Catriona Ward once again delivers an excellent twisty psychological thriller with elements of gothic horror. If you liked Last House on Needless Street, Sundial is not to be missed!

I went in to Sundial knowing pretty much nothing, and I suggest you do the same. It’s a thriller covering horrific themes, centered around a family with an incredibly strange dynamic.

Rob has a seemingly perfect life; an outwardly strong marriage, and two lovely daughters. But when Rob discovers her daughter Callie’s disturbing artwork, and hears her whispering to her imaginary friends, Rob decides it’s time for a mother-daughter pilgrimage. They head to Sundial, a desert community where Rob grew up. Here, Rob will reflect on her own past, and consider her role in her daughter’s uncertain future.

Oh my word, Sundial is an incredible book. A complete departure from Ward’s previous novel, The Last House on Needless Street, Sundial is an unconventional thriller. What begins as a family drama slowly descends into “WTF?!” territory, in the best way. To say it is full of “twists” is to do Ward a great disservice; Sundial is incredibly well-paced and plotted.

Keep in mind, the subject matter of Sundial is incredibly heavy. This is by no means a comfortable read. Trigger warnings for abuse (child, animal, domestic). Ward handles these incredibly sensitive topics well, and the reader leaves Sundial with a sense of redemption.

The slightly offbeat direction of this novel may not be for everyone, but I absolutely adored it. It’s a cliche, but after the jaw-dropping ending, I genuinely wanted to read the whole book all over again.

First of all I want to thank NetGalley and Macmillan-Tor/Forge for granting me this E-ARC in exchange for a review. As it was an ARC, and by an author I have read before and enjoyed, I was really looking forward to reading it. However, I could not finish this book. I DNF'ed it at 52%.

There is no question that Catriona Ward is a very gifted author. I loved The Last House on Needless Street. I read it in one sitting and was absolutely compelled. The writing in this book is not the issue. Her way with words is still here, however it was just too much trauma for me.

I knew from the description there would be some animal cruelty but I did not know the level it would go to. Throw in domestic abuse, creepy kids, and a book within a book that I found profoundly confusing and I just couldn't do it anymore. I like to read for pleasure not to traumatize myself. Spending time with this book left me feeling depressed and with a dark cloud around me.

I am sure there are people who will love this book and I am happy for them. Catriona Ward deserves recognition for a job well done but I just cannot go on with this book. I feel like I am letting down the publishers and the author but there is only so much I can take.

Sometimes, you pick up a book and you're not quite sure what you're going to get. For me, it happens everytime I pick up a novel by Catriona Ward.

When Rob begins to suspect there is something wrong with her older daughter, she spirits the two of them away to her family home in the Mojave Desert, Sundial. It's a place that used to be brimming with life, but now holds nothing but graves, memories, and ghosts. Rob brings her daughter out to make a choice, and reveal the chain of events that brought them both to where they are.

Catriona Ward hits another excellent, twisty novel out of the park with hard hits I never saw coming. If you want family dynamics, trauma, the choices someone makes, and all of it underlaid with the complicated relationships between parents and children, spouses and sisters, this is the book to read. In a way there are no truly "good" characters here, and that just makes everything so much better. There were multiple twists I never saw coming, and they all served to bring even greater depth to a story that invites you in before it truly gets its hooks into you.

I inhaled it in a single sitting because there was absolutely no way I could put it down.

An electric read full of twists and turns that had me staying up all night to finish reading. This is not a book to be missed.

I went into this Loving Catriona Ward's The Last House on Needless Street. I found this book to be slower and not as eventful. Though I did find the ending to be interesting, I felt the beginning was pretty slow. It kept me interested throughout the entirety of the story line.

What an intriguing, beautiful cover this is! I was excited to read the latest release from Catriona Ward after her success of The Last House on Needless Street.

Sundial follows Rob, her unfaithful husband Irving, and their daughters Annie and Callie. Rob has a deep connection with Annie but doesn’t feel the same about Callie who has been exhibiting strange behaviors (such as an obsession with serial killers). Rob decides to travel back to her hometown of Sundial with Callie in tow in hopes of getting to the root cause of her daughter’s strange tendencies. Secrets begin to unravel in Sundial and memories come flooding back as Rob examines her own past.

This was an interesting plot and there was a sense of unease from the beginning. The main thing that dropped this rating down for me was the animal abuse. I’m not a reader that enjoys this type of content so for that alone, I can’t recommend this book to everyone. The writing is superb and Ward has a knack for character development so if animal abuse doesn’t bother you, check this one out.

Thank you to Netgalley and Tor Nightfire for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

This started out promising: scary and filled with ambience. The writing is very good and very thorough. Unfortunately, this contains animal cruelty that was just too much for me to get through. Much more than what I can skim through and took too much away from the story. I do believe that if this isn’t an upsetting issue for you, that you would really enjoy this book. Had this not contained this, I would have really enjoyed the story. Everything else was exceptional.

Thank you to the publisher, Catrionia Ward, and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I was really excited for Sundial because I loved Ward's Last House on Needless Street. This started out strong, with beautiful writing and a creeping sense of dread and unease: Rob's abusive marriage and the wrongness of the daughter Callie were disturbing in the best way.

However, I wasn't able to keep reading this one: I'm very sensitive to animal abuse, especially with dogs, so the book just isn't for me at all.

I guess I’m just a Catriona Ward stan now.

There’s something very different at the heart of Sundial when compared to The Last House on Needless Street. In Needless Street I was happy for an ending that is tidier than what you usually get in horror. In Sundial I was blown away by the implications of the final twist so much that I lay awake for two hours after contemplating what would happen to the characters.

The twists aren’t loud gasps in the middle of the night, they’re a slow, rolling wave of you muttering “oh shit” again and again under your breath as more layers are added to the story. The main character goes from being a bland housewife to a mother who will do ANYTHING for her daughter. I loved the journey this novel took me on.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing a copy of Sundial in exchange for honest feedback.

First off I am going to be very vague with the synopsis because the less you know going into this one, the better!
Sundial centers around a family of four Rob, Irving, Callie, and Annie. Rob(the mom) starts to notice some disturbing behavior from her daughter Callie so she decided to take her on a road trip to Rob’s childhood home, a compound in the Mojave desert called Sundial.

The story is told through Rob and Callie’s point of view with alternating timelines.

Writing this review has been a very difficult task. It’s one of those books where you can’t talk about anything but the basics or you will give to much away. And trust me, you want the element of surprise with this one!

Creepy, atmospheric, disturbing, unsettling, macabre and bizarre would be the words I would use to describe Sundial.
Going into this one there is a sense of uncertainty and the further you read the more confusing it gets until suddenly, BAM! Everything falls into place and starts to make sense.

The underlying theme in this one is the classic nature vs nurture debate. Is it our environment that shapes who we are or are our behaviors instilled in us prior to birth? Either way I found Sundial to be quite a bizarre and utterly horrifying ride that I will not forget anytime soon.

Sundial contains a multitude of trigger warnings. A lot of the triggering themes in Sundial could have been omitted and it would have actually quite improved the overall story. This book will not be for the faint of heart and I don’t see the average reader enjoying this one as much as seasoned horror readers will. As a seasoned horror reader myself I had a very difficult time getting through parts of this one.

Trigger Warnings:
Graphics depictions of animal abuse, physical and emotional abuse, child abuse, domestic violence, self harm and suicide, drug abuse

SUNDIAL, by Catriona Ward is the second book I've read from this author. Her phenomenal THE LAST HOUSE ON NEEDLESS STREET had much the same response from me in the beginning.

I had NO idea what was going on, yet it was a compulsive read--impossible to put down. The more "confused" I got, the more I needed to know in order to come to some possible explanations in my own mind.

". . . Memory is a noose around the neck. . . "

We begin with Rob, who is married to Irving, a man who spends his nights with various women--yet she ACCEPTS this--and her daughters Callie and Annie. When some disturbing events occur, she decides to take Callie for a mother/daughter outing to her old homestead of SUNDIAL.

". . . It's possible to feel the horror of something and to accept it all at the same time. How else could we cope with being alive?"

As for Sundial, you just need to go into this blindly and read the events--past and present--as they unfold. The author is exceptional at creating complex characters that I didn't even dare to "guess" as to their motives. Any time I tried, something would happen to change my opinion almost immediately. The atmosphere and location (desert) of Sundial is so unique, and an important factor in the story. The contrast between Sundial and her home with Irving couldn't be more vivid.

I will admit that I was honestly "lost", as in I had no idea where the story would go, for most of the read. When things finally started falling into place, like an intricate puzzle--past and present--I was simply in awe of the author's writing ability. This was done so expertly that I didn't want to stop until I knew everything, yet at no point could I say that I felt I did.

"It occurs to me that love is as bad as pain sometimes . . . ."

A very intriguing, elaborate story that will keep you hanging on until the very end.

Recommended.

Callie is a strange young girl. She speaks to imaginary friends as if they’re actually present, has an unusual bone collection, and her mother, Rob, thinks she’s on the verge of seriously harming her younger sister.

Unbeknownst to Rob, her daughter believes her mom is the crazy one. And when they go back to the place Rob grew up at for a mother/daughter getaway, readers will be continually guessing which one is in their right mind, or not.

SUNDIAL is equal parts horror and dark family drama, filled with a building sense of dread and plenty of surprises. A part of the story reminded me somewhat of Dean Koontz’ classic WATCHERS, but this goes in a direction I don’t think many will see coming.

Blending psychological horror, a deliciously unpredictable cast, and a finale that begs for a sequel, Ward has added another must-read to any horror fan’s list.

-The Horror Fiction Review

“It’s the chickenpox that makes me sure—my husband is having another affair.”

It starts with something a little off, on a mundane but highly specific note. Rob’s husband is having yet another affair. Then you start to see how deeply dysfunctional this family truly is.

If you’re on board for seeing a family self destruct and treating each other horribly you’ll get exactly what you’re looking for! Lots of twists and turns to keep you guessing.

The Last House on Needless Street was one of the most memorable and gripping reads of the year for me in 2021. I was looking forward to this one so much after the unexpected thrill of needless street. But Sundial did not catch me the same way. It’s dark in a way that I didn’t expect from the cover or the blurb and it may be full of twists, but it’s less cohesive than the winding plot of needless street was. See, there is a dog skull on the cover, yes, but skulls are part of the landscape in western desert stories. I very emphatically did not expect horrifyingly, meticulously recorded torture and experimentation on dogs. I do not recommend this to anyone even slightly sensitive to content about animal abuse, because this book will mess you up on that front.

I went in expecting a psychological horror, and I got that. The people in this story have so many angles and sharp edges, it’s easy to cut yourself on their darkness. Every single member of Rob’s family is an expert at manipulating and hurting each other — this is the most interesting and successful part of the story. It was over the top, but absolutely fascinating.

But the entire plot line with the dogs was a little too much for me.

Take content warnings seriously on this one. It goes hard with the domestic abuse, emotional abuse, animal abuse, medical experimentation on humans and animals, miscarriage, drug abuse, child torture and more.

Catriona Ward’s latest book, Sundial, will keep readers up way past their bedtime flipping greedily through pages to learn how it all unfolds. Just like House on Needless Street, this novel doesn’t follow a linear path, making every chapter an unpredictable ride. Every page is thick with suspense, delving deep into characters’ inner turmoils and revealing the broad spectrum of emotions attached to motherhood. This would be a great suggestion for fans of horror and psychological thrillers, including works by Jennifer McMahon and Simone St. James.

In hindsight the more I think about this book the more I realise I didn’t really enjoy it.

I hate to compare, but I enjoyed The House on Needless Street a lot more than this latest offering from Catriona Ward.

Over the course of the novel the pacing felt off to me. At the beginning it felt like all systems go, the middle lagged and I had to really push myself to continue, the final part was intense and very fast paced. Whilst this may work for some readers it doesn’t generally work for me as I lose my motivation to continue.

Dysfunctional family dynamics are a huge part of this story and were the most interesting aspect to me. I particularly enjoy the trope of when mothers are painted as the bad person yet as the reader you can see there is more to the situation than meets the eye.

Sundial feels more like a thriller which is likely one of the reasons I did not enjoy this as much as I expected to but it did keep me guessing until the end and felt very twisty.

Readers who enjoy psychological thrillers and dysfunctional family dynamics may enjoy this one. If you’re more of a horror reader than a thriller reader you may want to pass.

Thank you to Tor Nightfire for providing me with an advance copy of this book for review.

All I can say is WOW! This author really knows how to write a good story. The characters were really well fleshed out and the plot kept me on my toes the whole time! Would definitely recommend to a friend!

This was my first read by this author, and now I am hooked! The story was enthralling and kept me on the edge of my seat. The premise of this novel is genius, and the setting of a vast desert stands out compared to many other horror stories. The modified and experimented dogs reminded me a lot of the zombie dogs from resident evil so I felt a lot of nostalgia reading this, which adde to my enjoyment. Aside that, the psychological elements and relationship dynamics between the main characters was incredible! This story has a deeply human core that keeps you invested above the creepiness. I can't wait for this to be released later this year! In the meantime I will be gladly adding Ward's previous releases to my TBR.

“The Last House on Needless Street”, by Carriona Ward was on of my favorite books of 2021. When “Sundial” became available on Netgalley, I needed to read it. “Sundial” is a completely unique story from “The House on Needless Street” Ward creates flawed characters and shows how these humans can be the worst monsters. These two novels show her versatility as a storyteller. Ward is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors.

“Sundial” is a dark creepy psychological thriller featuring an extremely dysfunctional family. I do not want to go into the plot. It is best to go into this book blind.

Ward throws the reader into an unsettling plot with highly flawed characters. Rob and Irving are stuck in a hateful and loveless marriage. They have two daughters who are raised in anger and resentment. Callie, her older daughter, is my favorite. As soon as Callie starts behavior, Rob knows how to manage the darkness. I loved the extremely complex mother daughter relationship between Rob and Callie. As the story unfolds, revealed secrets explain Rob’s unstable life and Callie’s behavior.

Ward incorporates two perspectives into this book, and they really helped move the plot forward. The story keeps the reader guessing. As with “The House on Needless Street”, the final chapters bring the book together.

5 stars to Sundial by Catriona Ward. I was provided an early e-arc by NetGalley.
Super brief synopsis: Rob finds something disturbing in her oldest daughters room and takes her back to her childhood home that she has been avoiding to try to fix her new problems.
My thoughts: I absolutely love Ward's writing style. I like the general sense of unease that she writes and I really enjoy not fully being able to grasp what is happening and being in the dark with a lot of things. She inserts clues throughout the novel so you can slowly piece together what is happening, but there are still some shocking moments. What a wild ride - Catriona Ward is quickly becoming an all time favorite author!

I picked "Sundial" up knowing nothing other than it was Catariona Ward's follow-up to "The Last House on Needless Street." But, for me, this ended up being so much more than Needless Street.
The novel follows a woman named Rob, who's married with two children. Her family is dysfunctional and crumbling as her relationship with her husband teeters on hostile and the behavior of her oldest child, Callie, becomes more concerning. Rob fears Callie is quickly becoming dangerous and soon takes her to her family's desert home, Sundial. Sundial holds a dark history for Rob, but she's forced to face it as she recounts her own childhood and how it impacts them today to Callie.
I hesitate to say too much more about the plot. The elusiveness is part of what makes this book so great as Ward slowly unravels the plot around the reader, immersing them in Rob's past and present. It's a slow, heavy build that's well worth it. I devoured this book and think it far succeeds "Needless Street."
Of note: There is quite a bit of dealing with dogs, the death of dogs and other animals. It's not overly gratuitous, but it's also not pleasant.
Thank you to the author, NetGalley and Tor Nightfire for sharing this advance copy with me in exchange for my honest review.
4.25/5