I really enjoyed Catriona Ward's The Last House on Needless Street, and Sundial shows that the hits keep coming. Just like that previous horror novel it is suspenseful, spooky, and unsettling, but also emotionally ravaging and ultimately, hopeful—this one in a bit more of a creepy way. With this track record established, I think any Ward horror novel is one to pick up immediately.

This was disturbing and creepy AF to the point of uncomfortable. While it didn't blow my mind or wow me the way The Last House on Needless Street did, I thought it was still a brilliant horror novel with plenty to offer.

Yes, this was gruesome and messed up and ?!?!?!?!?! but beneath all that is a heartbreaking and haunting tale. Something about mother-daughter stories always get me...

When it comes to Catriona Ward, I've learnt to just keep reading even if I have no idea wtf is going on. Just know that it'll be unlike anything you have ever read.

The first chapter of this book drew me in and made me curious to find out how the creepy desert scene on the cover comes into play. But it very quickly became a VERY slow read. It felt like nothing was happening for a long time. So maybe the pacing of the book could have been thought out better in regards to how the past scenes were shown to the reader? The "fiction" chapters of writing felt completely unnecessary. Then all of sudden the last quarter of the novel builds up and, as a reader, I was excited to finally see how this mess ends. However, we are left with no resolution. Maybe if the twists of this book weren't so muddled, then the lack of ending wouldn't feel so jarring.

Overall, I wanted to like this story, but couldn't. The scenes of abuse (child, domestic, AND animal) seemed purely gratuitous at times without advancing the plot of the novel, which made most of the book miserable to read. A bunch of details for certain characters never amounted to anything. And I wasn't able to root for the main character. The word I keep coming back to for this novel is "muddled". I wish it all came together more clearly in the end because the core of the story is interesting.

Here is a link to my review on Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4557834900

This was my second book by Catriona Ward and the second one I enjoyed. I found the first 1/4 of the book set such a dark mood and was perfectly paced. I was really excited to read more!

Now… somewhere around here I became a bit lost with what was happening. The pace slowed down and I felt it was a bit hard to follow? I don’t know if this was just me or not 🤦‍♀️.

Once I hit the last 1/4 of the book I became invested again and there was a twist I didn’t expect. I’m really glad I read the whole thing and overall ended up enjoying the story.

As with The House on Needless Street, I thought Catriona had some fantastic imagery and originality intertwined in this one. I find myself so intrigued and excited for what comes next! I will be keeping an eye out for sure 🙌.

Everyone in the family in this psychological horror story is messed up. I mean, really messed up. These are not people you would want to invite over for a relaxing evening, or, really, spend any time with. Add in some domestic violence, abuse, animal cruelty, science and experimentation, drugs, sibling rivalry, a dangerous and secret past, and you've got a compelling book by Catriona Ward.

Rob and her husband Irving are having trouble. He's on his umpteenth affair, they do nothing but fight, with Irving threatening and Rob escalating then deescalating, while their daughters have their own weird and worrisome situation going on. When Rob finds disturbing evidence of a possible scary behaviour in elder daughter Callie, she decides it's time to share Rob's up-to-now secret past with Callie. They travel to Rob's former home, a ranch/facility known as Sundial, where Rob begins sharing her childhood memories with Callie, who worries that her mother is leading up to killing her.

Ward’s prose kept me riveted, even while she had me squirming during situations. I liked nobody in this book, but could not look away from all the damage and escalating tension of a mother who is scared about her daughters’ future selves, and vows to do anything for them.

From the book’s open, Ward had me wondering about who is actually responsible for what, who did what to whom, what’s past the fence, and, skull caps?!?

I was uncomfortable, worried, occasionally horrified, and could not look away, whether during Rob’s past or present. This page turner is definitely recommended.

Thank you to Netgalley and to Macmillan-Tor/Forge for this ARC in exchange for my review.

The first Catriona Ward book I read, The Last House on Needless Street, earned 4 stars from me, so this author is definitely consistent. She has a way of making the reader expect one thing and delivering something completely different and totally out there.

Nothing in this book is exactly how it seems, except maybe Rob’s husband Irving, who is portrayed as an absolutely terrible human being with no redeeming qualities and then lives up to that portrayal for the entire book. He was a character I loved to hate…seriously the worst. The only thing I didn’t understand was why Rob put up with it for so long, when clearly the guy was a sociopath (at best).

But even when the characters in these books are creepy, or frustrating, or traumatized, they seem like complete people. I could imagine meeting Irving in real life. Calla, who is the perfect creepy horror movie child (loved her!) seemed fully realized and complex, not just a stereotype but a whole human. Rob could be frustrating, secretive, and an unreliable narrator, but still likeable, and still worth taking the time to figure out.

I can’t wait for Catriona Ward’s next book. What strange rabbit hole will she pull us down next time? Time will only tell.

Some warnings: animal abuse/death, domestic violence, child abuse

My nerves are shot. What did I just read?! This book was wild. I can tell you right now this will be in the top horror books of 2022 if not the top. It started slow (at least for me) but during the last fourth of the book I almost burned dinner trying to read and cook. I’m still not sure what the Arrowood stuff was all about but maybe that’s okay. I’ve been thinking that horror isn’t my cup of tea but this now has me wondering if I’m wrong - maybe psychological horror is what I need!

Special thanks to #NetGalley #MacMillan and #TorForge for a #gifted electronic copy of #Sundial in exchange for an honest review.

I loved The Last House On Needless Street. But dare I say that I liked Sundial better? Either way, @catward books have placed her into the auto-buy category for me!

Told through a dual POV, Sundial weaves a mother’s cultish past through her daughter’s ominous present-day storyline. Both past and present timelines tell a riveting yet deeply disturbing and twisted story that seriously made my head explode at the end. A true WTF ending!

A short story called “Arrowood” is interloped throughout the novel. I know critics have said they could do without those chapters. And I, too, couldn’t quite figure out if this story is Rob’s (the mother) therapy to unload her trauma or an obscure way of retelling her history. I would love to hear Ward’s perspective on these chapters because I’m sure there’s a deeper meaning that I haven’t uncovered.

As with most psychological thrillers, the less you know, the better. However, I must add a trigger warning. The story contains a significant amount of abuse - psychological, physical, and animal. If you want to discuss the depths of this abuse, please DM me. Otherwise, buckle up for a dark, creepy ride to a part of the Mojave Desert no one should see. These people are messed up!

This book was so off putting in the beginning that I almost put it away. The characters were absolutely horrible that I didn't know where the author was going. The main character, Rob, became much more likeable as her story unfolded but it took a while to get there. Some people might not think it's worth the wait.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Tor/Forge, Tor Nightfire for this e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

WOW! Blown away by this ridiculously well-written, brilliant book. Dark, twisty, heartbreaking, creepy would best describe this powerful book by Catronia Ward. I loved her style of writing --- just absolute perfection!

For the life of me, I couldn't figure this book out. It's so good you will want to stay up until 2am while drinking copious amounts of coffee (or beverage of your choice) and furiously turning the pages while desperately wanting to know what's going to happen.

This is the first I have read by Catronia Ward and now one of my favorites of 2022.

Highly recommend!

I will post my review on my instagram: @thrillersandcoffee

Thanks to NetGalley, Macmillan-Tor/Forge and the author Catriona Ward. This was another good read from this author. The book starts off seems like where exactly is this going but for a person like myself I am always ready to bail when reading and my thrillers do not give me something to enjoy quickly...but stick it out readers...stick it out. It was not a long time after the book starts and it keeps going. Well paced and well written. She does not write thrillers that we are use to..more strange and eye jerking..but fun.

TW: Animal violence and torture, physical abuse

On the outside, Rob has a perfect life: a loving husband and two beautiful children, but not everything is as it seems. Rob recognizes a darkness in Callie, one that she knows all too well from her past. Rob decides the only way she can protect her family is to take Callie back to where Rob grew up deep in the Mojave desert and reveal the truth of their family’s history.

Happy Pub Day!! WOW my thoughts were all over the place with this one. I’ve read Catriona Ward’s previous novel ‘The Last House on Needless Street’ and this one was written in a very similar style and had the same, if not more, creepy and dark setting. The author has a fantastic talent of creating these strange settings and situations where you think you know what you are getting into and then in the blink of an eye, have no idea what is going on. It kept me turning the pages and trying to connect the dots. This is a really good book to dive into blindly and then just hang on because it is a wild ride filled with ups, downs, twists and turns. I will stress the trigger warning particularly for dog lovers, the scenes are very graphic and I did struggle to get through them.

The book is mainly from Rob’s point of view from past and present along with some chapters in Callie’s point of view and also a book within a book reference which I did not think was really necessary to include and sort of distracted me from the main story. I also wish we could have gotten more background on Irving to get a better insight on what made him tick. This was a very strange book that I do not think will be everyone’s cup of tea but it is filled with detail that immerses you into the frightening world of what happens at Sundial house. Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. This title is available for purchase now!

📣Attention Modern Gothic Fiction Lovers ☠️- if you haven’t yet discovered Catriona Ward, you are living in a world darker than the ones she so vividly creates.

The Last House on Needless Street was one of my top (surprising) reads of 2021 that I finished in a single setting because I just could not put it down. Needless (yes, I did that) to say, I jumped for joy at the chance to read an advance copy of Sundial, and I devoured this book nearly as quickly!

This story of terrifying family horror is as DARK as it gets and definitely comes with many content warnings, but it pulls you in and will not let go until the very end… and even then, you’re still on the ride.

I absolutely adore Ward’s writing, and she has definitely become an auto-read author for me.
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Sundial is available on shelves today, March 1st. Thank you to @torbooks and @netgalley for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for my fair and honest review.

Awesome! Happy Publication day! <3

One thousand thankyou's to Netgalley and publisher for the ARC- and the early access to such a thrilling book.

I have to admit, I requested Sundial on a whim. I think this was around the time I was going through a horror phase. I don't often read horror (I do love watching it), and this is exactly the kind of book I didn't know I was looking for.

This is a SHOCKING book. There are a lot of potential trigger warnings here, so I advise you comb through a few other reviews before starting. The main one that comes to mind is animal abuse. JUST FYI

Pros: well written, good prose, well done execution of the 'creepy child' trope, gripping, interesting

Cons: a little clunky at times, slow, disturbing content (not for everyone), and I said slow already- but at times it was just plain boring.

3.8/5 stars, rounded up

Excellent horror/psychological thriller! I really enjoyed Ward's previous novel, Last House on Needless Street, and I'm glad her follow-up lived up to the hype! Highly recommend for fans of twisty thrillers

Rob is terrified! Her older daughter, Callie, has been quite difficult lately. At first, Rob chalked it up to normal teenage angst, but now Callie has tried to kill her younger sister, Annie. Ever vigilant, Rob hoped Callie would not inherit the psychopathic tendencies that run in their family. Sometimes these traits skip a generation and Rob prayed that both her daughters would be spared.
After Callie tried to kill her sister with her father’s prescription drugs, Rob searches her daughter’s bedroom and finds more disturbing evidence of Callie’s psychopathy. Her daughter has been collecting animal bones, whole skeletons. Did she kill and skin these animals or is she just really good at finding their bones? Even to Rob this sounds a bit coincidental and creepy. Although Rob has tried to ignore it, she is pretty sure Callie is hearing voices.
Rob decides the best course of action will be to take Callie back to their ancestral home, Sundial. There, she might find answers and be able to fix Callie. Sundial has a strange history. Rob’s parents were scientists. They experimented on dogs and later some humans to try to curb the desire to maim or kill others. Her husband, who is usually so controlling, lets them go. What Rob can’t know is that her departure and isolation at Sundial works well for her husband’s plans.

This book is packed with psychological suspense. This is my favorite kind of read. The pace of this book is fast and it should have a disclaimer … this will give you nightmares! I was amazed how much was going on and how well Catriona Ward pulled it all together to make such An absolutely chilling ending. Readers who like Alex Michaelides or Greer Hendricks will devour this book.

Robyn Heil, Buyer for Brodart Co.

This psychological thriller book was dark and creepy. It was a dysfunctional family that I had to read more about. I love Catriona Ward writing. She writes in a way you don't want to put the book down. I felt like I was there. It was a disturbing story but I loved her first book a little more.

Thank you NetGalley for sending me this ARC. I definitely will be buying a hard copy.

Another wowser offering

Author Catriona Ward blew me away last year with THE LAST HOUSE ON NEEDLESS STREET and she just did the same thing again with this horror offering.

Rob and her sister Jack grew up at Sundial, a private scientific research facility run by their father in the Mojave Desert.

Rob is back at Sundial years later with one of her daughters, trying to decide which of her memories are real and trying to decide what to do with those memories and with her current life.

This is one twisty, turny, shocker of a book and I loved it. I won't go into any more details because you, the reader, should go in as blind as I did. Enjoy the reveals as much as I did.

I highly recommend this book to horror and/or thriller enthusiasts.

I received this book from Tor NightFire through Net Galley in the hopes that I would read it and leave an unbiased review.

I received a physical advanced copy of The Last House on Needless Street by the same author and it was one of my top reads of 2021, so when I saw there was another upcoming book out by this author I requested it immediately! I loved Sundial just as much! This was a solid, suspenseful read and was not what I expected at all! I gave it a solid 4 stars. The only reason I withheld a star was because one, I didn’t really like the ending. I was sitting with my mouth hanging open at the unresolved ending- those drive me nuts! It was well done, they just drive me crazy! And two, some of the background and past of the main character was a little odd. Not at all where I thought it was going. But overall I loved it! And would definitely recommend it. I think I may have a new favorite author!

Thank you to publishers, author, and NetGalley for giving me this ARC in exchange for honest review.

W. O. W I could not believe how thrilling this book was! From the moment I started to finishing it, I didn’t want to put it down. The story was well put together and made sense through it all. The characters were also mind boggling. Definitely recommend if you’re looking for an amazing psychological thriller!

Lots of trigger warnings. Look up prior to reading!