Close My Eyes

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Ine Marie Wilmann, Simon J. Berger, Anneke von der Lippe. Edit Cast Cast overview, first billed only: Natalie Bryant Karl Johnson Natalie's Boss Helen FitzGerald Scottish Girl Christopher Barr Edit Storyline After some years of tension, Richard begins a sexual relationship with his sister Natalie, who is now married. There are some relationships so taboo they're irresistible. Edit Did You Know? Trivia An ad campaign canceled its contract with Clive Owen , not wanting an actor who'd starred in such a controversial film to front for them.

Goofs When Natalie and Richard are fighting on the country lane, there is a rip in the right shoulder of her jacket.

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When they get back to the party, the rip has gone. Quotes [ first lines ] Natalie: Sorry, it was unavoidable, trains on Sunday, you know what they're like. I don't believe it. I've eaten all the food.

You've eaten all the food? Connections Referenced in Honest Trailers: Soundtracks You Said It! Add the first question. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Report this. He does not yet suspect Richard, but does not believe that Richard doesn't know who it is. He ultimately respects Richard's decision not to reveal the person. On hearing that Sinclair and Natalie plan to move to America because of the recession, Richard loses his self-control completely.

He has an emotional breakdown while talking to Natalie at a hotel, and later unsuccessfully attempts suicide by taking sleeping pills as Natalie arrives unexpectedly at his apartment. On the condition that he behave, Richard is invited to Natalie and Sinclair's going-away party. He attends with Jessica, but abandons her quickly in order to search for Natalie. Richard finds Natalie in a secluded area and pulls her further off the site, into the countryside.

He grabs her angrily, and she tries to get away from him. After catching up with her, he tells her, "I want to kill you. He pulls her to safety when they are both nearly run over by a delivery truck. Natalie apologizes for using him, and tells him that she and Sinclair aren't leaving the country after all, but that they wanted to have the party anyway.

They return to the gathering disheveled, and the guests leave. Sinclair appears, and staying calm, makes it clear that he knows what has happened, though he doesn't wish to hear the details, and that he forgives them. The three of them walk, together, into an autumn sunset by the river. A parallel thread running through the movie is the rapacious replacement of the classical by the modern, represented visually by old and new buildings.

The film was shot mainly in London and, specifically, London Docklands with Sinclair and Natalie's house being in Marlow. The grand party that is the stage for the film's climax was shot at Polesden Lacey in Bookham , Surrey. The final scenes along the river are at Henley on Thames, Oxfordshire. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Close My Eyes Promotional movie poster for the film. This article's plot summary may be too long or excessively detailed. Please help improve it by removing unnecessary details and making it more concise.

November Learn how and when to remove this template message. Films and TV series directed by Stephen Poliakoff. Throughout the book my head was constantly buzzing with questions. Was Beth really alive? If so, where had she been all these years? And who has her? Is the stranger at the door really telling the truth? Can we actually trust anybody? I was desperate to find out! I really love a good mystery and thriller, and like many others, I really enjoy trying to pick up clues along the way and guess what is happening. The twists and turns in this book are SO impressive, it took my breath away.

The characters were fantastically written. They all had their own background stories and were actually very complex. I loved Gen straight away, as it is told from her perspective I warmed to her from the first page. I really felt for her for what she had been through with Beth, and I desperately wanted her to discover the truth.

As a reader, we learn about and unravel the situations at the same time as Gen does, and my heart was pounding as I read on, I was so scared for Gen but at the same time I was willing her on because I wanted to know the truth about Beth as much as she did. My favourite part though was that when I reached the end, I thought I had been truly shocked by the result. But nothing prepared me for the final bit that the book threw at me, to say it was chilling is an understatement!

The book was brilliant but the last parts of the book where everything picks up pace was absolutely outstanding. I really cannot recommend this book enough!

Every Time I Close My Eyes

Close My Eyes is powerful, it is intense and it is so frightening that it is brilliant. This is a seriously chilling read that will have you turning the pages and staying up late at night to read more! With an incredible plot line and lots of tension, this is THE book to read this summer! Sep 12, Jacqueline Wheeler rated it it was amazing Shelves: Wow - I haven't read a psychological thriller this good in a while. This book went so deep and kept me turning the pages.

Close My Eyes by Sophie McKenzie

I couldn't figure out who did what, which I LOVE, and the plot kept changing with new twists and turns. I also love that the ending wasn't rushed, and she made time to explain exactly who, what, where, and why. A writer by profession, her creativity has left her and she now works half-heartedly as a writing teacher. Her husband Art runs a thriving business and financially they want for nothing. He's been the driving force behind them trying for another baby, and after natural methods failed, they had several unsuccessful attempts at IVF.

Art now wants to try one more time, bu Rating: Art now wants to try one more time, but Gen just can't put herself through another round of hope and despair. What she really wants is Beth, just Beth. Then out of the blue, a woman knocks at Gen's door with the most shocking claim: Gen's already delicate world crashes around her, but Art dismisses the claims as the work of a business rival, begging her to finally let go of the past and look to the future.

But Gen can't do that. If there's a chance that Beth is out there, she'll stop at nothing to find her, whatever the personal cost. Her desperate questions and growing paranoia begins to alienate her best friend Hen as well as Art, but shady newcomer Lorcan is on hand to support her as she searches for the truth. Tightly plotted, the tension slowly builds, deeper and creepier; suspect everyone, trust no-one.

Many books are described as page-turners, but this one truly is; it's impossible to do 'just one more chapter,' and I held my breath on more than one occasion, my heart racing as I tried to figure out what the hell had happened. The story is interspersed by a child's narration which becomes more disturbing as the book progresses.

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Is it lost Beth, or are they the vengeful memories of one of the adults? As with most psychological thrillers the big reveal gets a little melodramatic, reducing an up till then 5 star read to 4. A stunning read — once I started reading I did not put down till I finished! I had to know what going on, was Gen unstable, trapped in a spiraling web of grief or was there something more sinister and incredible happening? And what was the relevance of the seemingly random addition of the child like voice that punctuated the narrative so disturbingly? McKenzie writes a great psychological thriller, plenty of twists and turns, a few red herrings thrown in just to keep you guessing, and a My View: McKenzie writes a great psychological thriller, plenty of twists and turns, a few red herrings thrown in just to keep you guessing, and a topic that is so sensitive and emotive to so many; the death of child and IVF.

Add to this a disturbing child like second voice that is somewhat innocent yet menacing at the same time- creepy! The characters are well developed and Gen is particularly empathetic, she is vulnerable, grieving, and slipping further into depression or is she? That is a question the reader is forced to ask themselves over and over, every time you think there is a logical reason for an event or a disclosure there is an equal illogical but tantalising option — Gen might not be imagining things, Gen isnt dwelling in a morose place, Gen isn't drawing her own conclusions, making the story fit her own desires, or is she?

The see saw ride of doubt is persistent and credible and adds to the dramatic tension; Gen even has doubts herself about her conclusions. McKenzie keeps the tension high, the pages turn fast. The last few pages were brilliant! I did not see that coming. Jun 07, Celina Grace rated it liked it. It was a toss up between a two and a three star review for Close My eyes.

The good points are very good: There is also great skill in making what is actually quite a wildly implausible plot pretty convincing The bad points: I'm afraid I clocked who the villain was almost as soon as they were introduced as a character which meant the big r It was a toss up between a two and a three star review for Close My eyes. I'm afraid I clocked who the villain was almost as soon as they were introduced as a character which meant the big reveal at the end didn't come as any kind of surprise at all. The plot hinges on a piece of evidence that doesn't really make sense if you think about it.

The book is written in the present tense which is one of my pet hates although I appreciate for a thriller it does keep up a sense of urgency. A good read though and I'll definitely keep an eye out for more by this author.

Oh and a note for publishers: Your readers are not still at school. Jun 07, Marissa Farrar rated it liked it. The loss of the main character's baby eight years earlier seems pretty straightforward until a strange woman shows up at her door and tells her that her baby is still alive. Then her whole life unravels, with numerous secrets exposed. I found the final part of the book hard to believe and found myself getting annoyed with the main character and the numerous idiotic steps she takes.

I won't go into them as they'd be spoilers, but I 3. I won't go into them as they'd be spoilers, but I did find myself going 'what???! I also really disliked the ending and the 'reveal' of the child narrator. I'd already guessed who it was fairly early, but the final bit was really the thing that killed this book for me. I can't imagine a child ever truly thinking that way. Isn't this the exact same cover as this but with a different font:. Available now from Simon and Schuster. Gen, once a writer of novels, has settled in to a life of half-hearted teaching, while Art makes his name and their fortune — and pressures her into trying IVF once again.

For Gen, it seems a cruel act of replacement; life without Beth is unthinkable, unbearable — but Available now from Simon and Schuster. For Gen, it seems a cruel act of replacement; life without Beth is unthinkable, unbearable — but still it goes on. Or something much more sinister? What is the truth about Beth Loxley? So another of my very favourite kind of books, those twisty turny psychological thrillers — this one had been languishing on my shelf for a while due to the ever growing to be read mountain, but finally it was time and it was a darn good read. Gen drifts through life, still grieving, having never really moved on from losing her baby.

This was another utterly addictive read for me — helped along by a terrifically compelling character, Gen, who you immediately get emotionally involved with and by her Husband Art, an enigmatic and driven man who may well be hiding some horrific secrets. Much of the brilliance in this story for me came within the relationship of these two, cleverly drawn, keeping you wondering about the true nature of it througout.

In a lot of ways, as well as being a fascinating mystery story this is also very much a tale of a marriage and just how well you can know a person even after many years together. Definitely recommended highly for fans of the mystery genre. Geniver Loxley and her prominent husband Art had long been trying to have a second child after the stillbirth of their daughter Beth some 8 years earlier. In a strange twist of fate, somebody shows up on Loxleys' doorstep with the following message: Beth was not really stillborn, but taken by the doctor who delivered her.

Naturally, the stranger's claims This was such a gripping psychological thriller that had you hooked right from the beginning, and wouldn't let you go until you reached the end. Naturally, the stranger's claims are dismissed for a cruel trick, but over time, the claims just might have something to them. Who is this stranger? And is the person really unknown to the Loxleys? And what of the doctor? Was Beth stillborn or is she still alive someplace?

Nov 08, Karen rated it it was amazing. This book was just fantastic! I loved every moment and the ending was superb! It's because of books like this that I am reminded about why I love to read. I received an Advanced Reader's Copy of this book through Goodreads First Read program, so I thought I would share my thoughts which were not required as a condition of receiving the book.

This book is drawing numerous comparisons to Gone Girl, which I absolutely loved, but the biggest problem with such a comparison is that the reader is undoubtedly meant to sympathize, relate and even root for Geniver, the main character, whereas the characters in Gone Girl were never at least imho meant to I received an Advanced Reader's Copy of this book through Goodreads First Read program, so I thought I would share my thoughts which were not required as a condition of receiving the book. This book is drawing numerous comparisons to Gone Girl, which I absolutely loved, but the biggest problem with such a comparison is that the reader is undoubtedly meant to sympathize, relate and even root for Geniver, the main character, whereas the characters in Gone Girl were never at least imho meant to be characters whose shoes we could slip into.

That slight difference, to me, made all the difference in the world. I am someone who, by choice, does not have children, so while I can intellectually understand, and sympathize with, a woman who miscarries or delivers a stillborn child, I will never empathize with her. Given that the main character, and from whose perspective the entire book is written, is someone essentially obsessed with a stillbirth that occurred eight years earlier, I found it very difficult to slip into her shoes, to the point where there were moments I actually agreed with Art her husband and Hen her best friend regarding her behavior and need to "get over it" and "move on.

As stated in the promos, Gen birthed a stillborn girl, Beth, eight years ago.

One day, a woman approaches her and tells her that Beth might still be alive. The plot progression is not so much filled with twists and turns as it is with Gen's inner thoughts, paranoia and self-consciousness as the story progresses. She constantly questions who she can trust, and admittedly, McKenzie does an excellent job of portraying such inner turmoil and the ways in which we can second guess our instincts.

To draw another distinction with Gone Girl, in Close My Eyes there is little back story from which I could envision fully developed characters, whereas the former interspersed plot progression with loads of back story. As I found Gen's obsession a bit tiring after a while, this made her character seem wooden and one-dimensional to me, like her whole existence was defined by that one moment in her life.

Moreover, this made the entire book hinge on unraveling the mystery of Beth, whereas I felt like Gone Girl was much, much more about developing the characters and how they got to where they were in the present than it was about the mystery around which the book revolved. Because the latter did not focus as heavily on the actual mystery driving the story, I found it somewhat easier to suspend disbelief and convince myself that it could happen.

Put differently, and as another reviewer commented, this story was a bit more like a Lifetime soap opera and unrealistic somehow this was especially apparently with Lorcan, whose character I actually quite liked, but whose role was a bit hard to swallow. While the first half of the book moved slowly, things really picked up in the second half.

The last third, in particular, actually got much more exciting. Once the plot really started to move away from Gen's inner monologue, I enjoyed the book much more. There is no way to talk about this book without discussing the ending Which I will not spoil. The shocking reveal was actually easy to see coming, but the epilogue - oh my. That I did not foresee until mere moments before, and I will say that the epilogue ending was fantastic - dark, to be sure, but definitely a satisfying end to an otherwise ok book.

What da heck did I just read?? When you first read Close My Eyes, it's a bit too slow at the start. Nothing really seems to be happening, you're lulled into a false sense of security read: Because that would be creepy. Man, those scenes were intense! To be honest, Okay, seriously. To be honest, I definitely suspected Art from the start as suggested in the blurb , although at the same time it seemed a bit too obvious. But then again, is the author double bluffing?!

I won't tell you whether or not I was right, because I don't want to spoil the surprise, but I can tell you that I definitely didn't expect the huge twist. So many red herrings are thrown in, although once those red herrings are thrown away, it's quite obvious who the culprit really is seeing as though there aren't really any other options left.

Gen is a bit of an unreliable narrator- ofttentimes you're second guessing whether Gen is just insane or something. There's this underlying feeling of paranoia- you feel like you can't trust Gen, you're not quite sure that she's not delusional. In addition, I couldn't help but think- even if Beth was alive, is she truly Gen's daughter?

Family is more than blood- say she's been happy living with another family- what are the ethics of taking her from her family? It's an interesting and difficult issue. I really wasn't sure what I thought of Art. He's an okay character, but it just felt like he wasn't taking Gen seriously half the time. Show some freaking support! And another thing- he is seriously blunt. Have some delicacy man! You don't even have a proper job.

I was a bit confused as to whose point of view these italic passages are from- is it Beth? Is it the villain? Is it Gen herself? I spent half the book trying to work out who it was, but was not surprised when the truth was revealed. Honestly, I'm not quite sure what the title really means. It would be interesting to hear from the author the true meaning of the title- perhaps it was something subtle from the book that I couldn't quite pick up. In any case, I definitely recommend this novel if you like mysteries, and don't mind a bit of an initial slow pace.

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