Library's review
Most of the story takes place at the convent in 1987, seen through the eyes of either Ria or Lydia, but Moorhouse also uses twin framing devices to provide more context that take us back to 1942 and Frances' disappearance and the aftermath, and forward to 2015 London, where Ria finds herself forced to confront the past she's tried very hard to forget. All the time shifts are clearly sign-posted and there's no confusion for the reader.
I don't necessarily love super-scary books anymore — The Shining when I was 17 about did me in — but this one had a pleasantly spooky vibe that was chill-inducing in all the best ways. It won't keep you up at night (at least it didn't me) but the suspense felt well-earned and skillfully written. The characters were fleshed out and seemed like real people, if not particularly likable in some cases. There's a romance subplot that veers toward the unbelievable but is needed to drive the main plot toward its conclusion.
As I mentioned in my last thread, this book had me thinking about it when I wasn't reading it and eager to get back to it through about the first two-thirds to three-quarters. I felt it sort of fell off a bit toward the end, but at the same time it was a satisfying wrap-up so not a total disappointment — it just didn't have the same driving suspense and tension of the rest. I'd still recommend it highly if you're looking for some creepy shenanigans in October.
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Little Frances slams the doors, and runs around the upstairs floors.She'll steal your pen or touch your hair, when you're sure there's no one there.The nuns are meant to keep her safe, but she gets out of her own grave.So pull your covers over your head, Little Frances isn't dead ... On a bright spring day in London, Ria Driver sees a face she never thought she'd see again. Coincidence? Or her past coming back to haunt her? Suddenly, Ria is plunged back almost thirty years, to the time she spent as Supervisor at the Convent of Maria Goretti, a rural Irish boarding school. And although she has tried her best to forget, the memories come flooding back. Cold, darkness, isolation, loss ... fear. Fear of the sadistic Mother Benedicta and her cruel punishments. And fear of the noises ... the humming, the footsteps, the knocking ...What was the cause of the sounds from the attic? And who was the child who should not have been there?As events unfold, Ria realises that she can leave the past behind no longer, that her story needs an ending. And to find it, she must go back to where she swore she'd never go again.… (more)