REVIEW ARCHIVE

This was a book where I had no idea what it was about; it was recommended to me by a friend (well, Jack on a YouTube video). After finishing The Priory of the Orange Tree, I needed to read something completely opposite so I wouldn't get reader's block (a tip from Lexi, aka newlynova: read something completely different after finishing a book).

Because of that, I believe the prime way to experience this book is if you go in blind.

The plot is fairly simple, but in horror, I find that's the best way to go if you want to explore the characters and situations that create the fear. I really liked how everything connects, even if it doesn't feel like it at first. Some chapters initially feel like a random shift in perspective, but in reality, they all come together at the end.

The narrative is direct, which helps you keep track of names, places, and details hinted at early on so you can start unravelling the mystery before it's revealed.

I have a soft spot for this book. A lot of the time the story involves analyzing drawings, and at one point, it focuses on a child's drawing. It reminded me of my psychology classes on the unconscious mind and how children express internal conflicts through drawing—what psychoanalysis calls latent content (dreams fall under this too). While I'm not specializing in psychoanalysis (I'm a cognitive-behavioral psychology student), I still vividly remember the feeling of amazement at being able to see the inner workings of a child's mind through art.

So, I know I'm biased in this review. I'm generally easy to impress and easy to please in the horror genre, plus the psychology aspect of the book made me fold like a sheet of paper the moment I realized where it was going.