I couldn't put this book down - start to finish, and read it in one sitting. 

The content of this book is dark, really really dark, but don't let it put you off, the story itself is beautifully written and sucks you in from the first page. The friendship between Lane and her cousin Allegra is my favourite part of the book, they are both fighting the battles that teenage girls fight, not just with the outside world, but with themselves, and they do it together. Their relationship is a fierce and loyal type of sisterhood that I loved. 

The friendship between Lane and her cousin Allegra is my favourite part of the book, they are both fighting the battles that teenage girls fight, not just with the outside world, but with themselves, and they do it together. Their relationship is a fierce and loyal type of sisterhood that I loved. 

The only thing that bugged me about this book was the lack of back story for the other Roanoke girls, I was fascinated by them, and although you get a little snippet of each of their stories (enough for them to fit into the plot) I would have loved to know more. 

Overall this book gave me the same sense of impending doom and morbid fascination that Emma Cline's The Girls (my favourite book of 2016) did.

I wholeheartedly recommend this book.

The Roanoke Girls is a sick and twisted small town thriller, about Lane who moves in with her grandparents and cousin Allegra. That's 'Then.' 'Now' Allegra's gone missing and Lane is putting together a case that puts her on the path to figuring out just what happened to all the Roanoke girls because they all share a dark secret.

The small town setting is atmospheric and the whole story is provocative and wrong in a way that means you can't stop reading. It's the most shocking and disturbing thriller I've read yet.

This book was gripping and impossible to put down. The author did a really good job of building the tension and making me feel compelled to read on. In many ways I really enjoyed this book. However, I've struggled with how to rate this book as I think it has a number of merits, but I find it difficult to overlook its numerous flaws. The main character is not well developed or likeable and this makes it difficult for the reader to emote with her and care about her story. She is given a lot of back story and the writer does try to make it so the reader can connect to her. It just fell quite flat for me and I felt the main character was quite one dimensional. I tend to prefer books that are heavily character driven, but this book seemed to rely heavily on the central 'mystery' to keep the story going. The central 'mystery' was the most obvious thing to have happened - I guessed almost from the beginning exactly what had happened to Allegra and I was so disappointed to find out that I was exactly right. I felt let down by the writer as she had been building tension and had me completely hooked and desperate to find out the truth. This made the big reveal unsatisfying and irritating. The most ludicrous part of the whole story though was the character of granddad. The power he had over the people in his life just seemed unrealistic and quite frankly necessary for the author to piece together this lazy plot. Surely ALL of these girls can't have been so naive and enchanted by him. It just doesn't seem plausible. Therefore not only was the central 'mystery' predictable, it was also implausible. I would not recommended this book as you never really get the pay off you're expecting.

Beautifully descriptive, but heartwrenchingly melancholy. I enjoyed this book, the characters fitted well into the small town setting. The true horror of what was really going on at Roanoke and the lengths that would be taken to win back love was truly grotesque.

You have no doubt heard of this book as it's probably one of the most talked about this year.

This is a brilliant book, which deals with some awful, disturbing issues. I think the story is brilliantly and sensitively written but understand it will be too much for some.

Often books, to shows and films dealing with these sorts of issues with go for the shock value, but Amy Engel has done a wonderful job of telling the Roanoke story without doing this. This adds to the story and the characters themselves as they don't want to say it out loud, and often pretend it isn't happening.

I would definitely recommend this book, however, beware if you find disturbing issues triggering.

A shocking,disturbing novel of rural American life. Brings to the fore the question of how can the wife let this happen, how can they turn a blind eye.? I liked the strong female character for all her flaws.

The Roanoke Girls is a very dark story but one I really enjoyed. The characters are so well thought out and the writing is done in such a way that even though it is a really dark subject it doesn't put you off reading the book. It's a bit hard to sort of say much more without giving the plot away, all I'll say is read it, you won't be disappointed.

A gradual unravelling of the truth behind the Roanoke family with their aberrant values and culture. An absolutely outrageous and unbelievable upbringing for these Roanoke girls! I was completely mesmerised with the storyline which has an underlining psychological shock to anyone who has strong family values and beliefs.
Lane, the last of the Roanoke girls finally found solace for the rest of the girls by investigating the disappearance of her cousin Allegra.
Can Lane relinquish herself and her memories from the family forever?

This was a decent thriller, with lots of twists and turns and unusual characters. It's dark and disturbing, and doesn't always make for nice reading. But it's also engaging, and I kept wanting to read more to find out what happened.

HOWEVER ........ the ending [edited to remove spoiler]

Up until the end, this was a 4* read. But that ending .... such a disappointment!

I enjoyed reading this book very much. The heat of the weather and the pain seem to rise from the pages. Then the rotten secret is revealed. Wonderful stuff!

Wow.  Where to start with this book? The Roanoke Girls is one of those books that turns you upside down, reaches into your chest, pulls out your heart and leaves you reeling. It is definitely a novel that will polarise opinion; it deals with an incredibly difficult and taboo subject matter and there are readers who will understandably struggle with it. Personally, I loved this novel; it is dark, disturbing and twisty and despite the sensitive issues (or maybe because of?) it is one of my top reads of 2017.

Roanoke holds a deep, dark secret which is unveiled early on and in a shocking way. Despite the abrupt way we discover it I still doubted it was true and, even though there is evidence pointing to the contrary, I convinced myself I'd misunderstood. It is a very disturbing and grotesque subject and one in less deft hands could have been sensationalized.

Time jumps and split narratives are used so effectively in this book; Lane's story is told both in the present day and in the past when she spent one summer at Roanoke. Interspersed with this are chapters telling the stories of the other Roanoke Girls which really flesh out the novel and add to the growing sense of unease which seeps from every page. These chapters were honest and unapologetic and packed a real punch.

The Roanoke Girls is a weighty, literary book which, even though it made uncomfortable reading, I was glued to. Expertly written, gritty and unafraid to address difficult issues this book is one I won't forget in a hurry.  Amy Engel has written a very sensitive and complex book with layer upon layer of emotion which builds a complicated and twisted tale.

The Roanoake Girls
This is an unsettling but totally captivating read. I must confess that I'm not often drawn to books selected by 'Richard and Judy', but the blurb for this one was intriguing.

It's beautifully written, easy to read and quickly draws the reader into a very different world. Almost from the outset, I found it quite dark and creepy and tension builds as layer upon layer of secrets, lies and family ties are stripped away. I enjoyed the small town setting which added to the very introspective sense feel that runs through the story. It's intense and claustrophobic, with a skilfully twisted plot and a kick in the tail.

My thanks to the publisher for a review copy via Netgalley.

Roanoke girls description leads you to want to pick up this book.
I wouldn't say the content is disappointing,it is just not what I expected it to be.
The story touches on a number of issues that some readers will not want to read about but others will want to push on through it and find out what happened in the end.
It is difficult to review this book without giving away spoilers .
It is narrated by the main character of Lane who knows what happens to Roanoke girls and is conflicted by the family history and her place within it. It explores the lives of all the girls and her grandparents.
There are characters on the periphery such as Charlie and Margaret who I felt could have been explored further and more depth provided.
I felt that there were attempts to explore the subject matter without causing offence. I am not suggesting anything more graphic was required but I felt something was missing.
The book did not grip me but I wanted to finish it.

'The Roanoke Girls' is narrated by Lane, a girl who at 16 moves into her grandparents' home after her mother's death. She develops a strong friendship with her cousin Allegra, but something feels off: the walls are lined with pictures of the other Roanoke girls - cousins and aunts - but they're all either 'gone or dead'.

Ten years later, her grandfather calls with an emergency, and Lane returns to Roanoke for the first time since that dramatic summer.

The narrative flits between Lane's teenage summer, the present, and little snippets of the other Roanoke girls' stories, mainly set around smalltown Kansas. Its an atmospheric and powerful read, with a handful of intriguing mysteries that really push the story along.

The characters are well drawn and fascinating, with complex backgrounds and motivations, which is excellent. However, the characters whose motivations are hardest to understand are never fully explored - we don't find out why Yates does the things he does, and we never fully understand why the Roanoke girls don't tell anyone (particularly Allegra) and that's an issue for me.

I think the writer attempts to explain, but without getting into the head of a character like Yates it's pretty difficult to understand him.

Overall, a great read which would appeal to fans of 'The Virgin Suicides' by Jeffrey Eugenides and 'The Last Days of Summer' by Vanessa Walters.

I'm not going to say much about the story as I don't want to give anything away but this story was difficult to put down but really uncomfortable to read! It was dark, it was twisted but not in the way you would expect,I was shocked through some of it but it just kept me wanting to read more! The story was suspenseful even though I kind of knew what was going on during the story I hoped that wasn't the case. It's a well written story and I would recommend it

Highly recommended if you like stories that keep you hooked from the first page. Real page turner and an emotional rollercoaster!

I have to say that I loved this book. Which seems a bit strange given the subject of the story, but I literally couldn't put it down.
It follows the story of Lane and her cousin Allegra, who both live in an elaborate house in a small town in America. They are the Roanoke girls and everyone wants to be a Roanoke girl…..
The story changes time frames but this doesn’t distract from the point of the story, finding out what happened to Allegra. It switches between past and present and also explains what happens to those Roanoke girls who are no longer around.
As well as mystery and intrigue there is hot steamy romance and quite a lot of controversy. This story is not for the faint hearted but if you aren’t too squeamish then this will be perfect for you.

Interesting study of a totally dysfunctional family and the heartbreak caused which is destined to repeat itself over and over. A young orphan returns to her mothers childhood home to be cared for by her grandparents. Her struggle to escape their clutches but a she ever really escape

Found this book to be well written, but not gripping.

Thought the storyline was different from other psychological thrillers, but predictable.

Thank you Netgalley, Amy Engel and Hodder & Stoughton for allowing me to read and review this book.

A dark and disturbing story which is well written and intriguing.

I have never read a story like this before, it's a tricky messed up subject so it feels strange to say it was an enjoyable read but I felt that the way it was handled and written wasn't too grotesque and over the top, you just wanted to get to the bottom of what happened to Allegra.

Thanks to NetGalley, Hodder & Stoughton, and Amy Engel for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.