REVIEW and GIVEAWAY
The Visitors Book
by Sophie Hannah
The Visitors Book is currently on tour with Partners in Crime Virtual Book Tours. The tour stops here today for my review, an excerpt, and a giveaway. Please be sure to visit the other tour stops as well.
For another book by this author, please check out my blog post on The Fantastic Book of Everybody's Secrets.
Description
A collection of spine-tingling ghost stories from one of today’s most acclaimed suspense novelists.
In this small but perfectly formed collection of supernatural short stories, bestselling author, Sophie Hannah, takes the comforting scenes of everyday life and imbues them with a frisson of fear. Why is a young woman so unnerved by the presence of a visitors book in her boyfriend’s inner-city home? And whose spidery handwriting is it that fills the pages? Who is the strangely courteous boy still lingering at a child’s tenth birthday party when all the parents have gathered their children and left? And why does the presence of a perfectly ordinary woman in a post office queue leave another customer pallid and quaking with fear?
Excerpt
Click below to read an excerpt. Please note the book has been re-issued with a new cover.
Praise for the Book
"I appreciate some of the issues Hannah covers in her stories. One deals with perception. How do we know that what we see, or at least think we see, is reality? How can we tell if it is our imagination? Another issue is dealing with preconceived ideas and what we observe or miss seeing because of them. Each of the stories in this collection was interesting. The impact of each story varied greatly. I was disappointed that there wasn't more of the spine tingling fiction included." ~ Joan N
"This was a great collection of short stories. Each one had a bit of a supernatural twist. [...] with the long winter months coming up, this is a great book to read by the warm fire. Each one details a specific character’s story and their being thrust into the world of ghosts. The stories are well developed and kept my attention. [...] Overall though, a great set of stories and a very enjoyable book. If you like ghost stories, then be sure to pick this up." ~ R. Rhodes
"There are four stories in this collection, as well as excerpts from two of the author's novels. My favorite story in this collection was 'Justified True Belief,' which I thought at the start had to do with a woman who was seeing ghosts ... but I turned out to be wrong. Again, all the stories are well written and suspenseful, with twists at the end. Perfect for a quick afternoon read." ~ Teresa Kander
"Four wonderfully put together ghost stories set in everyday life. It is the commonness of the setting and the vividness of the characters that makes these stories special, and, of course, they're ghost stories." ~ Lunar Sirius
"Enjoyable even for jaded ghost-story fans." ~ eugenia laura pascual
My Review
By Lynda Dickson
This is a collection of four short (really short) stories.
In "The Visitors Book" our narrator has a philosophical argument with her boyfriend about the pretentiousness of his visitors book. But why is it so important to him?
In "The Last Boy to Leave" Jen and Greg host a birthday party for their son in their family home. But after all the guests have left, one boy remains. Where are his parents?
In "Justified True Belief" Suzie suffers from bad neck pain and thinks she's seen a ghost. Are the two related?
In "All the Dead Mothers of My Daughter's Friends" Mel has an unusual encounter with Lisa outside their daughters' school. Do you know the difference between a daytime ghost and a nighttime ghost? You'll find out here.
All of the stories have a common thread, though I can't say what it is for fear of giving too much away. They are all eerie, suspenseful, and give you a feeling of dread as you read them. They will also keep you guessing until the very end.
My only complaint: I just wish this collection was a little longer.
About the Author
Sophie Hannah is the New York Times-bestselling author of numerous psychological thrillers, which have been published in 27 countries and adapted for television, as well as The Monogram Murders, the first Hercule Poirot novel authorized by the estate of Agatha Christie.
Giveaway
Enter the tour-wide giveaway for a chance to win one of five ebook copies of The Visitors Book by Sophie Hannah (US only).
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