The world of Mirrorland is so comprehensively detailed that the reader can imagine themselves as the young twins, Cat (Catriona) and El (Ellice) in this fantastically crafted novel, hiding away from the fears of the adult/outside world. Both safely united in their imaginary world.
However, reality must intrude on their imaginary world and the story begins when the twins are found cold, scared and alone late at night at a Scottish harbour in Edinburgh. Repeating only their (first) names and that they are waiting for a pirate ship, there is much confusion about what has happened to Catriona and Ellice.
The story then jumps forward twenty years and Cat is returning to her old childhood home, long since purchased by El and her husband Ross. Unfortunately, her return is not for a pleasant but rather tragic reason – El has gone missing while out at sea on her boat and is now presumed death. Cat refuses to believe that this is the case. Although, not having spoken in over 10 years, Cat recalls how El supposedly attempted suicide previously in order to keep Cat and Ross apart and she refers to the dramatics preformed by El on a regular basics. From here on, we learn of Mirrorland – a magical world as invented by the children and inhabited by them on a daily basis. Along with Ross and several friends who may or may not also be invented. As the novel continues, Cat’s memories become increasingly twisted and tortured, leading the reader to wonder if these memories of the past can be trusted and now if she is actually imagining her encounters in the present day with the locals.
With Cat continuing to insist that El must be alive, there is someone determined to scare her away by sending numerous threatening notes, all while she is receiving messages that tell her El is alive. Could El be sending these or maybe Mouse? But surely Mouse was only a figment of her imagination? When Cat realises that her memories cannot be trusted, she starts to realise that she is in far more danger that she could ever have imagined and that Mirrorland is not the safe haven she thought.
When imagination, fantasy and deeply rooted fear combine, the world of Mirrorland is the result, a haven and hideaway. What a wonderful world has been created by Carole Johnstone is this novel. A novel that is part psychological thriller and part gothic novel, I kept turning and turning the pages – I just could not put it down!

Twin sisters Cat and El created a make believe place under the scary house they grew up in outside Edinburgh, Scotland.
Cat lives in L.A. and has moved on with her life until El disappears whilst out sailing. Cat has no choice but to return home to find out what had happened to El.
This book was not what I was expecting - being more From the fantasy, magic realism genre - still it is well written, fully of surprises and twists.
The mystery is based in their past with El leaving clues for her sister. Cat is convinced El is still alive and is determined to solve the mystery and find her sister.
Well worth a read for those, like myself, who don’t normally read this genre.

This is a good, multi faceted and intricate story, based on the lives of mirror twins Ellice and Catriona.
It was a revelation for me to hear about mirror twins and I found the foundation for the story fascinating.
It’s a good, unpredictable thriller which had me gripped from the first chapter.
A recommendation from me for sure.

Loved this book! What’s real and what’s myth/storytelling, that is the question. This genre isn’t something I usually go for, however I really enjoyed this book and it has made me seek out more mysterious, magical genres. I loved that it was set in Scotland, as I instantly felt I could relate with it not being an American based book. I found the story to be totally riveting and I just couldn’t read it quick enough to find out what the next twist would be.

Thank you netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book. This is by far the best book I have ever read. It’s twists and turns where unreal. The storyline was a bit weird to be fair, so entertaining and sometimes dark. I found it a bit confusing at times only because it jumped from memories to reality with no in between. The ending was not as I expected but it was so much better. Very well written book great storyline and all characters where brilliant too. So worth 5stars and more. I look forward to reading more from the author in future.

I found the start of the book very confusing but it did get a little clearer and the twists at the end were exciting. Overall it was quite repetitive.

Mirrorland is a psychological thriller/mystery and it definitely had me confused at first. Even towards the end, I thought that oh it's finished now, but there was still more to surprise me.

Thank to NetGalley and Harper Collins for this advanced copy.

A creepy yet fascinating tale of twin sisters and the make-believe world they used to inhibit back in their less than idillic childhood is the opening shot of this story. The real trouble starts when one of the twins disappears and the other realizes she never really knew her sister... Highly recommended!

Cat is returning to Edinburgh, to the childhood home she and her identical twin El escaped from one blood-soaked night as they fled from their terrifyingly claustrophobic life to safety. After several years in a children’s home where they refuse to reveal any of the details of their past they haven’t spoken since a serious fallout and sent Cat running to America while El married Ross and moved back into that same house where she bizarrely recreated Mirrorland, the fantasy world of their childhood complete with the Clown Cafe and the ship in the cellar where they roamed the high seas hiding from Blackbeard the pirate. When El disappears Cat returns to the house and as the police investigation runs out of steam she starts to remember more of that strange fantasy life and realise just how much danger she’s in.
Gripping novel, switches backwards and forwards in time and between fantasy and reality revealing more and more of the terrors of their childhood which Cat has buried so deep in her sub conscious she struggles to remember what actually happened. Lots of satisfying twists, none of which took me by surprise but they still led to a satisfying conclusion.

I am not a fan of the magical realism genre, which this novel seems to resemble, so I really struggled to engage with the storyline. However, the writing is excellently atmospheric, imbuing the novel with that pervasive sense of other-worldliness to be found in dreams - or is this a nightmare? Either way, it is a very intriguing first novel.

This as a story of identical twins and what happens when one of them goes missing - is she dead or alive? They seem to have lived in a fantasy world as children and strange things happened to them. Catriona returns from her life in America to support Ross, Eli's husband in trying to find her. There are a series of emails and strange clues which Catrionsa tries to decipher. She also drinks a lot and has only a hazy memory of what really happened when she was younger. I found this to be over-complicated and thought the character development was sacrificed to the plot. I really could not be bothered to engage in the intrigue. I skim-read to the end and did not really care what happened to the women.

This was a very artfully written mind-bending book. If you liked and understood the movie “inception” you will really enjoy this. It’s full of weird and wonderful concepts that make you think. It was absolutely ingenious!
I will definitely be recommending this in book club as it’ll be interesting to see how other people perceive it.

A very confusing and contrived story which never quite took hold. I was never sure who or what I was reading about, whether it was a story within a story or the past or the present! You know there will always be confusion when twins are involved and there was certainly plenty of that! Imagination ran riot to the point where it was difficult to tell truth from fiction within the fiction!

Every once in a while you know you have read something special, something original, something so overwhelmingly beautiful and sad that you feel like your heart is breaking. Mirrorland is that something. Dark and unsettling, the more you read, the more you cannot imagine what the next chapter holds. It’s like holding your breath underwater, afraid to surface, yet more afraid to remain.

I’m not going to say it’s for fans of… or for those who like…. because this book is like no other. It twists and surprises and then twists again, till you no longer know who is telling the truth or even who is who.

Catriona and Ellice lived out their childhood in a world of their own invention. A world called Mirrorland. Populated with pirates, clowns, adventurers, Belle, Mouse and The Witch, the only other child allowed into their world was Ross. That is, until the girls are found wandering, bloody and wretched at the dock, waiting for a pirate ship to take them away.

Many years later El has gone missing from her sailboat The Redemption and Cat still remembers nothing of that fateful night when they were both 12 years old. Having spent the rest of their childhood in care, El eventually marries Ross and Cat has gone to live in California. She hasn’t been home or spoken to El since the day she left. But now Cat is forced to come back. She is certain that El is still alive, because as mirror twins, she would know if El was dead. Except no-one believes her.

Once Cat is back in the old house where she and El lived with Mum and Grandpa (El and Ross bought it back), she is forced to face her worst fears and discover the truth. But is the truth really the truth and who is leaving cards on the doorstep and emailing her clues? Convinced it is El, Cat is drawn into a nightmare world where only returning to Mirrorland can save her.

To say this book is fantastic would not do it justice. It’s just brilliant and amazing and every other adjective I can think of.

Many thanks to #NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

An absolutely mind blowing novel. Completely different to any I have read before. Telling the story of identical twins El and Cat and Ross the man they both love. As children they spent most of their time in a fantasy world called Mirrorland. I loved the way it is narrated and the depth of secrets which slowly emerge as the story unfolds. I didn't see the ending coming at all. Absolutely fantastic

I found this a strange story. It is a story of loss and abuse and a search for a life which is free of the past but I found the endless breathless repetition of similar scenes from that past rather wearing. The story of the present is tense and full of uncertainty as the main character tries to make sense of the situation and the reader is pulled along with her search for the truth. As she does this, she remembers and revisits the past.
The truth of the past is revealed almost as an aside and many of the implications must be imagined by the reader.
Recommended

I was blown away by the imagination of the story and the atmosphere it contained. A psychological thriller with elements of fantasy, but above all totally gripping. The suspense mounts throughout and only relents at the very end. Is 36 Westeryk Road in Edinburgh haunted? Is Mirrorland just a figment of the imagination? Finding out is an amazing journey. I found it totally original and hadn’t read anything quite like it before. I recommend it for anyone who likes a mystery, a thriller or even a well written, well plotted book!

This is all sorts of twisty turney,with difficulty knowing what is the truth.
Mainly as our main character can't tell what the truth is,having been brought up on stories and myths.
The house is beyond creepy,and as the truth finally emerges,it's stranger than I was imagining.
This book is dark and suspenseful,and a blinking good read... having me puzzling over the who's and the why's far after I'd put the book down for the night.

I’m really grateful for the opportunity given to read this arc and thank the publisher for the personal invitation to read and review, but having read 20% of the book, I am struggling to engage with it and have to admit that it’s not for me. That’s not to say that the writing isn’t good (it is!) or that the story line isn’t a good one. So I’m really sorry, but I’m going to admit defeat and give up.. 3 stars for the quality of the writing.

A complex book, with many plot twists and turns, that is enjoyable and reads well. I would recommend it to those who like a good thriller and a mystery as well. Cat is searching for El, because she is her identical twin. What she discovers is memories that she thought she had forgotten, and a whole lot more. I don't want to spoil the ending, so the reader will have to read it for themself, especially if they enjoy a complex thriller.