HBO's 'Sharp Objects,' with Amy Adams, is a Southern Gothic Fever Nightmare

Going into HBO's new eight-part miniseries "Sharp Objects," debuting July 8, and expecting another "Big Little Lies" is a fool's errand. Throwing out whatever expectations you have for the drama is the way to go.

Both series share the same sort of impressive DNA, the kind that attracts cineaphiles and casual audiences alike: Filmmaker Jean-Marc Vallee, who directed all of "Big Little Lies" (he also directed "Dallas Buyers Club" and "Wild") helms all of "Sharp Objects," which is based on Gillian Flynn's ("Gone Girl") debut novel, and stars A-listers Amy Adams and Patricia Clarkson. Like the female-fronted "Big Little Lies" (Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman, Laura Dern), which was based on Liane Moriarty's novel and written for TV by David E. Kelley, "Sharp Objects" is also co-written for the small screen by a TV veteran, Marti Noxon ("UnREAL," "Dietland") - Flynn also pens episodes and Jason Blum serves as a producer.

Both series present themselves as murder mysteries but "Sharp Objects" is a very different show from the mega-hit "Big Little Lies." It's a slow-burning and atmospheric fever nightmare that isn't as accessible as "Big Little Lies." That show featured over-the-top and rich characters with snappy dialogue. In "Sharp Objects," Adams plays Camille Preaker, a reporter from St. Louis. Adams portrays Camille with a low-hum of dread in every scene as Valley captures her sense of loneliness and broken spirit.

Thanks to her editor Frank (Miguel Sandoval) at a local scrappy newspaper, Camille is sent to her tiny hometown of Wind Gap, Missouri - the kind of (fictional) town where everybody knows your name, and your business. She's there to work on a story about the murder of a young girl and disappearance of another. But traveling back home, especially after fleeing it many years ago, isn't so easy for Camille as she's forced to reckon with the old ghosts she's left behind and her estranged family, namely her difficult mother Adora (Patricia Clarkson). One of the first things we see Adora tell her daughter, who drops in unexpectedly, is that her house "is not up to par for visitors." Not the kind of Southern hospitality one may have expected.

Over the course of seven mesmerizing episodes provided for review, Vallee uses his unique visual storytelling to cut between the present and Camille's past. Flashbacks come in bursts, depicting intense traumas that have deeply impacted Camille's life. They suddenly appear when something triggers her in the present - a name, a location, a person can spark Camille's mind to wonder to some dark places. At first, it's difficult to piece together these flashbacks and how they fit into the story taking place in the present. Vallee and the show's writers examine Camille from the outside in, stepping back with each episode to reveal a bigger picture about who she is and how the upsetting events in her life continue haunt her, causing her to excessively drink and cause self-harm. Though she's returned home to investigate a mystery, Camille herself is a mystery to the audience.

For some viewers, Vallee's method of slowly pulling back Camille's character and spotlighting her trauma in pieces can be confusing and off-putting but once the show's language clicks, it makes the rest of the series a compelling watch. Like "Big Little Lies," "Sharp Objects" isn't really about a murder. The dark and sickening mystery here is used as a backdrop to explore personal grief and families who have been divided due to tragedy.

"Sharp Objects" feels like a lived-in world; Wind Gap is a dreamy ghost town that's populated with wealthy socialites and lost souls who have fallen to addiction and living in squalor. The talent both in front and behind the camera is firing on all cylinders, balancing the tone between prestige TV and pulpy genre. Adams, a five-time Oscar nominee, gives another stellar award-worthy turn here (akin to her role in the brainy alien movie "Arrival"); a subtle but impressive performance where she plays Camille with a tangible vulnerability. Clarkson, too, is fantastic, as a volatile mother whose emotions can flip on a dime. Though she holds a palpable resentment towards Camille, she's a caring and perhaps over-attentive mother to Amma (Eliza Scanlen), Camille's teenage half-sister. She, too, has a double personality of sorts - sometimes playing the good girl and others the rebellious kid, breaking curfew and getting drunk while rollerblading through Wind Gap.

While in Wind Gap, Camille works with a Kansas City detective Richard Willis (Chris Messina). The two have a flirtatious, albeit cautious relationship, always aware that the other could be playing them for information. Though reluctant to work with a reporter, Richard often finds himself forced to share his findings with Camille as local police ignore the city-slick cop. Camille bumps up against a number of small-town characters, including family friend Jackie (Elizabeth Perkins), a colorful Southern Belle who always seems to have a cocktail in her hand.

When "Sharp Objects" begins, this Southern Gothic mystery asks more questions than it answers. The tension builds with a series of compelling images that build off each other like turning the pages of a gripping paperback novel brought to the small screen. Audiences can grow frustrated but there are plenty satisfying and truly shocking payoffs.

"Sharp Objects" is haunting and hypnotic, with Adams, Clarkson and Valle's style luring you into a world that feels like its teetering on the edge of a pure (small town) hell. It's also one of the most challenging shows of the year and the kind of addicting series to take over your summer: A nightmare where the more you watch, the harder it is to look away.