Review: Near the Bone by Christina Henry

I'm a huge fan of Christina Henry and was thrilled to have an opportunity to read this story via NetGalley. Most of Christina's books are re-imaginings of classic fairy tales; I particularly enjoyed The Mermaid, which was a spin on The Little Mermaid. Near the Bone is a little bit different from her other books. It's a mash-up of psychological suspense and supernatural thriller, with a dash of horror.

Twenty-year-old Mattie lives alone with her older husband William in a rustic cabin high on a mountain. While William occasionally goes into town for supplies, Mattie never goes anywhere or sees anyone. They live a very simple life, without any modern technology; Mattie even makes her own clothes by hand. One day they become aware that they are now sharing their mountain with some kind of wild beast, possibly a large bear, and William becomes obsessed with hunting it down and killing it. But what bear sorts bones into neat piles and hangs the remains of its victims from the trees as a warning to stay away from its territory?

Near the Bone starts off as a terrific psychological suspense. Who are Mattie and William, and why have they chosen to live in such a desolate place? William is abusive towards Mattie, particularly when she doesn't do the chores to his satisfaction. When she mentions old memories, he says they are just dreams. Lots of tension and suggestions of gaslighting, and what does William keep locked up in his trunk? The story then shifts into a supernatural thriller with the appearance of a huge beast that is never really described, apart from its huge claws and yellow eyes. While William so pre-occupied with stalking it, can Mattie pluck up enough courage to escape from his tyranny?

Although slightly more gory than the kind of thing I usually read, I really enjoyed Near the Bone. A fast-paced, cat-and-mouse style thriller, I found it completely engrossing and couldn't put it down, particularly towards the end! I think my only complaint would be that it ended fairly abruptly and I'd liked to have known what happened next, particularly regarding Mattie's sister - or maybe I missed that bit, because I was reading so fast! A five-star read, but recommended more towards fans of horror, despite the psychological suspense element.

Thank you to Christina Henry and Titan Books for my copy of this book, which I requested via NetGalley and reviewed voluntarily.

Review: The Haunted Shore by Neil Spring

I've enjoyed Neil Spring's supernatural thrillers since I read The Ghost Hunters. I love his blending of the paranormal with psychological chiller. In The Haunted Shore, parts of the story have been inspired by the rumours and WW2 legends centred on a remote stretch of coast in Suffolk called Shingle Street.

Although Lizzy grew up in an old Martello tower right on the beach, she has always felt uneasy about the place. After losing her job in London (and owing a huge amount of money to her dodgy ex-boss), she is forced to return to her childhood home. She agrees to look after her invalid father while her elder brother takes on a new job. Unknown to Lizzy, her father's health (both mental and physical) has deteriorated significantly and her brother has hired the sinister and belligerent Hazel as a housekeeper/carer. If that wasn't enough, almost as soon as Lizzy moves back into the tower she begins hearing strange noises and glimpses ghostly figures on the beach. Is she imagining it or is the stress finally beginning to get to her?

Well, this frightened me half-to-death! The end, in particular, was super-scary - no sleeping without the lights on for me! I loved the unusual setting and the way Neil wove the real-life history of the area into the story. His descriptions of the tower and the beach were incredibly atmospheric, and Lizzy was an engaging heroine. I loved the way she was able to conquer her own personal demons too.

An excellent read for Halloween, particularly if you like chilling psychological suspense mixed in with your ghosts!

Thank you to Neil Spring and Quercus for my copy of this book, which I requested from NetGalley and reviewed voluntarily.

Related Posts:

The Ghost Hunters by Neil Spring

The Lost Village (The Ghost Hunters #2) by Neil Spring

Review: We Are All the Same in the Dark by Julia Heaberlin

I downloaded this book because I couldn't resist the gorgeous cover and Julia Heaberlin is one of my favourite authors. 

Ten years ago the town's sweetheart Trumanell Branson disappeared, leaving only a bloody hand-print behind. The townsfolk always believed her brother Wyatt had something to do with it and he's now become a recluse. Odette was once Wyatt's best friend and even she isn't entirely sure of his innocence. So when she discovers that he has a young girl at his house, that he says he 'found' at the side of the road, it's hard for Odette not to assume the worst.

The story is told from three points of view: Wyatt's, when he finds a young girl lying asleep in a field surrounded by a ring of dandelions; Odette's, as she tries to discover the girl's identity but finds herself becoming obsessed with the murder of Trumanell instead; and the teenage Angie, who arrives in the small Texas town determined to discover the truth behind the mystery.

I love Julia Heaberlin's novels because they never go in quite the way you think. We Are All the Same in the Dark has a huge twist in the middle (which I hated) but it does give the story a unique edge. It's not a fast-paced thriller, more of a slow-burn mystery, with each clue revealed in a careful 'blink and you'll miss it' kind of way. The author takes the time to build up a deliciously creepy atmosphere, until you're convinced every character is the murderer! Halfway through I was so worried I admit I took a peek at the end. (Don't do this!!!) I'm not sure if I would have guessed the outcome if I hadn't known it in advance.

We Are All the Same in the Dark has an almost gothic feel with some super-scary scenes (the very claustrophobic stuck-in-a-barn-during-a-tornado scene), particularly towards the nail-biting finish. As with the author's earlier novels, I loved the quirky characters, especially Wyatt and Odette. I even warmed towards Rusty towards the end.

I'd recommend We Are All the Same in the Dark to anyone who loves slow-burn psychological suspense populated with eccentric characters. I can also see it appealing to fans of Lisa Jewell and Ruth Ware. This was a five-star read for me.

Thank you to Julia Heaberlin and Michael Joseph (Penguin UK) for my copy of this book, which I requested from NetGalley and reviewed voluntarily.

Related posts:

Paper Ghosts by Julia Heaberlin

Review: The Girl From Widow Hills by Megan Miranda

I downloaded this book because I am a huge fan of Megan Miranda's twisty thrillers.

As a six-year-old, Arden was washed down a storm drain after sleepwalking out of her house. There was a massive search, involving the entire town and the nation's press, before she was found safe and well. As she grew older and unable to cope with her notoriety, Arden changed her name to Olivia and moved away. Twenty years later, Olivia is sleepwalking again and wakes to find the corpse of a man at her feet...

The Girl from Widow Hills is one of those books where you think you've worked out the end from the start but the author delights in proving you wrong! It starts out as a slow burn before picking up speed and racing towards a clever, nail-biting finish. The events from twenty years ago were included within the story in the form of old interviews and it was fun to see where the two timelines began to contradict each other. I particularly loved the character of Olivia, who is prickly and mistrustful even to those who want to help. And that the one person she does trust is the one person everyone else is telling her to be wary of!

The Girl from Widow Hills is a psychological suspense that will tie you up in knots trying to work out the answer. Would appeal to fans of authors such as Ruth Ware and Lisa Jewell. This is one of my favourite reads of this year. I couldn't put it down! 

Thank you to Megan Miranda and Corvus (Atlantic Books) for my copy of this book, which I requested from NetGalley and reviewed voluntarily.

Related Posts:

All The Missing Girls by Megan Miranda

The Perfect Stranger by Megan Miranda 

The Last House Guest by Megan Miranda

Review: Final Girls by Riley Sager

This book caught my eye because of the cover and I'd heard lots of good things about it.

Quincy, Sam and Lisa are the sole survivors of three separate killing sprees, leading the press to nickname them 'the Final Girls'. Each one is beginning to rebuild their lives, when Lisa is unexpectedly found dead in mysterious circumstances. Should Quincy and Sam be worried? Has someone started targeting the Final Girls?  

I'm not reading as much crime as I used to because if you've read as many as I have, the plots begin to feel a little familiar! However, Final Girls is extremely well written, with very engaging characters, and I particularly enjoyed the modern writing style. I have to admit this kept me reading when I was convinced I'd worked out exactly what was going on. But it turned out Riley Sager had some excellent twists up his sleeve and the ending completely threw me. I do love books like that!

I think my favourite character was Sam, because of the way she kept pushing at Quincy to remember the night her friends were killed. And I loved the way Quincy's life began to unravel as her memory came back! I can't say much more because of spoilers, but I really enjoyed Final Girls and would recommend it to anyone who loves twisty thrillers, and references to those old-style horror movies where a bunch of teenagers head off to a cabin in the woods and get killed off one by one!

Review: The Night Visitor by Lucy Atkins

This is another book I was attracted to because of the pretty and unusual cover (hardback version: scarab beetle). The other thing that caught my attention was the mention of a Victorian diary - I'm a sucker for stories with old diary entries. Although, as it turned out, there were no historical flashbacks in this one!

The Night Visitor is about Olivia, a TV historian, who is finding it impossible to juggle family commitments with her high-flying career. When she comes across the Victorian diary of one of the first female doctors she knows it will make a brilliant book, but she can't spare the time to do the research. So she hires Vivian to do the work for her. Vivian takes care of the dilapidated gothic house where the diary was found and was apparently once a university professor - the perfect research assistant. Except Vivian sees herself more as Olivia's co-writer and friend, and she has ideas for lots more books that they can write together. Oh, and she believes that every night she's visited by a 'ghost' who wants to kill her...

The Night Visitor is particularly clever in that I felt sympathy for the character whose viewpoint I was reading, but as soon as the viewpoint changed so did my allegiance! I don't think I would have liked to have been friends with either of these women in real life but they were incredibly compelling to read about. Creepy and deliciously twisty, I couldn't put this one down. Some of the twists I guessed, some took me completely by surprise. And although I never thought I'd say this, I found all the stuff about the beetles completely fascinating! Particularly clever is the way the author links the different types of beetles and their traits to the behaviour of the humans.

Brilliant stuff, and thoroughly recommended for anyone who loves psychological suspense and character-driven mysteries. Another of my favourite reads this year.

Thank you to Lucy Atkins, Quercus, and NetGalley for my copy of this book, which I received in exchange for an honest review.

Review: Paper Ghosts by Julia Heaberlin

I was attracted to this book because of the pretty cover (yes, I truly am that shallow). I thought the premise was clever: the sister of a serial killer's victim kidnaps him, hoping to coerce him into telling her where he buried her sister.

Like the main character in Rebecca, our heroine doesn't have a name. Carl, the man she believes murdered her sister, was once a famous photographer but is now in a care home supposedly suffering from dementia. She begins to visit him, pretending to be his daughter, before taking him out on 'holiday'. In reality she's planned a road trip around Texas, visiting all the locations in his photography book - the last places his victims were seen alive.

The relationship between Carl and his 'daughter' reminded me of Hannibal Lecter and Clarice Starling, and the story itself a kind of cross between Silence of the Lambs and As Good As It Gets - even though no one falls in love, or gets eaten! I particularly loved Carl's dark sense of humour, and how the heroine's meticulously thought-out plan quickly unravels. They also meet a host of eccentric characters along the way - my favourite was Trudy, the gun-toting estate agent! 

Although the subject matter is dark, there are no scenes of graphic or gratuitous violence. The story is mostly about the mystery of the missing girls and the relationship between Carl and his 'daughter'. The places mentioned are real and the book contains 'Carl's' photographs amongst the text, which add an eerie note. Towards the end there are perhaps a couple too many coincidences, but Paper Ghosts is one of my favourite books this year - possibly ever!

Thank you to Julia Heaberlin, Michael Joseph (Penguin), and NetGalley for my copy of this book, which I received in exchange for an honest review.

Review: In a Dark Dark Wood by Ruth Ware

This has been on my to be read pile so long I felt it was starting to look at me reproachfully. I have no idea why, other than I mostly read on Kindle these days and I bought it in paperback. I'm also a bit wary about reading psychological suspense/thrillers, as they are not my favourite genre - too many similar plots! However, this one had my brain tied in knots so I thoroughly enjoyed it!

The story is about Nora, who is invited to a hen party at a remote house in Northumberland. The 'hen' is Clare, a school friend whom she hasn't spoken to in ten years. And of course it all goes horribly wrong and someone ends up dead. I did think it might end up being like one of those movies, where each character is killed off one at a time, but it isn't. The author even makes a sly reference to the Agatha Christie story, And Then There Were None. Several times I thought I knew what was going on and what was going to happen next, only to discover the author had been deliberately misleading me. Sneaky!

I worked out what was going on before Nora, but only because I'd been tricked so many times I started concentrating harder! I don't want to go into too much detail about the plot, because of spoilers. So I'll just say that I really liked the setting - a modern house called The Glass House, hidden away in a dark, dark wood. I liked the characters, particularly Nina, who had a great line in sarcasm. The only thing I wasn't keen on was that parts of the story were quite sad, particularly relating to Nora's past relationships. But overall I really enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone who loves reading psychological suspense, and stories such as Gone Girl and The Girl on the Train.

Review: Dying for Christmas by Tammy Cohen

I bought this a couple of years ago but didn't get around to reading it because some of the reviews I read at the time made the story sound as though it might be too gruesome for me - I'm a bit of a wimp! But it was coming up to Christmas, I was going to be on holiday, and I wanted to read some 'festive' crime fiction. There's not a lot of it about, strangely enough!

Jessica Gold is the oddball of her family - loved, but definitely eccentric - her brothers even call her 'weird' to her face. It is the day before Christmas and she's headed into town to do some last minute shopping. She takes a break in a busy cafe, and is surprised when the handsome and charismatic Dominic Lacey takes the seat opposite her and begins to chat her up, mentioning how much she reminds him of his ex-wife. A man like this is usually completely out of her league, so when he invites her back to his apartment she goes quite willingly, even though the voices in her head are telling her she's an idiot.

She should have listened to those voices! Dominic Lacey is planning on having Jessica for Christmas, and not quite in the way she'd hoped. He's even got her some very special presents, one for each of the twelve days of Christmas - but will she even get to live that long? And what, exactly, did happen to that mysterious ex-wife?

Dying for Christmas is brilliantly written in a very modern style. I found Jessica entertaining and engaging, although not very likeable - but that was kind of the point. In fact none of the characters are likeable, but this is a very clever psychological suspense, and no one is quite who they seem. Dominic in particular is a deliciously manipulative villain; his desire to swap life stories reminded me a bit of Hannibal Lecter (don't worry, no one gets eaten!). The best way of describing the story is as the publishers have done: 'Misery meets Gone Girl'.

The story is funny in places, a kind of dark humour, and most of the nasty violent stuff happens off the page. There are a couple of massive twists about halfway through, one of which I guessed, the other I didn't. 

If you enjoy traditional, cleverly-plotted psychological suspense, and don't mind a few brief descriptions of off-the-page gruesome stuff, then this is the book for you.