Psychological and disturbing, the story rips through sad reveals in its opening chapters, covering murder, abuse, and haunting memories ... There’s some melodrama and misdirection involved in the book’s progressions, though the dominant red herring leads to satisfying, scary scenes. Heather is a distressed but reliable narrator; her roiling emotions are palpable. Secondary characters are more subdued, in part because of the demons Heather’s wrestling during outwardly normal exchanges. Heartbreaking revelations jolt the book’s whispers of conjurings back to reality, and the ending is violent, cinematic, and just inconclusive enough to induce lasting chills.
Heather’s eventual descent into madness is difficult to watch as she tries to make sense of what’s happening to her. Especially appealing to readers who grew up with R. L. Stine’s Fear Street series, Walters’ first novel will find fans among a wide range of horror readers.
Horror short story author Walters offers up her first novel in the crowded psychological thriller field. The plot is suspenseful but the character development is weak. Overall, a moderately decent psychological thriller with a touch of the supernatural.
... underwhelming ... Heather acts increasingly erratically, leaving the reader in doubt as to the reliability of her narration and memories right up to the over-the-top conclusion. This will work best for those who have never encountered a story about a group of women with murderous secrets in their past.
Although Walters offers knowing nods to Slender Man, The Shining, and The Turn of the Screw, her own attempt at a terror-filled tale of adolescent trauma falls flat. Manufactured conflict, preposterous plotting, and characters lacking in complexity and verisimilitude sap drama and tension while the half-baked legend of the Red Lady fails to frighten. Stilted dialogue and bloated prose further frustrate the pacing and drive ... A sterile, shrugworthy take on long-form horror from acclaimed short-fiction writer Walters.
