A review by in_love_with_bookish
The Lost Village by Camilla Sten

dark mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

 
The Lost Village wasn’t a spectacular read by any means but it wasn’t bad either, It just sits there in the middle: decent but average.

It would have been nice to explore the alleyways by myself in this silence, to capture the village as I see it now, this first morning. Dormant and untouched. It's like a living photograph, a relic of a bygone age.


I think this book could work perfectly for readers new to the genre but for others who are well-read when it comes to mysteries or thrillers, I think the book will feel lacking and familiar.

I was really intrigued by the synopsis and I was so excited to start reading the book, It has some of my favorite elements in thrillers like different timelines, a decade-long mystery, and the documentary style. I really expected to fall head over heels in love but I just felt that something was missing for me and that hindered my enjoyment.

Recovered, in recovery, or struggling, we are still people. Sometimes that truth can feel like a fever dream.


I still find the events that happened in the past timeline to be really chilling and unsettling but at the same time predictable. While the present timeline was more suspenseful and fast-paced, I still felt unable to care that much.

I think the main character was better written than the others that came with her on this journey to film the documentary and I think the dynamics between certain characters were also compelling while other dynamics are underdeveloped or overlooked. I actually would’ve liked it if we got to see the POVs of all the characters so we can really witness how the events of the book are affecting them all. I think seeing the events unfold from different perspectives could've added a layer of tension and despair

We perceive women suffering from mental illness with a sort of paradoxical double-sidedness; both victims and monsters, simultaneously infantilized and feared.


This was not a bad book, not at all, I think it had great moments that filled the book with dread and menace but after years of reading thrillers and mysteries, this book just felt too easy, too formulaic for my tastes. But let me just be honest and say that even though the story didn’t work out for me that much, I still really enjoyed the writing style, It was perfect at creating this atmosphere of being trapped with no plan of escape. I think it complimented the story really well. The writing style made it easy to translate the fears and the breakdown of characters as they start to lose control the more intense and scary things get.

The ending however felt strange to me, like it didn’t fit the tone of the story, I also didn’t feel convinced by some of the explanation at the end. I honestly think I would’ve enjoyed a more ambiguous ending than the one we got.

So all in all, this was not a new favorite of mine but still decent enough to recommend to anyone who wants to start exploring the genre.
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