The Door at the Top of the Stairs

The Door At The Top Of The Stairs by Alison Namoi Holt is not for the faint of heart. It is an intense emotional discovery of a female police officers severe abuse at the hands of a drug dealer. This book is a riveting read that is well-paced and entertaining. Twenty-six-year-old Jesse has been roaming from job to job the last year. She is angry and aggressive and doesnt know why she acts the way she does. Then she walks on to the farm belonging to Morgan and Ryland. Morgan is a 58-year-old ill-tempered farm owner who adoringly loves her wife, Ryland, a 65-year-old retired psychotherapist who is working on her fourth controversial book. Ryland believes for one to recover from trauma psychologically, one must remember the suppressed memories and deal with them. The book is the telling of Ryland and Morgan helping Jesse uncover her traumatic past so she can heal. During the months they work through Jesses past, the women form a special bond.
I liked the dialogue and chemistry between the characters. Jesse and Morgan, both stubborn, interact in a confrontational way. I liked how their mutual respect grew over the course of the story. Ryland is an interesting character. She is accepting and kind but brutal in her straightforward therapy approach. I found this book at times exhausting, but also difficult to put down. Again, this is not a romance, but a dark psychological thriller that will make a reader wince at its intensity. I highly recommend this book if that is your reading jam.

The book begins when Jesse Shaunessy wanders onto Morgan Davis’ horse farm and asks for a job. Their strong personalities immediately clash and we’re certain Jesse won’t last an hour as an employee of Morgan Davis. But thanks to the perceptiveness and intuition of Morgan’s partner, Dr. Ryland Caldwell, a retired psychologist, Jesse manages to hold on to her job.

Settled into her new routine, Jesse is brought in to help with the fox hunts which Morgan runs on her farm. A terrifying incident with Jesse during the hunt leads Morgan and Ryland to find horrible scars on Jesse’s back. The scars combined with Jesse’s anger management issues and other bizarre and frightening behavior lead Ryland to the conclusion that, without her expertise in helping victims of physical and psychological trauma, Jesse will not survive.

I initially purchased this book several years ago and started reading it but didn’t finish it. Now that I’ve finished reading the book, I know I didn’t put it down previously due to any lack of enthusiasm for the story. I must have just gotten distracted. Thankfully, I was reacquainted with the book when I saw it displayed on the cover image for the Lesbian Books, writers, readers group on Facebook. I’m very happy I finally finished this book.

The button pushing conflicts between Morgan and Jesse are generally more humorous than uncomfortable. At least for those of us looking in on them. I’m sure Morgan and Jesse feel differently about the conflicts.

Ryland’s work with Jesse and the way in which she involves Morgan is believable and the detail is quite painful at times. The bonds that grow between these women are a testament to the power and strength of women when we support each other.

I thought it was unusual that Alison referred to the relationship between Morgan and Ryland so often throughout the book as friendship when they were clearly lovers and partners and not trying to hide it from anyone on the farm or in the small community. It didn’t detract from the book. It was just a uniqueness that caught my eye.

I would like to have seen Alison include more detail on Jesse’s police department and details of her retirement from the point of view of a colleague on the force.

This book was well written with a compelling and engaging plot. I thoroughly enjoyed the interaction between Jesse and Morgan and the evolution of the relationship between Morgan and Jesse as well as Jesse and the people of the small town. I’m really happy Morgan and Ryland didn’t give up on Jesse and Jesse didn’t give up on them.

Alison Naomi Holt I give you five stars for The Door at the Top of the Stairs. The hope this book demonstrates for anyone suffering from PTSD is inspirational. And it is yet another example within our community just how powerful choosing family can be.

Nobody should ever experience what Jesse has experienced. I cann’t imagine to endure such trauma. I felt so much emotions reading this book. My heart bled for Jesse. This was a very unusual story and my first introduction to the world of mental health. I don’t know nothing about psychotherapy but for my it felt very real. For me it felt like I was sitting next to Jesse and that I was a part of the therapy session. It was down right painful to watch Jesse, to see her ups and downs, her good and bad days, her anger. To see her crumpled into a ball on the couch. All three women working together to achieve a mutual goal, helping Jesse to come back on track, to heal her brain. There was progress but very slowly. Together they fight against Jesse’s anger, her memory problems and to not let her demons dominate her life. Three very powerful characters, an impressive strong storyline, a lot of angst, love and friendship. The writing style is excellent, it is a coherent and well-structured piece of work. It was an emotional read but I loved it. Two thumbs up for the author.

OK. I read The Door at the Top of the Stairs. This is where you you are supposed to say you loved or enjoyed the book. This book will rip your heart out and leave it exposed on your chest. This book will make you Thank whatever deity you believe in, that you live a normal unremarkable life.

This is an awesome book. It captures you from the very beginning. I could not stop reading it. The characters are full and rich. I loved Morgan’s gruff and loving character. Jesse? Oh my God!! What a strong, yet vulnerable woman. I loved her. How does one survive and still be sane? That is the question Jesse has to answer for herself and she does.

The book captures you. It captured me . . . all the way to the end. It’s powerful. I loved the growing strength of all the relationships. A lesbian couple nurturing a younger, damage lesbian female. Powerful. The relationship had nothing to do with sex of sexual tension between the couple of the young woman, it was about helping someone in need but setting firm boundaries. I LOVED Morgan because she raised this hardened cop, damaged by her job but still needed nurturing and maturing.

Powerful.

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