Mirrorland

Cat lives in Los Angeles, far away from 36 Westeryk Road, the imposing gothic house in Edinburgh where she and her estranged twin sister, El, grew up. As girls, they invented Mirrorland, a dark, imaginary place under the pantry stairs full of pirates, witches, and clowns. These days Cat rarely thinks about their childhood home, or the fact that El now lives there with her husband Ross.

But when El mysteriously disappears after going out on her sailboat, Cat is forced to return to 36 Westeryk Road, which has scarcely changed in twenty years. The grand old house is still full of shadowy corners, and at every turn Cat finds herself stumbling on long-held secrets and terrifying ghosts from the past. Because someone—El?—has left Cat clues in almost every room: a treasure hunt that leads right back to Mirrorland, where she knows the truth lies crouched and waiting...

Book source ~ TWR Tour

Mirrorland

Carole Johnstone

20 April 2021

Thriller | Suspense | Dark

320 Pages

My Rating ~ 4 bites

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Catriona (Cat) Morgan moved away from her twin sister Ellice (El) in Edinburgh twelve years ago. Now, her brother-in-law Ross has called to tell her El is missing. El went out on her boat and never came back. Cat knows her sister isn’t dead. She knows the way she always knew when El was hurt. But everything is pointing to Cat being wrong. Being back in the house they grew up in is messing with Cat. And that’s only the tip of the iceberg. Cat is about to go through some things. The only question is: Will she survive the storm?

Holy shit! This is a mindfuck! This is a book that grabs hold and does not let go. Seriously. I had dreams about it. I don’t usually dream about book plots. Sometimes, but most of the time my dreams are just random complete weirdness. This thing messed with my mind. It’s a book I know I’ll be thinking about for a long long time. And it’ll probably pop into my thoughts when I least expect it. Don’t you love books like that?

So, you’re probably wondering why I didn’t rate it a 5. Well, to be completely honest, the beginning exasperated me. I mean, it got to the point I actually thought about DNFing it. The unreliable narrator (Cat) got on my nerves with the constant flip flopping of past and present. The switches come without warning and, for me, that is just plain annoying. However…you knew there’d be a however, right? However, the further along I read the more I realized this type of narration is key to the story. It’s KEY, people! At about 40% I really got the wind in my sails and couldn’t wait to see where this ship was going to take me. Oh, boy. Oh. Boy! This is one of those rare books I absolutely love the middle to end, but I’m not too crazy about the beginning. I’m glad I stuck with it.

For those who love dark, twisted, mysteries that mess with your brain then this is one for you. There are so many triggers and some I can’t even list without spoiling things. Suffice to say, it’s deep as Davey Jones locker and just as dark. Mirrorland and that house. Holy fuck. That’s some messed up shit. I love it. Carole Johnstone, I’ll be watching you. I mean, in a non-stalkerish way. Like, I’ll be watching for the next book you launch out into the world. I'm a book lover, not a psychopath.

Sidenote: I received a copy via NetGalley and a hardcover I wasn't expecting. Nice! However, I'm a little disappointed the map of the house was in the ebook but not the hard cover. :(

Carole Johnstone is an award-winning writer from Scotland, whose short stories have been published all over the world. Mirrorland, a psychological suspense with a gothic twist, is her debut novel.

Having grown up in Lanarkshire, she now lives in the beautiful Argyll & Bute, and is currently working on her second novel: a very unusual murder-mystery, set in the equally beautiful Outer Hebrides.

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