Well, what a ride that was! I wasn't sure what to expect when I started reading this, the horror/psychological genre isn't usually my thing so I didn't expect to enjoy it. I'm over the moon to say I was completely wrong! This was one of those stories that gets completely in your head and you can't put it down until you've finished it.
The story follows our central character, Lola Nox, told from her point of view it charts her complicated relationship with her over bearing father, the famous film director, Nolan Nox. Nolan has practically hidden Lola from the world which, in turn, causes her to push the boundaries back.
Nolan's most famous movie was Nightjar, filmed in the small town of Harrow Lake and where he met Lola's mother, the mysterious Lorelei, now absent from Lola's life after she left them both when Lola was five. When Nolan is brutally attacked in their apartment, Lola is sent to stay with the grandmother she hardly knows back in Harrow Lake.
Arriving in Harrow Lake, Lola begins to unravel the secrets of not only the town and its strange and scary stories but of her own family and the unexplained disappearance of Lorelei. The town of Harrow Lake has almost been turned into a shrine to the movie, as well as to their break out star Lorelei - the girl that just wanted to escape. Harrow Lake is a town with a lot of history, culminating in scary tales of missing people and a frightening figure that stalks the woodland.
Being as I have an overactive brain, I tend not to watch or read anything that's going to play on my mind but this was so well written that I had to finish it. It had just the right level of suspense, creepiness and fantastic story telling. You certainly go on a journey with Lola, and the twists and turns of the plot take you on a roller coaster where you end up questioning what's real and what's not. As the secrets begin to fall away I found myself holding my breath as Lola put the pieces together. Harrow Lake is a brilliant example of a great, well written story that takes you into your imagination from start to finish.
It's books like this that make me really thankful for being part of The Write Reads book tours, I probably wouldn't have read this book had I not been involved and I would have seriously missed out. Highly recommend this read!
MHR x
I received this as an e-book in return for an honest review as part of The Write Reads Ultimate Blog Tour.