THE VISITORS was literally — or a literary — breath of fresh air. The book is definitely unique, compelling, creepy and spine tingling all at the same time. If it were a film, I would have been watching from behind a cushion and would most probably have kept the light on all night( and the rest of the week) , whilst I slept!

This book is like Norman Bates meets spinster sister in Grey Gardens. There are definitely Gothic elements to this novel, and this book — although set in modern day — reads like it is set a long time ago. This adds gravitas to the brilliant characterisation and makes it that little more creepy. As I said, think Norman Bates and you won't go far wrong.

This is a genius character study of an elderly brother and sister's weird relationship, Marion and John live together in a crumbling mansion that is overrun with rotting garbage, old stuffed animals and horrific secrets that are starting to seep out of the floorboards from the basement and into Marion's' psyche.

Once I started reading, I was hypnotised by Marion. The story is told from her P.O.V and the author, Catherine Burns, does an amazing job of bringing Marion and John (the brother) to life. Marion is a character that will stay with me for a long time — not only because of the sadness weaved into the words and thoughts that Burns gives Marion — but also due to her childhood and the way she was treated by her mother and her meanie brother, John, who has psychotic tendencies; one minute he's lashing out in anger and the next being sickeningly sweet.

Marion is tragic, child-like with zero self worth because throughout her miserable life she's been told she is stupid, clumsy and unworthy of love. Why would she believe anything else? Many writers try to get sympathy for their characters and it's such a skill. Some fail, but Catherine Burns definitely triumphs at this. I believed every word that Marion uttered or thought and I was hooked. Annoyingly, I found myself in the supermarket, or driving to work, or walking the dog, thinking about Marion and wishing the best for her. It was as if she were real!

As a reader, I sympathised with Marion, got angry with her, felt ashamed for her, got frustrated, even threw the book down on the kitchen table in disgust and stalked off to make a coffee, chanting 'For God's sake Marion,' in my head. Needless to say, I invested in her big time and I so wanted her to be OK by the end of the book. All credit to Catherine Burns' brilliant narrative and POV.

I am not going to say anything else about this book. I don't want to spoil it. What I will say is, please buy it, read it and enjoy! I promise you, there'll be a little piece of Marion left in your heart, long after you've finished.
Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher Gallery Scout Press, and the author, Catherine Burns.

A dysfunctional family, though using that word here may be a disservice to dysfunctional families. Parents, one extremely passive, father, a lecher and maybe more, Marion, sister, backwards, not much expected of nor by her and John, cruel and I think quite insane. Parents dead, now a grown brother and sister live alone, well except for whoever or whatever is in the basement.

It is hard to separate how I felt about the novel, or rather how this novel made me feel, with the quality of the novel. Discomfort in the main, and for lack of a better literary description, this book made me feel icky and grungy. Like the movies, What ever happened to Baby Jane or the Bad Seed, where you want to look away or can't quite believe what you are seeing, but find yourself looking or reading anyway.

The descriptions, the filth and clutter in the house actually sent me scurrying to see of I had any green mold or black fuzzy things in my refrigerator. I didn't, but cleaned it and my freezer anyway. Very slow, a detailed rendering of both characters as well as events in their past and what was happening now in the present. Clues are scattered here and there so by the time what was in the basement is revealed, most readers already have a pretty good idea. There were still a few revelatory surprises disclosed. So if the authors motive was to cause these kinds of feelings, then she succeeded, so I rated it a three. I wasn't quite satisfied with the denoument, thought she could have done more, gone a different way after the big build up, and she did leave a few threads hanging, unanswered questions that I had.

ARC from Netgalley.

The book is the bad kind of grim. It’s not the guiltily fun grim and horror found in the best gothic books, this is the “this stuff actually happens in real life to real people” kind of horror. And that’s just not what I read fiction for. I’d almost recommend this to true crime fans but there’s a weird supernatural element that keeps cropping up, out of place.

You know what my biggest problem with this book was? How it lacked subtlety. Like, you read the synopsis? Then you’ve read the book. There’s depth in the character study but no puzzle. You never get to know Marion for yourself—Burns just tells you. Does that make sense at all? As a reader, especially in a book that wants to be intensely quiet and softly violent, I like little lines, bits of dialogue or description that strengthen the darkness of the story. Burns is blatant, boring. (And the dialogue: it was bad. Yikes.)

I think the author was trying to be clever with the ending, but I had to roll my eyes because of course that’s how the story would conclude. Still, this was the best part of the novel, but clearly that’s not saying much.

One star ‘cause I can’t think of any reason why it deserves two, honestly. I just didn’t like it, not at all.

This book was perfectly creepy and strange, and very well written. I'm not even sure how to review this book because it was so .... different. The Visitors is mostly a look at the life of our main character Marion and her dysfunctional family, and a look at the dark secrets that linger in their home. Not much happens, but you are pulled in immediately and leaves you feeling a little unsettled. If you're looking for something new, different, and creepy, try this one on for size.

What a fun traveling sister read with a huge group of ladies. I have to say that I definitely enjoyed reading alongside everyone!

The Visitors by Catherine Burns is a dark and disturbing thriller. I will be honest, I did not like this book at all. I was confused as to where the author was trying to go with this one and I really tried to understand the plot/characters. I felt that this novel was too much of a slow burn for my taste and I put the novel down multiple times because I was frequently bored.

Catherine Burns delivers a dark character study of two siblings Marion and John which is told from Marion's perspective. I am a huge fan of character driven novels but I was not a fan of Marion or John. I felt that Marion was pretty pathetic... I mean who fantasizes about things/people 24/7? Eh... and she was so naive/blind eye to what actually was going on in the cellar. This just really annoyed me and I kept rolling my eyes constantly with Marion.

I was confused as to where the author was trying to take the plot? I felt that the story focused too much on minor details and not enough of the "BIG" plot. All I felt reading this was about John and Marion's childhood drama. I was hoping and praying for some sort of twist or surprise but nothing. I did not feel scared or creeped out by this novel at all and was honestly bored and annoyed.

What I did enjoy about this novel was how easy it was to picture myself living with John and Marion. I felt the details were gory and pretty disturbing overall... getting into the mind fame of both John and Marion. I also enjoyed how the author left the ending up to her readers... she didn't really give much away but enough for her readers to finish "the story" for themselves.

Overall, I would give this a 2 stars. I was not impressed and this novel was just not for me.
Thank you to Netgalley, Catherine Burns, and Gallery, Threshold, Pocket Books in exchange for an honest review.

This book is super dark and twisted. You really think one thing for a good long while, and then...things start to feel out of place. And VERY unsettling. I mean, honestly, the entire book is unsettling, from the dusty old house where it's set, to the creepy brother/sister characters. Even the dead parents are disturbing. It was very difficult to put down!

I found the book description intriguing, and while I normally enjoy character studies I found the first 60% of the book slow and repetitive with a lot of flashbacks and mundane details of daily life. I did find my opinion of one of the character's changed as more was revealed but I was still bored. The last 40% dealt with a subject so distasteful and the details so repulsive, it left me slightly sick and feeling like I needed a shower.

When the twist came at the end it was too little, too late for me. Overall, this was not one I would recommend.

*many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the book for review.

I went with 4 stars on The Visitors, but be warned, it's definitely dark and twisted. Your first clue should be the synopsis....if you've read that and are intrigued, the novel keeps the promise of the premise well. I was impressed by the pacing of the story, even as the tension ratcheted up, the pacing still remained even. I appreciated the complexity of the characters, the scarcity of the setting and the genuineness of the dialogue.
The Visitors is not for the faint of heart - You've been warned!
I will definitely read more from Catherine Burns.

This book was creepy and chilling which scores points with me. As I try to review this book I am realizing I cant say enough good things about it. This book was a book that made me lose sleep and trust me I like my sleep. Highly recommend.

The Visitors by Catherine Burns is a recommended debut novel featuring a psychological character study.

Marion Zetland is in her mid-fifties and lives with her domineering older brother, John, in a decaying Georgian townhouse they inherited along with sizeable trust funds. While John is a cantankerous abusive bully, Marion remains living with him, probably because she has the emotional and mental acumen of a young girl. Marion, who is the narrator of the novel, has been bullied her whole life so life with John is normal. She has her stuffed animal friends to comfort her, along with her imaginary friend.

What she'd really like to ignore, and does a questionably admirable job doing just that, is the visitors in the cellar. She knows John has women down there. He says he's teaching them English and mathematics. She sometimes hears cries, screams and calls for help, which she chooses to not think about.

The narrative alternates between Marion's experiences in the present and flashbacks to her past. she does a lot of ruminating/thinking about her life and the mistreatment she has experienced at the hands of others. John is, naturally, a part of her inner dialogue and he was just as disagreeable as a child as he is as an adult. Marion relates key details about her life that will come into play much later in the novel. Interspersed between Marion's inner dialogue are email exchanges with someone that will be understood at the end of the novel.

While I did appreciate some elements of this character driven novel and the unreliable narrator we find in Marion, I also need to admit that this one was slow going for me and was not a particularly compelling thriller. It's more a psychological character study than a thriller. I forced myself to get through Marion's endless stories. In the end, her stories do have a point to them, but reaching the end is a bit of a slog-through them. I also need to note that John is not hospitalized until the last third of the novel. Based on the synopsis you expect this to happen much sooner than it does and, well, most readers aren't going to be so horrified at Marion's discovery of his secret because of all the foreshadowing.

The quality of the writing is good, but the slow pacing removes much of the suspense. I wasn't surprised at any twists or revelations unveiled at the end. Adding to this lack of suspense is the lack of sympathy that I could muster for any of the characters, including Marion. This was just an okay novel for me.

Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of Gallery/Scout Press.
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While well written, the pacing was very odd. I think it wasn't quite what I usually look for in the genre.

I don’t know why it says about me, but The Visitors by Catherine Burns is my kind of book. Creepy, disturbing, and upsetting.

The main characters in the book are older siblings Marion and John Zetland. They live together in a run down, hoarder-ish home. While John and what he is doing are the driving force of the novel, it is Marion who tells the story. Marion is in her mid 50’s. She rarely leaves her home and is dominated completely by her sick, evil brother John.

Marion lives her life, trying to ignore whatever it is that John is doing in the cellar. She still sleeps with teddy bears and is a mixture of innocence and lethargy.

Life goes on this way until one day when John has a heart attack. Now Marion must confront the secrets in the cellar. We learn that John might not be the only evil one in the family.

I love these kind of novels that delve into the mind of a character. I alternated between feeling sorry for Marion and being disgusted by her.

Very creepy and disturbing!

This is an understated psychological “suspense” novel (suspense is in quotations because it is actually more of a menacing slow burn) that takes place in England in a crumbling mansion. Kept afloat by her inheritance, middle-aged spinster Marion lives in her family’s home with her brother John, a prickly, domineering character. Early on, it becomes clear that there something not quite right about this pair. Marion, clearly of diminished mental capacity, is somehow complicit in the shady business that John is up to in their cellar. Slowly but surely, bits of information are teased out and we find out what John’s hiding – and what Marion will do about it.

My obsession for reading all things dark and twisted continues, and this 'experience' was one of the twisted , unnverving and creepiest I've ever had the pleasure (!) to embark on!! If you're looking for a book full of fluffy, heart melting moments then this is NOT the book for you! But if you're looking for a book to give you chills, repulse you and be completely disturbing then BUY THIS BOOK!!

The story focuses on Marion who is one of those characters you don't know whether to feel outright sympathy for, or just lose patience with! Her life has been a hard one living amongst a completely dysfunctional family who treated her like dirt, and there was no escape from her lousy upbringing at school, where she was teased by pupils and teachers alike. But Marion seemed to accept her fate, and found her refuge in her attic bedroom amongst her cuddly toys who were her friends and always there for her.

Since the death of her mother, she has lived in the 6 bedroom home with her domineering, freak of a brother who she is in complete fear of due to his strange and violent behaviour - and is under strict control never to go in the cellar where John keeps 'the visitors'. This is the start of the chilling side of the story as Marion often hears cries from the cellar but ignores them!! As you do!! I'm so glad I don't have a cellar

As the story develops, Marion starts to slowly come out of her shell, even with just walking around the town she lives, revisiting an Aunts' house that she finds up for sale which brings back worrying memories and constructing fantasy lives for herself based on people she meets. But things begin to change more when John has a heart attack and she has to confront her fears in the cellar - it is fascinating how she reacts when she has been so put upon her whole life and now she has an insight into her brothers' hidden life..

I find it a little disturbing that I enjoyed this book so much!! The characters were strange creatures, and as you looked into their past you could begin to understand how they turned out the way they did!! The Visitors don't really feature in the book until well past halfway, so that means you get more time delving into Marion and Johns' upbringing and their outlook on life and people. There are also some fascinating email messages in between certain chapters, which don't begin to make any sense until towards the end!

A fabulously dark and twisted debut from an author who I will definitely be following for future releases!!

.... Fantastically creepy! ......I thoroughly enjoyed this read!

This Halloween are you looking for a macabre tale where the monsters aren't goblins and ghouls but regular humans? Then you must pick up The Visitors by Catherine Burns.

I don't read horror, but I love hard-pounding thrillers that push the line of horrific. I was reading the opening chapters of The Visitors through my fingers. I was on tenterhooks knowing that something bad was going to happen, but I wasn't able to stop reading. The book really pulls you in and doesn't let up until the last page is turned.

The Visitors had a gothic feel to it, although it is set in a seaside town in present-day UK. I'm sure it is the dank, decaying family home the brother and sister reside and the dark nature of the story that gave it a gothic vibe. But the hallmarks of the genre - mystery and terror - are definitely there.

Burns created a sympathetic character in the unreliable narrator of Marion. She is a 50-something woman with a low IQ. I had wondered if she had Downs Syndrome as there is mention of her mother having been in her 40s when Marion was born. If that is the case, nothing was done for her. When she couldn't pass the entrance test to a prestigious school, her parents funded the new swimming pool. It wasn't just her intellect that was ignored. you get the impression that she was all but neglected as a child. So was her brother, except when he joined their father in the cellar.

Unlike Marion, her brother has a higher than average IQ, attends Oxford and takes a teaching position at a girls boarding school (though he could have been a doctor or engineer), until he resigns under suspicion of inappropriate behavior with a student.

Watch out for red herrings! The interweaving memories of Marion's childhood with present-day actions create a fragmented story that leads the reader one way only to later turn them around and lead them in a different direction. While at the same time your biases for the characters war with what you read on the page, creating an incredulous internal conflict for the reader. Seriously, you are going to be emotionally entangled in this story.

There is some psychic stuff, which is probably the only disappointment I had with the story. I thought on psychic scene revealed too much, too early in the story. It also felt like an interruption to the flow of the story. But it really is minor.

For those who don't go in for the paranormal for Halloween, this really is the perfect read for the season.

Published at Girl Who Reads on October 5.

This novel about the kind of evil that can be born from sadness, neglect, and loneliness was twisting, turning, sometimes difficult, and ultimately satisfying.

The first, geez, maybe 4/5 of the book kept the details very close to the vest. Details of the present, and the past, are in the mental slow-cooker until things really, REALLY start to get wild. But the journey to that point, the in-depth, almost painfully intimate character study of a frumpy, timid middle-aged virgin trying to get through each day, was fascinating enough to bring you through.

Highly recommended for fans of thrillers that enjoy a slow, steady burn.

Unfortunately this was a DNF for me. It was extremely slow and did not hold my attention. The emails are odd and random and I just could not get into the story. I made it to page 130 before I decided this just wasn't for me. Thank you Netgalley and Gallery books for this arc in exchange for my opinion.

From the description I thought that there was a chance that I would enjoy The Visitors by Catherine Burns and, thankfully, I was right. This book is well written, thought-provoking and the storyline is different enough from similar books to feel fresh. Yes it will be marketed as a psychological thriller but there is also a development of the main character that feels narrative yet believable. 

The main character is old before her time, down-trodden and controlled by her domineering brother. He is up to no good in his cellar, which she turns a blind eye to until she is no longer able to, due to his accident. I expected that more of the story would take place after the accident, probably the first 70% of the book is build up to this event, which in itself is slightly anti-climactic. Which serves to make the plot more believable. 

Something that I am grateful for is that there is no gratuitous violence or sexual content, despite it being apparent and demonstrable in the text. Sometimes the more graphic the description the less impact it has - in this instance less is most certainly more. 

I would absolutely recommend this book - I can find psychological thrillers very samey, easy to predict and poorly written. This book has none of these issues. In fact the blurb quickly sets out the turning point for the story, so you know what is being worked towards. This means you can focus on the character development.

I received a copy of this book from netgalley in exchange for an honest review.