The Shadow House
-
-
3.9 • 18 Ratings
-
-
- $4.99
-
- $4.99
Publisher Description
When single mother Alex flees her abusive relationship and moves with her teenage son and baby girl to a rural ecovillage, she thinks she's made the best decision of her life. Pine Ridge is idyllic: the off-grid lifestyle and remote location are perfect, and the community is welcoming - mostly. Charmed by its magnetic founder, Kit, and the natural beauty of the former farmland, Alex settles easily into her new home.
But her arrival at Pine Ridge disturbs barely submerged secrets, and she's shaken by a series of eerily familiar events that seem to be connected to the abandoned farmhouse on the hill. Alex realises that, in escaping her own shadowy past, she may have stumbled into someone else's. And this time, there may be nowhere to run.
From international bestselling thriller writer Anna Downes, The Shadow House lures you in and keeps you on edge at every turn.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
Fleeing an abusive relationship, single mother Alex relocates from suburban Sydney to a rural community with her baby daughter and jaded teenage son. But Alex’s anxiety begins to spike as eerie incidents at Pine Ridge dovetail with dark revelations from the past, and she soon realises that her family is facing an even greater threat than before. Steeped in the creeping dread of classic gothic literature and folk horror, The Shadow House is a tense domestic thriller with a distinctly Australian setting. Anna Downes interweaves another mother’s experiences with Alex’s, gradually pushing their parallel stories from the familiar chaos of modern parenthood towards much more serious stakes.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Fleeing from yet another bad situation, single mother Alex, the protagonist of this gripping if flawed psychological thriller from Downes (The Safe Place), heads for Pine Ridge, a new development billed as an ecovillage, with her 14-year-old son, Ollie, and her eight-month-old daughter, Kara. Though Pine Ridge is a far cry from their city life, Alex feels instantly at home in the Australian countryside. Paying in cash, Alex rents a demo house model for three months, pleased to be warmly welcomed by Jenny, her helpful new neighbor, and other residents each seeking a better way of life. Almost immediately, odd things begin to happen: a dead bird is left in a box on the family's steps; eerie carvings appear on trees. Is there any truth to the tale of the Pine Ridge witch, or is there something more human at play threatening Alex and her children? The distinctive setting and well-drawn characters, especially Ollie, compensate for a convoluted plot that offers no hints of the principal characters' dramatic backstories until the big reveals at the end. Downes remains a writer to watch. 125,000-copy announced first printing.
