Critical Review of Lara’s Journal by A. Gavazzoni

Lara’s Journal by A. Gavazzoni is a thriller suspense novel that deals with crime, love, jealousy, sex, and abuse in the life of two dispirited women. The plot starts off in Miami with the primary character, Simone, on a steamy vacation trying to escape from her issues or at least have a break from them. She's a sex therapist who is attempting to set her life back together after being kidnapped by a hostile serial killer. She ends up meeting a handsome dark stranger who wants to win her heart. All the same, Simone is already running from her close friend Edward, who wants to claim it. Eventually, she decides to enjoy herself and live a little on the wild side with the hot stranger. However, Simone is incapable of leaving her work at home. This is how we are introduced to the secondary character, Lara, through a journal she has to read to aid a grieving client. Lara is a successful architect who is unveiling her dreadful twisted past to us by compiling it all down in a journal to reflect on the experiences. The heroine reveals her traumatic abusive childhood and how it affects her adult life. We explore why Lara is into the BDSM lifestyle she practices and why she retains others at a distance. Lara and Simone deal with love, jealousy, and betrayal while trying to glue the pieces of themselves back together. And they each have to decide if they should let the men who are completely in love with them in. Or push them away due to their horrific traumatizing past.

Lara’s Journal is the second book in Gavazzoni’s Hidden Motives series. The theme of the story is dealing with the after-effects of experiencing abuse. Gavazzoni demonstrates two women fighting to get ahold of their lives after escaping abusive situations. Everyone doesn't respond consistently to abuse and the author demonstrates this with the characters Lara and Simone. I have to give a trigger warning for Lara’s story. If you have experienced abuse or can't read the details of a child being abused sexually, then this is probably not a novel you should read. Or be prepared to possibly be unable to complete the book.

I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. It received a 4 because of the incredible writing, the strong character development, and it has a great thriller suspense storyline. You don't have to worry about being unable to enjoy the story because of poor grammar. I adore how Gavazzoni lines up Lara and Simone's stories to mirror each other at certain points. We witness the women go through different forms of abuse and how the experiences get in the way of them functioning normally in their day-to-day lives. They struggle with confiding in others and falling in love while attempting to escape from their horrifying past. This supports the sympathy and empathy the character Simone portrays throughout the book while reading Lara’s journal. The book consists of 606 pages, and the story progresses at a nice pace. There was no moment of “hurry up and get to the point” or “wanting to skip ahead” while reading. And the switch to a first-person point of view to tell Lara’s story is nice. Lara’s chronicle reads like a book, so you get two amazingly written books in one because of that technique.

When it comes to character development, Gavazzoni does an astonishing job giving her characters depth. We experience a breathtaking example of this with the character Lara. The author realistically portrays the emotional and mental breakdown of a child being abused. It is so surreal that reading the parts about Lara’s child abuse triggered me. Now, I have never been triggered before by a book. And I have read plenty of dark twisted stories that deal with abuse. Then, on top of that, Gavazzoni beautifully ties it together by showcasing the impact the abuse has on Lara’s adult life. Also, by revealing the major role abuse plays in the type of adult she develops into. Here is a quote from the book that perfectly describes what I was experiencing while reading Lara’s story. In Chapter Four, it says, “She needed a break from the intensity of Lara’s writings. This was not an easy read, and Simone felt as if she was always holding her breath, afraid to find out what happened next each time she turned a page.” The author made it possible for me to relate to Lara and Simone at the same time.

Additionally, the thriller suspense storyline is intriguing. This is established in Simone's story, and I counted at least four mysteries going on at the same time. And none of them are boring or don't fit into the story. Gavazzoni does a remarkable job intertwining them to keep you guessing and constantly surprised throughout the book. They do pop up in Simone’s personal/love life and her professional life. Therefore, we experience the drama with her loved ones and her clients/coworkers.

There is truly nothing that I didn't admire about this book. I would definitely recommend it to others and have already done so. My sole struggle was having to keep taking breaks after reading about Lara’s childhood abuse because it was so triggering for me. However, I'm looking forward to reading more books by Gavazzoni. I'm definitely adding her to my list of authors to keep up with. I would recommend this book to readers that are into crime and thriller novels. Also, I would recommend it to readers who enjoy romance and BDSM narratives. I will say that to me this book is a thriller suspense story first and then a romance/BDSM story second.