Claire Gleeson

Show Me Where It Hurts

Rachel lives with her husband Tom and their two children: it's the ordinary family life she always thought she'd have. All of that changes in an instant - when Tom runs the family car off the road, seeking to end his own life, and take his wife and children with him. Rachel is left to pore over the wreckage to try and understand what happened - to find a way to go on living afterwards.

What emerges is a snapshot of what it's like to live alongside someone who is suffering, how you keep yourself afloat when the person you love is drowning, and how you survive irreparable loss.

Impossible to turn away from, Show Me Where It Hurts is a compelling, heartbreaking and ultimately life-affirming story of recovery and unexpected hope.
Review:
[Read: 15 October 2025]

Such a good read and so beautifully written. I was gripped from the very first page and couldn't put it down. The novel unfolds through Rachel's perspective across two timelines: the before, leading up to the pivotal event, and the after, as she tries to piece her life back together.

While the subject matter is something I would never want to experience, the story isn't really about the event itself. Instead, it focuses on everything that led up to it and the devastating aftermath for everyone involved - particularly how Rachel processes her trauma and begins the impossible work of healing.

My heart ached for Rachel throughout. Her grief and disbelief felt so raw and believable that every emotion seemed to leap off the page. All I wanted was for her to find some kind of resolution - and if not a happy ending, then at least one that would bring her peace and understanding.

This book broke my heart more times than I can count.

I highly recommend it, and I'm incredibly impressed that this is a debut novel. I'll definitely be watching for whatever this author writes next.

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