Right from the start there’s a pastoral gothic feel to Deep In the Forest, provided by a strongly presented setting and a sense of being completely surrounded by danger. The mood is set early and we witness a relentless build up of tension in a story of suspense that plays on our suspicion of people who are considered to be “different”.

Charli Trenthan is a virtual outcast within her own small town thanks to the local police sergeant who holds a grudge against her, making her life a misery. She’s still mourning the death of her mother, killed by a hit and run driver. She’s also an extremely talented book binder and deals with the outside worries by throwing herself into her work, creating a significant anniversary book for the local closed community that goes by the name the Sanctuary.

She lives in a large old house on an isolated property that sits on the edge of the forest. The isolation is both a positive and a negative, providing her with much sought after privacy but it also leaves her feeling vulnerable when strangers visit. All of this puts her in close proximity to the Sanctuary, to the deep sections of the forest and the nearby lake and any dangers that may be hidden in the surrounding area.

A disturbing discovery while walking through the surrounding forest draws Charli to the Sanctuary. She feels she must somehow get past the gates that lock the general public out and even though her work on the group’s book provides her with an access, getting the people inside to talk to her proves difficult.

There’s something about closed off religious groups, also routinely known as cults, that draws suspicion and this is no different for the town of Stone Lake. The Sanctuary brings money into the town through its artisanal produce and it rehabilitates kids who’ve been living on the streets hooked on drugs. At least, that’s the public face that’s presented.

But, of course, there’s more to this group than meets the eye and Charli, with the help of two invaluable friends, strives to discover the truth about them. And, just like when you poke an ants nest with a stick, the results can be swift and unpredictable.

From a sedately paced beginning, the story builds steadily in momentum and provides a tension-filled finish. I can’t say I was particularly surprised with the direction it took, nor was the reveal of the villain of the piece a shock.

But what I enjoyed was the growth of Charli, she played the amateur detective part with aplomb and managed to overcome some pretty major hurdles along the way. No doubt, she’s going to polarise opinion because she’s in no way the most decisive of people, nor is she a particularly great judge of character. She was fortunate to be guided by her aunt Gigi and her neighbour Amra who both proved to be a breath of fresh air each time they entered the picture.

The dramatic and oft-times frustrating cult novel has been done in numerous ways in the past. Erina Reddan takes us on a slightly different route and there are interesting moments here, mainly because we are constantly on the outside looking in and relying on the observations of someone who is prone to becoming frozen by emotion. It all makes for a tension-filled ending.

My thanks to Pantera Press via NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

This was a bit of a lackluster reading experience for me.

I had two main struggles with it:

1. I knew the whole plot of the book within a few pages. There were no surprises - I thought it was all glaringly obvious. I was holding out hope that I was wrong, hoping that there would be a shock or twist at the end, but it was all basically exactly as I suspected from the moment each element walked onto the page (what happened to her mum, who the bad guy was, pretty much everything important).

2. I didn't particularly enjoy the main character. She seems on the verge of a nervous breakdown the whole book and I just didn't find that enjoyable reading. She makes ridiculous choices, seems to act a lot younger than her age, and I just couldn't find anything to like about her.

I was irritated pretty early on when she found the "grisly find" (no spoilers) - why didn't her supposed friend Amra report the find, and then Charli could have gone overseas like she wanted. It was just frankly nonsensical for her to report it, and seeing as the entire rest of the plot is predicated on this choice, I just spent the whole time kind of irritated.

Amra didn't seem like a very good friend a lot of the time so I don't know how I was supposed to feel about her.

Because we as the reader never actually meet Charli's mother (other than one flashback scene at the end in which the mother is frankly pretty awful and self centred), it felt very hard for me to feel moved by an entire book of the MC grieving to the point of ineffectiveness for this woman.

I grabbed this one because I love a cult story. However, it's important to note this entire book takes place outside of The Sanctuary. The Sanctuary is an important part of the plot while also somehow featuring on page less than I'd expected.

Overall this one just didn't vibe for me.

"Deep in the Forest" is everything a crime fiction novel should be: suspenseful, exciting, and a little bit outlandish.

I think this book is ideal for people who are just starting to dip their toes into crime fiction, because it's a lot gentler than other books you'll find in that section. By that I mean, it's not too violent or vile.

I look forward to seeing a lovely big stack of "Deep in the Forest" on our new release table soon.