The White Hare - Jane Johnson

If you enjoy historical fiction steeped in a lovely gothic atmosphere, then you need to pick up Jane Johnson's new novel, The White Hare. It's a fabulous read!

1954, deep in a valley named The White Valley in the Cornwall District of England. We meet mother, daughter and grandchild, Magdalena, Mila and young Janeska as they arrive at a broken down house in the valley. It hasn't been lived in for many years and needs quite a bit of work done. Work also needs to be done on the relationships between the members of the family.

What other elements make this such a good read? All those gothic bits. First off is the house, of course. The atmosphere/setting was incredibly detailed and depicted. The forest, the shores of the sea, the darkness and the isolation. The rumors, beliefs, signs  and inexplicable events and portents that envelope the valley. A mysterious handyman who guards his privacy. Women in distress. Surly villagers. A romance perhaps. Or maybe a death. And so much more...

Johnson does a wonderful job with her story. I was caught up in the opening pages and literally couldn't put it down. Best read on a rainy night, with a pot of tea and a dog by the fire. See for  yourself - read an excerpt of The White Hare. 

The Children on the Hill - Jennifer McMahon

The Children on the Hill is Jennifer McMahon's new book. 

From Simon and Schuster: "From the New York Times bestselling author of The Drowning Kind comes a genre-defying new novel, inspired by Mary Shelley’s masterpiece Frankenstein, that brilliantly explores the eerie mysteries of childhood and the evils perpetrated by the monsters among us." You had me at Frankenstein....

McMahon employs one of my favorite storytelling methods - past and present. The past in this case is 1978 at Dr. Hildreth's renowned psychiatric treatment center in Vermont. Her grandchildren, Violet and Eric, also live with her. The present is 2019 with Lizzy Shelley, host of the Monsters Among Us podcast. She is on her way to Vermont to follow up on a sighting of 'Rattling Jane'. And you really had me at monster sightings.

The Children on the Hill has a gothic feel to it - secluded, gated psychiatric hospital avoided by the locals, questionable 'treatments', a sense of mystery and suspense, and someone in peril. There are some creepy excerpts from Violet and Eric's homemade "Book of Monsters, that's full of how to information - how to find them - and more.

Will Lizzy find a monster hiding in the woods? And what is the draw of this legend for her? Hint - it's personal...

McMahon does a great job of building the suspense and danger in both timelines. She also gives the monster and young Violet a voice. The listener is able to start piecing things together with those different views and times. The nod to Shelley is easy to spot, but McMahon ends things on a lovely, didn't see that coming twist in the final pages. Another great read from McMahon.

I chose to listen to The Children on the Hill. I find I become more immersed in a story when I listen to it - especially suspense novels. (Note - even creepier when listening in the dark...) The reader was Erin Moon - a new to me reader. I thought she did a great job. She provides a slow, dark almost hissing voice for the monster that just says 'danger'. Lizzy's voice was engaging and likable. She provided believable voices for the supporting cast, including children, teens and males. Her diction was crisp, easy to understand and pleasant to listen to. She interprets McMahon's work very well accentuating the danger, suspense, action and emotions. Hear for yourself - listen to an audio excerpt of The Children on the Hill. 

The Drowning Kind - Jennifer McMahon

The Drowning Kind is Jennifer McMahon's latest book.

"From the New York Times bestselling author of The Invited and The Winter People comes a chilling new novel about a woman who returns to the old family home after her sister mysteriously drowns in its swimming pool…but she’s not the pool’s only victim."

Right from the start, there's a Gothic feel to this latest from McMahon - Sparrow Crest was built on the ruins of an old hotel, there are rumors and perhaps truths about the springs - healing powers, granting wishes - but is there a cost? Be careful what you wish for....

McMahon tell her tale in a past and present format - one of my favorite formats. The past takes us to 1929 and introduces us to Ethel, who desperately wants a child. Uh huh, you guessed it. In the present, Jax finds her sister's research into the springs and takes it in, but with a grain of salt. Lexie had mental health issues and this could just be part of her illness. But the listener is privy to both timelines and knows more - but not everything. 

I'm always the one watching a scary movie from behind a pillow, yelling "don't go in the basement!" This time its 'don't go in the water." Dark water where you can't see the bottom? Ummm, no thanks. I got shivers every time someone decided to go swimming or visit the springs. McMahon has done a great job, building the atmosphere and keeping us in suspense 'til the very end.

I chose to listen to The Drowning Kind. I find I am often more drawn into a book by listening instead of reading. Such is the case with this book. Two narrators were used - Joy Osmanski and  Imani Jade Powers - both readers I have enjoyed in the past. Osmanski voices Jax in the present. Her voice suits the mental image I had created for this characters. She speaks crisply, cleanly and her voice is easy to understand. She uses her voice to great effect, easily bringing the suspense of McMahon's book to the listener. Her voices for supporting characters are differentiated. Powers is voice for Ethel in the past. She has a slower, well modulated tone of speaking that is just right for this character. It absolutely captures the suspense surrounding the springs - almost a dreamy tone. Hear for yourself - listen to an excerpt of The Drowning Kind

And the ending? It caught me off guard and I had to go back and read it again. But it was just right.

The Daughters of Foxcote Manor - Eve Chase

Oh. my. gosh. I cannot tell you how much I loved Eve Chase's new book, The Daughters of Foxcote Manor!!

After a tragedy in London, Mrs. Harrington, her son and daughter move to the family's country home. With them is Rita, a naive nanny who loves the Harrington children. The danger and tension ramp up - and nothing will ever be the same for any of them.

What's not to love? 1970 England. An isolated, crumbling house in a forest. The forest itself is hiding many secrets. An older housekeeper who insinuates herself into the lives of the inhabitants. Danger in the form of a husband and a lover, each vying for the same woman. There's a Gothic feel to this part of the book.

The story at Foxcote Manor is alternated with a second timeline. Forty years forward Sylvie is making changes in her life. She has decided to leave her husband and start over. But, the fact is she has never really addressed her own start in life. Not until her daughter uncovers a cache of newspaper clippings in her ailing grandmother's home.

How Chase ties these two stories together is brilliant. There are so many threads from the past that weave into the present  - in ways I hadn't seen coming.

The characters were so well drawn. My heart was with Rita. The relationships are just as well developed - complicated, intricate and entwined. The plotting is so imaginative and unique. And the settings will draw the reader in. For me, it was the forest that called.

Chase's writing is so very, very good - she is a brilliant storyteller. And it makes for addicting reading.  I can't recommend The Daughters of Foxcote Manor enough. Have a look - read an excerpt.

Fans of Kate Morton will want to read The Daughters of Foxcote Manor - or any of Chase's books - I've read and loved them all.

The Death of Mrs. Westaway - Ruth Ware

Oh, Ruth Ware, you've done it again - kept me up very late, frantically turning page after page.

The Death of Mrs. Westaway has just released - and it's one you're going to want to add to your summer reading list.

Harriet (who goes by the nickname Hal) makes her living as a tarot card reader on the pier in Brighton. When her mother passed away, Hal stepped into the job. But, she's in financial straits and owes the local loan shark. When a letter arrives from a lawyer telling her that her grandmother has died and asking her to attend the funeral and reading of the will, Hal is sure it is a mistake. Right name, wrong person. But......maybe also a chance to clear those debts?

"And she felt a shiver of something run through her - the same shiver she felt she switched on the light outside her booth, and stepped into her role."

Great set up! And it just gets better from there. The Death of Mrs. Westaway has all the elements of a great Gothic tale - a death, crumbling old mansion, dour housekeeper, bickering relatives, odd behavior and of course - secrets. A past and present narrative keeps the reader guessing as to what those secrets might be. The past is presented in journal entries from an unknown writer. Clues to the final answers can be found in the entries, but Ware's narrative is clever, keeping the reader guessing to the last pages. In the present, it's hard to be sure who is telling the truth. Each family member seems to have secrets they'd like to keep buried. A pervasive sense of danger haunts the halls of Trepassen House......

The Death of Mrs. Westaway was a deliciously creepy, addictive, page turning, wonderful read for me. (But I finished it too quickly!) See for yourself - here's an excerpt. (And I learned quite a bit about tarot cards along the way as well.) Definitely recommended!

The Fire Child - S.K. Tremayne

I enjoyed S.K. Tremayne's (a pseudonym) last suspense novel, The Ice Twins. (my review) Tremayne's newest release is The Fire Child.

Rachel is excited to move to Carnhallow House with her new husband and stepson. It's a long way from where she started. Rachel's past is alluded to and the details are slowly revealed as the book progresses. But there would be no story without....

A secluded old mansion in need of repair. A widowed, handsome, wealthy owner who has swept his new second wife off her feet. A young stepson who seems to be alright with his new family - until his behaviour takes a scary turn. The shadow of Nina, the dead first wife and mother hanging over everything. The circumstances surrounding her death. The dotty mother-in-law who may know more than she lets on....and more. All the hallmarks of a Gothic tale.

The setting plays a large part in the book - in addition to the secluded house and ominous isolation, there are the mines. Tin has been mined in the Cornwall area for thousands of years. The author has included actual photos of the mines and miners to accompany this fictional tale. The history of these mines is fascinating - I ended up looking up more about them online.

Tremayne does a good job of building the tension. Sightings of Nina, sounds in the house and Jamie's insistence that his mother is alive make Rachel question if she is going crazy. Her husband's behaviour has changed as well. The danger and tension builds and builds, culminating in a great scene in a snowstorm.

But the story continues past that scene. There were a few plot twists at the end that ask the reader to suspend disbelief. I did, but wasn't entirely sold on the ending. The journey there was more enjoyable for this reader. An entertaining light read, good for a dark and stormy night. Read an excerpt of The Fire Child.

The House Between Tides - Sarah Maine

The House Between Tides is Sarah Maine's debut novel, releasing in Canada on August 2/16.

I always stop to look at a cover before turning the first page and this one definitely caught my eye. A mysterious old house surrounded by water? I'm in.

Hetty Deveraux is living in London when she is contacted by a solicitor informing her that she has inherited Muirlan House in the Scottish Hebrides - a house that is only accessible twice a day from the mainland when the tides are out.

Hetty is shocked, but sees the inheritance as a chance to escape London and her boyfriend. Perhaps the estate can be fixed up and turned into a hotel? But when she arrives, the damage is greater than she could have imagined. Uninhabited since 1945, the house has fallen into abject disrepair. When a set of bones is located under some floorboards, any idea of repairing the building is quickly halted. Who could the bones belong to? What happened? When? Why?

Absolutely delicious! Spanning one hundred years, The House Between Tides is told in a then and now format, alternating chapters from Beatrice's voice in 1910 and Hetty's in 2010.

Beatrice is the young wife of noted painter and wildlife enthusiast Theo Blake, who owns the island and manages the crofters. Life on Muirlan is not quite the idyllic experience Beatrice had imagined. There are secrets and simmering tensions between family members as well as the island community - and between Beatrice and her new husband.  And neither is it quite what Hetty had envisioned either. Those secrets and tensions seem to have survived the years, affecting the present. Issues brought to light in 1910 are still relevant in 2010.

Ahh, what more could you want?  A rambling mansion, desolate setting, secrets, a body, suspicious and unhappy locals, love stories (yes, plural, there are two of them - one in each time frame) and a lovely, atmospheric journey to the ending where the narratives finally meet. A decidedly Gothic feel.

I enjoyed both Beatrice and Hetty as lead characters. But, I was drawn more to Beatrice, for although she was constrained by the societal expectations of the time, she stayed true to herself and had spunk. Hetty is constrained more by her own self, her insecurities and her inability to speak up for herself.

I enjoy dual narrative novels. The reader is privy to both timelines, able to fit together the pieces and see where they might fit together. However, I do find myself staying up late with the back and forth - I always need just 'one more chapter' before shutting off the lights.

Maine paints a beautiful setting in The House Between Tides - the sea, the sun, the sand, the sky and the wildlife are all wonderfully and vividly described - making it very easy to imagine the island.

I quit enjoyed The House Between Tides and look forward to Maine's next book. Fans of Kate Morton and Eve Chase would enjoy The House Between Tides. Read an excerpt.

You can find Sarah Maine on her website, follow her on Twitter @SarahMaineBooks and like her on Facebook.