The Girl Next Door

I don't think ive ever read a book that made me physically nauseous. The air around me felt tense and I had to stop to take a deep breath at one point, I wish I was exaggerating. 
I've read quite a bit of extreme horror, just gore for the sake of gore, but this was so horrifying because it was so realistic. Based off of a true case. The 50s setting was so perfect, and the author takes time to really humanise the victims. 

The pov worked really well too, because this is being narrated by the boy next door to where the abuse was happening, and how he perceives everything as an impressionable teenager himself. There is also narration from him as an adult which was painful, but insightful. You really get to see what it's like to be witnessing something like this. 

This book is not easy to get through, yet i couldn't stop myself from flipping the pages. So brilliant for what it set out to do.