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A couple on their first romantic weekend away in a house in an isolated spot from away from a town. Where there is severe weather and away from technology. How romantic and a great setting for a phycological thriller.
Ellie has planned the entire weekend as a romantic getaway for her and Steven. Ellie is both alluring and innocent, and Steven seems ready to give up his immoral ways for Ellie.Some readers have complained about the slow plot development but I absolutely loved the gradual and deliberate way in which the characters were developed. I felt fully connected to them and completely invested in their actions. I also really liked the spice factor in the story! Wow. Just wow. Gripping, intense, thought provoking, addictive . . . I read the whole book in one sitting. Definitely going to be one of my favourite reads of this year' 5* READER REVIEW It is an incredibly difficult task to hold an audience’s attention when a full length story is pretty much a two-hander. I complement the author in her use of amplification, imagery, metaphors and similes to add colour and depth. Not once did I find my attention wavering. Secondly I felt the writing was far too heavy on scene description at the expense of character development. There are only so many ways to describe snow and a forest, I need to feel characters come alive or spike interest in me to stay engaged. These 2 felt flat and one dimensional. Ellie is a young student. Steven is a college professor. They've been in a relationship for six months and this weekend will be a celebration of their time together. A chance to discover each other where no one else can see. We already know that the weekend is not going to end well, we just don't know who the blood will belong to, or why.
Athough I finished reading this a while ago, I didn't write a review because I was so divided. Not normally at a loss for words, I was unsure. I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased. Apparently, you don’t really know someone until you’ve gone away with them. Where did I read that? What will I learn about Steven this weekend that I don’t already know?” Steven is a handsome, sophisticated professor of literature and much older than Ellie, a beautiful graduate student. Slowly we learn that Steven has left a trail of broken hearts and broken girls behind him. He is drawn to Ellie’s beauty, kindness and intellect. He sees her as an innocent.The winners of the book are not the MCs! The real winners are the thrilling atmosphere of Chesapeake Bay and THE HOUSE scared the living daylights out of me! Location wins! Characters fail! Each chapter is quite short and devoted to one of the two main protagonists, interspersed with diary entries from a third person. Ellie’s sections are written in the first person with Steven’s in the third. The book is divided into three parts, one for each day they remain at the house and starting with an appropriate epigraph. Synopsis: When Ellie and her boyfriend Steven take their first trip together, that becomes apparent that each of them harbors secrets—and that one of those secrets is deadly. Ellie is an NYU grad student. Steven is a wealthy and privileged teacher at an elite Manhattan school. When they head out for their romantic break, they're both excited to get to know each other better away from prying eyes. But when a snowstorm strands them in the house, they begin to realize that neither of them is quite who they say they are—and that one of them won't escape the weekend alive. The author’s note is amazing…sharing the inspiration for the book in the #MeToo era. Also included are pertinent links for those in the UK, as well as a call to action to others. I really do not want to leave a very critical review, as the premise (the #MeToo movement) is so very important and also hits close to home to me. It is an extremely overlooked issue even in this day and age and light should be brought to these being ongoing crimes committed toward women and the perpetrators appropriately prosecuted.
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