The book starts back in 2007, where two boys are out exploring in the woods that surround the Manor on their bikes when one of them has a tumble and they discover a door. The door leads to an underground bunker which of course two curious young boys go down to investigate further. They did not however, expect to find a badly decomposed body of a child down there.

PC Warner then has the unenviable task of going to notify the child's father, Malcolm, that after almost 20 years they suspect they might have found his daughter Kimberley's remains. Malcolm has a deep distrust of the police going back years for how the original investigator into the disappearance of his child handled the case. As they are walking away from the house, PC Warner peers back and could swear he sees someone in the house at an upstairs window, but he's assured by Malcolm that he was in the house alone.

The story then jumps even further back, to 1990, where we follow Alessa, a young police woman newly transferred to the police station dealing with Kimberley's disappearance. At this point Alessa and her superior are on their way to speak with Kimberley's parents, Malcolm and Mary, to take their statement into the disappearance of their daughter.

I really enjoyed chronologically how these opening paragraphs were written. It was like a compare and contrast as to what the situation was like for the family just after the disappearance, to how things have changed for the family over the years since. It's really saddening to see how much of an impact Kimberley's disappearance had on her parents and how their lives disintegrated following this event.

I enjoyed how this story was told in reverse. As a reader, we know right from the beginning that there has been a murder and who was murdered. The story then goes back and covers Alessa investigating the original disappearance, so the crucial question throughout for the reader is - who killed Kimberley and why?

Unlike a lot of other books where there are usually multiple different possibilities for the who, the what, and the why, in this book there is almost nothing to go on. There are no clues given away as to who is might have been. Despite this, I still felt compelled to read on as I was intrigued to see how the author was going to pull the threads of the story together to conclude matters.

Although the majority of the book is told in the aftermath of Kimberley's disappearance, it was the few chapters that are thrown in throughout, told from Kimberley's perspective that really kept me engaged with the story. These chapters had that tense build up because we as the reader already knew that there was not going to be a happy ending coming for Kimberley.

I liked the slight supernatural element to the story and I personally would have liked to have seen this developed and explored more throughout the book. I did enjoy the character development of Alessa as she really is the character focused on the most and a lot of information is given about her background and family.

Despite guessing who was behind Kimberley's disappearance as soon as the character was introduced, I still enjoyed this book and read to the end. Despite knowing 'who done it', when all was revealed at the end it was still a slightly difficult and uncomfortable chapter to read.

I would recommend this book for those that enjoy a police procedural, crime thriller, with a slight supernatural edge to it.

This is a slow burn 🔥
I'm not sure how many pages this was but it took me a good while to read this one.
It kept me intrigued throughout but there were definitely points in the story that had me wishing it would move along a bit quicker than it was. And as soon as a character was introduced, it was game up for me as it was pretty obvious by that point. However I loved the character development.
The ending was subtle and made me feel bereft.

Ooh I loved this book. It's suitably tense and creepy. Its told in dual timelines, although the majority of the book is set during 1990. It's gripping, gritty and has a supernatural element to it. I couldn't put it down, reading into the early hours as i had to know what happened. I did guess who did it, but, still an incredible book.

The Shadows of Hill Manor is an intriguing mystery that mixes element of the police procedural genre into the tale.
Our storyline has two timelines: we spend the majority of the storyline in 1990 when young Kimberley Painter vanishes and following the investigation of that time and then return to 201o, when a body is found and the investigation is wound up.
This is a dark and tense storyline, where the attitudes of the time (misogyny etc) play a role and add to the overall tension of the storyline.
I did guess 'whodunnnit' but the pacing and the characters, made the journey to the final pages an interesting one, with some good twists at the end.

*no spoilers just me word vomiting my thoughts on this book*

Ok ngl, the start of this I felt was doing too much. There were a number of occasions where the language used/topics touched on made the story feel stuffy and forced.

‘…their children hitherto enjoyed a carefree, unrestricted childhood…’

‘Stories of the grisly demise of its former owner…at once thrilled and terrified them.’

‘He hated misogyny anyway, but had nothing but admiration for his DI…’

‘the hitherto inert Sergeant Henderson’

I also don’t think this should have been tagged under horror…unless we’re referring to the presence of a romance storyline in a mystery/thriller.
But after the first 15% or so, this story really found its stride. I found it compelling enough to keep reading and I had my suspicions very early on (and I was VERY close with my guess 10% in) but even with my later suspicions being confirmed, it wasn’t boring to read.

There were parts of the plot I personally felt were completely unnecessary and shallow, (one of which being the ROMANCE STORYLINE??? PLEASEEEE spare me ugh) but most are spoileresque so I won’t write them all out.

I didn’t hate the supernatural addition to the plot, but it felt undercooked and a bit too convenient every time it popped up.

Also could have lived without the chapter where the actual situation was revealed - I think that would have been better if it had been a regurgition from the person who maybe could have confronted the perpetrator once they came to realise that’s who was responsible. It could have meant more info from a humane point of view rather than trying to recreate a horrid situation while avoiding the ugliest parts of it.

These things aside, I still thought this was a good read. I’d recommend it if you like crime fiction, especially ones told through past timelines. (But pls check the cws)

This is my first novel from this author and I really enjoyed the mix of part thriller, part creepy, part police procedural. The plot unfolded with ease and I was soon completely invested. It’s sets over a number of timescales and this really adds to the drama. A great read. Thank you to NetGalley, Avon Books UK and the author for the chance to review.

It sounded really good but unfortunately the writing style and the way the story was developed wasn't for me. I really don't undwrstand side romances on these type of books but maybe us just me.

This is my first time reading this author.

The book concerns a historical crime surrounding the disappearance of a child. The author creates a creepy atmosphere with skill but I found elements of the book a little generic and the writing style was quite basic for me. Good character depiction and dialogue and the plot was gripping, too.

Thank you Netgalley, Avon Books UK | Avon and Ann Wyn Clark for the eArc of The Shadows of Hill Manor,

This is the first book Ive read of this author and I throughly enjoyed this Mystery/ Thriller. The narrative follows a disappearance of a young girl called Kimberley which happened 30 yrs previously. Even though the book opens up in the present day when a body is found, 90% of the book is back in the past, unravelling this young girls disappearance. I found this a little different to most mystery/thrillers as some books jump back and forth in timelines throughout the book so I really enjoyed how this plot line unfolded.

I really enjoyed the dynamics between the investigative police force who have been tasked with the case and the suspects/witnesses. Alessa, a young police officer who's fresh out of uni comes up against a misogynistic detective inspector and his lackeys. A father who suspected of Murder who being targeted. A young policeman who you are not sure if you trust them or not. They were all well rounded with definite character development. It all goes towards a nicely twist filled thriller where everyone may be a suspect. I also liked the supernatural elements to this story which I found subtle, haunting and atmospheric.

Ill be looking out for more of Anna Wyn Clark's book and hopefully will hear more of Alessa too.

4 stars

A good read, with a largely good storyline and well written characters. The ending was a bit of a letdown, which was disappointing

I’ve got to say i didn’t fall in love with this book but it was an ok read. I was more interested in the story between the police woman and man than the actual story . I did kind of guess the ending but there was a slight surprise too . I would recommend this book as I think it may have more appeal to other people. 4 stars from me

My first read from Anne Wyn Clark and I will definitely be reading more.

An atmospheric and eerie read about a case of a girl that goes missing. It was a quick read, with great writing that kept me hooked in. Excited to see what else the author has to offer!

This book had a great plot with intriguing characters. I’ll definitely be looking out for more from this author.

my first read from this author and so very much enjoyed very creepy and an addictive read. a young girl goes missing called Kimberley. the person in charge of the case is very incompetent. a young woman police officer on that case Alessa believes they not doing enough, and she has her own little secret who she is. they never ever found her best friend who was abducted as a child she believes the same person took Kimberley. a new police officer has joined their team Jason and he and Alessa form a good work relationship .and then Alessa starts seeing a ghost a young girl. it's an amazing and emotional read that I highly recommend. one womans journey of finding the killer and getting justice.

I have a couple of this authors books on my TBR and after reading this they need pushing to the top


What a haunting read. Loved it

5 stars

I am a HUGE fan of this author. Having read all of her other books I had high expectations for this one and it did not disappoint! Clark is exceptional at creating an eerie and sinister atmosphere and her story telling style is up there with my favourites, I cannot recommend this title or any of Clark’s titles enough! Five star from me! Thanks so much to the publisher and NetGalley for my ARC Im honoured to have been able to read this ahead of release.

3* Be prepared for horrible sexism in the police force of the time, and a sad, occasionally emotional, tale.

This is a bit of a shocker in terms of the misogyny and sexism present in the majority of the (male) cops in the 90s setting parts of the tale. I think we've come a long way since, thankfully, but be warned.

It's a tale of ordinary, flawed people, kids being kids, cops mostly making wrong assumptions, but also a female cop intent on doing her best for the missing kids. Was it exciting and did it have me on the edge of my seat? No, but it was worth a read, especially for the...occurrences...witnessed by the female cop, and the ending, of course.

There's a side romance that felt awkward and stilted, but that seemed to be the real thing, because at the end of the tale, it was settled, solid and comfortable.

ARC courtesy of NetGalley and Avon Books UK, for my reading pleasure.

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