Vi and Eric live in Vermont in a house next door to The Hillside Inn, a treatment center which their Gran (the brilliant Dr. Helen Hildreth) runs and operates. The children live a seemingly normal but secluded life being homeschooled and not allowed to play with the other children in town. Like most children do, they believe in monsters and have even created their own little Monster Club with its own guidebook. One day Gran brings home a strange girl named Iris about Vi’s age and tells the kids that she’s now their sister. Iris is very shy, doesn’t talk, and wears an old ugly orange hat all the time. With the arrival of this strange girl Vi starts to question everything. She wants to know this girl’s story and where she came from. She wants to know just what happens in the supposedly empty and not used B West section of the treatment center. The Children on the Hill is a gothic, eerie, creepy, slow burn horror novel that will have you horrified one minute and dumbstruck next. The plot twist near the end is one I can definitely say I didn’t see coming. I’ve read a few of Jennifer McMahon novels and this one stands up well with her other novels. Thanks to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for the arc copy in exchange for a honest review!

What a story! Violet and her younger brother Eric welcome a new sister, Iris, when their grandmother brings her home from the Hillside Inn. She is different, non-verbal, Vi's age, thirteen. It is Vi's job to report to Gran about how Iris progresses. Gran is also Dr. Hildreth. She's a psychiatrist and she is in charge of the mental hospital.
The children have a lot of time to themselves. Sweet, endearing siblings, they are innocent of much of the world as Gran homeschools them. One major past time is their Monster Club. Vi includes Iris in the writing of their book on monsters and Eric is the illustrator as they make it a mission to find local monsters. It is 1978.
2019, girls have disappeared from various places around the country. Lizzy Shelley, an investigator connected to the tv series, Monsters Among Us travels to various areas seeking out monsters that others have sighted. She happens to travel where a young girl has recently disappeared to check on a monster sighting in Vermont.
This book is written from two time periods and from more than one viewpoint. Usually, I have a problem with that, but the author kept things moving so smoothly that I was wrapped up in the story line. Her characters, the girls in particular, are so magnetic. I felt empathy and curiosity about them. Something just wasn't right.
This book brings thoughts of the earliest episodes of the show Stranger Things to Mind along with horror novels I've read over the years. At one particularly dramatic point I was reading in one room while my husband was watching a tv show in another room. He reacted to something on the show and spoke aloud. I jumped and nearly dropped my Kindle; I was so intense in wondering if Lizzy was next to the monster.
I want to thank the publisher and NetGalley for my advanced reader's copy of the book. It's really good! 4.5 is my rating This is my own opinion.

Jennifer McMahon is a master of psychological suspense: she first grabbed me with her 2021 take on a modern day ghost story - The Drowning Pool. Now, with her latest offering, THE CHILDREN ON THE HILL, a sharply written, wildly entertaining tale of monsters and childhood memories she has surpassed herself and once again kept me reading into the wee small hours of the morning.

Spanning the years between 1978 and 2019 McMahon utilizes two intersecting story lines to relate the tale of a private psychiatric hospital in Vermont run by an acclaimed doctor Helen Hildreth. The story focuses on the doctors three wards, Vi, Eric and Iris, children obsessed with investigation of and search for monsters in all their forms. Upon discovering some of Dr. Hildreth’s clinical notes on an individual only identified as Patient “S” the group begins their own investigation with horrific results.

Now years later, an investigative reporter/pod-caster has come to Vermont in search of a story about recent monster sightings and the possible link of the sightings to a string of missing girls.

Part gothic mystery and part psychological thriller this haunting page turner will hook readers as if it were a narcotic.

This was a spooky and atmospheric read about three children hunting monsters in the area around their home that also is next to a mental health treatment ward. Their grandmother is a brilliant psychiatrist and all this comes together to form a mystery whose repercussions lead to the disappearances of girls years later.

I do have to say that pretty early on I correctly guessed one of the bigger twists in the story, but was pleasantly surprised to find more minor ones slowly being revealed. I appreciated the constant action and questioning propelling the plot and keeping it active while not losing me in the dual timelines. The story also kept me on my toes in determining if there was a supernatural aspect or realistic plausibility, and I liked the element of it balancing between the two for a lot of the book. Also, as a classic monster story fan, I appreciated all the nods to Frankenstein and Mary Shelley.

I received an ARC of this book and was so excited to read it. I own the author’s previous book and she is highly regarded for creating atmospheric, intense, literary thrillers and mysteries.

This title and the beautiful cover had me riveted. I found this to feel nostalgic, as it alternates between a current day and a narrator from the 1970s. The author definitely captured life in the 70s and summer in a small town. I also loved all the descriptive, atmospheric settings about various forests, swamps, and old houses.

I would save this for a fall trip or autumn travels as it is definitely mood reading. The only thing I would caution readers about is there are potential triggers. I was a little cautious reading this at times, because a strange child appears and I worried that this child been abused. There are also missing teens, which prompted the monster hunt that drives the plot.

Trigger warnings aside, I think this moody, atmospherics thriller will capture the attention of fans especially those who crave a mood read.

This book attempted to be a Frankenstein meets Simone St. James. Instead, I felt it to be more of a Frankenstein meets Goosebumps.

The premise was so promising, which is what prompted me to request it in the first place. However, slow descriptions and a timeline that jumped between two equally uninteresting plot lines left me hoping for much more. The backstory of the adults in the story would have added much more interest and intrigue.

The last 25% slightly upped my rating of the book to a 2.5⭐️. I did enjoy the twist, although I didn’t love the journey it took to get there.

Thank you to Gallery Books, Scout Press, Netgalley and Jennifer McMahon for letting me read this one early. You’ll find this one in bookstores on April 26.

I really love this writer. I first fell in love when I read The Drowning Kind and when I had the opportunity to read her newest I was so excited. I really loved the atmosphere of this one and the characters were very easy to like. The back-and-forth timeline was perfect. Although the twist didn’t quite surprise me I was still excited when it happened. I highly recommend this book and I can’t wait to read more of this authors backlist.

In 1978 we meet Dr. Helen Hildreth who is acclaimed for her compassionate work with the mentally ill. She is also grandmother to Vi and Eric. One day she brings home a child to stay with the family, Iris. Violet is thrilled to have a new playmate she and Eric invite Iris to join their monster club where they catalog all kinds of monsters and dream of ways to defeat them. In 2019 we meet Lizzie Shelley, Who is the host of a popular podcast, Monsters Among Us, and is traveling to Vermont where a young girl has been abducted and a monster sighting has the town in an uproar.

I absolutely loved the Vermont ties and references as a fellow Vermonter! This book gave me Lock Every Door vibes and the "readers might also enjoy" list is full of books I've read or want to read. The alternating narrators and the back and forth between past and present worked really well for the slow build. There was on twist that left me shocked and from then on, the storyline really flew. This was a fun read, but I did find myself skimming more than reading (until the twist), but that's because I know the 'monsters, ghosts and paranormal, etc.' doesn't appeal to me as much as others. Fans of McMahon, Lock Every Door or the unexplained should give this book a shot!
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Thank you NetGalley and Gallery Books for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

I did NOT see that coming 🤯 SUCH a good thriller!! I don’t have much to say about this one because I just found it sooo good! I LOVED the alternating timeline and POV. The addition of the sporadic chapters about the event were perfectly placed, as well.

This was my first McMahon and, while it took me a second to get used to her writing style, it will definitely not be my last!!!

I didn’t know what I was getting into when I started this book. The review stated that it had a “Monster” and a “Frankenstein” feel, both of which I’m not really interested in while reading… but the cover grabbed me at first.

The combination of the children’s story, grown up Liz, and the newspaper/book articles were intertwined perfectly. It was easy to follow along and each built upon each other.

I was captivated with each addition and each added a new layer of “WTF” is going on, but in a good way. Starts with the bunny, then with Iris, then with Rattling Jane, then with bringing up eugenics… lord.

Every part of this book held my attention. It was creepy and it was scary, but it was fabulous. There were more twists in the second half than in any book I’ve read recently and each one had me with a HOLY SHIT moment.


I LOVED THIS BOOK. Will it be picked up as a series?
Highly recommend.

The Children on the Hill
by Jennifer McMahon
Pub Date: April 26, 2022
Gallery
Thanks to the author, Gallery, and NetGalley for the ARC of this book. From the New York Times,* bestselling author of The Drowning Kind comes a genre-defying new novel, inspired by Mary Shelley’s masterpiece Frankenstein, that brilliantly explores the eerie mysteries of childhood and the evils perpetrated by the monsters among us.
* Horror * Mystery/Suspense
Although this book is compared to Frankenstein, there is a lot of originality in this book. I read this book at just the right time because it kept my interest throughout both timelines.
If you enjoy gothic thrillers you are going to love this one.
5 stars

This has to be one of the best novels that I have read in a long time. So many layers and twists that surprised me. And I can usually figure things out before a story ends. The story takes place in two time periods. In 1978 takes place in Vermont at The Hillside Inn, a psychiatric hospital where Dr, Hildreth in charge. She has two grandchildren Eric and Violet that she takes care of. When she brings in Iris, a young girl with a tragic past, the kids try to find out where she came from and who she is.

Also, at this time the kids are monster hunters and write a book which comes is shared with the reader as the story progresses.

In 2019, Lizzy Shelley is a monster hunter and when a young girl, Lauren goes missing in Vermont, she goes there to investigate.

Without saying more, this all ties together and wow, I was simply blown away. I recommend this definitely!

The Children on the Hill by Jennifer McMahon starts off as a feel good story. With a grandmother that is the doctor at a well known mental hospital and her two grandchildren. This is where the story draws you in; Grandma adds a second girl to the family that has no memory of her family or even her name.
Do you ever think monsters are real? The children have a monster hunting club, but only the three of them are members.
Life for the children becomes all about finding the monsters.
Some monsters might even be standing right in front of their nose.
Surprise ending that I certainly didn’t see coming!

My frist Jennifer McMahon, and certainly won't be my last! Although I figured out a big twist of the story pretty early on, it did not deter from my overall enjoyment of the book. The story was immersive and intriguing and I found the atompsthere to be my favorite part.

Such a unique book with such a unique author, but only in the best way. I typically don’t enjoy this genre of books, but this author does it in such a way that all kinds of readers will enjoy her books.
The book itself is a slow build, providing a lot of backstory for character development and to really connect you to each character. As the story builds, you begin to see that all is not as it appears and the book sucks you in as the characters explore the mysteries of the inn and of themselves. Keep with the book, as it won’t disappoint!
I’ve read others’ reviews and I may be alone in my view of the ending. I wish the story would have ended before the epilogue. I was blown away by how she’d crafted the story and the several last realizations that are provided to the reader. That said, the epilogue fits perfectly with the storyline so I can’t blame the author for adding one last piece of the puzzle.

I was given an E-Arc by Netgalley and Gallery Books in exchange for my honest review. Thank you to Gallery Books Publishing for approving me for this E-Arc!

"The Children on the Hill" by Jennifer McMahon is a suspenseful and gripping title ultimately about the "monster" that might be living inside us all, dark sides of ourselves and our past that might be hard to accept- weaved into a very interesting narrative in the setting of a small town/mental institution.

Let me just start my review by saying I am a BIG FAN of any psychological thriller that is set in a psychiatric hospital or has any premise of experimentation on human subjects (without going too much into the plot, because I feel this story is best experienced with minimal detail going into it). A lot of the media I consume thriller-wise is filled with this setting and feel, so I was very excited going into this when I was so fascinated with the story being told here. I wasn't expecting to learn so much about fabled monsters and monster-hunting as much as we did in this read, and I actually really enjoyed it! I felt this theme really worked in the story and helped up the creep-factor and tied the general mood together well. I felt I grew close to the main characters and the setting the most, feeling empathetic toward each circumstance and hanging on to each detail we learned in unraveling the mystery of the Hill, I also definitely felt the Frankenstein inspiration very well in this one and felt like this was done beautifully in the plot.

I felt like a huge part of the story was very plausible, something I felt dark and mysterious, and ultimately possible in the real world today- which typically makes me become attached to a story more, ultimately. I feel like the ending itself, after the amount of buildup and expectation I had, did fall a bit short for me in the way of what I felt was realistic as a tied up storyline. So this factor for me did end up taking away from the believability of where each character ended up at the end of the plot. I also felt after a carefully crafted storyline and lots of good detail, I didn't understand what led to this ending as much as I did other parts of the book. I will add that if you read a lot of psychological thrillers, you might be able to guess the twists in this book a little easily.

With that being said, I did overall have a lot of fun reading "The Children on the Hill", and would definitely be interested in reading McMahon's other work! I think the author has a great style and a way with storytelling that definitely pulls you in, and I would recommend this book to those who want a solid, escapist, creepy psychological thriller that's got a fun inspiration of Frankenstein mixed in there. 3.5 Stars!

I absolutely loved the twists in this book. It started off as a modern Frankenstein story and developed into so much more. It looks into family relationships, tragedy, and some science. It’s more of explanation as to what makes a human into a monster while using the classic monsters as a comparison. The trio of siblings gives you heart warming moments and earth shattering discoveries. I usually am not a fan of dual timelines but the suspense it builds up and the blend into present time is perfection.

While I don't know for sure what happened in this book. I did enjoy reading it. As it was well written with the right balance of suspense. I did love the dual time.

When it comes to horror tales and monsters, I've become quite jaded. It takes a lot to get my heart racing as I turn the page to see what comes next. Jennifer McMahon has done yeoman's work in that regard. THE CHILDREN ON THE HILL is a story about children, and it is the tale of monsters. The burning question is, of course, are monsters real? Even those who do not believe that ghosts, ghouls, and vampires do not exist will acknowledge that monsters are real and live in our midst.

No one can deny the earnestness of children. Only a child can look you in the eye, say something ludicrous to the adult ear, and be convinced of its veracity. We all know the sound of voice used and the accompanying facial expression. Putting that into words isn't easy. McMahon deftly accomplishes this and more. These kids are as real as the brat kicking the back of your airplane seat and as angelic as the child in the Christmas play.

Did I love this book? Every single page! This one will keep you guessing until the very end.

I wasn't really sure what to expect when I started this book. But I can tell you, I will NEVER forget it. CHILDREN ON THE HILL is a haunting story about how we use the traumas of our past to either become something beautiful, horribly monstrous, or perhaps a little of both. The multiple viewpoints from which this story is told piece together a puzzle of young Vi, her brother Eric, their adopted sister Iris, and their psychiatrist grandmother. Once the final piece is put in this puzzle, you'll be both shocked, saddened, and angered at what's happened to these kids. But Jennifer McMahon then brings the story around to a conclusion that is both fulfilling and spine-tingling at the same time. I would definitely recommend this book. You won't be able to put it down!