Just finished this book. Think it was in a box of books I got from someone on FB marketplace. Never heard of this author before. It was an OK book. The story is about Emma, the protagonist, who moves from NYC to a small town on the Long Island coast. They buy an old mansion which is in the country so rather isolated. There is some mystery about the last owner of the house. There are strange noises in the house. Emma, who writes novels (featuring haunted houses) also finds disturbing writings on her computer (e-mails, drafts of her recent novel). To add further drama, Emma was involved in an accident a few years earlier and each anniversary of the accident, Emma gets a card, presumably from the spouse of one of the victims. So, there is some mystery as to who/what is responsible for the computer hacking--a ghost or Emma's stalker.
For whatever reason, I didn't find Emma particularly likeable. Also, her son Zack (about 10 years old) was a star soccer player. There were a few lengthy passages about different plays that Zack and his teammates made. I don't think those added anything to the story--to me it seemed like the author was showing off her knowledge of soccer.
POSSIBLE SPOILERS: The haunting was a red herring and didn't add much to the story. I had a hunch as to who the stalker was (after the accident years earlier, the victim[s spouse dropped out of site) and turned out to be correct. And, of course, as so often happens in scary movies or suspenseful books, one of the characters ends up making an utterly stupid move that puts him/her in danger. END OF SPOILERS
The writing was OK. This is the first book I've read by this author and doubt that I will read any others
For whatever reason, I didn't find Emma particularly likeable. Also, her son Zack (about 10 years old) was a star soccer player. There were a few lengthy passages about different plays that Zack and his teammates made. I don't think those added anything to the story--to me it seemed like the author was showing off her knowledge of soccer.
POSSIBLE SPOILERS: The haunting was a red herring and didn't add much to the story. I had a hunch as to who the stalker was (after the accident years earlier, the victim[s spouse dropped out of site) and turned out to be correct. And, of course, as so often happens in scary movies or suspenseful books, one of the characters ends up making an utterly stupid move that puts him/her in danger. END OF SPOILERS
The writing was OK. This is the first book I've read by this author and doubt that I will read any others
I never figure out the mystery, and this book was no different. I did not see the bad guy coming!
An enjoyable suspense novel.
An enjoyable suspense novel.
Very enjoyable! Creepy house, past traumas, and it kept me guessing until the very end!
An easy-to-read book that kept my interest. As the narrator mentions in the story, this was like having sherbert to clear the palate between heavier courses in a meal. Now I can go back to a Charles Todd "Sgt. Rutledge" book, which expects more attention of its readers. This is not a true ghost story, but has that element in it. P.S. Too much soccer!
Emma Roth, successful novelist, never imagined living anywhere but New York City, until she finds the perfect house. It's a beautiful coastline Mansion on Long Island, with a glassed in tower library any writer would kill for. But no sooner does Emma move into the house with her scientist husband, Roger, and her son, Zack then eerie things begin happening. Characters from Emma's book begin taunting her. Thereatening messages appear on her compter screen. Blod is found on the stairs- in the exact spot where the former tenant fell to her death. Because these things happen only when she's alone, Roger suspects she's imagining them.
EXCELLENT book - hard to put down!!!!
