Wish I Was A Butterfly: She Lived In Fear Until She Learned To Fly (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9781068669187)

Evie Preston once believed she had married the kindest man she knew. Gary Carmichael is charming in public, loving when sober, and terrifying when drink strips away the mask. Behind the closed doors of a small UK cottage, Evie lives by rules she did not choose: keep the peace, hide the bruises, protect the children, and never let anyone see how bad it has become.

As the years pass, the violence worsens and the lies multiply. The neighbours hear more than they say. A loyal friend becomes a lifeline. A compassionate nurse recognises a pattern too familiar to ignore. But when a crisis finally shatters the illusion of family life, Evie must decide whether survival means remaining invisible or risking everything to tell the truth.

Wish I Was a Butterfly is an emotionally intense psychological thriller about domestic abuse, coercive control, and the hard, messy road from fear to freedom. Told with relentless tension and deep empathy, it will appeal to readers who love gripping, character-driven suspense with a powerful emotional payoff.

It explores how abusers manipulate perception, how silence is enforced, and how hope can survive even in the darkest rooms. At its heart is a woman learning that love should never require obedience, and that escaping violence is only the beginning of healing. The novel's emotional pull comes from the contrast between what the outside world sees and what Evie endures in private, a contrast that creates constant pressure, dread, and urgency.

Readers drawn to dark domestic fiction, trauma-informed suspense, and stories of resilience will find a layered narrative that balances fear with resilience, pain with determination, and despair with the possibility of justice. It is a story about the people who step in, the systems that finally listen, and the small acts of courage that make escape possible.