An Amazon Charts bestseller.A missing child. A desperate mother. And a house full of secrets.Two years ago, Julia lost her family in a tragic accident. Her husband drowned trying to save their daughter, Lily, in the river near their rural home. But the little girl’s body was never found—and Julia believes Lily is somehow still alive.Alone and broke, Julia opens her house as a writers’ retreat. … opens her house as a writers’ retreat. One of the first guests is Lucas, a horror novelist, who becomes obsessed with finding out what happened to Lily. But within days of his arrival, the peace of the retreat is shattered by a series of eerie events.
When Lucas’s investigation leads him and Julia into the woods, they discover a dark secret—a secret that someone will do anything to protect…
What really happened that day by the river? Why was Lily never found? And who, or what, is haunting the retreat?
From the bestselling author of Follow You Home and The Magpies comes his most terrifying novel yet.
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It was different than want I read, but loved characters and just couldn’t put down.
The stage was set for a great story: a big house turned writers’ retreat, a missing girl, a creepy legend, a horror writer, and a rather gothic atmospheric tone throughout. That held my interest enough to want to know what happened to the girl and what was going to take place next. About the time the story would start dragging, it would pick up with a bit of suspense. Not the most exciting book, but I liked how the ending came together.
Absolutely loved this book! If you enjoy Thrillers with a bit of horror and scare involved then this is the book for you. Mark Edwards is a new author for me but he won’t be for long. This book kept me at the edge of my seat throughout. It was a book I definitely did not turn the lights off while I was reading. The suspense and thrill was abundant during the whole book. You didn’t know what to expect from page one. . . and the ending. It is definitely a page turner and one you will not want to put down once you start it. I highly recommend this book. Just remember to read it with the lights on. A book you will definitely want to read.
The plot of this book grips you right from the start. A child presumed dead but no body ever found and a mother that refuses to give up hope. Add in small town folklore, creepy superstition and things that go bump in the night and this book was winner.
The detailed description of the retreat and the surrounding areas enables you to “watch” the story play out as you read. The author does an amazing job of building the story, however I was pretty sure I knew how the story was going to end. I couldn’t have been more wrong, the ending for this comes out of nowhere!
This was the first book I have read by Mark Edwards but I am definitely going to be looking for more.
Talk about atmosphere! And chills, ghosts, missing children, urban legends, and a crumbling house of writers. And we know writers have over active imaginations…or do they just see more?
Wales, a small community, countryside, with a house in disrepair and a beauriful woman living alone. Julie rents out portions of her home to a group of writers. One room is off limit upstairs and the basement is supposively unsafe.
Lucas is having trouble with his book, death of his girlfriend, and the need to move on. So home to Wales and the retreat where Suzi, Max and Karen are also renting rooms. Karen is a big pot smoker so her notes of concern are met with disbelief. Max is busy trying to score with Suzi but Lucas is quietly observing the town and people. And discovers girls went missing every 35 years….and Lily, the last child, belonged to Julie.
You tell yourself, oh a ghost story….but is it? Could someone or a group reenacting the urban legend?
And how can you believe this, except as a child…..didn’t you check under your bed? And just maybe, children know better than the adults.
Smartly written, full of neighbors deftly captured to paper, a plot so intense and good that you try to figure it out….you need to figure it out. The ending has a twist and for people avoiding a scary book…..it does have a nice ending…sort of.
Highly recommend this!! Now I have an author with more wonderful books to read.
Warning, I read this in a hot climate with the air conditioner on but the homes, weather, and people of Wales had me wrapping up in a blanket….a chilly scary book
I really enjoyed this book. The story centers around Julia, a woman trying to recover from her husband’s drowning and her daughter’s disappearance. She has turned her home in North Wales into a retrea for aspiring writers. The story begins with the arrival of Lucas at the retreat. He joins fellow authors Karen, Suzi and Max. As Lucas tries to work through a writer’s block he walks through the wooded areas around the retreat and the neighboring village. He meets some of the locals and hears some of the fables, lores and mysteries of the area. He was told the story of the Red Widow, a woman who many locals thought was responsible for the disappearance of two girls in the area, could she be responsible for the disappearance of Julia’s daughter, Lily?
As the story unfolds, the vivid descriptions of the local scenery and the different characters that are introduced make the story come alive. There are many twists and turns in the story that makes it hard to stop reading. There seems to be so many suspects responsible for Lily’s disappearance that you think you’ve got it figured out and another unexpected twist occurs and you realize that a whole new element has been introduced. The events that lead to the conclusion were a big surprise and totally unexpected. It’s definitely a story that will stay with me. I was given an Advanced Reading Copy of this book for a honest review. #TheRetreat#NetGalley
Lucas joins a bunch of fellow writers for a retreat in the middle of nowhere. Strange things start to happen. Each member of the group has their own quirks and secrets. A thriller with a supernatural undercurrent. Good characters and a fast story line.