In the same vein as Stephen King, Jack Ketchum explores the darkness of humanity in The Girl Next Door. I’ve never felt so ...angry. So sad. So like, David, as he passively watches the cruel madness and violence unravel in the Chandler house. I felt helpless, but at the same time, I couldn’t help but keep on reading; wondering if David was going to step up - if he was going to break the moral tension.

Ketchum deliverers a morally ambiguous novel depicting the cruelty of abuse in a respectful and completely jarring manner. His afterward for the book is something that needs to be read and I applaud him for his sensitivity and authenticity in writing a story that truly needs to be read by all, if only to be aware of abuse in all its forms. As I write, I am left speechless and this is one of those stories that will stay with me forever.