Violet and Eric Hildreth are living an idyllic life with their grandmother, famed psychiatrist Helen Hildreth, on the grounds of the Hillside Inn - a renowned clinic for the mentally ill - in 1978. Violet and Eric spend their days exploring, learning from their grandmother, and hunting monsters. Orphaned in a car accident, the children are bright and inquisitive and always on the quest for adventure. When a disturbance arrives in their lives in the form of a silent girl named Iris, their ideal life gets flipped on its head and nothing is what it seems. Meanwhile, in 2019, Lizzy Shelley - famed monster hunter and host of a well known podcast - travels to Vermont to investigate "Rattling Jane" and the disappearance of a teenage girl, one disappearance in a string of many.

I wasn't quite sure what I was getting into with this one - I wasn't sure if it would work itself as a psychological thriller with the setting being a mental hospital, but it was a genre-bending read that I still can't quantify.

The story is told from alternating view points - Violet in 1978 and Lizzy in 2019 - as well as selections from Violet, Eric, and Iris's Book of Monsters and from a book about Hillside Inn interspersed throughout. We learn from the book about Hillside that something bad went down, but exactly what isn't revealed until we see it through the characters' eyes.

The book is dark. It has children exploring dark themes from the root of mental illness, eugenics, and the impact of grief on a young psyche, but it also goes into what exactly makes a family and the importance and strength of the bond between sisters.

The Children on the Hill was an exceptional book from one of my favorite authors. McMahon kept me on my toes from start to finish and I wasn't sure exactly what kind of book I was reading: suspense, horror, sci-fi, or domestic thriller. I liked the flashbacks between the past and present, especially since the past is told through a child's POV. The unreliable narrator trope worked really well for Children on the Hill. The twists were also clever, especially the final one, which was a complete surprise. I finished reading and wanted MORE, which is a good sign for me that I loved the novel.

A genre -defying novel # The Children on the Hill is by bestselling author #Jennifer McMahon. Inspired by Mary Shelley's masterpiece Frankenstein this is a fun, mysterious novel. Taking place in 1978, psychiatrist, Dr. Helen Hidreth is also a Gran. See what happens when she brings home a child to stay with the family.....
Thank you for the advance copy,
# Netgalley and # Gallery Books 💜🐾🐾

What makes a monster? That is the question Jennifer McMahon purports to ask.

"Children On the Hill" is split into two eras: one during the 1970s and one in modern day. Years ago, Helen Hildreth, mad scientist, brings home Iris, a troubled girl, to meet Violet and Eric, the children she keeps as their supposedly loving "Gran." In modern day, Lizzy Shelley is a podcaster who learns of missing girls and sets out to hunt the monster responsible.

The story is wonderfully written. It's smart. It's self-referential. It acknowledges the strides made by genre luminaries going back to Mary Shelley and explores what creates monsters. What defines monsters. How much choices do monsters have? The revelation of who Lizzy is comes as little surprise, but the novel is unexpectedly, brutally poignant. McMahon achieves an incredible amount of emotions in the pages, with the relationship between Vi and Iris and how things have changed years later for "Lizzy" being the highlights of the book.

The book is simply excellent. Start to finish, McMahon wastes no words and explores the nature of what it means to be a monster. The emotions run high nd I was riveted by the end, through exceptional narration and narrative choices to a shockingly touching finale.

5/5

This was an excellently written book and I highly enjoyed it. I had guessed the main twist early on, but I wasn’t disappointed that I was right, as it was well done. I love books about “monster” girls and this is a good book to add to my collection.

This is a DNF for me.
No fault of the writing. I just had a difficult time connecting to the story, with the adolescent narrator. Also, the way the story was unfolding didn't hold my interest.

In 1978, Violet and Eric live in Vermont with their grandmother. To them, she's just Gran, but to others, she's the famous Dr. Helen Hildreth, a psychiatrist well-known for her work with the mentally ill. She does her work at the Hillside Inn, a massive facility next to their home. One day she brings home a patient, Iris, a scared and feral child. Violet and Eric bring her into their "Monster Club," where they catalog monsters and watch for them around the property. The three do everything together, including meeting at their clubhouse and hunting monsters--because they are everywhere. Cut to 2019, where Lizzy Shelly, the host of the podcast Monsters Among Us, travels to Vermont to investigate the disappearance of a teen. Lizzy knows that bad things can happen and monsters are very real--including her own sister.

This dark and brooding novel caught my interest right away. McMahon (always a favorite author of mine) presents a really different story here. It's told via excerpts from a book by a journalist written in 1980; excerpts from the book of monsters written by Violet, Eric, and Iris in 1978; Lizzy in 2019; Violet in 1978; and "the monster." This may sound like a lot but McMahon weaves together all the various storylines seamlessly. The chapters are short and between those and the varied format, the book is quite captivating.

I guessed one of the twists fairly early, but enjoyed reading to see if I was right. CHILDREN delves into some intense topics, especially mental health awareness, but also the meaning of sisterhood and family. The idea of monsters is complex--both the spooky kind and the kind that are true evil. I really enjoyed reading about the dichotomy.

Overall, this book is unique and delves into the meaning of evil and how it comes to be. It's dark and twisty and an enjoyable read.

I really liked this book. The short chapters and hopping between perspectives and times made this a really fast read. The setting gave me all the creepy vibes that I was looking for and I thought the twist was amazing.

Reading Between the Wines book review #37/135 for 2022:
Rating: 4 🍷 🍷 🍷 🍷
Book 🎧: The Children on the Hill
Author: Jennifer McMahon
Genre: Mystery & Thrillers | Women's Fiction
Available now!

Sipping thoughts: McMahon writes the most eerie, suspenseful and thrilling books. TCOTH is not any different. I loved the weird storyline and even though I knew what the big reveal was going to be pretty much in the first 20% of the book it didn’t make it any less thrilling. A book about monsters that really teach a great lesson? Sign me up for any future releases by McMahon.

Cheers and thank you to @GalleryBooks, @ScoutPress and @NetGalley for an advanced copy of @TheChildrenOnTheHill.

#TheChildrenOnTheHill #JenniferMcMahon #GalleryBooks #ScoutPress #NetGalley #advancedreadercopy #ARC #Kindle #Booksofinstagram #readersofinstagram #bookstagram #nicoles_bookcellar #bookworm #bookdragon #booknerd #booklover #bookstagrammer #bookaholic #bookreview #bookreviewer #IHaveNoShelfControl #ReadingBetweenTheWines #fiction #thriller #suspense #mystery #MysteryAndThrillers #WomensFiction

This was an interesting mystery with a dash of spooky and a lot of effed up childhood trauma. The monster club aspect was okay, but the book did feel a bit dragging for me. I sort of felt like I could see the seams of the story being pulled at, which just took me out of the book enough to not be immersed. The end was an interesting twist, different from the twist I expected, so that was good, but ultimately it did fall a bit flat to wow me. I think overall I just felt like I was kept at arms length, or like I just couldn’t break through the surface ice.

I have now read three books by Jennifer McMahon and this falls in the middle. When I heard that his had Frankenstein vibes I was hooked and knew I wanted to read this one. We got dual timelines and POVs intermingled with chapters from a book written about Monster Hunting. In the present Lizzy is a monster hunter who has found podcast fame documenting her hunts. She is also really looking for someone close to her. When she finds a case that appears to have similarities to other cases she thinks she is not he right track. In 1978 we are following Violet and her brother as they growing up with their grandma. She is a renowned psychiatrist who works at famous treatment center in town. One day she brings home a young girl named Iris and tells the two of them to help her get better. For me the majority of the story I had a hard time connecting to the plot and the characters. I found myself losing interest at times and then having to reread parts. However, once we are halfway through I really was interested and was very impressed with the twists that started to happen. This was more of a 3.5 but I rounded up.

I received a copy of the book from NetGalley.. The opinions expressed are my own.

Jennifer McMahon’s writing style makes for novels that are hard to put down. I loved the dual POV, watching the timelines play out simultaneously and then weave together. This was a chilling tale of science being used for evil and I loved every minute of it.

I received an advanced copy. All thoughts are my own.

The Children on the Hill by Jennifer McMahon was a suspenseful ghost story. It wasn't the typical thriller in that it had some ghost story mystery to it. It was not your usual plot line, which was a nice change for me. I can start predicting how most stories will go, but this one wasn't the same 'ole, same 'ole. It was an easy page-turner that I enjoyed reading.

I loved this one! So fast-paced and sinister, with a perfect ending. I will read more from this author.

Easily one of the best horror/thrillers I've read all year. It's told mostly in two points of view with some accessories. It alternates between 1978 with the past being told by Violet Hildreth, granddaughter of Dr. Hildreth who is the head psychiatrist at the Inn, a private mental hospital in rural Vermont. Vi's part of the story is centered over her and her brother, Eric (both of them orphaned and being raised by their grandmother) and being asked to help and be siblings to Iris a young nearly feral girl with a head injury and other trauma (so yes there is trauma to children in this)

The other main story point of view comes later with Lizzy Shelley. It's 2019 and something unspecified (in the beginning, it'll be revealed in slow stages) to destroy the family. The children have all changed their names and aren't much in each other's lives. Eric has a family of his own and wants mostly to be left alone but to be sure his sister is safe from The Monster (she is another point of view). Lizzy is a monster hunter, for real, much like half the current Travel Channel shows, she is criss crossing the United States looking for Bigfoot, wendigos and other monsters (all the while looking for her sister). Lizzy lives out of her research van, has her own podcast and has been on TV which she didn't much care for.

The other points of view (other than the Monster) are a book written about what happened in 1978 and a book of monsters written by the children in 1978.

So it ping pongs back and forth in that forty year span without ever feeling jarring or confusing. The voices are well differentiated and oh so involving. Lizzy is being led back to Vermont which she has avoided in all those decades, back to where it started because the one thing she knows is young girls are going missing across the country and the only thing tying them together is all of them claimed to meet a cryptid just before going missing. Lizzy is sure it's her sister and she wants to end this once and for all.

The way the past is revealed and woven into the present is masterful. It never feels too slow and the bread crumb trail lead easily to what Hildreth was doing. That really wasn't the twice but there are two big ones. All I want to say about them are they were great. They were surprising without being so out there you're rolling your eyes. I was sorry to see it end (because this definitely feels like a one and done) and I'll definitely be looking for more from this author.

I have never read a book by McMahon so I really was excited to be approved to read this. This was such a unique light horror book mixed with interesting characters and plot lines. Can I also say what a unique idea for a book??? Loved it.

What I enjoyed:
-I usually don’t enjoy slow burn but this was so fun and it worked!
-the character development
-tension buildup
-present and past perspectives
-plot twists were deep and connected

What could have been better?
-the ending was a bit flat and I expected more but it still was intriguing. This is why it wasn’t a 5 star for me; it felt too quick.

An interesting take on what separates humans from monsters with a wicked (and delicious) final twist that wrapped up a 5 star read perfectly. (Honestly, if you pitched me a book about a monster hunter without sharing the author, I never would have picked this up. Glad I did. McMahon doesn't disappoint.)

I often read thrillers or mysteries and have them figured out in the first quarter of the book. Not this one! The twist definitely caught me by surprise. This is a creepy tale of children being raised near a mental hospital and how that influences their childhoods. Are the things they see real or imagined? Who can they trust? A story I haven't heard before and I enjoyed it thoroughly.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the e ARC of The Children On The Hill by Jennifer McMahon. I really enjoyed the writing style, the pace of the story and all the twists and turns that McMahon delivered. I liked this book better than The Invited. This keeps you on the edge of your seat to keep up with all the surprises that come at you. It is a 3.5 rounded up to a 4 for me.
#NetGalley

You know I seriously have a LOVE-MEH relationship with Jennifer McMahon books. This was one I was gobbling up in the beginning and it had promise of being the favorite kid, but then it started to lose it at the end and I found myself getting easily distracted towards the end only reading 3% if I was lucky. While not horrible, not even bad, it definitely isn't my favorite from this author.

What is really irritating me is that I can't grasp when this book lost my interest or why. I will say that I can see why this book is garnering the 4 and 5 star reviews it is. It just lost this reviewer.

Reviewed for Publisher via Netgalley.