My Review…

A dark read that kept me reading…

Open the book and enter the world of the twisted siblings Marion and John! Are these two ill, deranged, or just plain evil?? This is a disturbing book on many levels and not for someone looking for an uplifting read! I knew that when I requested to read it and wanted to get out of my comfort level and see how I would feel. I read Jewels review (loved the review) and decided to give it a try. I agree that it had a gothic feel to it and creepy like the Bates Motel as well!

A strong ominous feeling hovered over the book like a dark cloud. The author was detailed in her descriptions of the family and their history including all the “ugliness”. It gave me a creepy feeling and apprehension, but not the heart racing, page turning or adrenaline caused from reading a “suspenseful thriller.”

This was more of a character driven analysis of the impulsive mind that seems to have no self-control, no remorse and no ability to change the road they have chosen. Or maybe, they choose this road because they are simply evil with twisted minds.

The author had me feeling strongly about the characters, though disturbing and unforgiving for things they had done. It was like watching an episode of 48 Hours or Dateline where I’m transfixed to the story, but utterly repulsed! (If that makes sense!)

I recommend with caution!

Book Description…

‘Once you start Catherine Burns’s dark, disturbing, and enthralling debut novel, it’s hard to stop. The Visitors is bizarrely unsettling, yet compulsively readable.’ Iain Reid, Internationally Bestselling Author of I’m Thinking of Ending Things

Marion Zetland lives with her domineering older brother, John in a decaying Georgian townhouse on the edge of a northern seaside resort. A timid spinster in her fifties who still sleeps with teddy bears, Marion does her best to shut out the shocking secret that John keeps in the cellar.

Until, suddenly, John has a heart attack and Marion is forced to go down to the cellar herself and face the gruesome truth that her brother has kept hidden.

As questions are asked and secrets unravel, maybe John isn’t the only one with a dark side.