This is a special one folks, separate from the monthly reviews and seriously, this is an absolute banger of a book. Thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Australia for my advanced copy.

In ‘The Fog’ we meet our protagonist, Kate, as she makes the somewhat perilous journey to the lonely and mysterious island of Rathlin, to a retreat which promises to cure her writer’s block. She is seeking to make sense of her past and a large part of that includes coming to terms with her marriage, which is shrouded in about as much fog as Rathlin. We meet the charismatic Cormac who runs the retreat, and a small assortment of tortured writers whose own stories unfold down the track. The therapies are weird, the people are weird, the island harbours secrets and as Kate’s past presents itself in flashback form she has the unsettling feeling that she’s not safe there on Rathlin.

‘The Fog’ is one of the best novels I’ve read so far this year. The writing is visceral in its descriptions and I often found myself pausing to consider whether there was any better way to describe the physiological reaction to a specific emotion. There is not. See example A):

‘My stomach drops with the swift force of an anchor plummeting to the ocean floor’

How accurate is that?!

The suspense in ‘The Fog’ is skillfully written so that the reader develops suspicions towards every character at some point; even minor ones. And while you can get an idea fairly quickly of what might have happened in Kate’s marriage, it still transpires in a compelling and heartbreaking way. The truth about her marriage is really just the thread that pulls together the whole arc of the story and the author pulls it off seamlessly until we’re left gaping at the end when the twists unfold before us, one after the other. And they are delicious twists!

‘The Fog’ is set to be published on the 4th of September 2024 by Simon & Schuster Australia. Mark it on your calendars and buy yourself a copy as soon as it hits the shelves.

Gripping. Couldn't put it down. This is Brooke Hardwick's debut novel and it blew me away.

The way the author as cleverly insert links between characters throughout, traversing the reader from one chapter to the next, it's like watching scenes from a movie fade in and out then reconnect.

The suspense as you gasping for breath and hanging on the edge of your seat as events escalate out of control.
The evil of the characters is, dare I use the word 'beautifully' executed.

The final chapters brutally lift the reader our of the 'Fog' but with a unexpected and shocking twist.
The ending is a welcome slowing of pace and reaches a warming and gentle conclusion.
Thank you Net Gallery for allowing me to review this outstanding debut novel.

My 6P review: Publication, Plot, People, Place, Prose/Pace, Praise

Kate takes part in a retreat on a remote island in the freezing Irish Channel in order to unlock her secrets. She is plagued by memories of her marriage and the death of her child. Dealt with sudden flashbacks which are so real to her, can she assume they are real or is her mind playing tricks on her?

What an exceptional debut novel. This was truly fantastic. A real psychological thriller.

The plot was well written and although not fast paced, I was turning the pages at a ferocious pace. It intertwined nicely.

The characters were great. I really felt for Kate and I loved her relationship with Ewan and Cormac. I also love Ewan and found him to be not only loveable but so intriguing too. The other characters at the retreat were also dealing with their own issues and the plot did not leave them out. They really grew too.

What can I say about the setting? It was freezing and the wind was whipping through my hair too. I was scared, enlightened and truly fascinated by the surroundings.

It was well written and a very easy to read story.

I loved this book and would highly recommend you read it as well.

I absolutely loved this book. Fantastic character development and an amazing plot. Physiological thriller in all its glory.
My first Brooke Hardwick book and I will be going back for more.
The pace was constant and a great build up to the end. Storytelling ability of this author was so on point.
It’s a 5/5 for me.

I love the title because of its double meaning. The Fog features Kate, a writer who is having a case of writer's block. Together with fellow residents Ruby, Mark and Sarah, they join a Ten-Day Therapeutic Retreat for various reasons. On Rathlin Island in Northern Island, four residents with director Cormac and caretaker Ewan.
The Fog is not just the fog that surrounds the island; it is also a fog that clouds Kate's mind. As the story unravels, Kate uncovers a lot more about herself, and the situation that might well destroy her future. It is a thrilling read that keeps me wondering, although I am not much of a fan of overuse of gaslighting.

The methods to the madness drives you to the brink of insanity before pulling you back into reality. My only gripe is that the ending did not actually fit, honestly could use 1 more breadcrumb for me to say: "why didn't I connect the dots."
Overall, good read.

Thank you NetGalley for this pre-published version. I actually give this 3.5 stars.
It was an enjoyable read and reminded me of so many old (pre 1960s) movies I used to watch; suspense psychological thriller. I don’t have much to say about the characters, they just are. I didn’t go in with any expectations except the hope to enjoy it and that was met. While others might see the twist at the end with the husband, I didn’t. The story kept me reading to the finish.

Thanks to Simon and Schuster for a ecopy of The Fog by Brooke Hardwick.
Set on a secluded island off the Irish coast the story revolves around Kate attending a 10 day readers retreat designed to unlock writers block. Kate, along with three other authors, begins to unlock hidden memories of her marriage with the assistance of Cormac and his disturbing methods of help.
I found the main points annoyingly repetitive and largely unbelievable and felt the whole story needs a more thorough edit.
There were a few twists but I found myself longing for this story to end.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. Many thanks to Netgalley and the Publishers.

This is a fabulous suspense filled, eerie and hard to put down book. The main location on a small Irish island gives the read an instant sense of foreboding, as the title suggests. Combined with the strange events that take place on this small island, the personal experiences of the main character of domestic abuse, forced abortion and infanticide add a sobering element to it.

Kate arrives at the far flung tiny island of Rathlin with its few weather hardened inhabitants determined to unlock the missing bits of her memory and to try and understand why her husband just up and left. Her relationship with Hugh was fraught with mental and physical abuse which increased with her pregnancies that he did not want. He had made it clear to her that he did not want children. Hugh controlled her every being, even her monthly cycle. However, Kate wanted to have a child, manipulating her medication saw her pregnant but for which brought about increased danger, the escalation of Hugh's control resulting in her beginning to become forgetful, experiencing memory loss and hallucinating.

Kate has a lot riding on the writer’s retreat for the retrieval of her memory, to stabilise her mental wellbeing along with recovering from the grief of the death of her baby, Olive for which Hugh had blamed her for.

It's a small group with their own individual problems, some not unlike Kate, poor relationships, writer's block etc that get together for this retreat run by Cormac, part owner of the facility along with his brother, who arrives on the island but it seems not part of the programme. Cormac outlines his vision, one that is similar to that of his dead parents. As the programme proceeds events become more and more bizarre with Kate ever hallucinating, experiencing flashbacks and being placed in danger.

Towards the end Hugh appears on the island, secrets are exposed and the truth of Cormac's bizarre programme revealed. Kate's memory returns along with the truth of Hugh's and Cormac’s sadistic manipulation.

I always enjoy a good Gothic novel. The Fog is a pageturner that has all the classic elements (fear, horror, death, high emotion). Add a remote island location and a sociopath who tries unconventional psychological 'therapies' at a supposed writers' retreat and you have a great read. Lots of twists and turns here!

Thanks NetGalley!

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC of The Fog.
Not a bad little gothic, psychological thriller. The only thing that bugged me, and it really bugged me, was the sheer number of internal questions the protagonist asked herself. “What had he started up with her? Was R crying about her situation? Was he telling her blah blah? That he was waiting for blah blah? Or blah blah?” On repeat, ad nauseam. I appreciate that the author was showing the internal dialogue of the protagonist, but it was overkill and distracting.

Well the twists start coming and the don’t stop coming!

Kate is experiencing writers block caused by the trauma of her husband leaving when she gets accepted into a world class writers retreat on remote Rathlin Island which promises to get to the root of the block and clear it in just 10 days.

Joined by 3 other writers, under the supervision of Cormac the group under go a series of unconventional therapies that aim to bring to light the traumas and breakthrough the barriers in order for them to write again.

As Kate progressed through the sessions, she begins experiencing flashbacks that have her questioning everything she believed about her husband and her marriage. But what is real, and why is she at this retreat?

Ooooft this was a banger! I was hooked right from the get go. It was also a surprise seeing the book set on Rathlin which coincidentally is where my family are from many many generations back 😅

The mystery of the location and the ragtag bunch of writers all with their own problems, Cormac with his air of authority, and the “black sheep” of the family Aiden all comes together in a way that fits perfectly.

Watching Kate slowly uncover the truths to her writers block is engaging and happens at just the right pacing. Throw in the revelations from the other participants and everything about their character makes sense.

When the reveals start to happen, I was on the edge of my seat, and they didn’t stop, they continued to escalate but luckily stopped before they became ludicrous.

One part that maybe didn’t flow was the epilogue, which wasn’t bad but seemed a bit jarring, even if it did wrap up nicely.

I highly recommend this to anyone who is a fan of a good, dark mystery

‘The Fog’ as a title, describes not only the atmospheric environment in which the action takes place, but the state of mind of a very troubled and traumatised Kate. Brooke Hardwick’s talent for crafting believable characters – who are all in their own fogged-up states – is commendable. The bleak and oh-so-cold island is a perfect foil for every ghastly revelation as the plot twists in unexpected directions. What an ending! So satisfying with the epilogue (love them!) going just beyond that aha moment; another delightful page or two to wrap it all up. Congratulations on a great (and harrowing) yarn, Kate!
Many thanks to Simon & Schuster (Australia) for the opportunity to review this title.

Thanks to everyone involved in this book so I could read it and give an unbiased review.

I honestly was as lost as Kate for a great deal of this book. She is an unreliable narrator, who has been so gaslighted that she attempts to gaslight us in the first half of this book. Everyone is creepy. No one is to be trusted. It's not paranoia if they really are out to get you.

And then very slowly you realise you are reading the journal of the retreat. As she uncovers more about why she is there, the truth comes to her and to us but not before some truly horrific events which had me PACING. The plot twist could be seen coming but it didn't matter.

I don’t usually like books written in present tense but I guess it worked in this instance - it also would've worked if she had written in the past.

Four stars.

TY Netgalley for this ARC copy.

The Fog contains all my favourite elements: a culty mysterious guru figure, toxic relationships, and a cast of writers suffering writers block, and all situated on a Foggy isolated Irish/Scottish island (oh and Puffins)

I'm quite often leery of "flashback" type fiction where a lot of page-time is spent in the past but The Fog is an example of this trope done well. The pacing of the Fog is such that you rarely if ever feel annoyed by a flashback, and confusion only abounds when its supposed to (you'll understand when you read it).

Something that Hardwick really pulls off quite skilfully is an abundance and balance of mystery. Even looking at the blurb you know this tale is going to have a lot of questions needing answers and they way Hardwick weaves the different plot points together is fantastic. For (an non-specific no spoiler) example one element of Kate's past is relatively obvious what is going on, however due to its emotional charge is still compelling to learn about - whereas some of the questions about wtf is going on at this writers retreat are completely obscured right up to the last few minutes.

I will add that many of the topics in the Fog are pretty full on - I wouldn't usually mention a content warning however The Fog is so well written that it feels very realistic for much of the time.

There is however one beef I have to raise - and it is a mild spoiler (and its very bad form to discuss any spoilers on an advance review so there is about to be an abundance of 'whitespace' before it happens) [if you want to skip the spoiler the overall conclusion is The Fog is really great, highly recommended and massive props to the author!]













Okay so this isn't even a 'spoiler' per se but I know that some people feel even discussing a twist IS a spoiler so here goes.
There is just one Twist in the Fog that is just TOO Convenient and coincidental and a little oversaturated with cheese. Luckily it technically has very little bearing on the overarching plot, so doesn't actually damage the book that much - however I'm willing to bet that if you read this book you'll think so too. Like I said its not hugely consequential to the plot, technically, but is waaay too neat and tidy for a relatively grounded and realistic story. I considered ignoring it for this review but in all honesty in an otherwise perfect book it would be weird to say nothing.

Again The Fog is still awesome, one of my highlights of 2024 reading so far!

Thank you NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the e-ARC of The Fog in exchange for my honest review.

Holy wow, I literally devoured this book in a few hours. Hardwick has crafted a story that haunting with beautiful writing and spooky slow burn that made for the perfect psychological thriller.

I was utterly invested in Kate and the other characters, set against moody Scottish island retreat with Celtic folklore and mystery woven in so well.

The plot was fast paced and I definitely wanted to fight some fictional people which is always a good sign when you’re invested in a story.

The characters are rich and flawed and the story was seamless with a good ending.

There was a lot to enjoy about this book, the mystery was kept alive to the very end & it was not an ending I could have seen coming. I genuinely felt for the characters, there was a great collection of different personalities & situations at play.
Some of the content was quite heavy & distressing which is not at all an issue, just an observation that I would definitely think need a trigger warning.
While the book was easy to read, I still found the protagonist’s time at the retreat disjointed & there were sudden real-time transitions that took away from the story. I found the reactions of characters at the end of the story very anticlimactic & nit believable. I still quite enjoyed this book!

A little slow at the start but once it picked up, I was hooked. I wanted to know more about Kate, Olive, Hugh and the other characters at the retreat. The author created suspicion towards all the characters and made you second guess their every move. I did not expect the ending with Hugh! It felt slightly rushed but I did appreciate the 18 months later update. It's a great read with twists that will keep you guessing. Thanks for the advanced copy NetGalley.

The Fog is a psychological nail biter in the tradition of the old Hollywood film noir classics. Kate has applied to be part of a retreat on an isolated Irish island, the aim of which is to relieve authors who are experiencing writer’s block.

Kate has an unfinished novel which she hasn’t been able to get back to as she is trying to piece together the shattered fragments of her recent personal history. Even in the present she is having difficulty sorting out what is real and what she is imagining. She appears to be suffering from some kind of post traumatic shock and so is pleased to learn she has been accepted for the retreat, and hopeful it is what will help her to find a way out.

The island is straight out of Daphne du Maurier’s imagination: dark, forbidding and bitterly cold. The story is pitched perfectly to keep the reader compulsively turning the pages, trying to keep up with Kate as her memories come back and then retreat, and as she gets to know her fellow writers, as well as Cormac who has convened the retreat and Ewan who is aiding Cormac in carrying out the program Cormac has devised.

Shocking truths emerge as Kate’s past begins to reveal itself, and there are surprise twists and turns right to the end of this highly satisfying and rather creepy (and I mean that in the nicest possible way) novel by the Australian author, Brooke Hardwick.

Best sit by a fire or curl up in a nice, warm bed to read this terrific book. There is lots of unbearably cold weather to get through!

Published by Simon and Schuster.

This gothic thriller contains all the usual tropes of the genre and is quite engaging. I especially liked its inclusion of historical detail and myth in its depiction of setting on Rathlin island. The twist at the end came as a welcome surprise. I did feel that there was room for greater editing; fewer words to convey the protagonist’s realisations would have been more effective. I found repetition of words like Click, click, click to be unnecessary. A good holiday read.

Thank you to Simon and Schuster and Brooke Hardwick for an advanced copy of The Fog (Via NetGalley) for an honest review.

I was initially attracted to this book by the blurb, which alluded to a gothic style psychological thriller, two genres I really enjoy.

The story follows Kate who has signed up for a 10 day writer's retreat, promoted as a program that will heal hidden traumas and clear her writers block. Set on Rathlin Island in Ireland, it is here that we meet a suite of characters all surrounded in their own mysterious traumas that keeps the reader engaged and guessing throughout the entire book.

The tension in this book is delicious, it takes hold from the very beginning and builds with a dark sense of impending doom, made more sinister by the descriptive narrative of rising storms and crashing waves against cliff faces. It moves back and forth between present and past as Kate is encouraged to delve into hidden memories whilst participating in unconventional psychological activities and historical rituals designed by the attractive and charismatic Cormac, the host of the writers retreat.

This book hooked me from the start, with it's eclectic characters, to its descriptions of Rathlin Island, it had me googling photos of landmarks on the Island from lighthouses to Kelp Houses. But most importantly the writing style and the story was deeply engaging. I am looking forward to reading more from Brooke Hardwick in the future.