I went into this book expecting a typical thriller, but was pleasantly surprised that I got a fantastic horror novel instead.

Julie disappeared 3 years ago while on a solo hike in the woods. When she return suddenly with no memory of where she’s been, her 3 best college friends organize a girls trip at a weird but beautiful lodge in the middle of nowhere. What happens on their trip will change all of their lives drastically.

I can’t really say much more without spoilers, but what happens is shocking, gruesome, and creepy as hell. Harrison imbues the story with an atmosphere of ‘did I accidentally eat some mushrooms before reading this?’ and I loved every second of it. I cannot wait to read her next book already!

<i>The Return</i> caught my eye as a mystery with a touch of <i>The Shining</i>. Julie disappeared while hiking and she’s assumed to be dead. Two years later she returns, with no memory at all of her time away. Her three best friends are ecstatic. They plan a girls weekend away, in an eclectic hotel, where they plan to spend 4 days drinking, catching up and finding out exactly what happened to Julie while she was away.

I wanted to like this novel but it just fell flat. I couldn’t decide if this was supposed to be a ghost story, a murder mystery, a thriller, a Shining rip? The characters had no dimension, the story had no solid closure <b>at.all</b>, and I STILL have no idea what happened to Julie while she was away.

THE RETURN is the first novel I have read by Rachel Harrison. To say that I was impressed is an understatement--this novel grabbed me from the start, and I didn't want to put it down until I had ALL the answers. Of course, that meant I was completely invested until the very end.

". . . being in this city of millions of people was worse than being alone in my apartment . . ."

We have a close group of friends--Elise, Julie, Mae, and Molly--each now in their respective careers/locations, but still connected to each other. When the only married woman, Julie, disappears suddenly, her loss is immediately felt by the others. The only ones who refuse to believe she's dead are her "best friend", Elise, and Julie's husband, Tristan.

Then, two years later, she returns with no memory of her lost time.

"Two years to the day she went missing, Tristan found her sitting on the porch swing . . . "

There were so many aspects I really enjoyed about this story. The primary one being the dynamics between the four friends. Despite their differences, their past has bound them closer than any family ties ever could. They know more about each other--and accept themselves, faults and all--better than anyone else in their lives.

". . . You can't erase your past when there are pieces of it scattered inside other people."

When they reunite at a remote, "quirky themed" inn after Julie's reappearance, the relationships, personalities, and comedic banter really shine through. Through it all, the fact that Julie is . . . "off" . . . in so many ways continues to gnaw away at the other characters and readers, alike.

"We're all getting used to each other again . . . Not to mention we had a funeral for Julie, and now she's here . . ."

While it becomes more and more apparent that something is seriously "wrong" with Julie, other events are happening in the inn that intensify the feeling of apprehension and dread for whatever the inevitable outcome will bring to light.

All the while the atmosphere is changing, bringing with it more sinister undercurrents, the emotions and bonds between the friends is becoming more clear to the reader. This, the psychological aspect, is what captivated my attention the most. It was like being given a private window into the thoughts and feelings of others. I can't express enough how well accomplished this was, and how it drew me so much closer to these characters.

. . . The more you love someone . . . it's easier for them to hurt you . . . their love will inevitably fall short of your love."

Overall, this first novel for me from Rachel Harrison instantly made me a fan. The only slight critique I had is that things seemed to slow down significantly around the half-way point when it focused exclusively on one character's past for a bit too long. Other than this, the writing style was very well paced, and the characters felt "alive" in a way that the readers can easily become attached to.

I haven't even touched on the ending and the differences in Julie--this is purposeful. I feel that to allude to anything more would potentially spoil the experience for others. This is a novel you simply need to experience first-hand.

". . . hurt turns to hate. To love someone is to hate them, a little bit. We hate everyone we really love . . . "

Highly recommended.

Three friends gather at the funeral of their friend who disappeared on a hike. They have waited for some news for two years but then with no warning she reappears, not knowing anything of where she has been for all that time. Thrilled that she is back they go on a trip to a remote hotel in the mountains to reconnect. The hotel is creepy, their friend Julie is creepy and then the weird stuff starts happening. This is THE EXORCIST meets THE SHINING. Scary, gory and one I wouldn't recommend reading on a vacation to the Adirondacks. My thanks to the publisher for the advance copy.

I would describe The Return by Rachel Harrison as a Chick-lit and Horror mash-up. Part Girls Trip and part unimaginable horror tale. I could not put this book down and I know I will be having nightmares. If you like horror, give this one a try.

After Julie disappears on a solo hiking trip in Acadia National Park, her best friends Mae, Molly, and Elise are devastated. As the years pass, the three move on from the tragic event, when suddenly and mysteriously Julie returns to her home with no memory of what has happened or how long she has been gone. The group decides to take a relaxing getaway to a remote luxury hotel in upstate New York to reconnect and find out what really happened to Julie deep in the woods of Maine. But some things are better left untold.

Honestly, for me, The Return had a painfully slow start. It took until more than two-thirds of the way through the book to get to the actual horror part of the novel, then it seemed a little rushed to get through that. If I hadn't had an inkling that something truly sinister had happened to Julie and was going to happen to her friends, I don't know that i would have been able to finish it.

“You can’t erase your past when there are pieces of it scattered inside other people.”

I don’t read many thrillers anymore because I find most of them to be disappointing. Once you know the basic formula, you pretty much know them all. But not this one. This one is different. This one takes the classic tropes of a psychological thriller and infuses it with good old-fashioned horror. It’s original, it’s creepy as hell, it’s vivid and visceral and sad. A moving allegory for grief and what it means to move on after the loss of a loved one.

Wonderfully creepy and gruesome. I was poised for a bait and switch and for the zombie aspect to ultimately be metaphorical or mental, which means I think it took me well into the climax to understand that this was all happening for real. But I'm delighted by a book that doesn't pull its punches like this, and the characters and setting were well-drawn!

Thank you to Berkley Publishing Group and NetGalley for this advanced reader copy.

Even though this is categorized as horror, the premise seemed like a classic thriller to me. Which was silly, because it's definitely horror. Definitely. Which I LOVED.

This isn't a perfect book but it's a damn good one. I was hooked from the get-go and couldn't stop turning pages. It was eerie, unsettling, and mysterious. I loved how realistic the relationships between the four women were and the way each of their friendships morphed and changed throughout the novel. Honestly, the longer I read it the more I liked it.

If you're a fan of horror and especially want to support women in horror, I would highly recommend. This is a strong debut and a new author whose work I'll be following.

'the return' is a haunting & dread filled debut that really kept me in suspense. This book follows a group of best friends after one of them disappears. She returns 2 years later with no recollection of where she was or what happened to her. They plan a girl's weekend at a hip boutique hotel and everything gets more strange from there. The atmosphere at the hotel was excellent - the sense of dread and unease seeped through the pages and I found myself spooked reading alone at night. I really enjoyed this, and was pleasantly surprised that it was more on the horror side than the thriller side. I will definitely be following this author!

So this review will be sorted as 2019 post. I’ve read this last month. My last book review of 2019. A very good book I ended my 2019. It’s a mystery, thriller, and horror?! Wow I don’t really read much of that un.ess it’s from King.
A group of friend get together after one friend reappears from being missing for two years. It’s great. A great excuse for a getaway right? I love the setting and description of the hotel they are staying. Very unique and or course funny and weird to imagine. It’s easy to imagine the description but it’s somewhat eerie.
Elise, the protagonist of the story, is a gal with a mess of a life. She regrets tons of things and yet I cannot feel sorry for her. It’s like she wants to stay in that depressing setting in her life. I Believe she can be like her friends, happy with they’re choices they have chose for themselves. I feel like she was a slacker out of her 3 friends.
Her friend’s personality seems pretty unique and I enjoyed their traits and what they all bring on the table when they’re together.
Overall, this plot was perfect for my taste. I was on edge for wanting to know what will happen next. It was a great book I read while I was sick. I give this book four stars out of five. Moderate pace reading, very entertaining, and it makes me wanna have a getaway on my own 🤔

I read a third of the book but just can't force myself to read anymore. I just hate the writing. First person is difficult to do well--it requires a really strong, compelling voice and this one just doesn't have that. I found the characters annoying and the story slow. I'm not going to finish it so will not post any reviews. Sorry--this one was just not for me.

Friend goes missing for 2 years and returns just a little bit off. The reunion takes place in a themed hotel in the isolated Catskills. Creepiness ensues. Characters were a bit one dimensional and unlikeable. However, I enjoy reading the author and would recommend this to her fans.

Julie goes missing and after some time her friends and husband have a funeral for her because she was never found, but two years later she reappears and she doesn't remember at all where she was.

I found this book very creepy and at times I was actually really scared which I really liked from the book, however this book was really strange. I don't even know what to say about this book!

While I enjoyed this story, I did not like the ending at all and felt that it almost completely ruined the story for me, but because I did enjoy it until then I gave 5 stars. It was a very chilling and cold read, which I love in horrors. The writing was good and overall it was all done very well, but the ending fell short. I still found myself going through the pages quickly, so not fair to write to poor or a review! Overall, a good read, which may not or may upset you at the end, but worth giving it a shot!
Will make sure I buzz it up!

I have to say this book was good, I mean I enjoyed it though at times I would shake my head at the way the women were acting. I did like how everything came together. Their friend goes missing and then all of a sudden comes back from wherever she disappeared too. Yet, she isn't the same as she was once before. You gotta wonder what the heck happened to her.

As the story unfolds we learn what truly happened and I have to say I would have hit my friend over the head with something and left. Yes, I am that kind of person.....you acting weird, teeth falling out, eating meat, smelling like death. Listen here homie G something is WRONG with you.....yet they are too scared and afraid to say anything to her, it is like they want to tiptoe around her or better yet just talk about her behind her back. Whenever they would eat or go meet at the bar they never seemed to try hard enough to find out why one person wasn't there on time. Let me tell you my girls and I go out to lunch they are not there. I am calling, texting trying to see where they are at, these girls just kind of brushed it off. Which was too weird. Just overall the friendship was wack.

These friends drove me crazy, they haven't truly talked to each other in years yet all of sudden Julie returns and they are going to stay at a hotel room that Elise couldn't truly afford and get to know one another again. Elise was a character that I wanted to like as she was truly a good friend to Julie yet it was like she was more worried about keeping up with the lavish lifestyle of her other friends.

It was interesting to see the inner secrets that each person held dear to them.

I truly wanted to know why Elise had this big issue with her thermostat yet she never wanted to bother anyone about it? Like girl you just spent money you don't have and your room is not too your liking. Say something, don't be quiet about it. Honestly, I could go on and on about these characters and the way they drove me crazy by the way they acted to how messy they were with each other.

The book does have a supernatural touch to it once we get the dirt on Julie, it was something that I didn't think about.

I was interested in wanting to learn more about the one scene where it is mentioned that a lady at a motel in Indiana recorded her own murder, I have never heard of this so it did pique my interest.

This was the weirdest book. I did not enjoy it all. It was way too wordy. It also had this childish high school pettiness vibe to it between these women.

Arc provided by publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

OMG. I am so royally disappointed in this book. I had really high hopes for it. Yet, it was a "sleeper". There was nothing interesting about this book or the characters. In fact, I did not like any of the women.

I found it hard to believe that none of them really questioned what was happening to them or why Julie was acting so different from her prior version of herself. Not just in the mannerisms but also in her appearance.

The events that took place within this story were on a "goosebumps" level. Nope, nothing scary about that. As much as I did not like the characters or found the lack of "horror" in the story I was determined to finish this book. It did not get better and the ending was as sad.

The Return is everything I hoped for. Creepy, intriguing, HAUNTING. If this is Rachel Harrison's debut then I am going to be jumping at the chance to read her second because she writes FANTASTICALLY! I recommend this to readers who like books that keep you up at night and looking over your shoulder..

I stumbled into this book with a wildly incorrect understanding of what the book was about. I’m not sure if it wasn’t intentional on the marketing or not, but this is a surreal / horror book. It has very little to do with women’s fiction, mystery / thriller, etc. It also dragged and dragged until exploding into this horror slant, which left nothing explained and just served to make me feel like a weird voyeur. Perhaps the “darkness” was meant to be some kind of metaphor for what actually happened to her? I don’t know. Either way, this was difficult to read and there was zero pay off for all the work.