2 stars
DNF @ 9.5%

A small town, serial killer, and family secrets? Sounded totally up my alley... unfortunately, <i>A Dark and Secret Place</i> is plagued by a confusing writing style, that I just couldn't get behind. I found the opening to be very disorientating with a bunch of names being thrown at you and various perspectives that I immediately had to get behind. I think that you will enjoy this if you don't mind getting head first into the action, setting, characters, and multiple perspectives. For me, this was just a bit much. With so much stress going on in my life and the world, I just don't have time to read a book that makes me more confused and doesn't interest me.

Okay I tried - I was really creepily intrigued by the blurb for this one, but I was turned off by the story from the beginning... I don't know if I'm just not in the right place, but for some reason this one just didn't sit well with me and I could not get into the story. It felt unnecessarily gruesome and yet the characterization and plot felt flat and plodding, making the gruesomeness all the more discordant and a standout in a way that I found uncomfortable. I may just be the wrong audience for this one, because it seems that most reviewers really like it, so definitely read some more reviews before making your own decision... But for me, this one just didn't do it.

A Dark and Secret Place by Jen Williams is a new way of writing for the author as she is usually a Fantasy writer. I think she did a great job.

This thriller is about a young woman who's mother has recently passed away. The daughter Heather had moved away several years prior and did not have a good relationship with her mother. When she went back to her hometown for the burial she comes to find out that there are many hidden secrets.
Her mother had a previous life that she had no idea about. She had written to a serial killer who was currently incarcerated on a regular basis. There are many twist to this story. The ending is suspenseful and gripping.
The only downfalls that I can find with the book is it became a little boring in the middle. This quickly picked back up towards the end. The author also mention the color yellow several times during the story. Now these are not anything to make the book bad. I still gave it a 4/5 on goodreads and really that would have been a 4.5/5 if able.

The book description ~ “For readers of Jane Harper and Rachel Caine” …. With THAT, I did not need to read more!

Heather Evans has returned home due to her mother’s suicide. When Heather was younger and living at home her relationship with her mother was toxic. She left home after her father died and things have not gotten better in the mother/daughter department. But the suicide was something she did not suspect. .
While she was organizing her mother’s things she is baffled when she finds letters from a serial killer, who has been in prison for over twenty years.
Now copycat murders are happening.
She is now trying to find out more about her mother and her relationship with Michael Reave, the serial killer.

Story totally had me from the get-go but then it got slow and disturbing. I am a big psychological/thriller as well as a mystery/thriller fan. I am okay with dark and creepy, but not so much with disturbing.

Glad I hung in there ~ the ending had me on the edge of my chair.
Always love reading the Author’s Note as well as their Acknowledgements.
In this …Author’s Note ~ Ms. Williams states that this story is a different genre for her. Also she certainly never expected to be writing her acknowledgements in the middle of a worldwide pandemic.
Hmm ~ well said! True, story was a bit different for me and yep certainly never in my lifetime did I fear I would live and deal with a pandemic for what is now nearly 10 months!

My first [author: Jen Williams] novel but I certainly will read another!

(Note: I read this at Christmas ~ it is more a Halloween read than a Christmas story!)

Want to thank NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for this early release granted to me in exchange for an honest professional review. Opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for June 8, 2021

While I enjoyed the idea behind the story and some execution of the plot, it failed to keep my attention for long periods of time. The first chapter started off strong and grabbed my attention right away, but the second chapter fell short. The author worked too hard to tell the reader that there was something more behind the main character's mother's death. It was almost hard to read. This got better, as well as the descriptions, as the book went on, and I enjoyed the POV shifts in certain chapters, but again, it routinely failed to keep my attention. I would put the book down and end up forgetting about it for a few days. I never felt an avid need to continue reading.

The plot was interesting, and perhaps this novel just wasn't my cup of tea. I would recommend anyone looking for a mystery to check it out and see if it's for them. I just wasn't wowed by it, though.

This is a good’n. Williams’ writing style and story development remind me a lot of my favorite author’s (Karin Slaughter). This story is reminiscent of many fictional thrillers, but really picks up around halfway. The characters come into their own and engage in really intriguing dialogue. And I definitely suggest this one to people who love characters that make decisions that have you face palming yourself every 5 minutes.

A DARK AND SECRET PLACE lives up to its title; it’s dark as a Grimm fairy tale and brimming with secrets the reader will race to reveal. With its terrifying story of a serial killer, and the woman who’s recently uncovered her mother’s connection to him, this novel will appeal to—and deeply chill—fans of true crime.

This was a great little thriller! Definitely has some morbid parts, but overall I really liked it. The plot was pretty unique, and I didn't see the twist coming at the end. It was entertaining.

I don't really have any strong feelings about this one. It was quite good. Enjoyable while it lasted. After the last page, I felt satisfied, and also eager to read another book.
Nothing bad to say. Just a middle-of-the-road standard thriller that is sure to entertain fans of the genre.

TW: suicide, domestic abuse

What a fantastic read! It had me on the edge of my seat! I loved the stories and I loved the twists. Overall this book is one I’ll definitely be letting people know about!

This book begins after the death of the main character's mother. She discovers that her mother has been corresponding with a serial killer. This book is more psychological thriller than mystery. Loved it. I especially enjoyed the excerpts from a book of fairy tales which fit in nicely with the main story line. I don't want to say too much in this review about the story as the twists at the end were so exciting. I was able to guess at some of the information that was revealed at the end but couldn't have anticipated all of it! I highly recommend this book to anyone that loves a surprise ending. Everything was wrapped up nicely at the end of the book. A very thrilling read.

DNF at 30% and not rated

Please look at other reviews for a more comprehensive look at the book.

I've been working on reading this story for weeks and while I loved the premise, nothing about the plot or the characters made me interested in reading any further. While there were some plot points I found myself invested in, the overall beginning of this story read as very dry rather than creepy.

I don't think I am the audience for this book and I can't bring myself to finish it to confirm.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for allowing me to read an e-arc of "A Dark and Secret Place" by Jen Williams. This book is set to come out 8 June 2021

Not gonna lie, this one wigged me out. I wasn't expecting the twists and turns, but man did they land hard. A Dark and Secret Place is an excellent book group choice or just a solo journey into the dark.

I finish most books, but I didn't finish this, I abandoned it 42% through, because I just didn't care enough about the characters and what was happening in the story.

I found it slow and plodding, rather than creepy. I tried to get into it, but it just didn't get under my skin, it didn't make me want to carry on reading..

There are plenty of positive reviews though, so don't dismiss the book based on my review - read the other reviews before deciding.

3 stars--I liked the book. (Content warnings for suicide and really, really icky animal violence. There are also tons of murdered women, but that's sort of the norm for this genre...)

I really enjoyed the dark fairy tales and folklore woven into this narrative--also the hints about creepy cults doing creepy things in the woods. I really dig those tropes, and I wish the book had fleshed this out more--what the cult was doing specifically, what they wanted, and so on.

I also enjoyed Heather, the main character, and her moments of fury. I'm not a violent person (I'm a peaceful wimp, really), but I was cheering on her moments of rage against men being gross.

A few things bothered me: this is yet another book that seems to glorify serial killers, making them and their unrealistic yet interesting methodologies the center of the narrative, and sometimes Heather makes some too-stupid-to-live decisions. Still, I was enthralled, and devoured this book quickly.

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

An entertaining and thrilling story of serial killer genre. The plot and the suspense with the final twist is good. The characters are well written. But the events become unbelievable as the story progresses with no due explanations, so much so that I was wondering if it is a supernatural thriller. If that part is altered it would be an amazing read, with not many able to guess the suspense. 3.5 rounded up to 4 stars.

Just not my cup of tea, i found the characters laacking somewhat and the premise was a bit slow.

Many thanks to Net Galley, Crooked Lane and Jen Williams for my ARC.

I am someone who reads a lot of thriller books and can generally predict what happens. The ending was definitely not predictable and I was kept guessing through the entire book. Definitely not a “read alone in the dark” book!

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

A very entertaining and gripping book that is sure to keep you at the edge of your seat.

Heather, a thirty something year old journalist had no idea that her mother Colleen, who recently committed suicide had so many secrets, that is, until now. Upon returning to bury her now deceased mother Heather finds letters written by her mother to a well known serial killer Michael Reave. Intent to uncover the truth, Heather starts an investigation of her own. What she finds out is much more than she bargained for.

What I liked about this story was that it was not predictable usually in mysteries we could, about halfway into the story know what will happen but this story at least for me ended a bit unexpected.

If I had to make a criticism though, I felt that there were some parts in the middle that dragged and I would have liked more of Ben Parker especially toward the end, His character was quite good so I would have been more excited if he was more involved when Heather and Nikki went to Fiddler's Mill.

I would recommend this book to anyone who likes thrillers and mysteries. I am sure you will enjoy it.

This is a dark and disturbing tale. Much like the fairytales that are intwined within this story. It takes a few chapters to get into it, but then the story begins to become interesting. Whilst this is a story about a serial killer, it’s different to most others in the genre. It’s paced much like a Grimm Fairytale, slow at first, atmospheric and then starts gaining momentum between present day and alternating with Michael’s back story. The villain(s) are quite clear in this story and most of it I could predict before the end. However there was one twist that I hadn’t worked out and it was a really good one, though the clues were there when you are reading. This is the first book I have read of this Author and I liked that it was slightly different to other books I’ve been reading lately in this genre.

Thank you to the Author, Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for giving me a complimentary digital Advanced Readers Copy. I am voluntarily reviewing a ARC and all opinions in this review are unbiased and my own.

This book turned out to be too dark for me. The pacing was dead slow (no pun intended) and the creep factor was too much for my taste. Others will probably feel differently and enjoy the story. I volunteered to read the book based on its very good description, but wasn't up to the task. My apologies. Thank you to NetGalley and Crooked Lane for providing an ARC for review.