Catriona Ward's horror novels are always SO heavy hitting. Therefore, I try not to miss one – even when they touch upon heavier subjects that I generally try to avoid. Enter Little Eve, her latest terrifying read.

We've all heard tales of sacred ceremonies accompanying the death and rebirth of the world. Some people take these stories to be nothing more than children's tales, while others take them more literally. Eve has spent her whole life believing the tales to be true. Now it is time for The Adder to arrive, and her clan has to help prepare for this time.

However, Eve and her people were not prepared for one significant interruption. An investigation by the Chief Inspector of the area. Though in hindsight, it makes total sense that somebody of his rank would investigate a murder in the area...

“It is a kind of privilege, to witness the darkness.”

Well, I said that Catriona Ward always writes heavy books – and I wasn't wrong. In many ways, Little Eve is a kick to the gut. It's well-written, but it is also seriously intense and isn't afraid to touch on more sensitive subjects (TWs include: rape, pedophilia, self-harm, child abuse/neglect, animal death, and miscarriage).

If you're a fan of gothic horror novels with an edge of something serious other and eerie, then you'll love Little Eve. Ward's writing and style so enchanted me that I could power through the parts that would normally make me put down a book. I hope that tells you something!

Honestly, this book does a little too good of a job portraying certain elements. It made my stomach churn – not in a "this is spooky" sense. It felt too real and too awful, which was then compounded by other horror elements.

Once again, Catriona Ward has successfully written a novel that will haunt me for days, months, and years. There's no getting Little Eve out of my head anytime soon.

Catriona Ward does horror so well. Little Eve has everything I look for in a book. It's set on a creepy isle where a strange cult lives.
Eve has been living on the Isle her whole life after she was found near the sea. She is one of 4 children on the isle where the Adder rules with an iron fist. The book is told in multiple perspectives in two timelines. The truth of what happened on the isle is so well plotted and had me so invested in these characters and what happened to them.

Catriona Ward can write a twisted book for sure.

Eve and her unconventional family are preparing for the end of the world. They live in an estate on a quiet island off the shore of Scotland. When their quiet and remote lives are threatened by a detective investigating a murder things start coming to light that shake their foundation and brings truths to light. And throws other truths into the shadows.

I'm not even sure how to summarize this book so that's my quick take. This gothic horror has the perfect setting to put you right into the story. The story is intriguing, hear breaking, and even hopeful at times and Ward does a wonderful job of really taking you on a journey with these characters. The way the book is laid out between past and present/future and between multiple points of view made the unfolding of the story interesting.

Though I enjoyed the story itself I can't say I enjoyed the whole experience of this book. It took me far longer than expected to read and I found certain parts too drawn out. While the multiple view points and switching between past and future helped the story it also made me confused at times as it wasn't necessarily past and present. It skipped between multiple decades in a non linear way. About mid way through I was ready to put it down and was a 2 star read but because I loved Ward's other book I kept with it which I'm happy I did. The ending really wrapped the story up nice and while I called the ending it was done very well.

With all of that being said, I'm not a huge fan of historical fiction, which could have been my issue. If you enjoy historical fiction, gothic horror, and can stomach the TW's than this would be a great read for you.

TW's with possible SPOILERS BELOW:



TW's: cults, religion, child abuse, sexual abuse, pedophilia, starvation, animal abuse, animal death, infant death, abandonment, kidnapping, manipulation, drug use, body horror, blood

I am 100% a Catriona Ward fan. Sundial and The Last House on Needless Street are two of my favourite books from recent years, so I was excited to read the republished edition of Little Eve and although it definitely gave me all the feels, it seemed lacking somehow. I did read this while I was on holiday and I think my concentration levels were a little off, so I would like to read this again to see if my rating changes. Positives were the setting and the ambience; I was enthralled by the lives this found family (or cult if you like) were living and the effects of the beliefs and descriptions of the sea were beautiful. I don't think I fully connected with the characters, I felt like I was being held at arm's length, but you can clearly see from this early writing that Ward would go on to have some amazing ideas for her books. the ending had me gripped though and I did not see it coming.

This is certainly a me problem, I'm aware! Lots of people loved Catriona Ward's "The Last House on Needless Street", and it was not for me. I decided to give this one a try as I thought I had to be mistaken since so many readers love her! Unfortunately, we just don't jive.

So this was my first go with Catriona Ward. I’ve seen a ton of great reviews for her other books so I grabbed this one when NetGalley had it available as a read now.

But unfortunately this was not a great first impression? I was looking for something gothic and atmospheric and this… was not. This was just confusing and bland? I didn’t connect with the characters. I didn’t connect with the story. I had to force myself to pick this up and keep reading. It just was not a fun time.

The writing was also very strange and this felt like a chore to read. For such a short book, it took me a lot longer to read it than it should’ve. It was super confusing and all of the “horror” (which there wasn’t much?) was lost in the weighty writing.

Plus this whole book just felt very muted? Like there were so many things that could’ve been truly terrifying if they would’ve just been handled differently. This book is about a cult (I think???) but very little of it was actually explained. The reader is left to guess and infer and that just didn’t work for me. As it was, I didn’t find this book scary nor any of the twists surprising.

Overall, I was just very meh about this and honestly wish I would’ve just skipped it. There are so many other books I would’ve rather spent my time with. So unfortunately this just was not for me. I might pick up some of Ward’s other books in the future but, at this point, I’m not really in a hurry to do so.

But I have seen a few good reviews for this one so if you’ve enjoyed her other books, you might have better luck with this. I’m just not a huge fan of a slow burn for very little pay off and, unfortunately, for me, that’s what this was.

Anyway, thank you to NetGalley and Tor Nightfire for allowing me to read this in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Catriona Ward, Macmillan-Tor/Forge, Tor Nightfire, and NetGalley for allowing me to read a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Catriona Ward is decidedly not to my taste. I can't say if she writes well because I'm so distracted by how dark and bizarre the story is to think of mundane things like pace and structure. I can say it's not a book you want to read (or listen to) when you're only paying half attention to it. With the POV and time switches on top of the weirdness, you'll get lost easily. I know from experience; between 30 and 40 percent I wanted to DNF because I'd gotten lost and confused and wasn't into it. But I kept on and gradually made more sense of the tale.

It's full of triggers, so if you're extra sensitive to cults, rape, snakes, hallucinogens, suicide, animal cruelty, child abuse, pedophilia, homocide--steer clear. But if you're a fan of true crime documentaries and are fascinated by people who are just plain evil or how people can get sucked into cults and doctrines, then you'll probably love this book!

But yeah, between this book and Needless Street, I think I've had my fill of Catriona Ward. Don't misunderstand, I'm not saying these books were bad, I just prefer my leisure reading to be a bit more entertaining and feel-good.

It's Catriona's distinct ability to make you question your understanding, constantly check-in with your logic, and triple-doubt your conclusions that has me coming back to her work. It's for the terrifying twists that you never see coming but have you flying back through the pages to see where hints were dropped. This one was no different and delivered on all of those fronts.

Little Eve is part of her very early work, so I didn't find the writing to be as tight as her recent narratives, but the caliber of storytelling and stunning atmospheric vibes was consistent with what Catriona is known and loved for. I also had a hard time telling some characters apart, but the pain and urgency they felt came through so clearly–the claustrophobic and tension-filled grip of the cult aspects so specific in its discomfort.

It was a slow-go, and sometimes repetitive, but I still felt the desperate need to know what was going to happen to the characters–to see what fresh hell Catriona was going to thrust them, and us, into knowing, and LET ME TELL YOU...you're not prepared...

Unfortunately I had to stop reading this one around 60%. I was struggling to get into it snd I was confused. I really love this author though snd her last two books were favorites of mine so I won’t be giving up on reading her next. The writing style was great; I just couldn’t get into the story. But I talked with a friend who finished snd loved it and once she explained it to me and told me the ending I was super impressed. This is likely a case of it’s not you it’s me.

I really loved The Last House on Needless Street, so I was ready to give Little Eve a shot. It is a totally different type of book and while that is not a bad thing, it was not for me. If you like gothic/horror books, this one is for you.

Oh, how deeply I wish I liked this book. I loved The Last House on Needless Street - although I thought it was slow and dragging at parts, the ending made the wait worth it. Well, turns out this is a perennial problem I have with Catriona Ward’s books - it was magnified with Sundial and even more so with Little Eve.

Despite the entrancing, evocative, and foreboding atmosphere and the intriguing premise of a cult-y ritual sacrifice Gothic mystery, I found myself struggling to follow even the basic plot points of the book. As another reviewer aptly put it, this brings the mental strain of reading a “classic” novel - you have to pay double attention to digest the complex and meaty writing. This isn’t something I would typically want to slog through, but knowing that Ward is renowned for her left-field third acts, I wanted to keep going. But perhaps because my interest and investment in the story flagged, this third act was not the satisfying payoff I was hoping for.

I left both Sundial and Little Eve with an appreciation for Ward’s ingenuity, very original forms of storytelling, and ability to set a transporting atmosphere. I also feel that maybe I’m not in the right mindset or headspace to read these books, and that they’re not a good fit for audiobook format. So perhaps I’ll give this another try, but this is where I’ll leave it for now. Thank you to Macmillan-Tor/Forge for the ARC via Netgalley.

Didn’t realize this was previously published. Mysterious and creepy. Loved the family dynamics and the sibling relationships. Setting was perfect. Loved it!

This dark and haunting, gothic novel is the second one I've read by this author. It took me a little while to settle into the flow of the story, but once I did, I found the storyline to be delightfully twisted and clever.

The setting for this story is Altnaharra, off the Scottish coast. It centers around what appears at first to be a small family headed by their uncle. After you learn more, it becomes clear that they are in fact a type of cult instead with the man who calls himself "uncle" as the leader. They believe that their group alone knows what is right and proper and that all others are impure. They prepare themselves continually for the end of time. As the story progresses, you see how confused and delusional they were.

The story is told in alternating timelines and from two different viewpoints. It helps to give the reader the appropriate snippets of information at just the right time. I really enjoyed how the author developed the characters and gave insight into their thought processes. It's interesting and heartbreaking to see how others can be brainwashed so completely.

One thing I've learned about this author is that she writes books that are inventive and very much "outside the box."

AUDIOBOOK: I also tried to listen the the audio version as well but struggled with it. With this story, it was simply too difficult for me to follow it without actually physically reading the book itself. I liked the accents employed in the narration, but just couldn't follow the story well enough. I'm sure it will probably work well for others, it just didn't for me. For this reason, I'm still going to give the narration 4 stars because I didn't find it to be a bad one, I think it was a matter of personal opinion and I won't bring the review down based on my opinion. 4 stars

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. I voluntarily chose to read and review it and the opinions contained within are my own.

Today has been a doozy but I cannot let it pass me by without telling you about LITTLE EVE by @catward66 which hit shelves today. Thank you to @netgalley and @tornightfire for the e-ARC.

This is the perfect spine-tingling, eyebrow raising read for spooky season. It is set in a closed-in community on an isle off the coast of Scotland in which Uncle, the ruthless patriarch, claims to be acting on the authority of The Adder who will soon bring the end of the world. Uncle's rules must always be obeyed and his consequences are fierce when someone is found lying or being derelict in their duties to the group.

Eve has only ever known Uncle's world and desperately wants to be the one that gains the Adder's powers upon it's arrival. She keeps her own secrets in an effort to bring this desire to fruition but a chance encounter with one stranger after another from the mainland invokes questions and doubts in Eve's worldview.

There is SO MUCH MORE that happens in this book but I don't want to give anything away. It is dark and twisty and the desolate wilderness of the setting adds to the desperation and terror. It carries loneliness, love, fear, heartache, and self-actualization all together to create a memorable, brutal portrait of an unravelling.

💀AVAILABLE NOW!💀

Have you read any of Catriona Ward's books yet? Which ones? If not, what are you waiting for?!?

#bibliophile #booknerd #booksta #littleeve #tornightfire #catrionaward #netgalley #ARC #bookreview #bookrecommendations

Little Eve was the third book I have read by Catriona Ward. The other two being The Last House on Needless Street and Sundial. Both the other two I have given 3 stars to because they were heavy on dark themes without a balance of light and shade, but I enjoyed both of them and thought the writing was strong. In Little Eve, I just couldn't get engaged with the story. I am not a big fan of storylines that revolve around a cult. In this book that theme meant there was plenty of sexual abuse and mental abuse thrown around. Add to that a bit of horrifying animal abuse and I was just really put off.

I realized just recently that Little Eve was actually released a while ago and is being re-released in 2022. Given that I have liked her more recent releases better than this one, I will definitely give her next novel a try as I do think Catriona Ward has potential to be an addictive author.

This was an excellent book by Catriona Ward and the first book I've read by her. I thought it was creepy, spooky, and fantastic and made me want to pick up all of her other books. Thank you to NetGalley for the chance to read this early!

One wonders what must go on inside the mind of Catriona Ward, author of The Last House on Needless Street. She is able to write the most macabre yet imaginative, horrific stories.

Take Little Eve for example. This was a story actually written prior to her success with Needless Street. At the time Little Eve not only came out to accolades, but awards as well. So, it was only fair that it should be re-released for those Needless Street fans who had never heard of it.

In a dilapidated castle on an island named Altnaharra near Scotland lives the most messed up group of women, children and one man. Saying this clan is some sort of cult would be putting it mildly.

Adder, the male leader is the master who makes all the decisions, eats the best and most leaving crumbs for the rest and punishes the others with incredible cruelty as they all await Adder’s claim that the end of the world is near.

Little Eve, one of the young children, looks at Adder and sees his power. She wants that title. She will stop at nothing, endure all the torture thrown at her in order to make that happen.

Known as the outcasts in the town due to their dirty appearances and potato sack clothes, the children are incessantly mocked and tormented by the other children at their school. And when a school leader is murdered, it’s the family of Altnaharra who are blamed for instigating.

Which then brings Chief Inspector Black into the picture. He takes a liking to Little Eve as she reminds him of his sister who passed away at a young age. He seems to understand the mess on the island and tries to make her see there is a world outside of the pain and suffering she endures. She does begin to see through a different set of eyes but feels hopeless as to what to do about her situation.

Adder will not tolerate this kind of thinking and abuses the others as well as Eve for even questioning him about the outside world and how they actually all ended up where they are now. He tells them they will be given a reward when the end comes.

But curiously the story opens to all at the castle being dead and Eve missing. Through a series of horrific flashbacks, we see the horrible abuse and physical violence brought on by an unwell man to others who know no other way. We see the despair they live in on a daily basis. As the story progresses, we finally come to a simple conclusion, but there are so many unsettling questions.

Who killed them? Where is Eve? Where did this group come from? The twisted conclusion which is seen through their eyes will send chills down your spine.

Thank you #NetGalley #TorNightfire #LittleEve #CatrionaWard for the advanced copy.

Looking for gothic horror for this spooky season ? Look no further, Little Eve is definitely filling that category. This book had me hooked right from the get go and I kept reading even when I should have been working, it was so compelling and intriguing, I had to find out what was going on.
I loved the concept of a cult like commune in a dilapidated castle on a remote Scottish island. The isolated setting added an additional gothic horror element to the story which was at once highly visual and super spooky .
The isolation and claustrophobia of being imprisoned in this setting was a fantastic element to the book, the cultish bits were well done and actually portrayed so convincingly how things get out of hand.
The characters were so well rounded and complete - they made sense in their deficiencies - believable if horrible.

This book actually was published in the UK in 2018 and won the Shirley Jackson Award in 2019 but it was only published in the US last Tuesday October 11th ! Thank you to @netgalley and @torbooks for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review !

🏰Book Review🏰
*
Summary: On the wind-battered isle of Altnaharra, off the wildest coast of Scotland, a clan prepares to bring about the end of the world and its imminent rebirth.

The Adder is coming and one of their number will inherit its powers. They all want the honor, but young Eve is willing to do anything for the distinction.

A reckoning beyond Eve’s imagination begins when Chief Inspector Black arrives to investigate a brutal murder and their sacred ceremony goes terribly wrong.

And soon all the secrets of Altnaharra will be uncovered.
*
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
*
My thoughts: thank you @netgalley and @macmillanusa for the advanced copy this released last week! Overall not my favorite of wards writing. This was her first book and I found it really all over the place. It was hard to keep track what was happening and I just didn’t love any of the characters. A really cool and creepy concept but ultimately fell flat for me 🤷🏼‍♀️
*
#littleeve #catrionaward #bookreview #bookrecommendations #bibliophile #booknerd #bookobsessed #bookish #bookworm #bookwormsunite #bookwormsofinstagram #bookreviewer #readersofinstagram #readersofig #readmorebooks #readersgonnaread

Genre: Historical Fiction/Gothic Fiction
Publication Date: 10/11/22 (US)
Synopsis: Dinah and Eve are part of a cult led by their Uncle and live isolated on an island in an extremely remote part of Scotland. Their days are ruled by preparations for the coming of "The Adder", where one of them will be granted mysterious powers. Their plans go awry when a body turns up, and an inspector starts to ask questions.

Thoughts:
- The setting in this novel was extremely creepy, perfect for spooky season.
- Our main character, Little Eve turns out (quite unexpectedly - to me at least) to be an extremely complex person - and we see her grow and evolve as a character throughout the novel in ways that I found really unexpected. She is malicious and extremely selfish at times, but others gentle and supportive.
- The letters in the novel were an interesting touch, but I did find things hard to follow because of the back and forth as well as timeline jumps from present day to past.
- If you don't like graphic descriptions...you may want to skip this one. While it isn't too bad, there are some pretty detailed accounts of things that happen at the isolated island.
- Overall I'd say this novel was pretty disturbing on multiple levels, specifically from a psychological perspective, it really dives into the psychology of cults, neglect, trauma, and emotional abuse.
- Things did miss the mark for me a bit with the Inspector and 'love interest' storylines, and while a lot was happening in theory all at once, I had a hard time staying interested by the middle of the novel.

Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan-Tor/Forge for the advance copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review!