1.5 stars...

This initially was marketed as a Mystery/Thriller, but the amount of surrealism and magical realism that was in this novel seems better marketed to a dark fantasy/mystery. The thriller aspect was virtually zero until the end, and the rest of the novel is so full of intense, confusing flashbacks that are intermingled with the rest of the test, so you are constantly confused reading the entire book.

I'm really not interested in a recollection of a child's make-believe world they made up to escape a damaged childhood. I really thought this would more heavily rely on a thriller aspect and piecing together clues, but I was sorely disappointed.

I was so lost for most of the novel and my interest waned immediately after just starting the book, and it never really picked up for me. I had to skim a lot of the book to just get to the points that made sense. I was not keen on all of the heavy imagery used to describe Mirrorland and it's inhabitants.

Cat goes back to Scotland after her sister goes missing, and we are thrown back into intense flashbacks of this make believe world and her memories of a haunted pass. The mystery of trying to find her missing sister is so poorly mentioned that it really didn't feel like a mystery at all. This novel touched on a lot of tropes and was...kind of unoriginal in my opinion. I saw through the "mirage" of Mirrorland after about 2 mins, so it was just overdone after the first few chapters.
*Thanks to Netgalley and Scribner for an eARC of this novel. All opinions are my own.*

Mirrorland is the story of El and Cat, mirror twins from Scotland. When El goes missing on her boat one night, Cat returns after twenty years away and is confronted with all the feelings and secrets that caused her to flee when they were teenagers. When Cat is emailed a series of clues related to her sister's disappearance, they take her on a whirlwind that leads to some startling memories.

Although Mirrorland had a phenomenal premise, the narration struggled to keep my interest until the last third of the book. The ending resolved all the plot points that it needed to, but the elements of Cat and El's childhood were extremely confusing for most of the story. I liked the book by the end, but I could see many readers abandoning it before getting to the parts where I thought it really got good.

Mirrorland by Carole Johnstone is not my usual choice of novel but the plot summary intrigued me. The story is about twin sisters, mirror twins, as their mother called them. They were brought up in a house filled with imagination and make believe characters. There was even a doorway to what the sisters called Mirrorland where they lived out adventures on the high seas as pirates or sharpshooters in a wester town.
The story is told from the view point of one of the sisters, Cat, who is called back to her home where her twin sister El and husband lived. Her sister has gone missing and is feared to be dead. Cat knows that cannot be true because as a mirror twin she would KNOW if something had happened to her sister. As police investigate the mystery, Cat starts receiving emails directing her to clues around the house that could have only come from El.
I enjoyed this book way more than I had anticipated. The way the author talks about Mirrorland and how the twins grew up with all of these characters really had me second guessing if Mirrorland was actually some sort of real magical place the sisters had created. The story had me hooked and was very hard to put down. I loved the original plotline and twists. Definitely a five star on this book!

This was very weird and confusing. Definitely not my cup of tea. It had potential but I didn’t like any of the characters.

Thank you to Netgalley and Scribner for the ARC.

🌟🌟🌟 3/5 stars
Publication Date: 4/20/21

Mirrorland is a dark, disturbing tale of identical twins, El and Cat, who live in a large, gothic style home in Edinburgh. In the house, the twins create a magical, make-believe world of Mirrorland that contains pirates and witches. When the girls grow up, a huge falling out separates them for years. However, when Cat receives the news that El is missing, she is forced to return home and to Mirrorland.

Although the plot sounds right up my alley, I had a lot of trouble connecting with the story. The fantastical elements to the story didn’t completely work for me and I found myself wanting the book to focus more on El’s disappearance. However, I appreciated the creative spin on the typical thriller storyline.

Overall, Mirrorland is an atmospheric, imaginative thriller that is sure to divide some readers.

ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is a multi layered and well crafted psychological suspense novel.

I don't tend to read much of this genre but I'm glad I experienced this book.

The characters, particularly the main character, are fully developed. The suspense builds and there were several reveals I didn't see coming. I highly recommend reading this.

I received a free copy from Netgalley. I am leaving my honest review.

Reading this incredible thriller felt like drifting through a foggy maze, lost in the fantastical world of Mirrorland that twins El and Cat created when they were children in their Edinburgh home. Pushed apart in adulthood from unforeseen circumstances, betrayal, and a man, the twins go on for years and oceans without each other, until El, who had moved back into their childhood home with her husband, suddenly goes missing. With strategic pacing and a vivid imagination, Johnstone thrusts you down the rabbit hole, to Mirrorland, unable--and unwilling--to escape.

As much as I tried, I just could not get into this story. I read almost half of it but I could not tell you what I read. Every time I would pick it back up I would have to go back at least a paragraph.

Twin sisters Cat and El have been estranged for years. Living in separate parts of the world trying to put their past behind them.

Until El goes missing….

Cat quickly returns home to Edinburgh from California. She refuses to believe that something has happened to El. But the investigation of her disappearance is underway. Could El’s husband be responsible? A man they both have a history with.

I admittedly had a hard time connecting with this book. There were parts I enjoyed such as the actual investigation. But when the storyline switched to their playhouse of Mirrorland I found myself lost and confused. The book included a bit too much emphasis on magical realism such that I had trouble following it.

There are a lot of mixed reviews for this book. I hope your connection with the characters and storyline will be stronger than mine.

A buddy read with Susanne.

Posted to: https://books-are-a-girls-best-friend...

Thank you to NetGalley and Scribner for an ARC to read and review.

thought the story was going one way and then it twists! El and Cat are identical twins with a past. El and disappeared and Cat comes back to her childhood home to find disturbing memories and threats . El can't be dead or Cat is sure she would feel it as mirror twins. And El is known to play tricks like this before. There childhood friend Ross and El's husband is stricken with grief and loss. But he is also in love with Cat and she him.
Threatening notes, cryptic emails and the feeling of being watched surround Cat. Very worth a read to find out what has happened to these twins.

Cat is summoned back to her childhood home in Edinburgh from her home in California when her mirror twin sister, El goes missing from a day out on her boat. El and her husband, Ross, purchased the home that El and Cat grew up in, where they lived a bizarre childhood with their mum and grandpa. In their youth, the twins often hid in Mirrorland, a dark fantasy world of pirates, mischief, and ships to escape an unhappy upbringing. Ross and the mysterious shipmate, Mouse, were their constant companions in their imaginary world. Ross eventually drives a wedge between the sisters who both seek his attention; an issue that causes the sisters to part ways for years as adults. As the story of El's disappearance unravels, Cat begins to receive anonymous notes and emails warning her that Ross knows something that he's not telling her. When El's ship is found submerged in the ocean, things really spin out of control for Cat and Ross. This story is dark and has many twists and turns right to the end.

Mirrorland was an okay read. I think this would be great for someone who really loves a dark and creepy fantasy. I liked the story line, but I didn't really feel like the author explained what Mirrorland was well enough to get the full effect of Cat and El's childhood. It's hard to understand what is real and what is imaginary. I also found the names of the rooms in the house really confusing. There just wasn't enough explanation to fully grasp the fantasy element. I feel like that was a missed opportunity to really get the reader intrigued.

Review published on blog: https://books-are-a-girls-best-friend.com/

Smoke and Mirrors, Fiction and Fantasy.

“Mirrorland'' is a world created by Identical twins, El and Cat as children growing up in a Manse in Scotland. It's a marvelous, outlandish, and wondrous world where El and Cat could hide, safe from harm, even though it was inhabited by clowns, witches, and pirates.

Call me crazy, but I personally would have been hiding from Mirrorland, not the other way around!

Once best friends, the two sisters had a falling out as adults with El staying in Edinburgh and Cat moving to California. Now however it’s too late to make amends. El has gone missing and Cat must return to Scotland and the one place she swore she’d never return to try and find her: “Mirrorland.”

Cat’s apprehension about returning and being home is palpable and had me wondering if Mirrorland would swallow her whole. Admittedly, her stepping foot into a room called “The Clown Cafe” was enough to give this gal pause.

As the police investigation into El’s disappearance ensues, it becomes clear that all is not what it seems.

Suspenseful, tense, and truly fantastical - there is a whole lot going on in this dark, atmospheric tale. While parts of this story involving El’s disappearance were truly gripping, some of the fantastical elements were a bit too much for me. The ending however was stupendous!

A buddy read with Kaceey that gave us much to discuss.

Thank you to Mimi Chan and the team at Goodreads, as well as NetGalley and Scribner for the arc.

Published on Goodreads and Twitter.

A dark and twisty tale of twins who created a magical land-Mirrorland-to help them cope with the traumas of their childhood. As adults who don't speak anymore, Cat is pulled back into their creation when El goes missing, but this time Cat must see Mirrorland for what it really is, before it's too late.

I was confused here and there while reading this, not knowing if something really existed or was just part of the kids fairy tale. As I got further into it, things made more sense, but the whole story just did not flow well for me. I disliked most of the characters, and really didn't like the story until the very end. Not my favorite book, but not the worst I have ever read.

I was pulled in, though there are more holes in the plot than a pasta strainer and not one likeable character. A+ for an engrossing story that demands you finish it, though (and clowns, to terrify me.)

Mirrorland by Carole Johnstone is a dark and twisted psychological thriller about two traumatized girls who create their own make believe land of pirates, witches, and clowns to help them survive the very real threats within their childhood home. The book is complicated because there is an unreliable narrator, Catriona, who is being threatened and taunted to remember the horrors of her childhood in order to help her solve the murder of her twin sister Ellice. The sisters were estranged when she went missing and it may be only through remembering the worst time of their lives that Cat will finally have a chance at understanding the sacrifices and motives behind the ones she has lost. I requested this ARC because the plot sounded so intriguing and because it revolved around twin sisters. There is something special about the twin bond that can lead either to fierce jealousy or loyalty. This book reminded me of another thriller, the Girl in the Mirror, which is ironically also about twin sisters with a plot that includes a missing person believed lost at sea and a love triangle. Both novels are excellent novels, but Mirrorland is far deeper and darker. I admit that I felt lost in Mirrorland at times because I was honestly not sure if what Cat was describing was real or imagined. Did they really have a pirate ship? Were they really running from Blackbeard? Their mother also has significant trauma so she keeps the girls on edge preparing for emergency. Along the way we learn the girls finally escape Mirrorland at 12 years of age. They are found wondering around the docks at Granton Harbour (the same harbour where her sister goes missing years later). When they are unable or unwilling to answer any questions about their names or what happened to them, they are placed into foster care, thereby starting their second lives. The reader learns about the timeline through letters and memories and we do not get the full grasp of what the sisters endured until the latter chapters. We learn that someone is sending Cat messages and trying to get her to follow the clues to discover the murderer. For the longest time, Cat believed her sister could not really be dead. She understandably fell apart when she discovered that her sister was not playing a game - she may really be gone. Readers will find themselves guessing at what really happened at the home on 36 Westeryk Road and what really happened when El sailed out on her boat, the Redemption, that day. Readers will try to keep guessing about what is happening. I promise you will guess wrong. I applaud this book’s ability to continue to shock me until the very end. I cannot wait until it is released so I can talk about the spoilers and process the ending. Thank you to #netgalley for the ARC. #mirrorland I will be recommending this to friends who enjoy thrillers and suspense, but I will warn them about potential triggers of child abuse and trauma. 3.5 rounded up to 4.

A psychological thriller featuring twin sisters, their childhood friend-turned-husband to one of them, and a host of imaginary friends... or are they? The story is convoluted, much of it is superfluous, but it all blends together to form a page turner that kept me up past my bedtime. Why only three stars? The ending was a bit too perfect and one of the secondary characters seemed to exist just so said ending could happen.

4 stars--I really liked it. Content warnings for domestic abuse and child abuse. (Seriously.)

When this started, I was a bit confused about where the characters were and what exactly was going on. This is intentional, though, and eventually all became clear. This is a dark book of family secrets and jealousy (a <i>very</i> dark book). Despite some uneven pacing, I found myself devouring this book, needing to know what happened next. It's a feverish read, with a satisfying ending.

I received this review copy from the publisher on NetGalley. Thanks for the opportunity to read and review; I appreciate it!

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to preview Mirrorland by Carole Johnstone. The plot centers on two sisters that are twins. They have endured terrible things in their lives and found solace in a fantasy world. When one of them disappears, the other one must find out what happened and the mystery world opens up and strange things start to happen.
Atmospheric and some times i found it uncomfortable with some of the topics of child abuse.
3 stars.

Dark and twisty. A domestic thriller with some touches of magic. A creepy house twin sisters this has a little of everything

A debut novel that will keep you in suspense until the very end!

After a falling out, identical twins Cat and El have been estranged for years. When Cat learns that El is missing, she returns to her old home and soon finds herself surrounded by memories. As children, Cat and El had a make-believe world that they called Mirrorland, which was full of pirates, clowns, and witches. Cat recalls things she hasn’t thought of in years, and begins to realize that the line between fiction and fantasy isn’t as clear as she once thought.

This book was so suspenseful and the twists and turns of the plot were very engaging—I never felt bored! There is so much to pick apart and analyze in this book. I was just as confused as Cat as she examined her memories. I loved the way that she worked through the clues El left for her as the story progressed.

The characters were very well written and the book was well paced. The start of the book was slightly overwhelming to me, just because I wasn’t sure what was real and what wasn’t. I quickly grew comfortable with the style of the novel and began to enjoy it, however. The writing was beautiful and descriptive, without being overwhelming. I found myself submersed in imagining Mirrorland and the house. I thought the emotion of the characters was very believable, and I certainly felt the creepy vibe a little in some parts! In all, the writing and story is unique.

I am going to be keeping an eye out for more books by Carole Johnstone—this debut is one I will remember for sure!

**Thank you to NetGalley and Scribner for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.