Theres something deeply insidious about the storytelling of Caroline Kepnes.
She makes it feel good to be so bad.
But Joe doesnt savor death.
InYouhe was a lovesick psychopath, driven to vile crimes by runaway emotion.
InHidden Bodies, Joe has matured.
Hes like a small claims court judge who can dole out capital punishment.
Most of all, Joe wants you, the reader, to know itshardhaving these high standards.
And sure, everybody hurts, but nowhere near as much as he does.
Los Angeles is full of places to hide a body, he informs us early in the book.
Or is she merely fatally oblivious?
Every now and then, a plot point inHidden Bodiesdefies belief.
These justifications are like little movies we project on the people around us.
We can all be narcissists who see the rest of the world as a reflection of ourselves.
Every so often, we encounter someone who disguises true cruelty in this mirage.
As realistic thriller, Hidden Bodies sometimes makes us say, Nah, no, not possible.
But maybe thats just to make ourselves feel better.
As satire of a self-absorbed society, Kepnes hits the mark, cuts deep, and twists the knife.A-
