if the rape plot would be too much for you. If you’re looking for a psychological thriller with well-developed characters and a plot that keeps you guessing, then you should give this book a try.

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In Her Eyes
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gali · Post by **gali** » 13 Oct 2015, 01:18

Sounds interesting. Thank you for the lovely review.

DATo · Post by **DATo** » 13 Oct 2015, 05:28

Nice review. Sounds like the book's thrust is centered in character development and description. This is probably why the characters were more interesting than the story plot. It would seem that this is something one would expect in a psychological thriller.

Thanks for sharing!

Cee-Jay Aurinko · Post by **Cee-Jay Aurinko** » 13 Oct 2015, 06:07

Excellent review Tanaya! I'll keep the title of this book in mind for future reads. I love books with strong characters.

Tanaya · Post by **Tanaya** » 13 Oct 2015, 06:32

Thanks, everyone! I hope you enjoy it if you do end up reading it, Leon.

Post by **bookowlie** » 13 Oct 2015, 08:21

Nice review. I like your comment that the characters were more interesting than the crime they were trying to solve. I particularly enjoyed reading your review since I almost chose this review book a few days ago.

Tanaya · Post by **Tanaya** » 13 Oct 2015, 08:40

Thanks!

anonanemone · Post by **anonanemone** » 13 Oct 2015, 12:25

Great Review! I remember being fascinated by the abnormal psychology course that I took in college. This sounds very interesting. I also like the cover. When I first saw the title, I though it sounded like it might be romance story but the cover quickly disabused me of that notion! It seems to be perfect for this story.

Tanaya · Post by **Tanaya** » 13 Oct 2015, 12:31

Thanks! And hmm...interesting take on the title vs. the cover. It is quite fitting. I hadn't given it too much consideration before.

bluemel4 · Post by **bluemel4** » 13 Oct 2015, 14:45

Wonderful review. I have a hard time staying with overly repetitive mystery/thriller novels. I do like that there are fully realized and likeable characters.