Blackthorn Wood

By: Paula Hillman

Many thanks to Love Books Tours for the gifted copy of this book!

ABOUT THE BOOK

Every workplace has its dark corners, places where the power-hungry lurk, where resentment and grudges fester. Former deputy head teacher Cassie Clifton knows this. It’s why she’s no longer working. And it’s why she hasn’t left her home for more than two years. 

Cassie’s husband has encouraged her to work with a therapist to recover from the damage she’s suffered after workplace bullying and a drunken staff party that took a violent turn. Freddy’s counseling and support helps Cassie take her first tentative steps back into the world. But the threat hasn’t disappeared—and once she understands the malevolent machinations going on around her, she will have to confront her fears head-on . . .

MY REVIEW

This book is described as a psychological suspense, and there are definitely some suspenseful scenes, but for me, this book was much more than that. I really connected with this book in a way that I never thought I would. This book discusses workplace bullying. We read a lot about bullies being kids, but there are adult bullies as well. And when it’s in the workplace, how do adults deal with it? Is there a correct way to deal with it? I felt for Cassie, internalizing a lot, holding it in until it effected her mental health. I love that this story was told through her sessions with her therapist.

There are so many things in this book that the author did “right.” And that’s really hard to do with such a heavy topic. I really felt very bad for Cassie. I wanted to jump into the book and take her side. When she realized what she did at the end, it made my heart hurt for her even more. I hate when people try to take advantage of others. So for me, this book brought out a lot of strong feelings.

This is a thriller, so there are twists that you won’t see coming. But I will say this, this for the first time, was secondary for me. I really just loved the overall topic and tone of this book.

You really need to check this out. You can do so here.