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seang81's review against another edition
4.0
The second book in the 'The Elders' series and I was blown away by the fast pace and enjoyable premise - brilliant writing! The premise reminds me of a haunted house scenario and, whilst similar to the first novel, this novel certainly has many more elements that change the rules. For me, I like the main characters, enjoyed the throwback to the first book and, when the horror elements were turned up, thought they were done really well. I was a little disappointed in that I wanted to know some more background to a few of the more mystical elements but this just means Cailyn Lloyd is doing brilliantly building a world I want to know more about! Roll on the next novel!
elles_shelves's review against another edition
4.0
Quinlan's Secret by Cailyn LLoyd is Book 2 in the Elders Book trilogy. This tells the story of Josh Abelson, an attorney who quit his job to open a bar and his girlfriend, Kiera O'Donnell, an archaeologist who quit her job to become a storm chaser. As Josh takes possession of the bar, the former owner casually mentions that the bar is haunted. Josh and Kiera research the bar's history and discover that it was originally called Quinlan's Tavern and that there were a series of violent incidents that did take place in the tavern. While completely renovating the tavern, Josh and Kiera discover a metal panel that is set into the floor in the basement. Of course they decide to investigate and what they discover is something that could potentially rewrite the history of North America. Have they discovered the archaeological find of the century or have they unwittingly unleashed a darkness that could have deadly consequences.
This novel does take place in Miller's Crossing in Wisconsin, which is the same place in Book 1; however, it could almost be a stand alone novel. There are some references to the characters and events that took place in Book 1, but it shouldn't prevent a reader from enjoying without reading Book 1. I do recommend reading Book 1 of course, but it is not necessary. Overall, I did enjoy this story and I look forward to reading Book 3 when it is released in 2021.
This novel does take place in Miller's Crossing in Wisconsin, which is the same place in Book 1; however, it could almost be a stand alone novel. There are some references to the characters and events that took place in Book 1, but it shouldn't prevent a reader from enjoying without reading Book 1. I do recommend reading Book 1 of course, but it is not necessary. Overall, I did enjoy this story and I look forward to reading Book 3 when it is released in 2021.
annarella's review against another edition
4.0
This is a good series and this instalment is engrossing and entertaining.
I liked what I read and can't wait for the next book.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.
I liked what I read and can't wait for the next book.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.
brennanlafaro's review against another edition
4.0
Speaking of secrets, Cailyn Lloyd’s first book in this series, Shepherd’s Warning, was such a pleasant surprise. I didn’t know anything about this author, but she was kind enough to entrust her book to me. Book one was a haunted house story at its core, but with elements of magic and elders, people who had been around hundreds if not thousands of years. No tentacles.
Even though this book was part of a planned trilogy, the ghost story was relatively self-contained. What impressed me most was that Lloyd didn’t rely on the trilogy spanning ideas to carry this novel. She wrote something that stood on its own.
The point of that tangent being that when book two showed up in the mail, I was thrilled to see where the story would go next. Would we revisit characters from book one or would this be another self-contained story with loose connections to book one.
Quinlan’s Secret tells the story of a couple, Josh and Kiera, buying and renovating a tavern in Wisconsin, not far from the events in the first book. The tavern is reportedly haunted, and immediately the owners begin to experience activity, mostly annoying things at first. This all leads to a massive discovery on their property that propel the events of the rest of the book.
Like the first book, this one is able to stand heavily on its own. As I’ve said before I don’t like to read books out of order or start in the middle of a series. That being said, you could read this and appreciate it without having read the first, but you probably shouldn’t. There are a lot of callbacks and world-building.
Just like we have a name for the protagonists that span the series in the elders, we are treated to a name for the force of evil that seems to be running rampant in Packers country. The book builds slowly and then cuts loose in a pretty bonkers third act that establishes new precedence for what this force of evil is capable of.
As much as I love the world building, there is an element of middle book syndrome present. The pressure to create a work that connects to book one and also sets up book three is not an enviable one. For the most part, Lloyd balances this task with grace, but there are times where it felt like some elements that should have been resolved at the end of this story, are left to be resolved in book three. Admittedly, this is a minor gripe since it didn’t really detract from my enjoyment of Quinlan’s Secret, and served to get me excited a year ahead of time for Hayward’s Revenge, the upcoming third and final book in the series.
Cailyn Lloyd is something of a well-kept secret in the horror community, and I’m hoping to see that change. I’m anxiously looking forward to how this series wraps up in book three, and I can’t wait to see what she has planned next. Highly recommend this entry in the series to fans of the first, fans of haunted house/tavern stories. There are also some light magical and historical fiction elements present if that’s your thing.
I was given a copy by the author for review consideration.
Even though this book was part of a planned trilogy, the ghost story was relatively self-contained. What impressed me most was that Lloyd didn’t rely on the trilogy spanning ideas to carry this novel. She wrote something that stood on its own.
The point of that tangent being that when book two showed up in the mail, I was thrilled to see where the story would go next. Would we revisit characters from book one or would this be another self-contained story with loose connections to book one.
Quinlan’s Secret tells the story of a couple, Josh and Kiera, buying and renovating a tavern in Wisconsin, not far from the events in the first book. The tavern is reportedly haunted, and immediately the owners begin to experience activity, mostly annoying things at first. This all leads to a massive discovery on their property that propel the events of the rest of the book.
Like the first book, this one is able to stand heavily on its own. As I’ve said before I don’t like to read books out of order or start in the middle of a series. That being said, you could read this and appreciate it without having read the first, but you probably shouldn’t. There are a lot of callbacks and world-building.
Just like we have a name for the protagonists that span the series in the elders, we are treated to a name for the force of evil that seems to be running rampant in Packers country. The book builds slowly and then cuts loose in a pretty bonkers third act that establishes new precedence for what this force of evil is capable of.
As much as I love the world building, there is an element of middle book syndrome present. The pressure to create a work that connects to book one and also sets up book three is not an enviable one. For the most part, Lloyd balances this task with grace, but there are times where it felt like some elements that should have been resolved at the end of this story, are left to be resolved in book three. Admittedly, this is a minor gripe since it didn’t really detract from my enjoyment of Quinlan’s Secret, and served to get me excited a year ahead of time for Hayward’s Revenge, the upcoming third and final book in the series.
Cailyn Lloyd is something of a well-kept secret in the horror community, and I’m hoping to see that change. I’m anxiously looking forward to how this series wraps up in book three, and I can’t wait to see what she has planned next. Highly recommend this entry in the series to fans of the first, fans of haunted house/tavern stories. There are also some light magical and historical fiction elements present if that’s your thing.
I was given a copy by the author for review consideration.
annarella's review
4.0
This is a good series and this instalment is engrossing and entertaining.
I liked what I read and can't wait for the next book.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.
I liked what I read and can't wait for the next book.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.
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