Carolyn Woods was living happily in a quiet Cotswolds village when an attractive stranger abruptly arrived in her life.
Introducing himself as Mark Conway, he exuded confidence and to her surprise Carolyn quickly became captivated by this mysterious man. A rich Swiss banker (who later confessed to being a spy), he offered Carolyn companionship and introduced her to an exciting, glamorous world.
In fact, some things were so astonishing she began to question her new lover. Was all as it seemed?
The truth was even harder to believe. For a start, his real name was Mark Acklom, he was wanted by Interpol, and he was rich but for one reason only…
A true-crime story that reads like a thriller, Sleeping with a Psychopath is a blow-by-blow account of the power of manipulation and a testament to the human will to survive.
Review
Sadly, Sleeping With A Psychopath was disappointing for me. And I hate saying that about books like this because who am I to judge anybody’s story. I guess with the wealth of true crime out there at the moment, plus some really great fictional thrillers, my expectations for real life is way too high.
I think the main thing that distanced me from the book was Carolyn’s writing style. I appreciated that it was raw and very much her own voice. However, I would have liked some more scene setting, something a bit more dramatic to heighten what she was going through. At the end of each chapter, the author also touched on the traits of psychopathy and attempted to relate them to Mark. What was included was too vague for my liking and I think these sections needed more depth or to be left out entirely.
The first half of the book was very slow. It was frustrating to see the mistakes that Carolyn made and admittedly, it was hard to be empathetic when I couldn’t understand how she didn’t see the same red flags everyone else could see. The second half of the book did pick up though, and I found myself more interested in the story, although not enough to truly love this book.
Again, it’s hard to review a book like this as I don’t feel equipped to judge someone’s life. I don’t want to take away from anything the author went through and felt. However, if I look at this from a pure entertainment point of view, Sleeping With A Psychopath just wasn’t for me.
If you would like to read Sleeping With A Psychopath, you can pick up a copy here.
Joyful Antidotes 