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3.69 AVERAGE
3.69 AVERAGE
Now here is a story that I could easily visualise as a movie! A magnificent read - a very different kind of tale, though there were clues every now and then about Nash being a villain. And I think this was the perfect read for Halloween 2019.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I do like a good plague story & this one has a town whose guardian of one of the Plague Stones is dying.
She appears, the last moments of the guardian's life horrifying the others. Now they will need a replacement.
After a break in where son Toby is threatened, Trish Feenan is overwhelmed with the offer the legacy From a distant relative brings. Her husband Peter is more suspicious of their climb in society but for the sake of their son their options are not open.
Residing in Stone Cottage things soon get weird. A young girl stands by the stone in the garden at night staring up at Toby's window.
On the new housing work site one of the Lots is supposedly unlucky.
A run in at the food bank leaves Trish rattled. Who is the girl.
May 1349, we follow young Hester and the story unfolds of a quest for vengeance through the ages.
Spooky and well told this reminded me of why I enjoyed Brogden's The Hollow Tree so much. The Otherworldly on the doorstep of reality just a slight step either way makes for a compelling tale.
She appears, the last moments of the guardian's life horrifying the others. Now they will need a replacement.
After a break in where son Toby is threatened, Trish Feenan is overwhelmed with the offer the legacy From a distant relative brings. Her husband Peter is more suspicious of their climb in society but for the sake of their son their options are not open.
Residing in Stone Cottage things soon get weird. A young girl stands by the stone in the garden at night staring up at Toby's window.
On the new housing work site one of the Lots is supposedly unlucky.
A run in at the food bank leaves Trish rattled. Who is the girl.
May 1349, we follow young Hester and the story unfolds of a quest for vengeance through the ages.
Spooky and well told this reminded me of why I enjoyed Brogden's The Hollow Tree so much. The Otherworldly on the doorstep of reality just a slight step either way makes for a compelling tale.
I received this book from Titan Books in exchange for an honest review.
When the Feenans are offered the chance to move away from their grimy flat in a not-so-good area to become the new trustees on a village board due to a family connection, they obviously jump at the chance of a fresh start and a brand new class of life. However, the family soon discover other things are going on in Holiwell involving the malevolent ghost of a young girl who died during the Black Plague. And now due to their new positions in the village, the Feenans' are in Hester's firing line and she's out for blood.
This was a super creepy read and was perfect to set me up for the Halloween season. I thought this book was really well written, and I really liked that everything in this book from the history of the village and the surroundings, to all the people in the village felt very well-rounded and thought out. The Feenans as a family aren't perfect but are perfectly normal in that way. They have a past together from heartbreak over infertility issues to differences in religion, as well as highlights like birthdays spent in the local pub and helping out in local community events.
I liked that we got so many different character perspectives for what was going on - especially within the Feenan family, though each character's reaction was probably a bit predictable - Peter with his anger and denial, Trish with her return to religion and Toby with his seeking out extra knowledge and obviously becoming the savior due to that
I really enjoyed Hester's storyline and figuring out what was happening. I haven't read a whole lot set around the Black Plague and though it's not the most pleasant time to read about by any means, I found it very interesting and will definitely pick up more. I appreciated the flashbacks to her story and why she was so angry.
The ending of this book does ramp up the gore, violence and horror a lot but I don't think it's over the top either. If you are someone who doesn't like some descriptions of mild violence maybe stir clear but there were only a couple of moments that made me recoil a bit - not a lot!
A really good horror thriller to pick up for the spooky season, or any time of year.
When the Feenans are offered the chance to move away from their grimy flat in a not-so-good area to become the new trustees on a village board due to a family connection, they obviously jump at the chance of a fresh start and a brand new class of life. However, the family soon discover other things are going on in Holiwell involving the malevolent ghost of a young girl who died during the Black Plague. And now due to their new positions in the village, the Feenans' are in Hester's firing line and she's out for blood.
This was a super creepy read and was perfect to set me up for the Halloween season. I thought this book was really well written, and I really liked that everything in this book from the history of the village and the surroundings, to all the people in the village felt very well-rounded and thought out. The Feenans as a family aren't perfect but are perfectly normal in that way. They have a past together from heartbreak over infertility issues to differences in religion, as well as highlights like birthdays spent in the local pub and helping out in local community events.
I liked that we got so many different character perspectives for what was going on - especially within the Feenan family, though each character's reaction was probably a bit predictable - Peter with his anger and denial, Trish with her return to religion and Toby with his seeking out extra knowledge
I really enjoyed Hester's storyline and figuring out what was happening. I haven't read a whole lot set around the Black Plague and though it's not the most pleasant time to read about by any means, I found it very interesting and will definitely pick up more. I appreciated the flashbacks to her story and why she was so angry.
The ending of this book does ramp up the gore, violence and horror a lot but I don't think it's over the top either. If you are someone who doesn't like some descriptions of mild violence maybe stir clear but there were only a couple of moments that made me recoil a bit - not a lot!
A really good horror thriller to pick up for the spooky season, or any time of year.
A thoroughly enjoyable folk-horror that doesn't take itself too seriously. Full of relatable and likeable characters, as well as those kinds of characters that you love to hate, I think this is up there with one of the most enjoyable horrors I've read in a long time.
dark
sad
tense
fast-paced
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Death, Gore
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Miscarriage, Suicide
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Minor: Racism
Absolutely terrific horror that majors on the suspense more than the gore, though there is plenty of gore. A struggling family move to a free house in Hot Fuzz-like village, idyllically English and run by a Trust. Obviously there's a catch, in this case that it's haunted by the vengeful spirits of massacred plague victims.
This was perfectly pitched for me, with the humour and characterisation cutting through the tension and a lot to say about people and what we owe each other as well as an excellent British myth / history / rural Hammer horror thing going on. Immensely readable with a terrific ending.
This was perfectly pitched for me, with the humour and characterisation cutting through the tension and a lot to say about people and what we owe each other as well as an excellent British myth / history / rural Hammer horror thing going on. Immensely readable with a terrific ending.