The premise of this book sounded very interesting, but in the end, it just wasn't the book for me. I found that the first 75% or so of the story dragged. There was a lot of background story and a lot of build up about a witch, and then the ending sort of blew through quickly and fell sort of flat. If the story were much shorter, I think it would have been more enjoyable.

I found Alex to be insufferable. If the story hadn't flip flopped between Renee and Alex, I think it would have been a lot harder to get through. I also thought the romantic angle between Alex and Kit felt forced and out of place. It actually also made me dislike Alex even more. You're on the run with your two kids from a man... straight to another man? It didn't even do anything to advance the plot, so I'm not sure why it was included. Also, the insertion of his background at the end of the book was strange and unnecessary.

“The Shadow House
By: Anna Downes

Mysterious Signs, Symbols, Blood and a Missing Boy

When strange occurrences begin on an Australian flower farm, they get the entire family and surrounding neighbors concerned about teenager, Gabriel’s, physical and emotional health in Anna Downes engrossing new mystery, “The Shadow House.”

When Gabriel soon disappears from a locked room, could it be that witches or monsters from the local woods magically took him?

Years later, in this dual timeline novel, a similar pattern is repeating itself as boxes with ghastly gifts that typically precede the witches attack turn up.

“Bones,” murmured the old woman. “And a doll. Or is it a doll, then bones? I can never remember.” I stiffened. “Then blood.”

All is not as it seems in this fast-paced page-turner with unexpected twists throughout. Anna Downs does a brilliant job pacing this novel and setting-up dramatic twists and surprises throughout. It's an exceptionally well-done novel and an excellent read that I highly recommend.

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The Book Maven’s Journal—Reviews for Word Connoisseurs

REVIEWER: J.Hunt
STAR RATING ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️


“The Shadow House
Author: Anna Downes
Genre: | Mysteries & Thrillers | General Fiction (Adult)
Publication Date: 05 April 2022
Publisher: St. Martin Press, Minotaur Books

With Sincerest Appreciation to NetGalley, Author Anna Downes and Publishers St. Martin Press, an imprint of Minotaur Books for Providing this Advance Reader’s Copy for Review.

I really enjoyed The Safe Place by Anna Downes and am happy to say that The Shadow House is just as good. Told in alternating points of view we have Renee and Alex, both with teenage sons with secrets. I enjoyed Renee's chapters much more than Alex's. I found Alex to be a little irritating. The point of this one is watch what your kids are doing on-line as we never know what's lurking on the internet.

The setting of Australia was so lovely and so descriptive. I loved reading about all the animals, plants and bugs. I was really surprised by the twist and the ending was a blast. I really can't give it four stars though as Alex's chapters got my nerves too much.

The Shadow House, Anna Downes' second showing, is a solid effort and enjoyable, but I can't say that it ever elevates to a can't-put-it-down page turner. Alex is running from an abusive ex, and takes her fourteen year old son Oliver and her baby Kara with her to an ecovillage. And while the setting seems idyllic, things turn ominous right from the very beginning when she begins receiving disturbing packages that are reminiscent of those Renee (who also tells her story) received before her son went missing. Between a teething toddler and a sullen teenager Alex feels exhausted and is in much the same position as Renee was with her son Gabe. Exhaustion quickly turns to paranoia as she feels someone is out to get her and her family, Ollie in particular, and how members of the community make it clear that they're not thrilled she's there. The story comes to a climax when the two women's stories interconnect, but for all the underlying menace in the story the climax itself feels a little underwhelming. The reader finds out what happened with Gabe, which provides some resolution. The situation with Alex's ex feels like it could have been incorporated more to provide the possibility for an unexpected twist, or even an additional threat. Throughout all of it Downes' description of Gabe, Ollie and Kara may either make you appreciate the good moments or swear off children forever! A copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

The Shadow House by  Anna Downes  is an incredibly well-written story. At times I  held my breath and found myself anxiously urging the family to "Get out of there!"  It's the kind of book that keeps me up late at night reading just one more chapter, and then lying in bed wide awake while I think over everything that happened so far. 

The characterization was amazing. Tiny details that show how the main character's actions and thoughts escalated were  shown through a slow build. Then, there were revelations that changed the direction of everything I thought I knew. The book kept my thoughts  skidding around corners to see where each threat was coming from. 

This is definitely a five star book.

This book is about a single mother named Alex, as she tries to put the past behind her, after getting out of an abusive relationship. She moves to a rural eco-village with her teenage son and baby daughter.

Pine Ridge seems like the perfect place for her at first, but then sinister events start happening. Alex finds a box left on the porch which contains a dead bird. The eerie and unexplainable happenings continue and Alex soon starts to fear for the safety of her kids and herself.

There is another character in the story called Renee, who is the former occupant of the farmhouse. The novel switches back and forth between the narration of both women. Alex’s story is told in the first person, whereas Renee’s story is told in third person.

Alex and Renee’s stories are connected in a way that is quite surprising and unexpected.

Alex soon discovers that there are secrets lurking in every corner. One by one the secrets are revealed, until we spiral onwards, towards the well crafted ending to the intriguing and eerie mystery.

I really enjoyed this book, as it is full of thrilling and suspenseful elements. It’s a very good read for mystery lovers. I would definitely recommend it.

Thank you to the publisher, author and NetGalley for providing me with an advance reader’s copy of this book for an honest review.

The author does a great job of making the environment of the book feel extremely unsettling right from the start... so much so that I'm not going to finish it right now. I'll be returning to it later but it just feels like a bit much for me. I usually love thrillers but I think this is too much like horror for me and I can't really handle it.

The Shadow House by Anna Downes is set in a new Eco-Village located in a remote rural area called Pine Ridge. Single mom, Alex, is running from a past to protect her two children. The community is beautiful, she can rent a house to see if she would like to build her own home, but that also allows the rest of the community to decide if Alex and her children are a good ‘fit’. The beautiful scenery and idyllic ideas hide the secrets of a dark past with rumors of a witch in the forest believed to be responsible for a missing teenage boy six years prior.

The story is told by two points of view, one being Alex, the second is Renee, the mother of the missing teenage boy, Gabriel, from the farmhouse on the hill. As soon as Alex, her own teenage son, Ollie, and infant daughter, Kara arrive at their new house, bizarre things start happening. Mysterious, creepy boxes are found on her porch, and things escalate from there. First bones, then a doll and finally blood. The three signs the witch is near and has honed in on her next teenage victim, could it be Ollie? Alex believes she is seeing this witch lurking around the village, and will do anything she can to protect her family. Pine Ridge community leader, Kit, seems to have taken a more than friends liking to Alex, but there seems to be something shady with him and the rest of the village inhabitants.

As Alex continues to delve into the past secrets in order to protect her family, she realizes something doesn’t seem right with the family from the farmhouse. She can’t seem to find Renee, and Gabriels father Michael is clearly hiding something. The two POV’s are done well with the parallel stories colliding at the end. Michael is clearly not a likable character, and as others in the community start to turn on Alex, you really question what is true, and what could be imagined.

I’m giving this book a solid 3.5+ stars. I loved Anna Downes previous book, The Safe Place, so I was thrilled to receive a copy of this book. The first part of the book was so creepy and dark, it is every parents worst nightmare. The middle of the book became slow, and a little boring. Alex was taking risks that seemed to be a little ridiculous when she was so worried about her two children. The ending was good, twisty, unpredictable. The story ties up at the end, but the flow in it’s entirety seemed choppy. Still enjoyed the story though.

I would like to thank Netgalley, St Martin’s Press/Minotaur Books and Anna Downes for an advanced reader copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Alex left her abusive husband and settled in a rural, eco-friendly community that was to be peaceful.

It wasn’t that peaceful when Alex finds a box with a dead animal in it and other odd things happening as each day went by.

Are they really safe from her husband,other people, and things?

Then we meet Renee and her family - the same things seem to have happened to them along with a kidnapping of their son. Somehow Renee’s story and Alex’s story were related.

THE SHADOW HOUSE was very confusing and very dark with odd, angry characters. I actually couldn’t follow the story line until half way through the book.

It also had too much of a sci-fi/paranormal feel for me.

I honestly wasn’t a fan and was disappointed because I really liked her first book.

I do have to say the last quarter of the book redeemed itself. 3/5

This book was given to me by the publisher for an honest review.

I'm going to start off by saying that this book was not for me, but that is not to say that other readers won't like. Everyone has their own tastes. This just happened to not be mine.
I found this novel very clique, in a bad way. I felt that the author was going for something outside of the norm, which I was really appreciative of, but it didn't turn out too well. The characters lacked diversity, and the first 30 percent of the book had me dragging my feet. It didn't pick up until the plot twist at around 58 percent. That's a lot of words to read to get around to the point. I also felt there was that unspoken romance thing going on, that felt very out of genre for thriller being the main vibe. There also a few lose ends that I felt weren't resolved right.
Another blunt honesty about this book, there are two timelines, but the past timeline isn't as far back as you might think it is in the beginning. I don't know if that was the author's attempt at slowly revealing the clues, which I think that is brilliant Anna Downes has discovered that in her writing. I just don't think it was well done here. I felt betrayed as a reader. I like secrets, but I was imagining 1960s or 70s, and then suddenly I am thrown into 2015? (If I am understanding the math right on this book). It was very jarring, and by that time all my interest was lost on the book.
This book isn't all flaws though. I enjoyed the creepy and creative vibes to this story. If you are looking for something different, but something not too far from what you normally read, I think this would be a good read.

I definitely expected this to be more of a horror than a thriller which probably affected my overall enjoyment; I kept on waiting for something spoooooooooky to happen and it just never did. I think the author did a good job building suspense, I just think it could have been creepier. Overall it was a decent thriller.

If you're looking for a thriller, this is the book for you! Alex, a single Mom, and her family are welcomed to their new home in Pine Ridge, an eco village outside of Sydney, Australia. Alex hears rumors about a witch who killed her son and soon, spooky packages start arriving at Alex's home. The story kept me interested and was scary - I was a little nervous in the dark while reading it. I found the aspect with technology and screen time with teenagers interesting and relevant. I really enjoyed how the story goes deeper than the characters originally thought.
The setting reminded me of my trip to Australia and the author made the forest and village very easy to picture. Plus, the author's note at the end was personal and touching. Thank you #NetGalley for the early read!

I loved Anna Downs first novel last year and was really excited to get an advanced copy if her second novel. Once again, she did not disappoint. This one did take me a little bit longer to get sucked into the story but Once I was on, I had to keep reading to find our how it ended.

The Shadow House by Anna Downes is through Alex and Renee through timelines. Alex is a single mom looking for a new start with her infant and teenager. When she arrives at an ecovillage that promotes a community lifestyle, she hopes she will finally have a fresh start and safe home for her and her children. However, strange occurrences and the mysterious past of the land on which the ecovillage is built may prevent this.

The Shadow House is the second book I’ve read by Anna Downes. I really enjoy the atmosphere she creates in her novels. The Shadow House was definitely a slow burn that took me a little while to get into, but once I did, I stayed engaged. Downes does not follow a cookie cutter pattern of thrillers and plot lines that are often recycled in this genre, which is pleasantly refreshing. If you read this, make sure to read the author’s note at the end of the book! I look forward to seeing what this author writes next!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest feedback.

I should state at the beginning that a part of the reason I didn’t gel with this book probably had to do with a mismatch of expectations. The description sold the book to me as a horror-y thriller, and in practice it was more of a thriller-y romantic suspense. I really wanted more horror and less of the rest. If you’re looking for dread, look elsewhere; here you’ll find more tension and suspense, without (in my opinion) a very interesting or satisfying payoff.

Some other things I didn’t love: Our heroine, Alex, is not too bright and is a seriously irresponsible mom. The character archetypes felt overdone and a little boring. The motherly fears that clearly inspired the book (sleeplessness with a baby and teenagers with the internet) are way too literal.

I feel like this book had potential. A hippie commune (“eco-village”) is a setting that can very easily turn creepy and horrifying, and the first few chapters contained some of the unease of moving into a ‘perfect’ place. But after that things just went downhill.

I would recommend this book to anyone interested in reading about anxious, overwhelmed moms, but who doesn’t want anything too scary or upsetting. Ultimately, for me, it was more boring than thrilling.

Do you ever read a thriller and think…oh, if only this had more romance or mommy business? If so, this thriller is for you. I never had the thought and thus for me it ended up a disappointment.
The promise was there. I loved the setting of a semi-remote ecovillage in Australia. I liked the spooky is-there-or-isn’t-there a witch in the woods situation and all the concomitant creepy goings on. But then, quite literally from the first scene where our protagonist meets her future love interest, the quality just drops precipitously. And from then on, just as you begin really getting into the story, the book continues to remind you how much of a mommy thriller it is, how much of a love story it’s going to be, how much estrogen is flowing through its vein.
Too much estrogen, in fact. Sorry. Tedious amount of estrogen. Overshadowing every good thing about the story.
Is the story at least original? Well, yes and no. It’s nigh impossible to do an original thriller these days due to the insane popularity of the genre. So, since all the main premises have been done and done, originality is traditionally relinquished to the smaller aspects of the plot such as the ecovillage location here.
It is meant to be a fresh start for the mommy protagonist of this book. She’d just left an unhappy relationship, so now she’s got two kids (14 and a baby) from different fathers none of whom are around and a grand idea that this ecovillage will be the new beginning she so desperately needs. I mean, a more introspective protagonist might analyze their actions and realize how much her present is define by her past mistakes (yes, this woman is dumb enough to think that having a bay is a good way to fix a messed up relationship and this was her latest, not her wild youth’s ideas) and maybe learn a thing or two, but hey, she’s just too busy being a mommy. And for that her reward is a surly teen and a constantly wailing baby.
But wait for it, she is still the yummy mommy of someone’s dreams. She manages to grab the attention of the oh so hunky ecovillage’s founder and they proceed to exchange romantic sparks while she is trying to figure out what’s going on in the community around her. They had a teen go missing a while back. Is her kid next? What are the strange gifts she’s been receiving? Do the villagers even want her around or are they gathering their pitchforks and torches? Etc.etc.
Don’t worry, she’ll work it all out, like a supermommmy that she thinks she is. And every reveal will be more disappointing and more pedestrian than the next until the initial premise will seem like a distant and faded thing of the past. Because the endings for these sorts of stories and these sorts of protagonists are usually sappy happy and book is all too aware of it.
Overall, decent enough, the pacing’s pretty good, the writing would also be pretty good if not for all that freaking estrogen and romance and babies, but as it was, the book left a lot to be desired and did nothing to distinguish itself from the plethora of same and similar thrillers out there. Thanks Netgalley.

Alex is running away from an abusive relationship with two kids. Pine Ridge is supposed to be a safe ecovillage, a place where she can settle in with like-minded people and provide a healthy way of life for her kids.
But of course, it’s not.
In parallel tales set in Australia, Anna Downes tells the story of two mothers: one who loses her son and the other who is trying desperately to save hers.
Ok, you’ve got me when a kid goes missing. I settle into those stories like a dark cloud.
Alex and her two children, Oliver and Kara, hope to find peace after a series of unhappy situations. Alex hasn’t been as wise as she should have been in her choice of partners. She knows it and Oliver, her teenage son, reminds her as only a teenager can. Oliver is a teenage boy who is disgruntled that he’s been asked to move away from his friends. Kara is teething. Alex is exhausted.
Alex is charmed by the idea of Pine Ridge—and equally charmed by the guy who runs the place. But she’s just escaped a relationship and she’s not ready to jump into another one. Probably. When someone puts a dead bird on her doorstep, a creepy little kid who may or may not be a tiny demon on a bike tells her about the local legend of a witch who steals children. Silly, right. Witches don’t do that anymore, do they?
In a parallel story, Renee and Michael Kellerman and their son Gabriel struggle to keep their farm. A dead cat, a family row, and suddenly Gabe is gone without a trace. He was never seen again. Did he run away? Or is the truth more sinister?
When Alex learns more about Gabe’s disappearance, the bizarre events leading up to his disappearance are being repeated—only Oliver may be the target this time. She decides she must find the underlying cause of it before things get worse.
What works:
High-class character development going on here! I like Alex, and I feel for her as she suffers the trials and tribulations of raising a baby and a teenager all by herself.
The two plot-lines twist and turn and yet complement each other nicely.
A pervasive creepiness that I love—The combination of this light as air ecovillage and the weight of tragedy on the property gives this story just enough darkness.
What I wasn’t so fond of:
The ending. It’s dark but I was hoping for an even darker resolution—the buildup is there. I just didn’t feel it delivered all its potential though the end does answer all the questions that arise. You can’t have everything, and this may be just my personal preference for freakiness getting in the way.
Four out of five. A well-written read that gave me nice shivers. I highly recommend this author.

When Alex moves to a new eco-community, Pine Ridge, she hopes things will be peaceful and chance for a fresh start for her and her two children: her teenaged son, Ollie, and infant daughter, Kara. But upon arrival, she notices the abandoned house perched atop the hill overlooking the former flower farm and hears the rumors that the family who lived there before the village bought the plot of land left because their son disappeared, snatched by a witch who lives in the surrounding woods. When weird events mirroring those that happened previously begun happening to Alex's son, she fears that the local legend may not be a legend after all.

The story takes place over two timelines: one in the present day, following Alex and her family, the other following the Kellerman family, who lived in the abandoned house previously.

This book was very interesting because it had a very suspenseful atmosphere. The action gets going right away, and you know that sinister things are happening right away. It's the anticipation of waiting for those things to actually happen that makes the book really exciting and kept me turning pages. And when the reveals came, there were some nice twists that kept things interesting and the I did not see coming at all - it was quite enjoyable to see how the author pulled everything together.

I wasn't a huge fan of the romance subplot that the author included, but some people may enjoy it. I just didn't feel like it fit into the plot very well, especially since Alex was recovering from a bad relationship, it didn't feel right having her test out a relationship. But that's just my opinion.

But overall, I liked Alex. She was a relatable female heroine, a little harried, trying to see things together for her kids' sake, and make friends in her new community. I really felt like she was well developed and likable.

Overall, the was a great suspenseful read. I would definitely read this author again!

I enjoyed the Australian setting of this story and the theme--playing out in two different timelines--of mothers trying to protect their children from an unseen evil, but it took me a while to really get into the story and the ending fell a little flat for me. Part of the story takes place in an ecovillage, which was an interesting concept to read about, and there was definitely a creepy evil-lurking-in-the-forest vibe, but overall, it wasn't a can't-put-down-read for me.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and publisher for the opportunity to read an ARC of this book.

“The bones come first. A gift, but nothing wanted. Next, a doll: a likeness, a promise. And the blood marks the choice. It finds a face, and then you know.”

Okay, are you creeped out yet? When a book opens with that paragraph, you know something spooky this way comes. The Shadow House kept me on my toes for the first 75% - enough so that I would stop reading an hour before bed because I still wanted to sleep at night. While in the end I put some of the pieces together, The Shadow House thoroughly spooked me and kept me guessing.

You probably won’t have nightmares when you read it, but maybe leave a light on just in case. Thanks to St. Martin’s Press for the early review copy. This one is out April 5!