4 stars

The Village by Caroline Mitchell is a riveting suspense novel set in a bucolic hamlet in the English countryside. Part crime mystery, with touches of horror, it is also a fascinating story of relationships, secrets, lies and redemption that raise the novel above the average murder-in-a-village mystery.
Told from multiple points of view, the story unfolds as Naomi, a successful true-crime writer, finds Ivy Cottage, in the village of Nighbrook, is for sale 10 years after the mysterious blood-soaked evening its young family residents disappear. Naomi finagles the purchase and moves into Ivy Cottage, a “place tainted by murder, nestled in a village of the damned,” with her husband Ed and sullen step-daughter Morgan.
The story then kicks into a higher gear, as her involvement with the villagers, “the glare of suspicion in their eyes,” becomes dangerous for Naomi and her family as she investigates the mystery. The tale is complicated with a number of twists that kept me engaged in the mystery as it came to its tumultuous conclusion!
The characters are nicely fleshed out, especially Naomi and Morgan, with a good look at the newer younger wife--angry teen step-daughter relationship. The villagers are a mixed lot, with some deeper darker characters like Floyd the sheriff and Dawn, the vicar’s teen daughter.
The writing is solid, as the atmospheric descriptions imbue the story with a brooding claustrophobic feeling of dread and the persistent tension of impending disaster.
I liked the overall story, the flashbacks, and the cast of characters, and recommend it to readers who like an intense crime-in-an-English-village mystery tale. This is my first read by Caroline Mitchell, and I will seek out more of her novels.

Thank you to Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for the ARC. This is my unbiased review.

Crime journalist Naomi is newly-married to her very wealthy husband, Ed, and, giving up her London flat, she persuades him to buy a cottage in the country. What she doesn’t tell him is that Ivy Cottage, in the village of Nighbrook, has been empty for ten years, because the family who lived there simply vanished one day. The television was left on, taps running, etc, but no sign of what happened to the Harpers.

Naomi thought that the villagers would welcome their new neighbours but, unfortunately, they are anything but friendly. They seem to know what happened on that day ten years ago and certainly don’t want to answer any of her questions. Naomi also doesn’t have an easy time with her step-daughter, Morgan, who lives with them.

A well-written page-turner which I would highly recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley and Amazon Publishing UK for an advance reader copy in return for an honest review.

3.5 rounded up.
I have read and enjoyed many books by this author, mostly series books, but this is a stand alone thriller. It features Naomi who is a crime journalist and her obsession with the disappearance of a family. The Harpers literally vanished one day. TV left on, baking half done. It's like they just upped and left, leaving everyone completely flummoxed and the village on the list of places where strange things have happened. So it is with delight that Naomi moves into the same village. Actually the same cottage! Her husband and step-daughter know nothing of her obsession so she has to try and keep it on the down-low whilst she tries to investigate. An investigation that stalls as the villagers close ranks, leading her to believe that they all must know more than they are saying. But will she get to the bottom of things before her real motive is exposed...?
This was a good solid read that, at the end of the day, wasn't too taxing and which left me mostly satisfied. It didn't blow me out of the water but not all books have that special quality. I can't quite put my finger on why but it didn't quite have that "wow" factor that I was expecting from this author. Maybe the reveals went a step too far and it all got a bit too much. Maybe I didn't quite manage to connect wholly to Naomi. Maybe I just didn't really care about what happened to the Harpers. And what's with moving into a dilapidated house without making it even just the slightest bit habitable? I was just not completely sold on everything that happened.
But, as one swallow doesn't make a summer, one notsogreat books doesn't mean I'm in any way about to write the author off. Her track record with me still speaks volumes. This just wasn't the book for me. Hopefully she will be back on track for me next time. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

I’d like to thank Amazon Publishing UK and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘The Village’ by Caroline Mitchell in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

Naomi, a freelance crime journalist writing under the name of Marsha Bowers, becomes so involved in the disappearance of Martin and Susan Harper and daughter Grace that she persuades her husband Ed to buy Ivy Cottage in Nighbrook, a village in the New Forest, although he’s unaware of its history. The day arrives when they move in with Ed’s daughter Morgan and it soon becomes apparent that no-one wants them there especially as she’s told the villagers have a reputation for driving families away. The longer they stay in the cottage the more Naomi believes they’re being watched until she’s no longer sure they’ve made the right decision moving there.

‘The Village’ is a thriller where the chapters alternate between what happened to the Harper family ten years ago and what’s happening now. From the beginning Naomi tries to make a home for her step-daughter whose self-centred and obnoxious attitude makes it hard for me to like her. The villagers appear to follow the advice of the village’s alcoholic PC Lloyd Thomas and it’s clear they’re all keeping a secret. This is a well-written thriller with an interesting plot, action, drama and twists and turns although it does get a bit far-fetched at times and on one occasion I wondered if I was still reading the same novel. The writing flows well making it quick and easy to read, and maybe it’s not the best book I’ve had the opportunity to read it’s a good solid thriller nonetheless.

A five-star read focusing on the bizarre disappearance of the Harper family and journalist Noami's search for explanations of what happened many years before.

This is a fast-paced thriller, packed full of twists and suspense, making this an exciting read that was hard to put down. The fast few chapters had me engrossed and this quickly became a classic page-turner for me. Told over a timeline of then and now, with some very intriguing characters, it is very easy to read in one sitting, if time allows.

I highly recommend this read to anyone who likes to do a little detective work as a plot unfolds.

This is one creepy read.
I had no idea where this story was going to go when I started it, but I enjoyed the journey it took me on. Naomi is an extremely strong character, which made a pleasant change from the weak female protagonists that often appear in these books.
The book is interspersed with events from the past; these are mainly from Grace, the missing young girl’s perspective. They left you wanting more as nothing was made clear about what was actually wrong with Grace, but as the story progresses, her maladies get worse and worse.
The present-day chapters follow both Naomi and her stepdaughter Morgan. These chapters move at a slightly slower pace, and you feel yourself rushing through them to get some answers to what is going on.
The ending is quite complicated, and I don’t feel like we get all fleshed out answers to everything but just enough to satisfy the reader that they haven’t wasted their time reading this book. I think I would have liked to ensconce myself a little more in the why’s and how’s before jumping to Naomi’s conclusion.
Overall, it was a good read, and I did get through it at a good pace, but I just felt like something was missing from it, which I can’t quite put my finger on. Still, a good four-star read, though.

The premise of this book sounded like a good thriller - 10 years ago a family disappeared without a trace and now a crime reporter has purchased their house and hopes to solve the mystery. But this book was just too all over the place. There was the initial mystery, the village cover up, the relationship between Naomi and Morgan, the relationship between Dawn and Morgan and the flashbacks to 10 years earlier. I had pretty much figured out one of the `twists` fairly early on. The relationship between Morgan and Naomi and Morgan and Dawn changed too quickly to believable. I have not read anything else by Caroline Mitchell so I don't know how it compares to her other books. Thanks to NetGalley for the digital ARC.

I have read quite a few books from this author and enjoyed them all, this was no exception, a good story line that kept me involved all the way with good characters.

I can recommend this book and thank you to Netgalley and Amazon Publishing for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

Well this was interesting, wasn't sure really what to make of it but it kept me interested and I had to keep going in one session and finish it as I needed to know how it was going to end.

Really interesting and I am so glad that I read it and will definitely be looking for more for this author. How the author thought of this I don't know but from a reader's perspective I am so glad that she did, I am not saying that I didn't want to throw things at some of the characters but a good book gets you worked up and involved.

I was given an advance copy by netgalley and the publishers but the review is entirely my own.

Ten years ago the Harper family simply disappear from their cottage on the edge of a village in the New Forest. Nothing in the home is out of place. The mother was in the middle of a baking session, their daughter watching cartoons on TV. Despite an extensive investigation no one was ever found.
Now Ivy Cottage has a new owner. Journalist Naomi and film producer husband Ed arrive from London with his difficult teenage daughter Morgan. They find the villagers miserable and unwelcoming which makes Naomi, who has deliberately bought the cottage in order to investigate the Harpers’ disappearance, even more keen to unravel the mystery.
From the moment they arrive at their new home deep in the woods, there is an air of menace. It’s winter and it’s dark and when Ed is unexpectedly called away, Naomi feels even more vulnerable.
The story is woven between past and present, teasing out the events leading up to the Harper family’s disappearance. There is tension and a feeling of a community where some individuals will do anything to prevent the truth from surfacing. Overall I enjoyed this book, although I did guess early on who had been involved in the events at Ivy Cottage. It’s not the best psychological thriller I have read, but it entertained and was well written.
My thanks to Amazon, Caroline Mitchell and Netgalley for providing me with an ARC of The Village in exchange for an honest review

Ten years ago, Ivy Cottage in the village of Nighbrook in the New Forest was left deserted when the Harper family mysteriously disappeared, and the mystery has never been solved. Now, ten years on and Naomi Ward, a crime journalist, is determined to solve the mystery, the cottage is up for sale and she's convinced her new husband Ed that it would be a great place for them to live with his teenage daughter Morgan, they are both unaware of the history of the house, but that's not going to be an issue is it? Unfortunately the villagers think differently and the Wards are faced with animosity as soon as they arrive, what is it that they are trying to keep secret and is Naomi putting her family in danger by raking up the past?

The Village is told in alternate timelines of the present day and ten years earlier, so the reader gains both aspects of the story. There are some very undesirable characters in this book and I was convinced I'd worked out who the perpetrator was, well it was obvious wasn't it, oh no it wasn't because Mitchell never makes her plots obvious, and that's why they work so well. There are many twists to this tale, with one in particular that I didn't see coming, it's a fast paced, compelling, atmospheric read and in true Mitchell style she drip feeds the tension which kept me wanting more and I devoured it in 24 hours. As with her previous books, this author does not disappoint.

I'd like to thank Amazon Publishing and Netgalley for the approval, I will post my review on Goodreads now and Amazon on publication day.

Over ten years ago, a family goes missing from their cottage in their small, close knit community. Now, a journalist and her new family moves into the cottage, with the journalist determined to solve the mystery of the family’s disappearance. This is one of those books that had you feeling like “been there, done that”, but the further you get the better this book becomes, and when you finish, you say, “damn, that was pretty good!”. I think the book turns for the better when the cliched “evil stepdaughter” softens up and does a complete 180, as the entire tone of the story changes, you’re rooting for the family, and your contempt turns to sympathy. It truly changes the atmosphere for the reader, and flipped my entire feeling for the book. Well done! I received an ARC of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Caroline Mitchell’s The Village opens spectacularly, grabbing the interest of the reader. A family of three who vanishes without a trace is surely a plotline that captures the attention even if one is not a fan of thrillers and Caroline Mitchell has the additional benefit of having worked as a detective and her talent in creating a claustrophobic atmosphere in stories is one of the best out there.

The Village of Nighbrook with its antagonistic residents is not a place that one would wish to live in, but true crime journalist Naomi has no qualms in dragging her new family to Ivy Cottage in Nighbrook as her obsessed mind wouldn’t let go of the Harper family who has vanished without a trace. Her husband Ed is clueless about the house’s history but her stepdaughter Morgan, aware of the past hidden inside the rafters is simply filled with glee in finding an opportunity to torture her step-mom. Naomi’s characterization was confusing, she comes across initially as this laser focussed obsessed woman with no thought about her family’s welfare but then changes direction to the caring stepmom and wife once the true horror of the cottage reveals itself.

The family dynamics create a tense background to the story that unfolds in the village with the arrival of the Ward family in Nighbrook. The small town culture and the phobia of the long held secret have been wonderfully layered into the story, but I did wish for a more tense and menacing atmosphere especially with a cottage surrounded by woods. I have read a few other books by the author and have found them quite compelling but The Village didn’t evoke the kind of goosebump worthy terror that I expected. Another factor that worked against me was that I had guessed almost all the reveals in the story which was kind of a bummer for my reading experience.

The Village is definitely a solid thriller but if you are a first time reader, I would strongly recommend reading the author’s The Perfect Mother or the Silent Twin for that perfect creepy vibe.

Many thanks to Net Galley, Thomas & Mercer publishing, and the author for a chance to read and review this book. All opinions are expressed voluntarily.

This review is published in my blog Rain'n'Books, ##Goodreads, ##Amazon India, ##Book Bub, ##Medium.com, ##Facebook, ##Twitter.

3.5 stars
This is a good book that I enjoyed.
Naomi and her husband arrange to move from London to a quiet village called Nighbrook.
Naomi is very keen to live here so she can investigate the disappearance of the Harper family ten years ago.
Ed’s daughter arrives with them and is far from impressed with the state of the bungalow.
There’s other chapters from a group of residents in Nighbrook and it’s clear they will not be welcoming Naomi and Ed to their village.
There’s lots of secrets brewing in this group and Naomi wants to find out what they’re all hiding.
Events take a turn for the worse and more than one life is in danger.
This is a good read but I felt it lacked something to really keep me gripped.
Thanks to Amazon Publishing UK and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

Chock full of atmosphere, suspense and tension, aptly-named The Village is perfection to curl up with, especially on a dark, cold night. Ten years ago, a family disappeared into nothingness, leaving the TV blaring and water running in their home, Ivy Cottage. Newly married former journalist turned baker Naomi and her husband Ed, along with his daughter, Morgan, buy Ivy Cottage and move in. Naomi has ulterior motives...she is obsessed with the mysterious circumstances and feels the need to do some digging. Villagers are downright grim and contrarian and do their best to flummox and perplex the newcomers. Not only are the villagers anxiety inducing but Morgan despises her stepmom. And there are other relationships...

I just love flashbacks and differing perspectives in books. Caroline Mitchell does it seamlessly here, nudging with hints and glimpses of then and now, building up an interesting plot and conclusion. Though some aspects of the story are predictable, there are juicy surprises and twists. The tension and relationship quirks are fabulous.

Mystery and Thriller readers should seek out this book. It is atmospheric with a shivery bit of scariness but it's not frightening.

My sincere thank you to Amazon Publishing UK and NetGalley for the privilege of reading this thrillery book!

This was another excellent book from Caroline who is becoming one of my favourite authors. This bike was fast paced with many twists and turns. I thought I had it all figured out but I was wrong! Loved the ending.

This really builds the tension all through the book. Excellent storytelling, with only a couple of ‘why would she do that’ moments. You really won’t guess what happened in the house in the wood. When you reach what feels like the end, you are still a long way from the final twists. Great characters too.

The Village is a page turning , don't bother me I am reading book.

I could not put it down.

This is a village like no other village !

Naomi being a crime journalist/enthusiast purchases a home that an entire family just disappeared from 10 years ago.

Nighbrook is a village of many secrets and the residents stick together no matter what.

The suspense builds, the pages turn quickly as you race to the ending.

Caroline Mitchell never disappoints and this book is no exception. Don't miss this one.

Thanks to NetGalley and Amazon Publishing , Thomas #38; Mercer for heart pounding read.

This was my first read from Caroline Mitchell. When I read the synopsis, I thought this book was right up my alley. A family of three just up and disappears from their home with no trace? Everything left in a state of suspension, like they would be back at any moment. I love mysteries like this and trying to figure out what happened.

I have to say, I really felt no connection at all with Naomi. She made some very questionable decisions, ones that affected her whole family that she kept mum about. Who moves their family into a house once occupied by a family who mysteriously disappeared, in a remote village, and doesn’t think to mention why? I was unclear as to why she was so completely obsessed with that family and solving that mystery.

The pacing of the book was very slow for me, and I struggled to find motivation to keep reading, as not enough clues or events were happening to keep me moving forward. But I kept going, just to get to the end to find out what happened. It’s obvious the villagers don’t want Naomi and her family there; they are not friendly AT ALL to outsiders.

There were things in this story that did not feel plausible at all. But I suspended belief and kept going to find out what happens. But, I just kept shaking my head at the happenings in the story. I don’t know, this book just didn’t work for me. I commend Ms. Mitchell for what she was trying to accomplish and where she was going with the story, but it sadly just wasn’t my cup of tea.

Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced review copy of this book in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

The description of The Village grabbed me immediately and when I dived into the book the plot did not let go. It was a great thriller with tension, twists and turns and I highly recommend it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my ARC.