This book had me from beginning to end. I found this to be a really good suspenseful thriller and I found myself really intrigued. I thought the characters were well written and I really liked the twists I didn't see coming. I would definitely recommend this book.




Thank you NetGalley and Montlake for allowing me to read this ARC in advance for my honest opinion.

The House Beyond the Dunes was interesting but different from the amazing stories written by Mary Burton, and I've read them all. It had so many twists and turns that some say they figured out early in the story, but I didn't. How does a romantic getaway turn so terrible? What happened at the top of those stairs, and why? Is it safe for Lane to go back to where everything happened, or should she stay away? Those questions came to mind as I started this story in earnest.

For me, this was one of those stories where you talk to the characters in the book and question everything. I thought Lane was crazy to go back to that weird house, and crazier to stay any longer than necessary. The old Pandora's box sure came into play here. Strange neighbors popping up, a caretaker popping in, and who was Kyle really? The transitions between past and future, and character to character were seamless. The flow was done beautifully, and in the end when it all came together my questions were answered, and I was satisfied with the results. Pleased actually, and that's what we want in a great story.

I really enjoy this book and was hooked from the first page.. It's a very well written mystery/suspense and there is plenty of twists and turns. This was an intense read and I was completely entertained to the end. I highly recommend this book.
I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review.

A thoroughly enjoyable book I couldn't put down. It's The House Beyond the Dunes by Mary Burton. I got it from Montlake via Netgalley and it will be out on the 5th of September.

We follow Lane McCord who wakes up in a hospital after having had a horrible fall from the stairs leaving her boyfriend Kyle dead. When returning to the cottage to collect her personal belongings she is stuck in that house because of a storm. While having to stay there, Lane finds out more about Kyle. Did she really know him? Can she trust the neighbours? Will she be safe?

This was quite the suspenseful thriller and I was completely intrigued by the book. The story is a great one - some twists I did not see coming! The characters are worked out well as well. You get to know Lane and you really understand her motives. The eerie feeling of the remote cottage during a storm, only accessible via the beach makes the book all the more intense.

5/5 ⭐

I volunteered to read and review an advanced readers copy through Net Galley of The House Beyond The Dunes . This story is intense and suspenseful and very intriguing . I couldn't put it down . Its definitely an on the edge of your seat story . Lane Cord after falling down steps with her boyfriend Kyle who died in the accident wakes up in the hospital to find she has loss some memory . Lane receives a visit from a Detective Becker asking questions . He's searching for two missing women . Soon Lane receives diary pages that belong to a Stevie Palmer one of the missing women . She also finds a dark and very dangerous past coming back for her . This Thriller is off the charts . I highly recommend taking the time to read .

An unexplained accident that leads to a death, which then becomes a murder investigation!
This is an intense, emotional and downright scary journey that occurs right in the opening pages of this novel.
But.... it is SO MUCH MORE!
Lane returns to the beach-home of her deceased boyfriend of three weeks to try to jar her memory, as she has no recollection of how Kyle died. She, herself is fortunate that she is still alive.
It was an awful incident, but there is no memory!
How can this be? Why is he dead? How did it all happen?

What Lane will learn is nothing short of shocking!
OH- You have no idea of what is next and I must admit I had not a clue either until the last few chapters!

So clever, and incredibly smart of this author that this story had me hooked all the way until the very last page.
Thank you to @NetGalley and @Montlake for this ARC and allowing me to read and provide my own review.

Lane McCord and Dr. Kyle Iverson had known each other twenty five days and decided to spend their first romantic weekend together at his beach house in North Carolina overlooking the dunes in the Outer Banks.
Within an hour of arriving, the two then accidentally fall down twenty one marble steps in the house. Lane survived, Kyle did not.
To find out what happens next when Lane goes back to the beach house to retrieve her purse and cell phone, you must read "The House Beyond the Dunes" by Mary Burton. Mary will definitely leave you dumbstruck with her latest psychological thriller!

A romantic beach weekend getaway turns tragic in this story about new love and buried memories. What really happened that night? We follow the thought process and survival instincts of a grief-stricken woman left alone and friendless in a storm that blocks her escape across the beach. Can she trust the strangers who appear at her door? What do they know that she doesn't? A page-turner for sure. Thank you to Montlake and NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

This book was filled with twists and turns galore. Mary Burton draws the reader in and then delivers a realistic narrative. The descriptions of the “Outer Banks” area is very detailed and makes me want to visit that area sometime. The dark side of child and sexual abuse is well written but a sad commentary on our society. The psychological impact is devastating and long reaching. Not a fun, light hearted read but it kept me rooting for a satisfying resolution and held my attention. Well worth the time and effort.

This is a fabulous mystery with a bit of romance thrown in.  The subject matter is  heart wrenching: child abuse and rape.  The suspense will keep you reading well past bedtime


Lane McCord is trying to find out what happened to two missing girls after her boyfriend dies in an accident.  Was he involved,  were his brothers,  or his friend? I kept changing my mind on who I thought the murderer/rapist was.  I was taken by complete surprise with the ending.  A fabulous read!!

Isolated setting, suspicious neighbors, memory loss and a mysterious death made this such a captivating read. This delves into the lives of the lost. People who won't be noticed if they go missing. There's a sadness to it knowing how often this probably happens in reality. This was a great read with the perfect amount of suspense and surprises that sneak up on you when you least expect. Clearly written by a talented, experienced author, I highly recommend this for my fellow mystery readers. Four Stars.

Thank you Netgalley and Montlake for this ARC.

I enjoyed this book. It is a story inside of another story. Lane McCord goes to North Carolina to spend New Year’s Eve with her boyfriend. Kyle She ends up in the hospital and Kyle ends up dead. She has no memory of what happened. Someone is sending her pages of a diary about a missing girl. Was Kyle involved in her disappearance. I have to say I figured out the mystery but still enjoyed the book.

WOW! First book by Mary Burton. Lane and Kyle go on a romantic trip to his beach house. He ends up dead. Lane cannot remember what happened. She is visited by a cop and asked about two girls who have been missing. Lane can't leave things alone and goes back to the beach house in clues of what happened and who these girls are. Who are these people that Kyle was friends with that seem to just show up? Who was Kyle? What happened to these two girls? What the reader will find out will blow you away! Shocking ending for sure!

All I can say is WOW! Mary Burton has done it again, writing a thriller that continually twists and turns right up to the last page. Lane went away with her new boyfriend Kyle for New Years. Within an hour Kyle and Lane lie crumpled at 5he bottom of the stairs. Lane is injured, but Kyle is dead! What happened? In search of answers Lane returns to the scene and turns over lots of rocks in search of the truth. What follows keeps us all guessing, and Lane doesn’t know who she can trust. An enthralling read.

Dark, haunting, smart thriller. A cut above the rest with clever writing. I enjoyed this excellent thriller.

A great gripping thriller. Loads of twists and turns that kept me interested throughout. The characters were colourful and had a depth of field. Will be looking back at other books from this author!

Review in progress and to come.

I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review

Another great thriller from this author with a twist I never saw coming. Interesting bunch of characters.

Romance, suspense and thriller combined. Page turner and easy read. Would love to see this in a movie. Definitely would recommend.

A good, fast-paced thriller but full of unlikeable characters who seem to change personality at the whim of the author making our heroine either an unreliable narrator or a very poor judge of character. The ending was good and I would enjoy a book following on from the end point and exploring the resolution.