This was horrifyingly compelling in a quite disturbing kind of way.

Set in Tasmania, there is a mix of locations mentioned being real and some fictional. Not mentioned by name, but I am pretty sure The Fox and Hounds Hotel was the inspiration for the hotel in the story.

King’s childhood home gave me the absolute creeps, and as for his twin sister Ruth, wow what an interesting character she was.

It was interesting how story brings the past crashing into the present with twists I didn’t see coming until I was upon them.

At 288 pages this one is a quick read perfect for fans of gothic thriller / mysteries.

‘King’s father is dying, and we have been summoned to his deathbed.’

We first meet Grace and her husband Kingsley (known as King) as they are driving to his childhood home, Blackwater, on Tasmania’s Tasman Peninsula. King left Blackwater as a young man and Grace, recently married and now heavily pregnant, knows very little about King’s family and upbringing.

When they arrive at Blackwater, they find the house is a large, damp, and derelict wreck. King’s father yells at Grace to leave and King’s twin sister Ruth seems disturbed. Grace was hoping to return home to Melbourne, but after his father died, King insists that they stay to settle the estate and prepare the house for sale.
Things get worse. As she cleans out the house, Grace makes some gruesome discoveries. And some of the locals share stories which reveal Blackwater’s dark history. Add to this the fact that King is becoming distant, and Ruth continues to behave very strangely, and you have all the ingredients of a gothic horror story.

And what about Grace’s baby? You’ll need to read it to find out for yourself.

Note: My thanks to NetGalley and Affirm Press for providing me with a free electronic copy of this book for review purposes.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith

Grace and King return to King’s childhood home in Tasmania, an old and creepy house that is in a state of disrepair. His father is dying and they’ve returned to be there for him. Also living in the house is Ruth, King’s twin sister, a character who is largely spoken about but rarely seen.

Grace is seven months pregnant, has trouble moving around without feeling ill and has an instant feeling of foreboding when she enters the old house.

Her state of mind is not helped when she starts talking to some of the locals who recount rumours and superstitions about the house and its inhabitants. Early on, there is quite a bit of mystery surrounding Ruth, especially given that Grace has not seen her despite being there for a couple of days, and King appears to change the subject whenever her name comes up.

This is a first person account told from Grace’s perspective. Although she is itching to finally meet the evasive Ruth, when she does she’s kind of sorry she did. She’s also more than a little alarmed at the change coming over King as he becomes distracted, manic, prone to wandering in the middle of the night and falling into random moments of deep confusion. And no matter how much she pleads with him to leave, his obstinance becomes a sticking point.

It’s difficult to decide whether to be completely frustrated with Grace’s repeated pleas to leave Blackwater (yet she stays) or be impressed by her sense of duty when she decides to remain with her husband.

There is a history to the house, a history that is deeply disturbing and, if the tales are to be believed, could prove to be extremely dangerous for Grace. By doing her own checking with some of the locals she learns more and more about the house and its inhabitants over the years, ratcheting up her fears with all manner of dread building up inside her.

Right from the start the house is given a sinister, almost otherworldly personality that offers a past steeped in pain and suffering…

“There are ruins of several other buildings near the house…In another setting the ruins might be romantic, but this was part of a convict outstation...On the walls is mustard-coloured embossed wallpaper, heavy and cloying, and in places the plaster is soft and damp. The room smells, impossibly, like wet dog.”

This is a strong story of suspense that makes use of the historical background of Tasmania as the basis for the growing feelings of unease that pervade every page. You can see the change in King’s mental state the longer they stay in the house. It has the effect of him withdrawing both physically and emotionally from Grace. The result: Grace is in a creepy house, effectively on her own. 7 months pregnant with the knowledge that a maxim for the place is “A baby will never be born at Blackwater”. (Yikes)

A real strength of the book lies in Jacqueline Ross’ highly descriptive prose when it comes to the house itself. It virtually becomes an immersive experience as Grace ventures into each room for the first time. From the rank smells emanating from rooms that have been closed for years to the clouds of fleas rising from the carpets when they’re disturbed , the rot, dust and bits falling off. Through all of this you get a complete picture of just how run down and dangerous the place is.

This is a dramatically compelling book with a well-constructed plot that had me whizzing through the pages at a frantic pace. It’s your typical slow burn, never a comfortable ride but always powerful in its imagery.

My thanks to NetGalley and Affirm Press for the opportunity to read, enjoy and review a cope of the digital ARC of this book.

Blackwater is my first read of this Australian author and an enjoyable, shortish gothic noir novel. It starts with heavily pregnant Grace following her new husband King to his childhood home of Blackwater in remote Tasmania. On his deathbed in his derelict house, King’s father shouts at Grace to leave and King’s twin sister Ruth is strange, to say the least. While they are supposedly only staying at Blackwater for two weeks to deal with the house and settle Ruth, the place’s dark history seems to be rubbing off on King. As the days tick over, he turns stranger and more distant, his twin becomes creepier and more insistent that no baby will be born at Blackwater, and Grace is increasingly frightened for herself and her unborn child. The climax and final twist to this story weren’t my favourite parts, but others will completely disagree, which is the beauty of our individualism as readers, isn’t it?
Blackwater is an enjoyable dark, creepy read with a fast-paced ending. Recommended for fans of gothic novels/thrillers.

I absolutely loved this gothic/thriller ‘Blackwater’ by Jacqueline Ross.

We follow the story of Grace, a woman heavily pregnant, and her husband Kingsley (aka King) as they go back to his dreaded childhood home to see his father before he dies. While there we meet his creepy twin sister, who if I met in this house I would leave and never come back.

Following the death of his father King inherits the house and wants to fix it up before selling. However, the longer he is there the stranger both King and his sister Ruth become.

I have never wanted to scream at a character to leave so much. Overall I really enjoyed this book and all the gothic horror elements to it. I felt it could have had more jump scares happen to drive Grace to the edge, and for Susie’s storyline to maybe have a bit more significance to the story.

🌟4/5

Thanks to netgalley and affirm press for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

As an Australian, I loved reading a thriller set in Tasmania. This book had a touch of Daphne Du Maurier for me, both in feel and execution. It’s almost gothic. I enjoyed the writing style and think the author did a good job of keeping that strong sense of mystery throughout the book.