Some Houses You Just Don't Enter

 

TITLE: Still, Dark Places

AUTHOR: Christina Graves

PUBLISHER: Horrorsmith Publishing

PUBLISHING DATE: June 25, 2024

PAGES: 292   

SOURCE: ARC

FROM GOODREADS: Young girls are going missing in Still Water. And the new sheriff, like his predecessor, is convinced they're only runaways trying to escape the confines of strict parents, stifling religious practices, and physical abuse. 

And why shouldn't the public believe them? After all, Nora Gray did the exact same thing. 

Nora now runs a well-known podcast that helps solve cold cases, and she's being called back to Still Water to help bring attention to one of the missing girls. 

But what she discovers puts both Nora and her co-worker, Rhys, in danger. Nora finds out that every ghost story has a shred of truth in it, and the dead don't keep secrets. 

But will she and Rhys find out what happened to the missing girls, and can they make it out of Still Water alive?

MY THOUGHTS: If you are looking for an immersive horror book to lose yourself into for a day or two, look no further because do I have a book for you!

Nora and Rhys are podcasters who specialize in cold cases.  Rhys suspects that Nora has experienced things in her life which have led to fascination, but he has no idea how deep her trauma runs when a call comes into the show from a lady asking Nora for help and telling her she knows her true identity.

When Nora was young, her sister was one of seven kids who disappeared from Still Water.  The disappearances were never solved, and not only did Nora's family fall apart as a result of her sister going missing, Nora's father, the local sheriff, then became obsessed with the case with led to a huge family estrangement.  Nora has limited memories of what happened but has always thought she should know more than what she recalls.  So, when another girl goes missing after all these years, Nora, Rhys and Rhys' girlfriend return to Still Waters to try to figure out if the disappearances are connected and to learn what happened so many years ago.

Graves does a wonderful job of creating a very spooky, atmospheric tale.  Nora is suffering a lot of mental health issues due to her childhood trauma and while I didn't find her extremely likable, I did become invested in her backstory and seeing her finally overcome her past experiences.  I never bought into the whole Nora/Rhys relationship, which is already over when the book actually starts, and later find out I was correct in questioning THAT connection.  There is a very creepy, desolate house in this tale and a lot of religious horror which shows how extreme some people will act to support their beliefs, whether right or wrong.

This book kept me on the edge of my seat and had some twists and turns I never saw coming.  It was a great vacation read and as I mentioned, I basically read it in under 24 hours.  I find that sometimes, shorter horror works better for me and that was definitely the case with this one.  Graves has already announced a new thriller book on the horizon, and I am very interested in seeing what else she comes up with next.  Bring on the next one!

MY RATING: 4 PAWS