Title: Hemlock Island
Author: Kelley Armstrong
Source: Netgalley. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Genre: Horror.
Trigger Warnings: Torture, death, occult.
Explicit? Not for sex. But dang this is one intense book.
Summary: Laney Kilpatrick has been renting her vacation home to strangers. The invasion of privacy gives her panic attacks, but it’s the only way she can keep her beloved Hemlock Island, the only thing she owns after a pandemic-fueled divorce. But broken belongings and campfires that nearly burn down the house have escalated to bloody bones, hex circles, and now, terrified renters who’ve fled after finding blood and nail marks all over the guest room closet, as though someone tried to claw their way out…and failed.
When Laney shows up to investigate with her teenaged niece in tow, she discovers that her ex, Kit, has also been informed and is there with Jayla, his sister and her former best friend. Then Sadie, another old high school friend, charters over with her brother, who’s now a cop.
There are tensions and secrets, whispers in the woods, and before long, the discovery of a hand poking up from the earth. Then the body that goes with it… But by that time, someone has taken off with their one and only means off the island, and they’re trapped with someone—or something—that doesn’t want them leaving the island alive.
My Thoughts:
Look, I love Kelley Armstrong. So I knew I was going to pick up this book, no matter the genre. That being said, I am not a horror read typically, I have a very active imagination and as such I’ve been having nightmares of rats since I finished this book.
That being said, I actually did love this book. It kept me tense the entire time I was reading it, and I couldn’t put it down because I needed to know what was going to happen next, who it was going to happen to and of course with any horror story, who would survive.
That being said but if your husband (who I loved btw) offers to buy you an island with a poisonous name, maybe don’t accept? Even if the views are killer (literally).
The cast of characters in this novel were very interesting to me, especially when you realize how they know each other, and why some of them dislike each other. And oooh boy did I hate some of them after learning why.
The island has a creepy factor from the very beginning and the crescendo had me clutching my blanket around me and wishing I could somehow consume the words quicker.
There is a paranormal aspect to what’s going on, but it was not what I was expecting, and I really did appreciate the plot twist.
The fact that Kelley Armstrong also managed to have character development and growth built into this novel during such high tension moments was something I also appreciated.
The ending also packed a wallop. So be prepared.
And maybe if you’re a big fraidy cat like me, read it during daylight like I did.
A Lovely Little Book Blog 