Matt McAvoy Book Review

I always enjoy poetry, and I hugely enjoy Louise’s very dark and brooding, melancholy style of writing, so I was thrilled to receive an ARC of her latest collection – and it didn’t disappoint.  But be warned, this is no horror or fantasy fiction; this is, sadly and devastatingly, very real.  The theme of the collection is domestic abuse and violence against women, or more specifically women who snap and the consequences they face.  The pieces therein are about true-life cases, and furthermore they are ripped right from Louise’s gut.  Please be aware that some of the content may trigger some readers.

As usual, the author is excellent.  Her talent for verse is as good as any of her fiction work.  She is both raw and accomplished at the same time, and poetry is undoubtedly where she is at her most in terms of the former.  As far as the subject matter goes, there can be no doubting that Louise has a definite point to make, and she makes it with hammer blows, one after another.  If there were any doubt about her earnestness, the verse is interspersed with distressing factoids about the subject matter.  Not light-hearted reading, by any stretch of the imagination, but equally as poignant as it is harrowing.  I won’t speculate or comment on the author’s inspiration to write this collection; I will only say that it is tremendously important, and for the good that she has.  Some reviews here refer to this as a “true crime” book, but it is much more than that: it is a tribute to and defence of every woman and child who has suffered at the hands of an abusive man, which comes from a determined place within the author – I have been fortunate to work with Louise and read much of her work, and I know when she has something important to say.  It isn’t coffee table reading, but I would like to be among the first to suggest that it is necessary universal reading – as a man and a husband, I am very glad to have read it.  As a fan of Louise, of course I am delighted to have read it, and to experience more of her literary skillset, which grows with every book.