What the heck did I just read? It was like two separate books combined into one. The story of Lucy and her mom was interesting and then the Gretchen part of the plot made a sharp turn into bizarre land. A fun read but weird and so many plot holes.

This book is a solid 5 stars for me. Kirk exhibits masterful skill at building atmosphere and writing characters that you care about. The basic plot is that you have a mother and daughter on the run, and they have been for a long time, years in fact. Their most recent pitstop/shelter from the storm is the "fortress" where Gretchen and her father live. Both of these families are harbour DARK secrets and Gretchen, in particular, is bonkers crazy. I'm never going to look at puzzles or lemons in the same way. I read a lot of horror and dark fiction and there are some moments in this book that had even me squirming. I really enjoyed this one and will recommend it highly.

An absolutely unputdownable book that’s a perfect mix of creepy , gothic and thriller.

Plot:
Don’t make eye contact.
Don’t let your guard down.
Always be ready to move on.

These are the rules that Lucy has had to follow for her whole life. Because Lucy is on the run with her mother. For thirteen years they’ve moved from state to state hiding from the father that kidnapped Lucy when she was 2 years old.

But now, in their eleventh state, Lucy is sure they’ve found somewhere safe. A secluded home with only the landlord and his daughter as neighbours means Lucy feels they should be able to relax a little.

But the landlord and his daughter, Gretchen, have their own secrets connected to their strange obsession with the puzzles that line their hallways and rooms. With Lucy and her mother’s past catching up to them, they must figure out if they’re safe with Gretchen, or in even more danger than they thought possible.

Five Stars
Okay, I’m gonna just start by saying I LOVED this book! It’s one of the best (if not the best) book I’ve read so far this year (not to over-hype it or anything).

I liked it when I started it. The premise was interesting, I liked both Lucy and her mother as characters and the different ways they narrated their respective chapters.

But about halfway through, the book kind of changes direction. I don’t want to say too much about it because I think it’s definitely something you have to read yourself, but when I got to that point I knew this book was going to blow me away, and blow me away it did.

Prepare to be frustratingly engrossed in this book
While I did say that Gretchen is unputdownable, there will be times when you want to fling it at the wall. Mostly when Lucy lets herself be alone with Gretchen. There is obviously something sinister up with her and Lucy knows it herself, so why oh why does she insist on hanging out with her? Why does she go to her house and follow her down creepy hallways lined with even creepier puzzles?

I was ready to shout so loudly at Lucy at these moments, but my annoyance never made me want to stop reading. If anything it made me even more eager to read and find out what exactly Gretchen was up to.

I hate to give 5-star reviews
Not because I don’t think the books deserve them, but because I often can’t find anything negative to say about a book I feel deserves 5 stars. I like to give well-rounded reviews that show the good and bad in a book no matter what, but sometimes it’s just hard to find the bad.

The only negative thing I can think to say about Gretchen is that it kind of veers towards the unbelievable near the end. it kind of gets a little bit Saw-esque, and compared to the rest of the book is a little bit harder to accept.

But in saying that, it’s a fictional book, it doesn’t have to be 100% believeable. And it’s not that the things that happen couldn’t happen. They absolutely could because the world is a batshit crazy and depressing place. So yeah, even the one bad thing that you could say about this book isn’t actually relevant.

Basically, what I’m saying is: read this book
Gretchen is an amazing read that takes you on one journey, then slams you into another before you even realise what’s going on (in a good way, no readers were harmed in the making of this book as far as I know).

It’s creepy, it’s dark, it’s interesting. It’s a great book. Go read it.

Thanks to NetGalley, publisher and author to allow me to get a free copy of this book for review. This book had me hooked, scared and unable to do anything else but wait to see how the story would unfold. Nice narration style. I look forward to reading more from this author.

This is such an intense book. This book is so well written and the characters are well developed you feel like you are right there with them.

Lucy and her mom are on the run and have been for thirteen years. They up and leave in the middle of the night without so much as a goodbye, like ghosts in the night. It’s been this way for as long as Lucy can remember. But when her mom finds a beautiful perfect ranch house in the middle of a wooded area with only the landlords in close proximity. Lucy is in love. But somethings not right with their neighbours. Gretchen is a 15 year old girl who lives in a large brick house with her dad Jerry. They own the ranch that Lucy and her mom want to rent. Something is off about Gretchen though, and even though her instincts tell her to run, Lucy befriends her.... even though something about Gretchen makes her skin crawl....

This book was fantastic. Full of twists and turns and parts that just make you think “well that’s creepy”. What a fun read!

Thank you to Shannon Kirk, Thomas and Mercer and Netgalley for an e-ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review.

Okay, I am going to be that NetGalley review....

Here are some of the poetic notes that I took while reading Gretchen. This is literally copied and pasted from a draft I kept. I've not modified the notes to ensure you get my raw anger and at times nonsensical typing.

75 pages in and not dick has happened. Page 93 and not dick has still happened. I’m honestly super fucking bored with the description of Gretchen and Jerry’s house. This author really drags stuff out. Lucy says “I need your help,” On page 141 and on page 144 she finally says with what. The first time being at Gretchen's that shit dragged on for a couple dozen pages. Like get the fuck on with it Kirk. Page 151 and nothing has happened. WTF This serial killer thing is a slow ass burn. And a boring one at that.

As you can read, I spent most of the book feeling entirely bored and uninterested. I didn't quite expect one of my most anticipated novels to be so terrible that I actually wished Gretchen would end my misery. Like why God? Why?

Not only did I find this story slow and torturous, I found our main narrator, Lucy, to be annoying as fuck. She literally is a poster child for ignorance and asking for it. She is the person in the movie who checks out that noise that is most obviously from a killer. She gets a call from Gretchen and mentions how sinister Gretchen sounded. So what does the dumbass teenager do? Approach Gretchen on her own. Also, after the first visit why the hell did you continue going there. If you get shady feelings, you don't continue to pursue the psychotic daughter of the creepy ass landlord. Its called intuition and Lucy's is fucking broken. Kirk created a character that simply ignored every warning thrown her way. And that type of stupidity isn't entertaining, it is infuriating.

Another thing that did not resonate well with me was the outlandishness of Gretchen and her father. Kirk had a fun idea but she took it to such an unrealistic extreme that it simply was not good anymore. The house and her puzzle obsession are one thing. But Kirk had these elements on crack. Now don't get me wrong, I love weird and fudged up. But I am also a pragmatic loving werido. The whole thing just got out of control. Kirk let this whole Gretchen and the digging thing slip through her fingers to the point where it sucked.

Overall, my hopes were crushed like a skull. I am once again mourning what could have been with this novel. And really fucking pissed about what I got.

Thank you NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the advance read.

I sat down on a rainy day just to relax & unwind. I had no intention of sitting all day but that is just what I did! Once I started I couldn’t put it down. I’ve read all of Ms Kirk’s books and I can understand why you either love her stories or don’t. She weaves a story line that starts slow & speeds up with twists & turns to the end. Always has a surprise ending. Some may say her stories couldn’t possibly happen & so write the book & author off. I ask these people.....have you watched the news lately? Just sit back & enjoy this author’s imagination. The characters in Gretchen are intriguing. You love, hate & say what the hell many times. It’s a easy read & you’ll love the surprise!

Lucy has lived a very transient lifestyle with her mother. She is fifteen and has lived in eleven states. This last state is New Hampshire and she's hoping they will be here for a while. The story is that since she was two they have been running and hiding from her father who is not a nice person, according to her mother. They will have to be on the run until Lucy is 18, then him and his family will lose interest in her, she'll be an art and be left alone. In the meantime this is their life.
In New Hampshire they find a farmhouse rental that is just perfect. They rent it from a father and daughter. The daughter's name is Gretchen. She is little strange. She is completely obsessed with jigsaw puzzles. She can also make her own puzzles. The walls in her house are covered with completed puzzles from floor to ceilings. The father is a concert pianist and wears white cotton gloves to protect his hands. There are electrical fences around their property as well as trip wires and flood lights. It's a very strange place. Lucy's mother wants to leave immediately but Lucy wants to stay.
Lucy will learn a lot about who she is, how strong she really is and how to be courageous.
This is one of those books that you don't want to end.
Excellent!!

At first I wasn’t too sure about this book.
Dragged me in the first couple pages. Lucy was my favorite character, what a smart smart girl for what she was going through... yet so oblivious.
Right off the bat, after moving to a new state for her bajillionth time... her new neighbors are creepy. I honest to god would jump at little noises in the house while readjng this book simply from the neighbors creeping me out..
You soon figure out the character switches throughout the book and begin to reel yourself in more and more. Highly recommended!

I went into this one totally blind but by about 20% i found myself pretty bored and not really caring much about the characters or the story unfortunately.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for providing me with a free copy in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

WOW! I was pleasantly surprised by this one. Based on the synopsis, I wasn't too intrigued but I kept hearing such great things about this book, so I decided to give it a shot. It was nothing like I expected. I highly recommend this book for any thriller/horror lover. The characters are very well developed and the writing is superb, especially when it comes to describing the Sabin's house. Overall surprising, creepy, and thrilling. 4.5 stars!

This was my first Shannon Kirk ... one word to describe it, INTENSE!! Honestly didn't know whether I was coming or going throughout these pages. This storyline is so crazy, completely off the rails... Gretchen, oh wow. I think we've all had a Gretchen in our lives, and if you haven't consider yourself lucky. We've all heard the term "batshit" ... yea, you're in for a ride!! My advice, read this during the day.

Huge thank you to Thomas & Mercer and Netgalley for my review copy!!

This was a rather creepy, but odd tale.

I really enjoyed this.

A family stumble across the perfect house to hide in whilst they are run. Everything is perfect...but the neighbours.

This book gripped me so much and i devoured it.

it had all elements of a perfect thriller.

Thirteen years and eleven states later, Lucy and her mother believe that they have finally found solace in a New Hampshire town. They end up renting a home in the woods from a father-daughter duo that seems friendly, but are the focus of some creepy town gossip. As Lucy and her mother get to know their new landlords, they begin to suspect that not everything is as it appears.
For me, this book was the typical "run of the mill" thriller. It lacked the ability to maintain my interest for too long and I found myself being drove to boredom quite a few times; I felt like the plot focused the majority of its time on Lucy keeping her identity under wraps while trying to establish a sense of normality, but should have involved more of the title character, Gretchen.
The readers do not get a clear sense of Gretchen until much later in the story. Being isolated and without any friends, Gretchen develops a deep love for puzzles and all things death related; Lucy finds this to be odd of Gretchen, but writes it off as being a byproduct of the circumstances surrounding Gretchen.
When Gretchen's true nature is finally uncovered and secrets are revealed, it felt a bit rushed for me and I found myself struggling to make sense of it all. If this book had taken out a lot of the subplots and focused around the title character's relationship with Lucy, I feel like this book would have been a better fit for me.

I really thought this was a pretty good read, like 4 stars good (which is very good for a book in this genre, since there is so many of them out there nowadays), up to the last 1/4 of the book, and then it all just went downhill for me. The plot became just so convoluted and implausible. I mean, what happened? It was going so well, and Gretchen was actually a believable character (I mean we all know some crazy and clingy people, right?), and then BAMM...Gretchen became this demented and unlikely caricature, and I just wanted to give up. And because of the last 1/4 of the book, I have to lower my rating from 4 strong starts to just 2 stars.

This said I am still looking forward to reading more books by this author. I enjoyed this book up to the last 1/4 and I thought the writing style was really good. Maybe next time the ending will be more plausible and less intricate.

Thank you NetGalley, Thomas & Mercer, and the author, for giving me an opportunity to read an ARC copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I have mixed feelings about this one. It almost seemed like there were two stories crammed into one novel. Both were very interesting stories, but I think each could have been standalone and elaborated on to make two outstanding books.

Wth did I just read????? Are you into seriously creepy family drama? Need to question your love of puzzles? Family oddities?? Then this is the book for you. Lucy has been on the run with her Mother since she was a toddler. Their new destination leads them to a father - daughter dysfunctional buffet of oddities. I had to keep turning the pages, just to keep up with the curiosities that kept falling into this story.

I loved this book! So many twists, turns and creepiness, It kept me guessing and the cheering in the end.

Gripping thriller despite some frustrating tropes (esp. depictions of unexplained female 'madness').