Death in Her Hands (Moshfegh) - Book Reviews

Book Reviews
When it comes to evoking the jagged edge of contemporary anxiety there might not be a more insightful writer working today than Moshfegh. That is, if the boundless dark potential of the human psyche is your thing. If it’s not, this atmospheric, darkly comic tale of a pathologically lonely widow and the thrills lurking in her sylvan retreat might not be for you. But, sophisticated reader that you are, you’re not afraid of the dark. Right?
The Millions


It all starts with a note that reads, "Her name was Magda. Nobody will ever know who killed her. It wasn't me. Here is her dead body." An elderly widow finds it in the woods and her horror and curiosity soon turns into an obsession. But just as her investigation begins to take shape, we begin to doubt our narrator's grip on reality. This is part crime thriller, part dark comedy, and totally delightful.
Good Housekeeping


[C]hilling…. A self-contained horror story that takes place inside the mind of an alluringly unreliable narrator…. When shhe finds a handwritten note that implies a murder has taken place on her property, she works to solve it as best she can. The narrator’s dark fantasies and less-than-pure thoughts work especially well if you think of Death in Her Hands as a sequel to Moshfegh’s deliciously gross and grotesque debut novel, Eileen.
Vulture


Perhaps the most jarring genre of fiction is the kind that takes you deep into the gradual unraveling of a person's mind. Moshfegh does a masterful job with Death In Her Hands, which follows a protagonist who believes she's solving a murder. The book moves seamlessly from suspenseful to horrifying, retaining the reader's attention all the while.
Marie Claire


Moshfegh is a novelist I will follow pretty much anywhere, even if this story’s winding path raised as many questions as it answered.
Vogue.com


There’s an intriguing idea at the center of this about how the mind can spin stories in order to stay alive, but the novel lacks the devious, provocative fun of Moshfegh’s other work, and is messy enough to make readers wonder what exactly to make of it.
Publishers Weekly


This unnerving latest from Moshfegh offers a truly creepy murder mystery while commenting on our relationship to the genre itself.
Library Journal


A fractured, startlingly human narrator in Moshfegh’s… inimitable style, Vesta quickly reveals a relentless imagination matched only by her desire to uncover the truth…. Cleverly unraveling… the limits of reality… this will speak to fans of literary psychological suspense.
Booklist


 You simultaneously worry about Vesta and root for her, and Moshfegh’s handling of her story is at once troubling and moving. An eerie and affecting satire of the detective novel.
Kirkus Reviews