Tuesday, February 11, 2014

Release Day Review: The Winter People

The Winter People by Jennifer McMahon
Series? No
Publisher: Doubleday
Date: Feb 11, 2014
How did I get this book? free Advance Reader's Copy from the publisher via Shelf Awareness for my honest review
My Rating: 4.5 of 5 stars
GoodReads | Author | Publisher

This book takes place in West Hall, Vermont, a small town notorious for old legends and mysterious disappearances. Switching between the present day as two daughters desperately search for their missing mother, and the early 1900's telling the story of the "mad" woman who used to live in the very same farmhouse. It is suspenseful on both fronts as you try to piece together both the current mystery and the century-old one.

I didn't fully realize when I started reading there were going to be paranormal elements and I was definitely skeptical when I first saw the book heading in that direction. My initial reservations were quickly cast aside though as I got pulled in by the plot and the characters. Jennifer McMahon's writing captured the eerie, creepy feeling of the story perfectly and kept me flipping the pages late into the night. She has a real knack for telling you just enough to raise the hair on the back of your neck, but then leave the rest to your imagination -- your imagination probably being worse than anything written down in black and white!

This book has solidified Jennifer McMahon as a new favorite author of mine and I will definitely be reading anything new she writes in the future. The only other book I've read by her previously is last year's The One I Left Behind, so I'm really looking forward to finding some time to read through her backlist!

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Reading Challenges:
Review Pile
My Kind of Mystery

20 comments:

  1. This book will be finding it's way in to my Wishlist Box. I love books that can a. keep me page turning way after I should have stopped and b. that captures eeriness perfectly. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
    :-)
    Bits & Bobs

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    1. It was a definite page-turner! I hope you get a chance to read it :)

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  2. I enjoy books with just a hint of the paranormal, but I can definitely see being thrown by it if it isn't clear up front.

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    1. It can be a bit jarring when you don't realize it, so I was definitely glad to be pleasantly surprised in this case :)

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  3. It's nice to find your first link, Christine. I hope everyone enjoys the new way I lay out review pages. I could swear Phyllis A. Whitney has a novel by this name. If your titles keep matching those of "Gentle Spectrums", I might have to bring you over there! :) Warmly, Carolyn. http://cmriedel.wordpress.com/gentle-spectrums-2014/

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    1. Thanks Carolyn! I think I need to cut myself off from additional challenges, but I appreciate the thought :) I looked it up on GoodReads, and you are correct there is another book by the same title by Phyllis A. Whitney -- there are actually quite a few books with the same title, but they all sound quite different from each other!

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  4. I have not read anything by this author yet, but this book is on my TBR pile. I love a writer that is so good she makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand up! I'm glad to hear this one was good!

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    1. She's really good -- I hope you like her books if you give them a try :)

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  5. I really enjoyed this story too! It was a little crazy but so entertaining!
    ­Missie @ A Flurry of Ponderings

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  6. This sounds very good! I don't read many creepy books, but one that it also a mystery and which leaves the details to your imagination sounds like my kind of book :)

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    1. This one had a really well done creep-factor -- and that's when my imagination really ran wild!

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  7. Yay, I am so excited that you enjoyed this one as much as I did Christine.

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    1. It really was soooo good! I'm really excited to read her backlist :)

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  8. I just finished reading this book! So far it is my favorite of her books. She's quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. I love how she can walk the line that leaves you wondering if it's really supernatural or if they're all just imagining it. Give Don't Breathe a Word a try. That one will really leave you questioning what's real and what isn't.

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    1. Yes! She does walk that line so well. Thanks for the recommendation -- I wasn't sure which book from her backlist to start with :)

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  9. I saw a differing opinion of this book the other day. I guess I will have to try it out myself to see if I like it or not.

    THANKS for sharing.

    Stopping by from Carole's Books You Loved March Edition. I am in the list as #20. My book entry is below.

    Elizabeth
    Silver's Reviews
    My Book Entry

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    1. Thanks for stopping by Elizabeth! That's the great thing about readers and book bloggers, we all like different things...I definitely recommend trying it out for yourself to see what you think :)

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  10. Ah! This is on my TBR, I'm debating doing it audiostyle, but KINDA petrified! IT will be my first of her books.. because the other covers FREAK ME OUT

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    1. I wouldn't call it petrifying, but it had a good creep factor. I hope you get a chance to try it & thanks for stopping by :)

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I'd love to hear what you think :)