The Visitors

You need to read this book.

Eek, what a chilling, thrilling book. I power read through this one, as I couldn't wait to find out what happens. I have read several reviews saying that people dislike Marion - I kind of liked her.

There were several moments while reading this, that I know I dropped my jaw. This book was utterly fascinating.

This took me a while to get through simply because I was busy but I could have happily sat for an indulgent afternoon and enjoy the whole book in one sitting.

Reminiscent of Sarah Waters' The Little Stranger in pacing and characters, it was a nice change from summer fluff. I agree there is not a lot of action but sinister side of the story is beautifully built right up until the final chapters.

I loved watching Marion grow from a insecure, day dreaming girl, to someone who has to face reality and make her own decisions. She starts as spinster who still buys stuffed animals and faithfully serves her demanding brother after suffering years of abuse at the hands of her family. There are so many times when you will want to shake her, hug her, tell her not to believe what they say. (There are so many times when someone almost does. )

Then her bother has a heart attack and Marion has to think for herself. It's been a long time coming, it's not an immediate or complete changes. But it's realistic, within character.

In short, it is great debut novel and it will stay with me for a while.

Thank you to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for an advanced copy of The Visitors for review.

This is one of those books where I found the blurb to be a bit misleading, and at first I was a bit disappointed, but that quickly went away as I became immersed in the story of Marion and her brother John, and their very disfunctional life. It's also about the lies we tell ourselves because we do not want to believe the truth or find it too difficult to face.

Marion and John are middle aged siblings that live in their family home. Marion is naive, in her own way, about what her brother was doing "in the basement" , but how much of that was that she simply didn't want to face the fact that she was living with and helping a monster?

This novel is one of those ones that stays with you for a long time! Kudos to you Catherine Burns for writing such a dark and twisted debut novel that pulls you under the water and makes you hold your breath!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my ARC for a fair and honest review.

What a wicked, twisted tale this was! Brilliant debut by Catherine Burns! I really enjoyed this and was fully immersed in the story.

Marion and John are a mid-aged brother and sister who still live together in their old childhood home. Marion has always been weak, and quiet and fully dominated by her brother John since childhood. They were not raised in a particular happy home. Things were just always, "strange." Now that they've grown up things continue to be strange in the household. John preoccupies himself with spending most of his time in the cellar of their house and Marion keeps mainly to herself. The story is told through Marion's eyes. There are a few guessing or twisty moments but mostly it's just a well-crafted story of Marion's life. A gem of a book!

Thank you to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for an advanced copy of The Visitors for review.
Very creepy, disturbing read!
I don't know how to even describe this book other than a very dark, disturbing, evil tale of suffering. One sibling who is committing atrocious acts and the other sibling that decides to believe it is something other than what it really is. Even when she is forced to come face to face with reality she literally slams the door on it and chooses to ignore it.

Thank you to Simon & Schuster Canada and NetGalley for providing me with an e-galley of The Visitors by Catherine Burns in exchange for an honest review. The tension in this novel is evident from page one. Marian and John Zetland are siblings living together in their dilapidated family home. From the onset, Marian is passive and somewhat fearful of her brother. The suspense builds as John spends more and more time in the basement, from which strange sounds are emitted. The story becomes creepier from one page to the next. It is a difficult story to read, but read you must. It is a giant cringe-fest but you need to know what happens next. A fantastic psychological mystery and a great read. Highly recommended.

I highly anticipate that this book will become the topic of much conversation and popularity once it is published. A must-read for those that loved "The Girl on the Train" or "Gone Girl".

4/5 stars.
ebook, 225 pages
Read from August 28, 2017 to September 1, 2017

It is books like this that make me love Netgalley more than I already do. If you need a creepy read that will make sure you never look at your next door neighbours the same way ever again, then look no further. I highly anticipate that this book will become the topic of much conversation and popularity once it is published (September 26, 2017).

Marion is a meek, simple-minded spinster in her mid-fifties who has never had to work a day in her life thanks to the money left from her family’s company. She is very content to live out her days watching television, daydreaming, snuggling teddy bears and avoiding confrontation at all costs, especially from her overbearing brother, John. John has always been smarter than Marion and was always favoured by her parents. John could do no wrong, even when he started to show dark and unnerving behaviour, while Marion was constantly reminded of her simpleness and inability to accomplish anything.

The two of them have lived together for some time, as neither of them is married, but John likes to have ‘visitors’ come over occasionally. Marion never knows where these visitors go as they never leave the cellar once they arrive. She continuously turns a blind eye to the sounds and movements she hears coming from these ‘visitors’ while trying to comply with John’s demands and rules. She is soon forced to deal with the ‘visitors’ when John suffers from a heart attack and needs to be in the hospital for an extensive amount of time. Marion, momentarily free from her overlord brother, starts to discover what she is truly capable of.

You are not sure whether you should love or hate Marion, You initially feel sympathy for her with her atrocious upbringing and with the way that John treats her, but that nearly turns to revulsion with her inability to be anything but passive and eventually selfish and unfeeling. The reader, like Marion, doesn’t have a full understanding of her character at the beginning of the book and as the story slowly heats up, things begin to unravel in some pretty sickening twists and turns.

While not a necessarily a full fledged mystery or thriller, this novel and the author’s writing style, has an ability to appeal to anyone who doesn’t mind getting inside the heads of borderline psychopaths. While the story does not start off with a bang, Marion and John are too intriguing to walk away from ensuring that the reader is hooked and not ready to put the book down until it is finished.

This book has been one of my more enjoyable reads of 2017 and a good reminder to go out on a limb for books sometimes as surprises can be awesome. If you loved Gone Girl or The Girl on the Train then this book will be a must read for you.

I received a copy of this book via NetGalley from Simon & Schuster Canada in exchange for an honest review. This does not influence my opinion.

“The Visitors” by Catherine Burns is probably one of the darkest books I’ve read in a while. It was amazing! Despite the turmoil going on in Marion’s life, there was a sort of calm vibe while reading this book, which adds to the spookiness. I mean, I finished this book a few days ago, and I STILL don’t know if I should feel sorry for Marion and curse her to hell. I have still so many conflicting emotions on this, so I hope when you read it for yourselves, you can let me know what your thoughts are!

I felt like I was in the middle of a really infuriating episode of Criminal Minds, when the ending was a total mind f%#k, it’s so hard to deal with right now. But I had so much fun reading this novel, and really getting into the nitty gritty details of Marion’s childhood and adulthood. Speaking of which, I loved how we only get pieces of the childhood story as Marion slowly comes to terms with what John has continued to do.

The Visitors is a great psychological thriller which focus on an old spinster, Marion, who lives with her older brother, John.

John has a secret in the cellar of the family home...Does he really keeps captive ladies in there?

Right from the beginning, this thriller kept me on the edge of my seat as it navigates between the younger life of Marion and now when John has a heart attack.The secret of what is in the cellar will soon be discovered by Marion...

My full review can be found on Goodreads.

A suspenseful and chilling tale of family dysfunction and its horrendous effects. Are we a product of our environment? Do we have the capability to change when we've been psychologically damaged? Are we destined to repeat history? These are some of the bigger questions raised in this debut novel. I can honestly say this story kept me up all night glued to the pages. It was more of a slow-paced thriller that sizzled and sizzled until the reveal at the end.

Great read! Kept you wondering what was going to happen. A little dark and twisted loved it!

Not quite a keep-you-up-all-night page turner but nonetheless, a psychological mystery. The sibling dynamics in the entire book were so dark & twisted; just as you started to warm to one of them, you immediately change your mind. The last parts of the book was SO worth some of the slower bits!!!

Marion Zetland has always been told that she is ugly, overweight and stupid. In her mid-fifties, she lives in her family home, a decrepit mansion, with her older brother John. With no friends, and very much under the control of her demanding brother, she spends her time fantasizing about improbable relationships and friendships and cuddling her collection of stuffed toys. As the reader learns more about Marion’s past and her terribly disturbing family, it’s hard not to feel sorry for her. But as more details emerge about just what is going on with her brother, and his ‘visitors’ in the cellar, it becomes apparent that there is more to Marion than meets the eye.
This is a chilling story that is hard to put down, with some really despicable characters. The author really keeps the reader on edge with unexpected twists. I very much recommend this macabre tale! Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I gravitated towards The Visitor’s as it sounded creepy and chilling and was listed as “Mystery & Thriller,” so right in my wheelhouse. Don’t expect the twists and turns of a classic psychological thriller. That being said, Catherine Burns managed to hook me in and refused to let me go until the very last page.

This novel is told from the POV of Marion, a middle aged woman who appears to have the mental capacity of a child. The entire plot revolves around Marion and her older brother John, who’s always had a higher than average IQ.

The first ¾ is slow moving, but not to be confused with boring. The last ¼ makes it all worthwhile. Trust me, you’ll want to read this one. Catherine Burns will have you feeling sorry & emphatic, while at the same time disturbed & uneasy – get ready for all kinds of emotions.

They could be anyone’s neighbors…

Although a middle aged spinster living with her domineering older brother in their parents crumbling manor, Marion Zetland sees the world through the eyes of her much younger self. Content to sleep in the attic on a bed covered in dusty teddys she calls her only friends, she ignores the echoes of screams from the basement, justifying every action and choice with her unique sense of reasoning and personal pity. And it’s soon apparent that in Marion’s world, she’s not the only one with a warped sense of right and wrong.

In Catherine Burns’ debut, the reader is treated to a slow burning psychological thriller that moves seamlessly between the subtly creepy present and the tragic flashbacks that border on skin crawling tragedy. The reader will judge for themselves if Marion is a victim or not, however one thing is certain, THE VISITORS will linger in the shadows and under the bed long after the last page is turned.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for giving me an advanced, complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.

*Thank you to Net Galley and the author for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.*

When I started reading The Visitors I figured it would be a typical horror book or perhaps even science fiction from the description and title. It was more horror than sci-fi, but also much more than a simple horror story. I would describe it more as a horror/suspense/thriller. The story jumps back and forth from protagonist Marion's past experiences and her current life. It's a macabre and sinister tale, taking place in a coastal tourist town in England, centering on the familial home of Marion and her brother John.
I was quickly drawn into Marion's world. I felt empathy for her, for her childhood, for her adulthood, for her seeming lack of a life. I was really very sad for her and her unrealized fantasies that replaced real life experiences. Marion's family was very frightening and probably insane, especially her brother, John, who appeared to be very sadistic and evil. None of the characters are particularly likable, most are horrible to Marion, with the possible exception of her aunt. This made the reader feel sympathy for Marion and her rather pathetic existence.
I flipped through page after page quickly, wanting to know the truth about what was going on with all the characters, and in particular, the cellar in her house with its mysterious inhabitants.
The climax and denouement of the book are exciting and unexpected, brilliantly leading up to a thrilling twist!
A very well written book with an exciting plot and colourful characters make this book a great read! Highly recommend!