Thank you Hachette Audio for the ALC and @NovelSuspects & Mulholland Books, #partner, for the e-copy of In the Clearing in exchange for my honest review.
Publisher: Mulholland Books / Hachette Audio
Published: August 4, 2020
Summary:
A ticking-clock thriller that braids together the stories of a girl raised in a terrifying cult, and of an overprotective single mother whose fears for her child are about to come true.
Amy has only ever known what life is like in the Clearing, with her brothers and sisters–until a newcomer, a younger girl, joins the “family” and offers a glimpse of the outside world. Freya is living an isolated life with her son and their dog, going to great lengths to keep contact with the outside world like an “everyday mum” while being utterly terrified by it. When news breaks of a missing girl–a child the same age as Freya’s son, Billy–Amy and Freya’s stories intertwine, and the secrets of the past will crawl inexorably into the present.
My thoughts:
This is the first book I’ve read by J.P. Pomare and it certainly will not be my last. When I was offered this book, I was also given the opportunity to watch the first 2 episodes of the 8-part TV series that is now available on HULU. Even though I hadn’t yet read the book – I didn’t have my copy yet, I watched the 2 episodes and it got me so excited for the book…and let me just say, the book was amazing! I haven’t gone back to watch the rest of the show yet, but I will at some point.
Give me all the cult books. I cannot get enough of them and this one kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time! I loved that the author took inspiration for this story from a real life cult…something I knew nothing about. Of course I went down the rabbit hole of my own research and just wow! I got chills just reading the actual research because Pomare did such a great job bringing it all to life in his book. This is why I love reading these books…I end up learning so much more than I ever realized I would.
This book has such amazing twists and turns and I never saw some of them coming. I love when I’m caught off guard and this one definitely did that a few times. There is such a sense of foreboding throughout the book and that really keeps things tense and has you glued to the pages just waiting for something bad to happen. And having the dual timeline worked so well as it kept me so engaged. I just couldn’t get enough of this book!
I loved this one and cannot wait to read more of this author’s work.
Audio thoughts:
What a great story to listen to and the narration was just amazing. The narrator, Eryn Jean Norvil, is new-to-me, but I thought she did a great job bringing the story to life.
