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zooloo1983's review against another edition
3.0
This is another book I failed to make any blinking notes on and after reading the blurb I was so excited to listen to this one! So off we started and wow what a beginning, Lola’s Dad has just been attacked in their apartment and to keep Lola safe, he sends her away to a small tour called Harrow Lake to live with a Nan she has very little memory of. This Nan, is her Mother’s mum, her mother who is missing, the Nan who is losing her mind slowly.
Then we hit Harrow Lake, and I got bored. Yes, things started to happen but a lot of it was just a little…well weird. It didn’t make any sense and I am still not sure I ‘got’ the ending. I mean I got the obvious ending but the ambiguous one, not so sure!
This town was just blinking bizarre, Lola’s mother was a superstar and she filmed the film that made her here, it was also where she met Lola’s Dad. The whole town felt like a shrine to her, there was even a place you could go just to see everything about her mum. Then the Nan starts hiding her stuff and she makes Lola wear her mother’s clothes from the film, well it was just all a bit bonkers. There was a lot, I felt, that wasn’t explained and that for me was one of them. Although, I may have just missed it in the audiobook.
The legend of Mr Jitters would have been terrifying but because I was already confused with it everything and that includes a few eye rolls at times, it didn’t work for me. However, the thing that did scare me was the town it was truly suffocating and no one ever seemed to be able to leave. Lola was stuck. This did unnerve me.
I do wonder what experience I might have if I hadn’t listened to this book and whether it is a book I should read instead. Maybe in the future, I might give it a go and see what I missed and if I can pick anything new up but for now, I think Harrow Lake can stay right where it is!
Then we hit Harrow Lake, and I got bored. Yes, things started to happen but a lot of it was just a little…well weird. It didn’t make any sense and I am still not sure I ‘got’ the ending. I mean I got the obvious ending but the ambiguous one, not so sure!
This town was just blinking bizarre, Lola’s mother was a superstar and she filmed the film that made her here, it was also where she met Lola’s Dad. The whole town felt like a shrine to her, there was even a place you could go just to see everything about her mum. Then the Nan starts hiding her stuff and she makes Lola wear her mother’s clothes from the film, well it was just all a bit bonkers. There was a lot, I felt, that wasn’t explained and that for me was one of them. Although, I may have just missed it in the audiobook.
The legend of Mr Jitters would have been terrifying but because I was already confused with it everything and that includes a few eye rolls at times, it didn’t work for me. However, the thing that did scare me was the town it was truly suffocating and no one ever seemed to be able to leave. Lola was stuck. This did unnerve me.
I do wonder what experience I might have if I hadn’t listened to this book and whether it is a book I should read instead. Maybe in the future, I might give it a go and see what I missed and if I can pick anything new up but for now, I think Harrow Lake can stay right where it is!
bmulford's review against another edition
2.0
Ambling from set piece to set piece, some of the horror is done well, some parts just pass you by. Not *optimal* (that bloody word) when you can mentally see the iPhone note used to build the plot while reading it.
You end up splitting your time between wondering how you got to a plot point, and seeing the next plot point coming. The premise and the messaging are good, but unfortunately bungled. Disappointing but curious what else the author can do.
You end up splitting your time between wondering how you got to a plot point, and seeing the next plot point coming. The premise and the messaging are good, but unfortunately bungled. Disappointing but curious what else the author can do.
courtney_scott1025's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
I liked this book and am a sucker for a book set in Indiana as I grew up there. It just kind of fell flat in certain areas. I don't regret reading this, but I thought some of the ideas could have been a little better fleshed out. I also did not realize that this was about a teenager, and I wasn't super into the young love scenes.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Body horror, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Suicide, Death of parent, Murder, and Abandonment
flygon's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
books_around_the_corner's review against another edition
3.0
3.5/5. Enjoyed parts of it a lot but other parts felt rushed.
rucha's review against another edition
4.0
”Harrow Lake never really recovered after the landslide swallowed half the town; it died, the way Drown Town did, even if nobody here will say it out loud. And dead things don’t move on. They decay.”
Lola was sent to stay at her grandmother’s house in Harrow Lake, her mother’s hometown and the place where her father filming his infamous movie Nightjar. At first, she thought that the people in there was weird for believing in superstition and an old folktale monster called Mister Jitters, all she wanted just to go back to New York as soon as possible. However, she wasn’t so sure anymore if the story was just folktales after seeing lots of strange things happened in front of herself. She decided to stay, especially after she found her mother’s traces everywhere... With that clues in hand, she’s trying to find her mother who left her when she was just a little child.
such a page turner!
I wasn’t expecting this one to be THAT chilling!
But, oh God... seems like this book want to keep everyone who reads it cold-sweating and gripping the edge of whatever its readers currently sitting on!
I enjoyed its gloomy atmosphere and its bizarre thrilling scenes. My brain wired all night trying to solve the mystery inside this book. And the revelation at the end, it still baffled me!
Mister Jitters isn’t the only monster this town has created.
I also love it, how the author trying to make every characters seem to have at least one dark secret... I can’t stop myself trying to guess what kind of secret they might hide.
Reading the whole story that wrote from Lola’s POV would make you bewildered all the time! this book wasn’t only giving you a horror story, it played with your mind!
Lola was sent to stay at her grandmother’s house in Harrow Lake, her mother’s hometown and the place where her father filming his infamous movie Nightjar. At first, she thought that the people in there was weird for believing in superstition and an old folktale monster called Mister Jitters, all she wanted just to go back to New York as soon as possible. However, she wasn’t so sure anymore if the story was just folktales after seeing lots of strange things happened in front of herself. She decided to stay, especially after she found her mother’s traces everywhere... With that clues in hand, she’s trying to find her mother who left her when she was just a little child.
such a page turner!
I wasn’t expecting this one to be THAT chilling!
But, oh God... seems like this book want to keep everyone who reads it cold-sweating and gripping the edge of whatever its readers currently sitting on!
I enjoyed its gloomy atmosphere and its bizarre thrilling scenes. My brain wired all night trying to solve the mystery inside this book. And the revelation at the end, it still baffled me!
Mister Jitters isn’t the only monster this town has created.
I also love it, how the author trying to make every characters seem to have at least one dark secret... I can’t stop myself trying to guess what kind of secret they might hide.
Reading the whole story that wrote from Lola’s POV would make you bewildered all the time! this book wasn’t only giving you a horror story, it played with your mind!
trisha_thomas's review against another edition
3.0
"He got trapped underground for a really long while,
Then he fed on the dead and got a brand-new smile..."
A creepy town, a lost teenager and many odd townsfolks. After finding her famous horror movie producer father attacked and bleeding on their apartment floor, Lola is shipped off to live with a grandmother she barely new existed. She lives in a very small town - a small town made famous by her father's horror film. It's the film where he met her mother. So her mother, small town famous from starring in the film, has been missing from Lola's life for years. She decides to get the know the town, since she's there, to try to get to know her mom better.
It's an interesting story, and one that I'm still trying to untangle. Lola was a hard MC to like although she had interesting spunk and personality. All in all, an interesting mystery and I liked the back drop of the horror film and small town.
Then he fed on the dead and got a brand-new smile..."
A creepy town, a lost teenager and many odd townsfolks. After finding her famous horror movie producer father attacked and bleeding on their apartment floor, Lola is shipped off to live with a grandmother she barely new existed. She lives in a very small town - a small town made famous by her father's horror film. It's the film where he met her mother. So her mother, small town famous from starring in the film, has been missing from Lola's life for years. She decides to get the know the town, since she's there, to try to get to know her mom better.
It's an interesting story, and one that I'm still trying to untangle. Lola was a hard MC to like although she had interesting spunk and personality. All in all, an interesting mystery and I liked the back drop of the horror film and small town.
saccalai's review against another edition
4.0
Lola and her father, Nolan, have a really strange relationship. They don't seem close even though he's all she has and he's so super over protective of her. She constantly worries about managing him and his expectations.
Lots of twists, I had some suspicions but I never would have guessed the ending.
Lots of twists, I had some suspicions but I never would have guessed the ending.
booksreadbykat's review against another edition
3.0
CW: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Incest, Suicide
thindbooks's review against another edition
4.0
*This book was given to me by the author to give an honest review in return*
This book was such an enjoyable read. This is about a girl named Lola, daughter of a movie director, who goes to her mother's hometown, Harrow Lake after someone shoots her father. Once Lola arrives, she is being stalked, and the more she learns about the town, the more terrified she is with the stalker coming nearer when she learns a secret. I don't read many horror books but this one was a good one that gives you dark vibes throughout the whole story. I did enjoy the author's writing because she added that goth/ dark vibe to it. One problem I had with the book was the pacing. In some parts, it would be slow but others a little fast. Other than the writing style, this book had a lot of suspense to it and you get to visit a place you will never want to go to, Harrow Lake.
I did enjoy the main character, Lola. I thought she was a brave girl who went to Harrow Lake and tried to find the truth about her mother and the town. I enjoyed this character but didn't really feel connected with her as a person. For me, it's hard to connect with someone in a horror/thriller book. There was a love interest but it wasn't the main focus of the story.
Overall this was a good book that kept you on a ride to Horrow Lake. The ending was the best part of this whole book. You will know why when you read it of course. This is perfect for fans who love Stephen King and horror books!
Come visit www.thindbooks.blogspot.com from August 24-28 to see my Harrow Lake Blog Tour!
This book was such an enjoyable read. This is about a girl named Lola, daughter of a movie director, who goes to her mother's hometown, Harrow Lake after someone shoots her father. Once Lola arrives, she is being stalked, and the more she learns about the town, the more terrified she is with the stalker coming nearer when she learns a secret. I don't read many horror books but this one was a good one that gives you dark vibes throughout the whole story. I did enjoy the author's writing because she added that goth/ dark vibe to it. One problem I had with the book was the pacing. In some parts, it would be slow but others a little fast. Other than the writing style, this book had a lot of suspense to it and you get to visit a place you will never want to go to, Harrow Lake.
I did enjoy the main character, Lola. I thought she was a brave girl who went to Harrow Lake and tried to find the truth about her mother and the town. I enjoyed this character but didn't really feel connected with her as a person. For me, it's hard to connect with someone in a horror/thriller book. There was a love interest but it wasn't the main focus of the story.
Overall this was a good book that kept you on a ride to Horrow Lake. The ending was the best part of this whole book. You will know why when you read it of course. This is perfect for fans who love Stephen King and horror books!
Come visit www.thindbooks.blogspot.com from August 24-28 to see my Harrow Lake Blog Tour!