3.5/5 stars

This felt like a supernatural, almost Gothic-like thriller.

This is a dual timeline story stretching from the main character's teenage years to current day (my preference being the younger Nicola's story). But while the writing and plotline were OK, I did have some frustrations with Nicola as I didn't feel much connection with her and became exasperated with her wishy-washy attitude toward the "ghost" aspect of the story. Yes, she sought out evidence of the supernatural, but she seemed a bit blase about it at times. And yes, this is fiction, but I definitely had to suspend my belief during the denouement.

So, while it did work on some levels with me, it wasn't quite as great as I had hoped in others...but not a bad read.

My thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing the free early arc of I'll Be Waiting for review. The opinions are strictly my own.

Unfortunately, this one didn’t work for me. I know that both, love and grief, make people act foolish and make questionable decisions. But do all the characters, main and secondary, have to sound stupid? I personally don’t enjoy romance novels because of that reason. I thought that the “horror” component of the story was going to add some gravitas to the plot but I was wrong apparently. The characters are not likable and the story too shallowly told.

A spooky read that I admit I skimmed in places. I've decided I'm actually a big chicken and no longer need to attempt to read horror. There's bugs. I don't do bugs. I do love Armstrong's writing, so four stars for that.

Horror fans will probably enjoy this book

Many thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book. My thoughts and opinions are my own and without bias or favor or expectation.

Oh, yeah! October is when Kelley Armstrong brings us her standalone horror novels. This year, it’s I’ll Be Waiting about Nicola, a woman with Cystic Fibrosis who loses her husband, Anton, in a car accident.

The one supposed certainty in their relationship had been that she would die first but now she’s unexpectedly alone. The next unexpected thing, because Nicola appears pragmatic and rational, is that she seeks out spiritualists to contact her husband. His last words, “I’ll Be Waiting” reverberate in her mind. After her brother, his ex-wife, and current husband host an intervention, Nicola agrees to one last time, but this time it would be with a reputable “spiritualist,” a scientist, actually, who specializes in determining the credibility of hauntings. With her brother’s husband, Jin, a young woman who’s lost her sister, Shania, Nicola and the scientist go to a rental house on Lake Erie that was once in Anton’s family. Here they will have a séance for three nights in a row, hoping to contact Anton.

As midges mass in clouds over Lake Erie and then around the house, unexplained things occur. Have they contacted Anton or is there something worse hovering in this old house? Tension and fear mount forcing Nicola to question her past as well as her entire relationship with Anton.

While reading the first half of I’ll Be Waiting, I decided the book would be relegated to daylight hours only. Yes, Armstrong did a great job of building the spooky tension–so much so that a squirrel tapping at the window scared me to such a degree that there’s now a hole in my ceiling (wink). And, if you’re a horror fan, you know the tension I mean. The kind where the author creates this brittle, scary atmosphere that’s the epitome of the fictional dream.

Unfortunately, Armstrong also broke that fictional dream by taking us out of the tension through flashbacks and/or via info dumps and preachiness. Now the flashbacks were necessary to establish the backstory and the info dumps were interesting while the preachiness was redundant because I’m part of the choir. As a whole, they worked like a bucket of cold water reality. Let’s just say that I had no problem finishing I’ll Be Waiting last night. In the dark. (Well, you know, I had a light on to read by.) The spooky tension created so adeptly during the beginning of the novel was gone.

Perhaps losing that energy would have flattened other novels. But since this is a Kelley Armstrong novel, we know that the detailed plotting will carry the story through. And, it does.

I was not a fan of Nicola’s. Not that I had to be. At times she came across as too self-righteous, too self-congratulating, which, even during periods of self-doubt, did not dwindle. As the end neared, I wondered if writing in third person wouldn’t have helped immensely. 🤷🏻‍♀️ Meh, I just wanted to be in Nicola’s brain less.

All that said, this is still a thrilling mystery/ghost story that will keep you hanging on to the last page. An excellent selection for the season.

Many thanks to Minotaur Books and Netgalley for sending me a copy.

This is such a great slow-burn horror!
Nicolas's husband has passed away, and one of the last things he said is I'll be waiting. This has prompted her to find psychics to see if she can contact Anton. Now most of these psychics have been frauds and Nicola was tired of the constant let so she and a couple of her friends along with a professor of parapsychology go to a place Anton loved and try one last time to make contact.
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Voices, bumps in the night, a room full of dolls, dreams of past trauma, the bugs, and the beautiful setting of a cabin on the lake bring the creepy atmosphere. Sometimes Nicola is sure Anton is there. Other times it feels like something else, and the dreams about her past are becoming more and more frequent.
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There were some surprising twists, and the atmosphere and characters kept me on the edge of my seat, waiting to see what would happen next and if Anton was really there.
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I have loved everything Kelley Armstrong writes and I can't wait to read her next book!!

I had high expectations for this book based on the description. However, it missed the mark a bit. The pace was quite slow for most of the book, and I expected more of a ghost story. The writing was solid, but this isn't a book that will stick with me. I never cared for any of the characters, but that might have been the author's intent. Nic was annoying. The second half of the book was somewhat repetitive, though I did enjoy the ending.

Well. This tale of Nicola and two seances goes along just fine for a while and then it gets creepy (but that's to be expected) and then it goes totally over the top. Nic, who has cystic fibrosis, never expected to live as long as she has nor did she ever expect to be happily married to anyone, let alone to Anton. They knew one another in high school but her family moved due to a horrible event that won't be revealed for a long time. Now though, Anton is the one who has died in a car crash, leaving her with the words, I'll be waiting, and she's been trying to contact him through psychics. This is all about secrets- Nic's, Anton's, and others-and how they all come out in one cataclysmic weekend that was meant as a seance to contact Anton. No spoilers from me. Part of this you might think you see coming from a long way out but nope, that's not it. Lots of twists, some very gruesome stuff. Armstrong is a great storyteller and she's created a terrific character in Nic, whose CF is smoothly incorporated. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. It's a page turner.

I love a good tale with possible ghosts and seances! This book hit the mark!

Nicola has lost her husband in a car wreck. He spoke to her as he was dying and she knows he has more to say. She has been steadily visiting all the mediums to try and reach him. But they are all frauds. She discovers one that might not be and she sets up some time with him. But it doesn’t quite go as planned.

I enjoyed quite a bit about this novel, especially the creepy house and the weird backstory…you will need to read this to find out! Kelly Armstrong creates great intensity and mystery surrounding Nicola and her situation! And believe me…she has a strange situation on her hands!

Need a good read to get you in the mood for Halloween…This is it! Grab your copy today.

I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review.

A woman gets into a car accident with her husband who dies... and now seven months later she's determined to contact his spirit, even if it means facing the horrible ghosts of her own pasts and the literal entities out to get her. Nicola and Anton didn't get along in highschool but years later they meet again and get married, they are so happy together... but then they get into a fatal car crash that takes Anton and now Nicola is determined to talk to him once more and contact his spirit. Yet the moment their story went public many spiritualists contact her and none have proved to be real until a professor of parapsychology takes on her case and now at Anton's family beach house things begin to get spooky. Nicola and Anton have a dark past, a past that is filled with death and a terrible incident... and the more Nicola begins to get into the seance and the house, the more she begins to hear and see things, and the more the ghosts of her pasts begin to contact her... other angrier spirits... and it'll be up to her to figure out what is really happening and who is behind it. This was a spooky atmospheric mystery with tons of drama and one that I think would be a good spooky season read. Nicola is an unreliable narrator as she tries to figure out what is real and not and what her memories actually remember and with her dark past, it gives the story a ton of twists and turns as to what is actually happening. The mystery was okay and the ending just kind of came out of left field, but the start of the book was interesting!

Release Date: October 1,2024

Publication/Blog: Ash and Books (ash-and-books.tumblr.com)

*Thanks Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

Here is my review for I’ll be waiting! Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read this book early in exchange for an honest review.

I’ll be Waiting by Kelley Armstrong
Supernatural horror.
Nicole Laughton never expected to live long enough to love someone, but now she’s a widow. News of the auto accident and photos of a supposed ghost, makes his death into a public interest nightmare for Nicole by psychics and spiritualists. Nicole is now using her skepticism to expose the fakes.
In hopes of closure, family and friends find a reputable medium and they rent the Toronto Lake Erie beach house that Anton’s family once owned.
The goal is three sessions but unusual things start happening almost immediately. Locked doors mysteriously open, a neighbor is missing, clouds of insects engulf the house, footsteps overhead, and the creak of an old dumbwaiter from an empty shaft. And then a body is found.

🎧 I alternated between an ebook and an audiobook. The performance is done by Jennifer Pickens and is compelling as the main character goes through skepticism, a little hope, and terror and takes the reader along for the wild ride.
Both the ebook and audiobook are gripping. There are a lot of extended family names and characters which may be slightly easier to follow in the ebook but the pure horror, especially in the last quarter of the story is absolutely riveting.

Nicole works through possible suspects one by one, sure she knows, until something else happens. Riveting horror.

I received a copy of this from NetGalley and Macmillan Audio.

Kelley Armstrong is one of my favorite authors so the second I saw the cover and title of this, I had to read it. I loved her first horror novel - Hemlock Island - last year and it’s no surprise I loved this too.

I’ll Be Waiting was incredibly creepy, fast-paced and gripping with a twist at the end that I loved. It has ghosts, séances, possession and is perfect for spooky season!

The main character, Nicola, has cystic fibrosis and is grieving after the tragic loss of her husband, Anton. Needing closure, she begins visiting mediums but easily sees through their tricks. With the help of her loved ones, she finds a reputable medium and arranges one last séance at the beach house Anton’s family once owned. It’s not long before things start happening - locked doors open, the house is engulfed by insects, the sound of footsteps and voices can be heard and objects move on their own. Throughout it all she’s haunted by nightmares of her past and unbeknownst to the others, this isn’t her first time contacting the dead.

I loved how the mystery of Nicola’s past is slowly revealed through her memories. Between learning about her past and the happenings in the present, I was hooked.
It's heartbreaking what she’s going through as she’s forced to adjust to life without Anton. After all, she was never meant to outlive him.

Even as someone who HATES bugs and was completely creeped out by the swarms of insects, I couldn’t put this down.

I definitely recommend picking this up if you enjoy paranormal horror!

Nicola has been living with cystic fibrosis and never expected to live past eighteen, but with medical advancements is already in her thirties. But it wasn't until she met Anton that she believed she could have a future. He is absolutely devoted to helping her live her best life, for however long that is. Until an early snowstorm causes a tragic accident and she loses Anton way to soon. His last words "I'll be waiting for you" are overheard and sold to the press. Suddenly she's hounded by spiritualists promising closure and even though she's a skeptic always finding their tricks, there's always the thought in the back of her mind that the next one might be real. Her family, determined to stop her attempts, give her one last chance by hiring a parapsychologist to come to the lake house that belonged to Anton's family for generations and try to draw his spirit one last time. Almost as soon as they arrive, strange things are happening and Nicola fears they've awoken something far darker... something she hasn't felt in years.
This was the perfect book to start October! Mostly just a great ghost story, but plenty of horror moments thrown in. I love everything this author writes and this story might be one of my favorites! I can't wait to read whatever she writes next.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Listen it’s October so I had to make room for more spooky reads like this one. This is a supernatural horror novel involving a haunted-house, seances, and a sinister spirit out for blood. Also lots of bug horror here so if you don’t like bugs, this might be too squeamish for you. This follows a married couple who get into a car accident and the husband dies. But there’s something strange going on about the scene of the crime so the wife performs a seance and things go off the rails. Atmospheric, perfect for fall.

i’m not sure what i was expecting with this book but it did not disappoint. it was one turn after another and i was enthralled the entire time. i will admit that i did not like the FMC. she just really annoyed me but besides that this was a solid read.

Nic, a woman dealing with the devastating loss of her husband, Anton, in a tragic car accident—a twist of fate made all the more poignant by her own struggle with cystic fibrosis (CF), which she had always assumed would claim her life first. In her hunt for closure, Nic turns to a familiar yet fraught method: a seance. Accompanied by a small group—her brother-in-law, her brother's ex-wife, and Shania, a friend from her grief counseling class— she enlists Dr. Cirillo to lead the seance. Eerie situations start to occur, and it reminds Nic of her complicated past with seances creating the stage for the supernatural to take over.

I liked the first half of this book, but it really fell off in the second half.

I would probably pick up another book if I want spooky vibes.

Probably 3.5 stars. Nicely atmospheric, especially once they get to the vacation house. The last 25% really brought all the threads together in a breathless finale.

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martins Press for this copy of "'I'll Be Waiting."

First I always appreciate when an author gives us a main character with a chronic disorder that they're managing. It's a learning experience that I hope I translate to "real life" as I meet and interact with new people.

Second the book started SO strong with great characters, a creepy intriguing plot, and lots of hooks to keep you guessing and turning pages.

But the ending was disappointing for me. It just screeched to a halt and missed some potentially satisfying details that would have made this a fantastic read.

My favorite read for a perfect spooky season! This was described as "supernatural horror involving a haunted-house, seances, lost loved ones, and a sinister spirit out for blood.." and that absolutely got me to request it, along with Kelley Armstrong. This was atmospheric and haunting in a way that made me not want to put it down.