The Children on the Hill

 

I received a copy of this release from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Title: The Children on the Hill

Author: Jennifer McMahon 

Publisher: Gallery/Scout Press

Release Date: 4.26.22

Publisher’s Summary 

A genre-defying new novel, inspired by Mary Shelley’s masterpiece Frankenstein, which brilliantly explores the eerie mysteries of childhood and the evils perpetrated by the monsters among us.

1978: at her renowned treatment center in picturesque Vermont, the brilliant psychiatrist, Dr. Helen Hildreth, is acclaimed for her compassionate work with the mentally ill. But when she home with her cherished grandchildren, Vi and Eric, she’s just Gran—teaching them how to take care of their pets, preparing them home-cooked meals, providing them with care and attention and love.

Then one day Gran brings home a child to stay with the family. Iris—silent, hollow-eyed, skittish, and feral—does not behave like a normal girl.

Still, Violet is thrilled to have a new playmate. She and Eric invite Iris to join their Monster Club, where they catalogue all kinds of monsters and dream up ways to defeat them. Before long, Iris begins to come out of her shell. She and Vi and Eric do everything together: ride their bicycles, go to the drive-in, meet at their clubhouse in secret to hunt monsters. Because, as Vi explains, monsters are everywhere.

2019: Lizzy Shelley, the host of the popular podcast Monsters Among Us, is traveling to Vermont, where a young girl has been abducted, and a monster sighting has the town in an uproar. She’s determined to hunt it down, because Lizzy knows better than anyone that monsters are real—and one of them is her very own sister.

The Children on the Hill takes us on a breathless journey to face the primal fears that lurk within us all.

My Review

I have read two previous novels by Jennifer McMahon and was on the edge of my seat the entire time. When I saw that she had a new book ready to release, I instantly hit that "request" button on Netgalley. Now after reading my third book, McMahon is now an auto-buy author for me. Her eerie writing style is so perfect. She keeps me questioning every character's motive and guessing about the trajectory of the story. While I predicted a few of the twists, there were still a couple that I did not, and for that McMahon gets major props from me. I think most contemporary mysteries/thrillers are pretty lame and predictable but that is definitely not the case with her novels. I definitely recommend this one!