About the book:

 

Title: Erase

Author: J.Y. Barris

Published: August 2017 by Julie Barris

Source: received from the author in exchange for an honest review

Format: e-copy

Blurb:

Allison Skala’s world was turned upside down in the thirty days following the death of her sister-in-law, Megan. Battling insomnia aside, she was in the middle of mending her marriage when she discovered secrets her parents had so determinedly kept hidden from her. All in due time, another tragedy that happened incidentally intertwined her life with that of Detective Martin Blake. Both dealing with loss, sorrow, and a traumatic past, would they find salvation in the end?

Dark, exciting, poignant, Erase is a disturbingly aspiring psychological thriller that will make you rethink human nature and question morality. It is a tale that will surprise you, grip you, and haunt you in your sleep.

Check it on: Amazon  & Goodreads

My Review:

This book is outside any boundary of my imagination. It exceeded my expectations so so much. I am beyond grateful to the author for taking a chance on my reviews and my blog and for providing a gift copy, because “Erase” is one amazing story.

As some of you know, I read mostly Romance, Fantasy or YA. So when the opportunity to review Julie’s book came up, I honestly thought it involved some kind of romance between the main character and a detective. I started reading it with this idea in mind. But soon, I found myself on a roller coaster.

You have to let one thing go in order to gain another

This is such a well-constructed psychological thriller! Allison Skala is one broken up woman. She has no one she can count on in her life. Her husband cheated on her with his step-sister (yes, it’s HIS step-sister) and after her death, their marriage goes from bad to worse. Her best friend Sara is more preoccupied with finding new lovers and her other best friend is her high school boyfriend who still has the hots for her. So she finds someone to confide into – her brother Adrian. But things are never what they appear to be.

The author has structured the book in three parts: Resentment, The Lesser Evil and Conscience. Each goes in line with the plot development and with Allison’s mental state. The first two parts cover 30 days’ worth of action and believe me, this is some action! There are parts here and there that may seem random and may have no ties to the story but the ending sheds some light. I was already out of my mind waiting to find out who did it!

Being a psychological thriller, “Erase” deals with several mental health issues. But in its center we have depression and its consequences on our mind and actions. We have obsession, we have questions of morality, we have people trying to protect their integrity. This is amazing!

They thought I couldn’t fu-fucking read, man I proved them wrong

It may not be the kind of book you read around Christmas, as it’s kind of dark, but it’s a great gift for someone who enjoys this type of books. Why? Because it’s a 5 stars read, it’s perfect and crazy fantastic! And I loved it!

Once in a while I take a chance on books that may not be about couples or heroes. Once in a while I find myself with a book like “Erase” by J.Y. Barris that makes me see the beauty and the complex in all kind of books. Dear author, thank you for this book and thank you for your future work!