I can see what this book is going for, but the execution just doesn't quite get there for me. There are gruesome, grotesque, tense sequences of horror that just sort of peter out. Likewise, Mattie is a solid main character, but all the folks around her are flat, even William, the main human adversary.

I finished it quickly because I really did want to know the resolution, but I don't know that I truly enjoyed the end result all that much.

Content warnings for graphic child abuse, domestic abuse, and gore.

Mattie is trapped: in an abusive relationship, on a mountain top, and in a haze of memories and questions for which she has no explanation. Near the Bone is a survival story in many forms, tackling the idea of enduring and escaping monsters of all sorts, from abusive partners to supernatural predators. Readers should be advised that the depictions of domestic abuse in this novel are graphic and almost immediate.

This novel is interesting enough as we watch the protagonist preserve against all odds and use her experience as an abuse survivor to try and escape a monster in the mountains. Christina Henry gives Mattie dimension, portraying all the beats of Mattie’s headspace in a way that feels authentic and true. Mattie is a deeply injured character and she has a natural (and earned) distrust and fear of those around her. There are even moments of surprising tenderness, jealousy, and even resentment from Mattie that help enrich her character. As Mattie tries to escape her abusive partner, she encounters a few of cryptic-hunters and the dynamic she strikes with the crew was especially interesting. I found myself surprisingly charmed by CP especially. Ultimately, it’s a good survival story that expertly balances the monsters in the mountains with the human monsters in Mattie’s life.

Jumping into the story we run into Mattie as she’s on her way to check on some traps for food. You see, she lives in the woods with William, her husband. He is super abusive, not only physically but emotionally. He keeps Mattie down through beatings and physical labor. It’s his christian duty to keep his woman in check. UGH, William! He is the worst. Poor Mattie lives in constant fear and torn to pieces. Every thought in her head is “but William will get mad”. It’s rough seeing life through her eyes as she suffers day in and day out. Also, she doesn’t remember much before living with William. She remembers her sister but that’s about it. Little by little her story starts unfolding before her eyes when one day 3 strangers show up at her backyard. This is super unusual cause as I stated before she lives in the woods, super isolated, on a mountain. These 3 strangers happen to be following a creature that has surfaced on said mountain which Mattie and her husband have also recently discovered. It’s all downhill from here!

While I enjoyed the overall story being told I was a tad bit disappointed and I can’t pinpoint why. This story was atmospheric, and it was suspenseful which had my heart pumping a few times. Usually this is the perfect recipe for my type of book, but it fell kind of short. This is my first book by Henry so i’m not sure if it was the writing which didn’t quite grab me or if it was just missing that oomph that I needed. My opinions and rating might change once I sit more on it because this book does stick with you and it does have a special something to it, we’ll see. Either way it is an enjoyable story and I feel like the majority of people will absolutely love it.

Wow. That was my first thought at the end of this book. It kept my attention throughout-- sort of like a train wreck, I had to keep reading to find out how things would turn out. Similar to other horror authors I have read, Christina Henry keeps you on the edge of your seat. There were a few interesting word choices that were repeated, but otherwise the writing was engaging and somewhat, for me anyway, unexpected.

It's hard to write a synopsis for this book without spoilers. In a nutshell, a husband and wife living on a mountain in the middle of nowhere begin to be terrorized by an unidentified creature. But as the story progresses we are taken on an unpredictable journey.

Honestly, this one was a disappointment for me. There were huge plot holes, and I felt like the character development was hugely lacking. If the book had been longer and explained more things, that would have been far better. The ending was abrupt, and didn't explain one of the major plot points AT ALL. I have liked other books written by Christina Henry, this one just didn't do it for me.

I have loved Christina Henry’s books ever since I picked up LOST BOY and she hasn’t disappointed me yet! The newest one, NEAR THE BONE, is a suspenseful and atmospheric read that has some great creature horror in it as well.

This book reminds us that not all monsters are creatures hiding in the woods, but the people around us. Mattie is a young woman living in a cabin on a mountain with her abusive and controlling husband. William is all the worst things you can imagine and this is the only life Mattie has ever known. However, when a new evil is found in the woods she has to wonder which monster is worse.

This new creature attracts strangers in search of it and Mattie fears what William could do to the intruders. With the appearance of these outsiders Mattie has the smallest glimmer of hope that she could find a way to escape her abusive husband. You just immediately feel for Mattie and the horrible situation she’s in and just have a seething hate for William and what he claims God is telling him to do.

If you’re hoping for only a creature horror read then you may be a tad disappointed, however this will have you on the edge of your seat. I won’t lie, I kept an eye on the treeline when I was letting the dogs out at night while reading this 😂 the atmosphere, the tension, the characters, the monsters, I loved it all! Christina Henry remains an auto-buy author for me!

Near the Bone is a perfectly serviceable horror thriller that, on paper, sounds like my ideal book. A creature feature set in a desolate region of snow-packed mountains? Oh, hell yes, sign me up!

Unfortunately, although Christina Henry does keep the pages turning and the story is nice and pacey, Near the Bone also a real tease. Rather than truly deliver on the creature feature aspects I had wanted, Henry goes with the usual "But humans are the real monsters!" route. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but I suspect most readers will have clued into the truth of Mattie's marriage to her abusive, Bible-thumping, control-freak husband long before Mattie herself. Again, this is fine, but when you're doing a monster book, I want a fair bit more out of the actual monster than what we get here.

Henry borrows a lot from Speilberg's approach to Jaws, wherein we don't get to see much of the monster but it's surrounded by enough suspense and intrigue, and some nicely grisly moments, to keep us scared and invested. On a desolate mountain with a small cast of four or five people, though... and one of them is begging for a gruesome death scene damn near from page one... well, there's only so much that can be done to keep my interest, and sticking the creature far, far, far into the background doesn't do it. We get a few neat scenes of this creature's idea of home decorating, but again Henry doesn't go far enough to satisfy. Where's all the gore and bloodshed? Where's our small band of plucky survivors and cryptozoologists getting torn apart limb from limb (on-page, damnit, not way off in the distance so we can only hear their screams)? I wanted blood and mayhem, and continually found myself disappointed by Henry's knack for playing it safe and keeping things PG.

And that's my central complaint here. Near the Bone plays it much, much, much too safe in its presentation as a creature feature. Henry does a far better job exploring the abuse and sadism Mattie suffers at the hands of her husband, and Mattie's journey of self-discovery and burgeoning independence makes for compelling and tragic story. That this half of the book is executed so well makes the failings of the creature-side of the book all the more frustrating. While it fails as an effective monster story, it does succeed in giving us a compelling heroine coming into her own and finding her spine after so many years of being beaten down. Near the Bone is ultimately a lop-sided narrative, one that is by turns as engrossing as it is frustrating.

Mattie is a young (she doesn't remember how old she is in the beginning of the story) woman living with her abusive husband (or is he?) on a desolate mountain. Enter a mysterious and sinister presence, copious flashbacks to an uncertain past, and some curious passers-by, and you have the makings of this suspenseful, horrific, thriller.
Some questions aren't fully answered, but overall this was a good and thrilling read. TW: abuse, implied SA, murder.

Near the Bone by Christina Henry is one part Emma Donoghue's Room and the other part The Relic by Preston and Child. This off mix of kidnapping slash survival works really well to the theme of one woman beating her demons literally and physically. This is the third Henry that I have read and this one was my favorite so far, I have read Alice and The Ghost Tree before this. Where I always have appreciated Henry's overall story, this novel felt very real, and raw. I enjoyed it but there is a lot of trigger warnings on domestic abuse, kidnapping, child endangerment, and manipulation/gaslighting. This is a really fast paced novel, that is deeply psychological. Thanks to Netgalley and Berkley books for the advanced reader's copy, Near the Bone by Christina Henry is published on April 13th 2021.

The Plot: Mattie lives with William on top of a cold mountain. William is a controlling terrifyingly frightening man that treats Mattie like a slave than a wife. He keeps her locked up and beats her regularly so Mattie is docile. William is a monster, but what they find in the woods terrifies even him, a fox ripped in half most of it organs and none are missing, with big tracks leading to it, then nothing. They investigate and find a cave that has piles of various organs and skulls. William is determined to kill it but, he's not the only one who discovered the creature, when a group of college kids find William and Mattie in the woods, they thought was abandoned. Mattie and one the college kids Griffen has a connection with Mattie and swears he knows her from somewhere. Mattie tells them to leave but it starts her own spiral in finding out who she is and what the creature really is.

What I Liked: the mixing of genres, it was interesting, it kind of reminded me of the movie 10 Cloverfield Ln. I liked Mattie and how we got to see her find her inner strength. William was a monster, that was terrifying to read. As for the real monster, I liked the descriptions my mind was trying to fill in the gaps since no one really gets a good view of it. I like the flashbacks, especially the bathroom scene, which is so raw and you really get into Mattie's psychology early that she cares about others and fears for them more than herself because she can take the abuse.

What I Disliked: William's blank holes filled me with so many questions, did he want Mattie's mother to join him on the mountain. We never found out if Heather, Mattie's sister, is still alive.

Recommendations: This is the only Christina Henry book that I have recommended. Near the Bone is a wild ride both emotionally and scary. It has two horrors in it, each just as dangerous. I rated Near the Bone by Christina Henry 4 out of 5 stars.

Frightening signs lead Mattie to the truth about her life and the man she married. There's no way she knew setting out to perform her daily chores would lead them on a chase for a monster residing on their mountain, but what she would learn is that perhaps the monster living with her was far worse than the one they hunted.
Mattie's husband is anything but a loving and doting man. Even though she's well aware of his desire to own and control her, she doesn't know the truth behind how she came to be with him and that lack of knowledge soon becomes her reality as flashbacks of her younger years start happening more and more.
A true mystery/thriller that opens the door to how one can control another and even alter their reality. Not knowing your place in this world can lead you to trust the wrong people but Mattie quickly comes to her senses when she meets 3 strangers determined to help her. Even without first knowing why, she senses that they're much better suited to help than even her own husband who controls her every move, from what she eats, to what she thinks and everything beyond.
With overtones of abuse and a mix of the disbelief this book quickly became one I couldn't put down. I championed Mattie in her adventure and mission to find safety from everything that hunted while hoping her captor was served an end that fit his faults and more.

My biggest gripe with thrillers these days is the way characters react to things. So when a human heart gets thrown at them and they look at eachother and then say “hey, wanna make some grilled cheese?” I can’t take it seriously.

So the author definitely tried to mix lighthearted conversations in with what should’ve been intense scenes and it kinda ruined the ambiance for me.

The cover indicates that this takes place in an isolated cabin in the snowy wilderness Following a young girl and her crazy husband. They find a multilated fox and with they’re survivalists skills so to speak come to the conclusion, something much bigger, monsterlike is lurking in the woods with them.

I will totally give this book credit where it’s due that it starts off strong and quick. Immediately, from page 1, the mystery begins. Okay, it’s hard to describe this without sounding like a douchbag,
there is just so much more focus on the abusive relationship than there is the creature in the woods so I was a bit disappointed in that. It’s very heavy on abuse and is a constant thing you’re reading about which is fine, but again, really wanted the creature horror to be more relevant.

It’s definitely way more mystery/thriller than horror as your piecing together the characters past and why she is where she is which that’s my fault for having my expectations elsewhere. I did appreciate the fact that Henry drew parallels between man and monster to add more nuance to the story though. Speaking of the bits of horror that there was. I felt like the author just never took it to the level that would instil a sense of dread or paranoia. I never felt any type of worry and it could’ve been because of the characters funny reactions to things.
Infact theres entire chapters of the characters just trying to make a decision. I gave this 2 out of 5 stars overall and I have to mention, one of the most abrupt endings I’ve ever read and you get answers to absolutely nothing. This should’ve had an epilogue and I have to now live my life with all this info and no answers. I hope those of you who decide to pick It up enjoy it more.

i LOVE creature features! horror is my palate cleanser, and this had just what i was looking for. tropes, galore! something is in the woods, humanity + monstrosity, isolation. just what i needed for a pick-me-up. it wasn't the most innovative i've ever read, but it was certainly entertaining. christina henry is someone who, to me, does not miss with her stories.

Mattie lives in the middle of the woods, secluded from everyone and everything. She can’t remember her family, her friends or anything about life prior to living in the cabin with her husband William. She knows something is not right, and when she discovers the body of a mutilated fox in the woods, she begins to realize that they may not be alone after all.

This story spares no time introducing you to Mattie and her world. From the opening scene the reader knows that her situation is dire, and we spend the rest of the novel discovering her past, piece by piece, along side of her. 

I’ve heard a lot of good things about Christina Henry’s work and was interested in the premise of this one. I have to say, it did not disappoint. The tension Henry builds and the feeling of the unknown was my favourite part of this story. Not only are we unsure of this monster that’s hunting Mattie and William, we are simultaneously petrified of William.

To be honest, as much as I enjoyed this book, I could have done without the monster in the woods angle.  Mattie and William’s relationship and discovering the truth behind it was what was most compelling to me, but it was a fun addition and something different for me and my usual reading taste. Also, the last half or so of the novel was quite action heavy and I felt some scenes went on a little longer than needed, but it was well written and suspenseful. These things are more about my personal taste than anything actually wrong with the novel, so if you are into action and monsters in your books, this will definitely hit the spot. 

It’s important to note, that I would not consider this a straight horror novel, it’s more of a thriller with horror elements but that worked for me and Henry did a great job combining the two elements in this book. Overall, this was a real hit and I highly recommend giving it a try.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkeley Publishing Group for an advanced copy of this book.

This review was posted on Goodreads, Instagram, and my personal blog: chaptersxthepage.ca

Mattie and her husband live a simple isolated life out in a cabin in the woods, with structure and rules that come right from the Bible William believes so strongly in. Mattie knows her place and what not to do to try and avoid the physical punishments that are doled out to her as is William's right. When she encounters an animal killed in the woods not by their traps, William is on a mission to kill the animal responsible. Which leads to events that Mattie is in no way prepared for.

This is listed as horror and sure there was a separate monster horror element, but I was much more horrified and traumatised by the human level of terror than the possible paranormal element. Mattie is kept as William's "wife", what I would instead call his abused, brainwashed captive that he has had for the last 12 years. Here is this older crazy-ish (psychotic, sociopathic, child abuser...pick a term, they all seem to work) who takes a little girl and forces her to live in the woods with him where he beats and "trains" her, using religion as a motivator for his actions, to fit his needs and tells her she is his wife and her duty since she is 12 is to give him a son. This was awful and terrible and made me sick- and the worst part is that I am sure this happens all the time and I really feel like I need to go on a rampage. Way to elicit some strong feelings in your readers

WOW. This story wedged under my skin on the first words and continued to crawl through with every page. Some of Henry's best work since GIRL IN RED.

Loved the atmosphere and main female protagonist. I really enjoyed the author’s style of writing, however I wanted more from the supporting characters. The first 60% moved quickly, however the end just lost that momentum. I would still read more by this author.

Mattie lives with her abusive and way older husband, William, on the mountain all alone. One day, Mattie sees a mutilated fox and she realizes the prints surrounding it aren’t normal.
Mattie knows they are no longer alone on this mountain.
There’s something in the woods, something very unnatural that makes weird noises and has sharp claws.
Soon, three strangers show up on the mountain, which will anger William and cause big problems.
Now Mattie won’t just have to stay safe from the monster in the woods, but also the monster she’s living with.

First off, trigger warnings. This story does deal with physical, emotional, and mental abuse. If you are triggered by these themes, be aware they are very heavily mentioned throughout the entire book.

This was my first Christina Henry book and it won’t be my last.
This is a story showcasing two kinds of monsters. The creature feature type, but also the human kind. I love horror that really showcase how truly awful human beings are. Creature features are fun and all, but nothing truly terrifies me as much a true human monster does.
That being said I was actually a big fan of this creature monster as well, I’m not always the biggest monster horror fan. I don’t find them to be that scary, but this one was actually pretty freaky to me. I was surprised how freaked out I actually was.
This story was incredibly gripping and anxiety provoking. From the moment it started, I was hooked. Mattie is such a great character, I loved her and I felt like she was extremely realistic. That being said, I am not someone who has gone through what she has, so I don’t know if everyone would find her to be realistic.
William was honestly worse than the creature in the woods to me. I found him to be way worse and much more of a actual threat. I was actually hoping he would die, which is a clear indication to me that he was an absolutely horrible character.
I won’t talk too much about the other characters, but I loved them as well. This was truly a story where I was hoping every single person (minus William) would live until the end.
I just kept gasping aloud while reading this story and that’s how I know I was truly invested in this one.
I will 100% be buying a physical copy of this one because the cover is absolutely breathtaking, but I also just need this in my collection.

TW: physical, sexual, and psychological abuse.

Near the Bone had me hooked from the first page; it was mysterious and horrifying. Mattie is in captivity and has been for a very long time, but now she has the chance to escape and is trying to outrun two monsters, her captor and the creature in the woods. It was hard to read at times with the abuse she goes through.

The characters were well written, especially Mattie. She becomes stronger throughout the book, and you can really see the progression chapter to chapter.

The setting was descriptive, and it added to the horror aspects of the novel, knowing that the characters were not safe because they left footprints added a sense of dread.

I wanted to learn more about the creature which only made a few appearances, and sometimes felt as if there was actually nothing there and I’d forget we were supposed to be afraid of it. By the end, we never get an actual description of the creature, and I know it was done on purpose but it took away from my enjoyment of the book; if there’s going to be a monster in the book, I want to be horrified by it. The conclusion was very open-ended and it felt anticlimactic. I would have liked an epilogue a bit into the future to see how Mattie was adapting to post-captivity life.

Okay I wanted to like this book, I really did. I didn't hate it, but I just could not vibe with it. It felt like the book was having an identity crisis. It couldn't decide if it wanted to be a domestic thriller with a big twist, or if it wanted to be a claustrophobic creature feature horror book. It tried to be both and it just didn't work out very well. You got two partially developed themes which both had potential. I just wish that Henry had chosen one or the other because they both felt like afterthoughts. How do you have a cohesive story that really just consists of two afterthought plots? They were just both so underdeveloped and there was a problem with convenience. And so much happened "off-screen" that it took away from the more gruesome horror aspect. I have no clue what the creature looks like. I have no idea what it wanted, what its level of intelligence was. All of these things were skirted around and never fully developed.

Speaking of not fully developed, what about William? Don't get me wrong, I don't care about him as a person but what were his motivations? Why did he do the awful thing that he did, what was the process behind that? We get this cognitive dissonance out of Mattie pretty early on, but there was nothing to incite it, nothing that would have triggered these memories. It's important that she starts having these memories, but for it to make sense, there has to be something that triggers these sudden memories. Without it, it's just that she randomly started having thoughts for the sake of convenience and so now her behavior is going to change-- Oh look! A monster I guess? The abusive aspect of the story felt incredibly lacking in nuance. Which is a problem that I feel like I see in a lot of novels with domestic violence as a plot device. The abuser is always so one-dimensional, they hurt for the sake of hurting, they never have a "nice" (or just pretend nice) side. But like, realistically, would there not another faker side to the abuser where they just behave like a normal person? Let me stress that I don't think that abusers should be written as sympathetic characters or written as to appear justified. I just want it to feel more realistic, less forced and just clunky. Where is the Willam that got her there in the first place? This kind of leads me into my next problem, the characters all felt flat, even Mattie felt pretty flat. The dialogue felt forced and also kind of clunky.

There are some positives, I think that the twist was really shocking and creative. The horror scenes that we do see were very visceral and gruesome. Henry really knew how to set up the horror in the book and follow through in a way that kept the reader on edge. The use of description in general was very adept. I felt like I was in the moment with the characters, there was depth in their emotions (if not their personalities) that was very well done. I don't think that Henry is a bad writer at all. I just think that the premise as a whole, just didn't end up working out for me.

The concepts were there, but the execution just wasn't for me. Once again, if this had just been a domestic thriller with Mattie trying to escape her husband and the two of them just playing cat and mouse on the mountain, that would've been great. That could've gotten developed so much more and added so much more nuance to the characters. Or if it were a book about a couple trying to survive on the mountain while being hunted by the monster, that would've also been really cool! But as it stands, it just wasn't for me. Hopefully I can read another of her books sometime and improve my overall opinion of her as a writer!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an e-ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

The short version:
This was a solid book that was an absolute thrill to read. The characters are a little one dimensional, but it's a fun novel that would likely please fans of Stephen King. Imagine if you took a bunch of horror genres and mashed them together, and this is what you'd get. A man gone mad meets creature feature meets a survivalist tale.

The long version:
I read this in about a 9 hour period but about 80% of it was over one stretch of time. I honestly did not want to stop. We enter a story about a young women, Martha, living in a secluded cabin high on a mountain with her controlling abusive husband. One day, Martha is out doing her chores when she comes across these huge bear like foot prints, but the size concerns her. As the story progresses, we slowly start to realize that something isn't quite right, with the foot prints and her marriage.

The story continues, revealing itself to be an amalgamation of several classic horror stories. We have the maniac killer. We have a creature feature. We have survivalist horror. The story itself is okay. The writing is easy to read and obviously compelling. However, I didn't feel like it really broke the mold outside of the fun mash up of horror genres. There's also an issue with our characters being somewhat one dimensional. This is especially true for the abusive husband. Henry uses the King-technique of creating villains that lack nuance and whose only purpose is for the reader to hate. Don't get me wrong, it makes for compelling writing (there's a reason King does so well), but lets not pretend it's anything more than what it is.

The issue doesn't stop with the husband though. There are other characters around the young women's age who act in ridiculous ways. Sure, it fits their age, but the negligence and stupidity continues into some pretty extreme situations in ways that I find hard to believe. They seem a little too quick, at times, to forget exactly how bad their situation is. Nevertheless, Henry creates a sufficiently compelling plot with characters that I care enough about to stay invested in what's going on.

Big picture, the books great. If you like Stephen King, you'll probably like this. It's not ground breaking, but it's a solid ride. Honestly, I would love to see this turned into a horror flick. I'll definitely be checking on Henry's other works too because she knows how to a write a fun story.

PS: the audiobook was solid as well; the narrator does a great job with everything I think. Also, check out my YouTube page (Josh's Bookish Voyage) for a video review at the end of the month (April 2021).