Wow! This book and the ending really surprised me! It wasn’t quite what I was expecting but I still liked the story and definitely recommend

3.5 stars.
I've had an affinity for McPherson's writing for a while now, and so I jumped at the chance to read new writing from here. This novel was quite a trip. I immediately felt a kinship with Donna - she's attempting a new business venture in the Breakers, and AirBnB type of property, and wants this first booking to be everything it can be. But when the visitors realize they've been there before, and it was a traumatic ordeal, the secrets begin to tumble out. And then locked boxes arrive. And then the bloody animals. And then the body count begins...
I was WITH this book through 90% of it. The reveal was a bit far-fetched for me. I appreciated McPherson's ability to tie up loose ends, and show us the pieces that inexplicably fit together. But I did wish it wasn't such a leap. I still very much enjoyed the ride, and highly tout McPherson's writing and plotting skills, and setting this book in such a darkly picturesque locale.
I received this book courtesy of NetGalley, and Minotaur Books, in exchange for an honest review.

Enjoyable mystery with dual story lines that moves seamlessly between both and ties them together in the end. The conclusion offers a twist that some readers might not see coming.

2.5 rounded up

This felt old-fashioned to me. I know that sounds weird but it lacked a certain “slickness” that the current psychological thrillers seem to have. It was like the game of Clue... There were too many characters, too many strange connections and too many secrets. The reveal felt over the top for the period of time it entailed and the “perpetrator” (can’t expand word choice due to spoilers...). There was a fine story here and the writing was decent but I didn’t completely connect with this story. It seems that the author has other works that may suit my style more so I may cycle back and check those out...

Thanks to NetGalley, the author, and St. Martin’s Press for a copy in exchange for a review.

Not my favorite Catriona McPherson book. I am usually a sucker for a good Gothic, but this one, not so much. A family reunion with a family that cannot stop bickering and arguing and being hateful beyond belief. I would have loved the book featuring this wonderful old house by the sea sans all the people.

I had high hopes for this book but unfortunately it just fell flat to me.
The story was not suspenseful and the reveal was predictable.

I was given an advanced readers cabin in exchange for an honest review.

I write a lot overviews about psychological thrillers that are the good kind of clusterfuck, but this is not the good kind of clusterfuck. Nothing really adds up, and when the big reveal his draft it just feels hoaky and contrived. I put this book down wondering why any of this was written. I gave it three stars because some of it was enjoyable to read in chunks, she is still a great writer, but you can give this one a hard pass and re-read her classics.

This is a terrifically fun gothic about a woman who restores an old inn on a Galloway beach only to end up with a seriously creepy group of guests. The guests, estranged family members have been to the inn before, years before to attend a party that ended in tragedy. That day ended with promises to keep the whole thing a secret, a secret that they kept, until now