Jacob

Somehow Robert Jackson Bennett has managed to not only craft a wonderful murder mystery that is completely solvable by the reader, but he has simultaneously created a beautiful and grounded fantasy world for it to take place in.

I highly recommend this and the first book in the series to anyone who enjoys a good mystery--even if they don't typically read fantasy.

My favorite thing about the books is that enough information is fed to the reader as the story progresses where you're invited to come up with theories and questions of your own. I've read previous mystery novels where the solution is nearly impossible for the reader to attain until a character spells it out due to their having some hidden piece of the puzzle. That's not the case here. While the mystery is winding, sometimes changing, and definitely well won in the end, it is possible for you as the reader to feel a sense of accomplishment and pride in putting things together before the final reveal. Such a fun ride, and I can't wait for the third entry!

I was so excited to step back into this world that Kliewer introduced to us through We Used to Live Here. He does such a great job at creating a sense of place and grounding the supernatural elements in his stories, and on finishing this book that was my favorite aspect of The Caretaker.

What bothered me throughout the story was the main character. I'm all for a lovable fuckup or interestingly annoying main character, but Macy just felt so inept to the point where it was frustrating.

I'm definitely interested in reading more of Kliewer's works in the future, but this story just didn't scratch the itch like We Used to Live Here did.

Below are some of my points of frustration with the story:

After the first set of rituals that Macy fails, I expected some sort of growth or understanding to come from her actions. However, all we get is more mistakes and annoying contrivances in order for her to mess up each time. In order to move the story along at a breakneck pace we never get to see her improve or succeed. We never get a moment for her to feel a little peace in order to reflect or process. The story gives us a list of things at the beginning, and we just watch Macy fail each item one-by-one as it goes along. As you can imagine, this becomes a bit repetitive and frustrating. Even after she has a horrible experience the night before, Macy begins to finally improve only to be distracted by a buzzing phone at the last minute.

Wow!

I should preface this review by saying this flavor of horror is exactly my thing. For that reason I'm sure this hit harder for me than others.

From the very first page this story starts running and never stops. The idea of a family entering your home and finding excuse after excuse to never leave is terrifying on its own. However, Marcus doesn't stop there. As we continue to follow Eve's experiences new layers are added to the story, new questions arise, and we're left wondering what is the truth and more importantly what is the ORIGINAL truth.

I'm certain this is a book that I'll read again in order to pick on on little details that were sprinkled throughout, and Marcus Kliewer is an author I'm definitely keeping my eye on.

Wow!

I should preface this review by saying this flavor of horror is exactly my thing. For that reason I'm sure this hit harder for me than others.

From the very first page this story starts running and never stops. The idea of a family entering your home and finding excuse after excuse to never leave is terrifying on its own. However, Marcus doesn't stop there. As we continue to follow Eve's experiences new layers are added to the story, new questions arise, and we're left wondering what is the truth and more importantly what is the ORIGINAL truth.

I'm certain this is a book that I'll read again in order to pick on on little details that were sprinkled throughout, and Marcus Kliewer is an author I'm definitely keeping my eye on.