Shelter by Catherine Jinks is a dark and gritty story, set in rural Australia, and is a riveting thriller that is stark yet quite atmospheric. (check out that cover) The characters are deeply flawed yet some of them are surprisingly appealing and strong willed. I especially liked how she wrote about a toddler and five year old. Their behaviour, speech and thoughts were so believable...well done!

The setting springs vibrantly to life and provides the perfect backdrop for the shocking pasts we learn about that our main characters went through. Catherine Jinks brings this incredibly fascinating novel, with lots of twists to an amazing conclusion, I highly recommend it and look forward to future books by Ms. Jinks.

This is a decent, fast paced drama about a woman who tries to help a vulnerable family, with disastrous consequences.

Catherine is the lead character who has a history of an abusive relationship and so wants to help a young mother obviously in need.
What follows is, I found, in turn; tense, exciting, frustrating and enjoyable in equal measure, with well drawn characters and a decent plot.

A recommended 3* Good Read and thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to preview.

Meg knows what it is like to have a difficult partner. Keith may not have been physically violent, but his mind games and manipulation were just as damaging to Meg's mental wellbeing.
Leaving him had been hard, especially with her daughter Emily to consider. But she'd done it, and stayed strong, even though Keith continued to play his mind games, but it was to little to late, and her daughter, as soon as she was grown, took off to England, in an attempt to get as far away from both her parents as possible.
Regretting not getting her child away from Keith sooner, Meg decides to help another women to escape her abusive husband, getting involved in an organisation, that helps women to escape, when the courts fail them.
With her isolated home, aptly named "The bolt hole" she's in the perfect location to hide away a mother and her children. But her attempts to help, don't go quite how she imagined.
Nerine and her two children, Analiese and Collette are naturally anxious and afraid, but nothing Meg does or says, can convince Nerine that she's safe, and that no one can find her here.
But when strange things start to happen around her home, like strange footprints in the dirt, and tunes being played on her windchimes, Meg is left feeling confused, is Nerine correct, has her husband found her, or is it Meg's old husband, up to his tricks again?

This was an interesting read, with well developed characters and a surprising plot. I adored Meg, who was kind, thoughtful and surprisingly strong, given the mental abuse she had suffered from her husband.
Analiese, the older of Nerine's children, broke my heart, and Collette the younger was adorable, and although decidedly oblivious to most of what was going on around her, as most young children are, still showed cleverly crafted signs, that her past had left scars.
But this is not a straightforward story, there are some incredibly twists, and turns. And quite a few heart stopping moments, that keep you glued to the pages.

The only thing I wasn't overly keen on with this book, was the cover. The little shack and spooky atmosphere, did draw me in, but I just felt that it could have been done a little bit better, and that it's unpolished look might put some people off.

That doesn't effect the rating though and I'd give this book a solid 5 out of 5, as Catherine's writing style is lovely and flows well. Which means you can really lose yourself in the story. She also seems to have a good grasp of human emotions and this really shone through.

I'd definitely be interested in reading more by this Author, in the future. And am grateful to NetGalley, Catherine Jinks and her publisher, for allowing me to read, Shelter for free, in exchange for an honest review.