A brilliantly creepy and wonderfully written book, the only real issue for me was the ending which was not as strong as the rest of the book. However, despite this I really enjoyed reading this book which provides some genuine scares and creepy moments.

We follow Scarlett, a recovering alcoholic, who buys The Meadows in order to transform it into a B and B. However, the house is hiding some secrets that are now starting to come out of the woodwork.

Scarlett is an interesting and multidimensional main character. Her decision making is sometimes flawed but as a reader you still feel a degree of sympathy for her. As she is our only narrator we only see things from her perspective meaning that there are moments of confusion for the reader as she discovers what is going on. Stella, Hunter, Ryan and Mia were all amazing characters, providing a great cast to follow along with and I think that the book may benefit from a multi perspective retelling, as it would be interesting to see events through the eyes of these characters. Although the single narrative does not detract from the overall enjoyment of the book, I think that some of the scary elements could have been enhanced if we had been shown them rather than just told about them through the narrative.

I also thought that this book gave too much away during the first chapter, and that it may be extraneous as we cover the same story later in the story. It may be worth, therefore, removing this chapter and starting straight with Scarlett as some of the creepiness is lost by knowing who is behind the whole thing.

Equally the twist at the end was reasonably predictable and not really that shocking. Added to the fact that the ending itself was confusing and there is no explaination as to what is going to happen as a result of the events at the house means that I left the book feeling slightly dissatisfied and hoping that there will be a sequel in order to explain the consequences of these events.

However, that being said, I really enjoyed reading this book and the creepiness was maintained throughout. There are some really scary scenes and moments dotted throughout. It is a great Halloween read. Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an Arc of this book in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.

The Meadows
by London Clarke
2018
Carfax Abbey Publishing

Scarlett DeHaven has been sober for over two years. Her addiction to alcohol and pills has been a constant reminder of her past, and she is determined to leave her past in Nashville and move to the Shenandoah Valley. It seemed like the perfect setting to start fresh.
Scarlett purchases a huge old dilapidated mansion for millions, money is nothing to her. She dreams of rehabbing the 15,000 sq ft mansion complete with indoor swimming pool and indoor gardens into a Bed & Breakfast.
This mansion 'The Meadows' has a past of its own and it has not interest in starting fresh. It doesn't want to move forward, the house has a secret of its own....its own underground brotherhood....its own cult of blood thirsty monsters.
Scarlett's sobriety is tested when she realizes the only place in town is a pub. When she begins to see apparitions in the house, curtains moving in windows, lights mysteriously turning on and construction men terrified to return, she decides its time to delve into the history of this mansion, its secrets and demons. Things get even creepier when a tunnel system is found under the house, and its alter used for blood rituals, vampires and demons. The only way to fight demons is with a demonologist and a psychic, shes already put over 5 million into this mansion, shes not walking away.
Will Scarlett ever be the sole owner and possessor of 'The Meadow"? Can old habits ever be changed?
Terrifying and disturbing paranormal thriller. London Clarke has given us a fast paced tale of terror that draws you into its spooky atmosphere and characters. Its a page turner that will stick in your head....Creepy!
I can't wait for book 2 of this series.
Thanks to BooksGoSocial and the author, London Clarke as well as netgalley for this ARC for review.
#TheMeadows #netgalley

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange of an honest review.

Welp, I was really curious about this book. It is almost Halloween so I was eager to read a book with horror and haunting and all that stuff. Plus I was curious about the MC and her trying to pick up her life.

Sadly, at 46% (though I should say I read 50% of the book as I skipped to the ending) I just had to drop it. Urgh, the horror was great, it was creepy, it amazing. Sadly, I am dropping this book as the MC was just worthless.

She is just terrible. I was all excited to see such a strong character who has big plans (and tons of money apparently) and who is working hard to get her life on the tracks. And at first she does all that, and I just loved her plans for that old (and falling apart) place. She was definitely dedicated to making it a place worth visiting. Hiring all sorts of people to help her out, making sure to rise and shine early. From that point, it was fabulous, and I was eager to read more. But then, another person appears. Scarlett's best friend, Stella. And from that point all the things went wrong. Really, her friend just got there and already they went out, and drinking. Yep. Drinking. The one thing she cannot do. The one thing she is forbidden. Yet she thinks she can just drink without a care. And you may guess what is happening now. Yep, this girl goes loose. And she keeps telling herself it is not bad, and oh hey, at least I am not using drugs. Right? But sadly, from this moment on she keeps drinking, and drinking, and drinking, and more drinking. And instead of calling for help, or having her friends help her. Her friends just enable her. Oh hey, I have some ouzo. Oh, hey we can drink a bit? Right? Oh you're such a bad influence (says the one enabling her friend to drink while they all know she shouldn't). I just got so frustrated at this. Yes, I get that it is hard to stay clean and sober and all that, but this was just ridiculous. She has been clean for months, and now she is with her friends again she is drinking left and right, even during the day.
Plus, I just got a bit tired of her attitude of not doing a thing and leaving it all to other people. I get that a ton of the work cannot be done by a newbie, but I would have loved to see her do a bit more of helping around the house.
And, she is supposedly a writer/singer, yet we only see her do something with it once or twice, the rest of the time we are just supposed to believe she is fantastic.
I could also probably go on about it, but I just want to forget this girl.

I had a few laughs at some of the things happening. Like the almost same conversation in just mere pages. Or the fact that Ryan apparently doesn't know about microphones/hearing stuff in helmets, which are a very normal thing, my fiance and I have this when we ride. This way we can chat normally. Or that Scarlett just blindly believes that Ryan would have brought her to a stinky, dead pool to have sex with her or whatever, and then is confused and offended when, the next day, he doesn't tell her anything. Or how Mia and Ryan are OK with the chaos but then are confused when their room is truly basic.

Not to mention all the horror stupidity. Yup. There is tons and tons of it. It oozes out of the book.

All in all, if the MC was better, I may even have finished the book. Because, as I said, the horror was definitely well written and I was very curious about the who's and the what's. There were tons of creepy moments that had me shivering or looking around when I heard something in my house.

I couldn’t put this book down until I finished it.. I found the story and the characters really interesting. What’s not to love with a haunted house, and a young woman trying to open a bed and breakfast and lots of other interesting things that she encounters on the way. I will look for more from this author and look forward to reading her next book.

Scarlett DeHaven (lol at that name) is looking for salvation. Salvation and redemption from her past addictions. After leaving rehab, she quickly purchases "The Meadows", a large abandoned house full of mystery. Putting all her hopes into making this her fresh start, with a bed and breakfast, things quickly take a turn to the strange. Voices and noises, strangers and cryptic warnings. And then...a hidden tunnel is found underneath the house, with a history of use by a cult for satanic rituals.

This is a fast paced, terrifying story - that seems to be the beginning of a series from London Clarke. I can't wait to see where this goes. This was the perfect read for this time of year, when every shadow and every creak in the night is scary.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I thought this book was wonderfully thought out and engaging, from the main character's life and relationships to the nightmarish things surrounding the house. It was spooky and so realistic, I felt like I was right there being driven crazy by things out of my control. This is everything I look for in a horror novel. Excellent book.

A good read. The second half is a little slower paced. The heroine is a bit annoying at times. The mystery is good and the plot has enough twists to stay intriguing. Overall I would recommend

Scarlett DeHaven has found what she thinks will be her salvation from addiction, and rushes to buy The Meadows. Her plans for restoring the grand old house are what she's pinning her continued sobriety on. But soon strange happenings have her shaken.

The book was pretty fast paced, and the characters well developed - sometimes Scarlett was a bit disappointing with an immature attitude. The supernatural aspects of the book were spooky, and not overly done. I read it within a few hours, and it was an entertaining story.

The first half of this story deserves 5 stars hands down. I was riveted to the pages, couldn't flip 'em fast enough.

Then, the edge of your seat 'what the hell is going on?' lost its luster. The second-half went on for far too long, and I didn't enjoy it nearly as much as the first half.

5 stars for the first-half, 3 stars for the second. Overall rating 4 stars.

Nice spooky story, perfect for Halloween! The main character did annoy me alittle, she was a bit wimpy acting for me. It was a very fast story, had to make myself stop reading late lastnight. This was a page turner!! Loved it!!

A very old murder and Blood thirsty cult and house full of ghosts. The Meadows is a very good book. . There is Monsters and Vampires and demon's .I think you will enjoy..

"A decades-old murder. A strange, blood-thirsty cult. And a house full of spirits. The Meadows is a gripping supernatural thriller in which the monsters may be vampires, demons, or flesh and blood. It is a nightmare that will make you believe it could easily happen to you."

Scarlett battled with drug addiction and went to rehab. Once she got back on her feet she bought an old abandoned house to fix up. She transform it into a luxury bed and breakfast, but then strange things start to happen.

It was night time when I started reading this, that didn't last long, I had to finish it during the day! This was one scary good thriller, just in time for Halloween.

#TheMeadows #NetGalley
Pub Date: 19 Oct 2018