• Author: C.J. Cooke
• Series: Standalone
• Genre: Gothic Thriller
• No. of pages: 423
• Dates read: 18.06.2022 – 21.06.2022
• Star Rating: 4 stars

Plot: Upon the cliffs of a remote Scottish island, Lòn Haven, stands a lighthouse. A lighthouse that has weathered more than storms. Mysterious and terrible events have happened on this island. It started with a witch hunt. Now, centuries later, islanders are vanishing without explanation. Coincidence? Or curse? Liv Stay flees to the island with her three daughters, in search of a home. She doesn’t believe in witches, or dark omens, or hauntings. But within months, her daughter Luna will be the only one of them left. Twenty years later, Luna is drawn back to the place her family vanished. As the last sister left, it’s up to her to find out the truth . . .

First of all, I would love to thank Harper Collins for a copy of this book. My first ever physical ARC sent to me by a publisher. I feel honoured!

And what a book it was! I really enjoyed this story.

We follow 3 different women from the Stay family. Liv (the mother, Sapphire (the oldest of the 3 girls) and Luna (the middle child). I loved getting to know these vastly different characters. I loved the use of the multiple POV as it really helped with the pacing off the story as well as the structure of the mystery.

Working alongside the beautifully short chapters (I love a short chapter) the use of multiple POV meant I was always reading the next chapter. Liv’s POV ends of a cliffhanger? Well, I must read on the next 5 or so chapters through Sapphire’s POV as I need to know what happens next. The multiple POV lends itself well in keeping you on your toes. Each POV gives you that tiny extra bit of insight as the story slowly starts to unfold. I found myself reading more and more as I needed to know what happened at the end.

The author did a great job of adding suspense and anticipation. Not just through the use of the setting, the multiple POV, the dialogue and the use of a diary which I cannot say to much about.

One thing I really wanted to highlight was the strong message of parenthood. Liv is a single-mum with 3 young kids and you can’t help but feel for her and want to support her. Espeically, when it comes to 15 year-old Sapphire who is struggling herself. I felt that the relationship shown between these 2 was super realistic and showed a raw side to each character.

Overall, this was a great story with beautifully raw characters, a super suspenseful story that had me on the edge of my seat!