Eleanor lives with a cognitive disorder called prosopagnosia also referred to as face blindness. She has acquired skills to cope with day to day life. Eleanor also must deal with Vivienne the overbearing grandmother who raised her after Eleanor lost her mother.
In order to avoid having Vivienne take over her adult life Eleanor has agreed to a limited number of phone calls and meeting every Sunday for dinner. One fateful Sunday as Eleanor is about to enter her grandmother’s apartment an individual runs out that Eleanor can’t recognize. She soon discovers Vivienne has been murdered. Unable to help the authorities with their inquiries Eleanor begins to deal with her grief.
A lawyer contacts Eleanor informing her the grandmother has left an estate in the Swedish countryside and they must conduct an inventory. Eleanor and her devoted boyfriend Sebastian head to the estate. Veronika, Eleanor’s aunt joins them. The house holds many secrets that are soon to be revealed.
I liked THE RESTING PLACE. The story was suspenseful and the chain of events leading up to the end was believable. I would gladly recommend THE RESTING PLACE to readers who enjoy a good thriller.
Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for allowing me to read an advanced digital edition of this book.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing this ARC.

I loved The Lost Village, so I was really excited to read this. Unfortunately, it ended up being somewhat disappointing. I didn't really connect with Eleanor (or any other character for that matter). There were large sections of the book that felt like the story was just kind of dragging along without much happening.

On a positive note, the setting is interesting and the book was well-written for the most part. There were a few surprising moments. However, if you are going to start your synopsis of the book with an explanation of what prosopagnosia is, then the condition should probably be more prevalent throughout the book.

This is one of my favorite books so far this year. It was a wonderfully written gothic thriller with just the right amount of suspense. The story focuses on Eleanor who is in modern day, and Anuska who is from the past. Both women are tide to this country estate in ways that Eleanor has to find out before it's too late. Eleanor knew nothing about this house until after the death of her grandmother. She loved her grandmother in her own way, but her grandmother could be cold and distant with her more often than not. Before her death, Eleanor's grandmother mentioned that there were voices in the walls. Eleanor, her boyfriend, her aunt and a lawyer end up going to this house that has been shut up for decades in order to check everything out before it goes to sale. What they did not expect was all of their lives would be changed forever.
When I mentioned that it was one of my favorite books this year, I mean it. I even left my work shift early (with permission!) one day just so I could come home and finish the final half of this book in one sitting. This will definitely be going on my favorite books shelf.

This my first book by this author and I will definitely be picking up more of her work. The Resting Place is an engaging murder mystery that leans more towards thriller rather than horror. The chapters are very short and many end in cliff hangers so it’s easy to fly through. I found the reveals to be surprising but a bit confusing and I found myself having to reread certain parts to fully understand what was going on. This is also the first book I’ve read featuring prosopagnosia and although I didn’t find it completely necessary to the story, I thought it was an interesting touch.

Thank you NetGalley for a free copy of The Resting Place for my honest review.

Camilla Stern is quickly becoming one of my favorite thriller authors. "The Resting Place" is psychological suspense at its best!

The story is told from the perspectives of Eleanor (current day) and the diary of Anushka (in the past). Both characters describe their experiences from the house, known as Solhöga, where bad things tend to happen.

This family is SO twisted! Some parts are creepy from a mental health standpoint, and some parts are sad. You won’t believe what is going on here.

I absolutely devoured this book in one day and now will impatiently wait for the Ms. Stern's next work.

This one was a good locked door mystery that had a lot.of good aspects. Readers follow the main character back to a family home after years of.not being there. Almost right away, weird things happen and things that are happening are not easily explained. The author did a great job of painting multiple characters in a strange way, which made it difficult to solve the mystery before it was revealed.

Where this one fell a little flat for me was that for whatever reason, I had a difficult time getting into the book in the beginning. I also recently read two other "locked door mysteries," so that may have taken away from it for me.

Overall, the story made sense and I didn't guess the culprit, which is what you want with these.

I didn’t care for this story. The condition of the main character was just too convenient and the pacing was too slow. Ended up giving up on it halfway through. Disappointed since I liked the Lost Village, but would definitely read another book by this author in the future.

Thank you so much for The Resting Place e-book. I ended up purchasing the physical book as well. I started this one and could not get into and picked it back up a few times. This will remain in my stack to finish as the premise is intriguing. -Mood Reader

Eerie, gothic, atmospheric thriller. This book was an engrossing page turner! Camilla Stein doesn't disappoint in this well written, engaging read. I was invested from start to finish.

Thank you NetGalley and Minotaur books for this ARC!!

I love love love Camilla Sten. She has nailed the eerie and atmospheric novel. I love her remote and isolated settings (same in The Lost Village) where you know the characters have to fend for themselves against an unseen enemy.

I also love the gothic elements of the old estate Eleanor inherits through the murder of her cold and menacing grandmother.

I would have liked a little more bump in the night type of situations, even though there was plenty of that, perhaps because I loved it so much, I wanted more!
This is a must read if you love thriller, horror, and gothic novels.

I have now read a handful of books that include face blindness, but none quite like The Resting Place by Camilla Sten. I really liked that this was something Eleanor struggles with and obviously the reason why she has no idea who killed Vivianne, but it doesn't take over the entire story. There are plenty of other things going on, and this was a very creepy and atmospheric read for me. I loved the setting in the Swedish woods and Sten was able to really bring the house and area to life with her writing. There are multiple viewpoints and a decent number of characters, but unlike some readers, I thankfully didn't struggle with this at all. I was able to keep everyone straight even while listening to the audiobook and I quite enjoyed all of the various viewpoints.

This brings us to the next bit of my review which is, of course, the audiobook. I also loved listening to this one and the narrator Angela Dawe is already one of my favorites. Her narration for The Resting Place was fantastic, and I can't think of anyone who would have been more fitting. I also thought the translation for this novel was completely on point, and while it seems silly to think about, there are some times where it has failed in books I've read. Never fear though because Alexandra Fleming just so happens to be fantastic at it and there weren't any strange or awkward parts for me. I was also a huge fan of how this book was formatted, and it kept me completely engaged all the way up to the shocking conclusion. I still need to go back and read The Lost Village but I cannot wait to see what Sten will write next!

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I made the decision to DNF this book at page 79. While I do not think the writing was bad I just found myself not being able to connect with the story or characters. I had flashbacks while reading this book of Alice Feeney's Rock Paper Scissors which I realize was written after The Resting Place. I may decide to pick this book up again one day but for now it just did not capture my attention.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for allowing me to read an early copy of this book.

Reading Between the Wines book review #34/135 for 2022:
Rating: 3 🍷 🍷 🍷
Book 🎧: The Resting Place
Author: Camilla Sten
Genre: General Fiction (Adult) | Mystery & Thrillers
Available now!

Sipping thoughts: Spooky and thrilling. Sten created a story that makes the reader unsure of what is going on. Whispers, people lurking, uncertainty of who people are, a snowstorm-all the things that made this story captivating. I loved the twists and reveals and do not think they were unreasonable. I would love to try another book from Sten.

Cheers and thank you to @StMartinsPress and @MinotaurBooks for an advanced copy of @TheRestingPlace.

#TheRestingPlace #CamillaSten #StMartinsPress #MinotaurBooks #Netgalley #advancedreadercopy #ARC #Kindle #Booksofinstagram #readersofinstagram #bookstagram #nicoles_bookcellar #bookworm #bookdragon #booknerd #booklover #bookstagrammer #bookaholic #bookreview #bookreviewer #IHaveNoShelfControl #ReadingBetweenTheWines #fiction #thriller #suspense #mystery #MysteryAndThrillers #GeneralFictionAdult

This one just wasn't for me. It was too slow paced with no real connection to any of the characters. I had high hopes for this book but it just fell flat for me unfortunately.

Every family has a history, but what if your family has a darker history than you ever could have possibly imagined full of lying, deceit and even murder? No secret will ever compare to the ones Eleanor is about to uncover.
Thank you Netgalley, Camilla Sten and St Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read and review this book. What a twisted ride this was! The farther into the story the more twists that popped up. I never would have put the ending together. This book went back and forth between past and present but it flowed really well. I loved the style of writing and the book seemed to keep the same steady pace throughout. I was completely engulfed in this the moment I picked it up all the way to the very end. Absolutely twisted and amazing storyline. Definitely a must read for those into mysteries/thrillers! I’m rating this ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

The beginning of this story seemed simple enough. Eleanor got a house, which she knew nothing about, from her grandmother's will. She is suffering from prosopagnosia and of course needs specific pointers to know who she's talking with. Everyone in her family has a secret and a dark past. Okay, we’re are doing good so far…

As soon as they crossed the threshold, it was like opening a pandora's box. Secrets and lies left and right started pouring out. Nothing was what it seemed. She didn’t know who to trust. The person she trusted the most, started insinuating that everything might be happening in her head, because of course there might be something wrong with her.

Eleanor is on the hunt. She is on the hunt for the truth. She has a lot of questions and the answers might be kidding inside the house.

This book kept me on my toes. It was absolutely chilling. The backstory of the family was unbelievably interesting and I felt like I couldn’t trust anyone the whole time. The back and forth between the timelines were so important. It gave a new perspective and made you doubt everything about the present. You can tell that there is definitely something wrong with everyone from the beginning. The spine-tingling sensation of “I’m not alone in here” is present the whole time giving you ghostly vibes, and I’m here for them.

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press; Minotaur Books, for providing an early copy of this brilliant story.

The premise of this story had me hooked. I had never heard of prosopagnosia before but it sounds like it could add some serious drama to a thriller like this one. I mean what could be more crazy... she sees the murderer face to face but because of this condition, has no way of telling who it was! I was definitely intrigued by Eleanor because of this and a few other little things like why she was so adamant about not being called by her true name. I also love the whole premise of being trapped in a remote cabin/location while a killer is on the loose. Unfortunately I found myself bored more often than not by this story. I only hung on to the end to find out who the killer really was and when that was revealed it was a bit of a let down to be honest. Overall this one had some serious potential but I was left feeling let down and uninterested in how it ended.

The Resting Place is the latest novel to come from the mind of Camilla Sten, which means we're about to dive back into a world that is both atmospheric and terrifying – a balance that only Sten can manage.

Eleanor has what is called prosopagnosia – or face blindness. She has learned to live with this – but no coping mechanism can help her work around one simple fact. She witnessed her grandmother's murder – saw the killer face to face. And yet she cannot tell the world who it is, for she does not know.

Following the death of her grandmother, Eleanor inherits her home. One would think this would add the stability she needs following what happened. Instead, she's about to get thrown into an even darker world of secrets and pain.

To say that a lot is going on within The Resting Place would be an understatement. It feels like almost too much to keep up with, but then it all balances out. That is the dance readers follow in this haunting tale.

I've read a few books by Camilla Sten by this point, so I think it's safe to say this: Sten is a master when it comes to developing atmospheric tales. Her descriptions are like no others, creating something that is both haunting and eerie. Even when nothing of note was happening on the page, I felt like I was sitting on the edge of my seat.

The Resting Place is split into two points in time. There's the present day and the events set in the 1960s. Naturally, this means that two different perspectives accompany those times. Eleanor is the present, while Agnuska is the past. The latter surprised me, as I expected the story to come from Eleanor's grandmother instead of the maid. Yet it all made sense soon enough.
I enjoyed the pacing and overall vibe of The Resting Place. Though admittedly, I didn't find it to be quite as strong as The Lost Village.

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Posted on May 2, 2022..

The Resting Place was an atmospheric and fun suspense story that kept getting more and more interesting, the further I got into the book.

Due to not being able to recognize faces, Eleanor has lived her life with a certain amount of fear. That fear and uncertainty increased after bumping into her grandmother’s murderer and not being able to recognize him or her.

The story largely revolves around Elanor’s larger than life grandmother Vivianne and Eleanor who cannot identify people’s faces clearly. But her logical yet always skeptical boyfriend Sebastian, her unique and interesting Aunt Veronika and the lawyer handling her grandmother’s estate all add something to this mysterious tale.

The story bounces back-and-forth between the past and the present which I enjoyed. The characters were interesting, especially Eleanor’s grandmother Vivian.

I did get a little frustrated with Sebastian. I wish that he would have been more understanding and supportive of Eleanor especially given the fact that she doesn’t recognize people and faces like the rest of them do. Aunt Veronika was a bold and unapologetic character also…it would have been nice to discover more of her backstory.

I also listened to the audiobook while I was reading. Occasionally I will switch between reading and listening. The narrator, Angela Dawe is one of my top narrators. She always does a good job of bringing the characters to life and adding to an already interesting storyline. The audiobook is just shy of 9 hours, but nothing felt slow or dragged and that time went by fairly quickly.

This is the second book that I’ve read from this author, and it will not be the last. I enjoy her writing style and the creative way she spins a story. There were a couple of twists and surprises that occurred that they took me by surprise, and I honestly did not guess who the murderer was until it was practically revealed.

RATING: 3½ OUT OF 5.

Camila Sten continues again to blow me away with her original story, a true original thriller. Nothing like the typical drunk, unreliable woman. I love the dual timelines with Anushka and Eleanor. Sten did a fantastic job intertwining the two characters' stories and pacing them so that they came together at the relatively same time. This book was well paced and had all the elements of a great thriller - this story is far better than what you find with some of the other hyped thriller writers!