The Treatment

By: Mo Hayder

Narrated by: Damien Goodwin

In a quiet residential area in London, a couple is discovered bound and imprisoned in their own home. Savagely battered and severely dehydrated, the worst revelation is yet to come: their eight-year-old son has been abducted. But when the body is found and forensic evidence turns the case on its head, revealing disturbing parallels to events in Detective Caffery's own past, Caffery realizes he's dealing with much more sinister forces than he'd anticipated - and finds it increasingly difficult to maintain his professional distance.

As the evidence mounts and Caffery struggles to hold his own life together, the case hurtles toward a shocking conclusion.

©2001 Mo Hayder (P)2012 Dreamscape Media, LLC

INTENSE MASTERPIECE

This is one of the most intense books I've ever read-or I should say listened to (I switched back-and-forth). The story is so horrifying that you want to stop, but you can't. It feels kind of like falling off a cliff. The plot and characters draw you in almost immediately and after that you have no choice but to continue to the end. The story, like every single Mo Hayder book I've ever read, is not for the faint of heart. It contains graphic and riveting descriptions of pedophilia and the torture of families held hostage by a schizophrenic. Mo Hayder has Stephen King's knack for portraying disturbed and crazed psyches in a highly realistic and believable way, so that it really gets under your skin. One minute you hate them, one minute you feel sorry for them, and the next you wish you could wake them up to what's really going on. And that's not just the criminals. Jack Caffery Is back, more tortured and obsessed than ever with solving the riddle of what happened to his younger brother. The reader will find out, although as you can guess, it is not a warm fluffy story. The depiction of the intense psychic anguish experienced by families after their ordeal is over is also extremely realistic. It reminds me of "Sophie's Choice" in its intensity. I won't easily forget this book, nor will I ever feel quite safe again in my comfortable middle-class existence. I think this book is a masterpiece, but be prepared for what you're in for, before you start reading!
Narration was quite good- not my favorite though. Loved the accents.

Extremely tough subject matter but good book

If you thought the first book was rough going with its serial killer/rapist/necrophiliac plot, you should know the sequel is even harder to take with its pedophilia plot. Hayder never gets too graphic, but describing other people’s reactions to the child rape as they watch is harrowing anyway. And this isn’t just child rape but a twist on it that’s so repellent, I’ve kind of blanked it out. Maybe this is because there’s another subplot that made me squirm more with a mentally disabled person mistreated. There was one angle that I decided if Hayder did what I feared she was going to do, I’d never read her again. When it ended, I thought she copped out by leaving it hanging, so I read the last chapter again. If I interpret it right, she actually let happen what I was begging her in my mind not to do. But she did it in such a subtle and clever way, that it’s really kind of brilliant, even if horrendous. The writing and plotting is amazing, plus there are some interesting rape discussion points. I'll be back for more, just not soon. Bechdel test: I think it failed.

Narrator was perfect.

very sexually and violently graphic

I didnt really like the visual graphics and swearing in this just my preference. Others might think it a sign of good description but I felt it took away from the story.

Another Success at Twisting The Reader

Mo is one of my favorite authors because of her way of stirring complex emotions in the reader. She’s amazing & The Treatment is spot on.

Great book but was available on audible in 2005

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I recommend this book but suggest folks look to see if they purchased it before..I listened to it in 2005 and remembered it.

Could Have Been Great!

This is a pretty engaging story, although it takes a while for it to really get going and the ending wasn't as satisfying as I would've liked

Better than Birdman

What did you love best about The Treatment?

The characters were well developed. There were multiple parallel suspenseful storylines.

What does Damien Goodwin bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I absolutely love Damien Goodwin's voice. I'm very disappointed to see that he isn't the narrator for any more of the Jack Caffery novels. Goodwin's voice brings a more youthful aspect to Caffery's character than the present narrator.

Warning - not a story with a satisfying ending

This story was hard for me to get through, not because of the narrator but because of the graphic details. It was well written, had good character exploration and depth, and it certainly was engrossing, but ultimately proved too graphic in its descriptions of the violence and depravity of the subject matter of pedophilia for my peace own of mind. Its realism is a credit to the author as evidence of the depth of research done and Mr. Goodwin's performance is excellent, but it was a little too real for me to stomach.

A Straightforward Crime Drama. It was OK.

The narrator was excellent. The story while vivid and well written, was only mildly entertaining.

Love the performance, the plot, sad about the end

This book is a page Turner couldn’t put it down. Really enjoyed the performance and the very uncomfortable storyline. Probably not for everyone, but it was well written and gave a glimpse into a horrific world. I also like that the main character was flawed, but still likable there were scenes that made me very uncomfortable, but it was a gripping story.