This was a great horror story. I was into it from the first chapter. Monsters, mystery, strangers, cold setting? I loved it so much!

Near the Bone<begins with Martha and William, inhabitants of an isolated cabin on a remote mountaintop. As Martha checks traps and snares, it becomes obvious that her relationship with William is less than amicable, and that she lives a difficult and lonely life. The story crackles with tension and psychological suspense even before Martha discovers the mysterious and disturbingly large footprints near the cabin. Later, she and William find a cave containing the remains of some animal's prey, arranged in a way that no animal would ever attempt. Whether you're looking for a good monster story, or psychological thriller, Near the Bone has you covered

I've been curious about Christina Henry for years and I'll definitely be going back to read her dark fairy tale stories after this one. Her knowledge of fairy tale structure worked well in creating a foreboding atmosphere in Near the Bone, as well as building the image of an inimitable monster for the reader. She does a great job of making the unforgiving environment a realistic hazard for the characters, which only heightens the stakes in their ordeal. There are loose ends that aren't tied up as neatly as they might be in a book like Hunted by Darcy Coates, or the near-perfect The River at Night by Erica Ferencik, but the latest novel from Christina Henry is a thrill ride that will find a way to scare its reader no matter what they fear most.

Mattie has been in the cabin in the woods with William for what seems like a lifetime. Sometimes she has fleeting thoughts of being a little girl, playing with Heather and doing typical little girl things -- but William always tells her that those are just tempting hallucinations planted in her mind by the devil, and why should she doubt him? He is her world: her husband, her disciplinarian, the only human with whom she has any contact. Plus, asking William questions will only invite further beatings.

But one day, when she is out in the woods checking the small game traps, she discovers an animal that has been brutally killed, but not eaten, unusual behavior for a predator. As she and William investigate what kind of predator could be sharing their woods and behaving in a way too organized and cruel for an animal, her fear of this predator begins eclipsing her fear of William.

Who is her greater threat? William or the creature? Can she survive either?

I read this book in two sittings but could have easily read it in one if my schedule permitted. An excellent mashup of creature horror and psychological human horror.

I would happily read another horror tale from this author.

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read this in exchange for an honest review.

I recently finished The Ghost Tree by the same author and loved it, and I was so thrilled that I loved this one just as much! A sad and scary tale of domestic abuse twisted together with some creature horror. I thought this was very well done, though I did want just a little more of the creature part of the story. Also big trigger warning for some seriously upsetting domestic violence scenes. 4.5 stars.

This could have been a really good creature horror book or a really good heavy issue book, but it suffered from combining the plots. I stayed invested to see how it all played out, but it never hit that true horror tone for me since Mattie is already so traumatized by William by the time the monster in the woods comes into play that all of her emotions seem muted. The descriptions and behavior of the monster were both creepy and intriguing, but so many of its actions and presence was indirect or done off the page that it kept it from being as frightening as intended.

The first few chapters were very well written and had me wondering exactly what century the book was set and what was going on with Mattie and William's past, but unfortunately, the quality didn't last after the introduction of the creature. There were some truly convenient and random plot points further into the book that helped resolve everything a little too well.

3.5 stars! Solid horror read. From reading the description I did not expect this to be a kidnapping story and that itself was way more traumatic than the “big bad”. I was way more scared of William than I ever was of the creature and I think that’s what the author intended. It was a really good comparison of man vs beast and I think that was what it did best. I don’t know if I would consider this a traditional horror read because while you do spend a lot of time reading about how to escape the “monster” you spend more time in Mattie’s head trying to understand the last 18 years of her life.

And then I started to read and could not put it down!! I am so happy to have found a new author to read. And yes I certainly did think it would be a YA book but it wasn't! Great story as much as you can get in one sitting because I couldn't stop for money! I love a book about the outdoors and then to top it off even better it had snow. Then it has people getting lost people having monster after then, plus a crazy man who is a monster. OMG, I can't tell you about it and spoil it for you so go read this book. If anyone has other books similar to this one please come back and tell me the names of those books. I read alot and it's hard to find something that I haven't already read . I can't give names of other books or authors in this review but I have some good ones and now I have this one to tell you that it is right up on my high adventure book list! Now I am going to go find some more of Christina Henry's books. Thank you NetGalley and publisher!!

Anyone who loves creature horror will no doubt enjoy this book. It has all the makings of a great horror book - monsters, fear, gore, and an atmosphere of isolation and terror.

Mattie doesn't remember how she got here, but she's been living alone with monstrous, abusive William for over a decade, up in the isolated mountains. What if William is not the only monster up here? When hikers looking for a rumored creature cross William and Mattie's path, events begin snowballing into a fast-paced fight for survival. Mattie has been surviving for a long time, but will she be able to survive this new terror?

I thought the combined mystery of Mattie's past and the presence of a creature in the forest was super interesting, and could not put this down once I started it late at night. Fair warning, there is an abundance of violent domestic abuse and trauma, so avoid if this is triggering for you.