Book Review: The Breakdown by B.A. Paris

It may come as shock to all of you who read Behind Closed Doors, but I still haven't read it! I know, I really need to. To partly make up for it, I knew I wanted to read B.A. Paris's The Breakdown and I also wanted to get a taste of what had made Behind Closed Doors such a success. 
The Breakdown gets off to a gripping start, Cass makes a snap decision to go down deserted road during a storm where she nearly hits a stationary car. She's not sure if the woman in the car needs help or not, when the woman gives no sign that she needs assistance, Cass drives off and tries to put the niggling guilt at the back of her mind. This decision is one that will haunt her as the very next day she discovers that that woman was murdered. Soon after, Cass starts to receive silent calls and also finds that she is forgetting things and the feeling that someone is watching her is getting stronger.
This book is really clever. B.A. Paris builds that sense of paranoia that Cass is feeling so that it is almost palpable. It even made me keep looking over my shoulder. You also don't know who to believe, is Cass really having a break down or is there someone messing with her head. The deterioration of Cass's mind is hard reading as it's a mixture of sympathy and frustration. Sympathy at what is happening to her and frustration that she isn't telling anyone. The author has done it really well as it all builds up to that climax. My interest did begin to wane around the middle mark, but the last 100 pages!...wow, they absolutely made the book for me! You need to read it just for that jaw dropping twist. Incredible! This fantastic finale made the book for me! Even it hadn't been for my frustration at wanting to find out what exactly was happening to Cass and who the silent calls were from, then this read would have been 5 stars. Clearly I am hugely impatient, however still so glad I persevered as the reward was more than worth it. Hugely clever, intricate with a jaw dropping twist!

The Breakdown is out now