The description of this book on amazon doesn't do it justice. "Nail biting". Nope, more something like destroying your nails to the quick! The book was very well written, and had me guessing until the very end. Recommended for anyone who loves a great book that keeps you entertained throughout.

This is a great read and a well-detailed plot that kept me engaged from the very start. I really liked the well-thought-out characters and found them to be believable. I cannot wait to read what the author publishes next.

I've had this book for years, I still haven't, unfortunately, got to it, so this is a placeholder review to reduce my shelf for my own sanity, but will replace this if I ever get to the book

Der Schreibstil ist das einzige, was mir gefallen hat. Es fehlen Schwung und Spannung, die Charaktere sind platt und die Story hinkt.

The CLEANSING is a psychological thriller of multiple thrillers, including Undercurrent, The Uninvited, Her Dark Retreat and The Other Mother, by bestselling author J.A. Baker.

The novel opens with a chapter called “ME”, where the reader is first introduced to a damaged soul. He is a liar, has a nice house, and is a model citizen. He likes order and to be “in control”.

ME-I’m a truly damaged being. A psychopath or a narcissist?

ME-Nobody knows the real me. I am different.

As the story unfolds, alternating chapters are devoted to the “ME”, where we are given insight into what makes him tick…what kind of person is he? WE see his development from childhood. His parents tried to modify him, to break down his bad behavior, but it had no effect. Did their actions play a role in turning him into a monster? He was unmanageable.

ME-Did my parents begin to punish me because I was bad or am I bad because they punished me?

Ray had left everything behind…his partner, Samantha, his modern home in Birmingham, to live alone in an old neglected cottage outside Durham, in the village of Whitchurch. A very different life now- and far away from Samantha.

When Ray went to the pub, he found newcomers were not readily accepted by the village, and village people tried to intimidate him, but a barmaid, Lily helps him mix in with the villagers.
Ray soon realizes that sleepy Whitchurch also has its own fair share of problems. Last year, a woman’s body was discovered in the woods nearby. The killer was never caught.

Soon suspicious things start to happen. Threatening letters are sent, cars are vandalized and headstones are desecrated. But who is responsible for these acts and why?

With the tension building, Ray begins to feel the pressure. Someone is out to cause trouble and that someone might be closer to Ray than he ever imagined.

This novel has a cleaver plot with twists and turns that will keep you guessing until the very last chapter. Highly recommend!

Many thanks the author, Bloodhound Books via Netgalley for my digital copy.

A spine-tingling Gothic chiller that will make your heart pound, The Cleansing is a nail-biting thriller you simply will not be able to stop reading.

Ray is desperate for a fresh start and a new beginning. After his last relationship had come to an end, Ray realised that the luxury apartment and urban lifestyle had started to lose its appeal. Ray wants a new life for himself and moving to the countryside looks set to provide him with the second chance he is craving. Moving into a house in the village of Whitchurch will provide Ray with the chance to start afresh and move on with his life. However, Ray will soon come to realise that life is far from quiet in the countryside and that the bucolic idyll he had moved to has a dark and sinister underbelly reeking with danger, jeopardy and murder.

Last year, a woman’s body had been found in the woods nearby, however, her killer has never been caught. Initially thought to be an isolated case, Whitchurch soon proves to be a monstrous hotbed of evil and depraved acts and the residents are soon troubled by threatening letters, vandalism and the desecration of headstones. Who is committing this heinous acts? Who is responsible for all this underhand activity? And what is their reasoning for perpetrating such crimes?

The villagers no longer feel safe and they soon begin to feel threatened. As the latest arrival, Ray begins to feel the pressure, but little does he realise that a dangerous enemy is following his every move and waiting for the right moment to strike…

Will the monster terrorizing Whitchurch ever be caught? What is Ray’s connection to these crimes? And can he discover the identity of this vicious predator before it’s too late?

A first rate thriller that grips like a vice and will shock, terrify and delight aficionados of the genre, The Cleansing is a chilling tale dripping with mystery, menace and mayhem that is packed with nerve shredding suspense, jaw dropping twists and turns and heart-stopping tension.

J A Baker gets better with every book she writes and with The Cleansing she continues to establish herself as a thriller writer par excellence!