Critics' Opinion:
Readers' rating:
Published Nov 2020
331 pages
Genre: Thrillers
Publication Information
Haunted by her sister's disappearance, a troubled woman becomes consumed by past secrets in this gripping thriller from the New York Times bestselling author of The Vanishing Year.
When Hannah Maloney's aunt dies in a car accident, she returns to her family's castle in the Catskills and the epicenter of a childhood trauma: her sister's unsolved disappearance. It's been seventeen years, and though desperate to start a new life with her fiancé, Hannah is compelled to question the events of her last summer at Brackenhill.
When a human bone is found near the estate, Hannah is convinced it belongs to her long-lost sister. She launches her own investigation into that magical summer that ended in a nightmare. As strange happenings plague the castle, Hannah uncovers disturbing details about the past and startling realizations about her own repressed childhood memories.
Fueled by guilt over her sister's vanishing, Hannah becomes obsessed with discovering what happened all those years ago, but by the time Hannah realizes some mysteries are best left buried, it's too late to stop digging. Overwhelmed by what she has exposed, Hannah isn't sure her new life can survive her old ghosts.
"[R]iveting...Fans of gothic mysteries with a touch of the supernatural will be richly rewarded." - Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"Link by link, Moretti hypnotically reveals 'a tragic, violent daisy chain.'" - Kirkus Reviews
"This spine-chilling thriller has everything: mystery, a haunted castle, a dash of romance, and such glorious writing that the pages seem to turn themselves. The heart of the book, though, is Hannah, a strong and complex protagonist whose secrets are masterfully, agonizingly revealed until they reach a mind-bending crescendo. The only problem? You'll have to read this one with the lights on." - Jess Lourey, Amazon Charts bestselling author of Unspeakable Things
"Girls of Brackenhill is an atmospheric thriller that is, at its heart, a ghost story and a haunting reminder of the power of secrets. Moretti deftly weaves together the past and present and gives us not one mystery, but a whole series of disappearances and deaths that are somehow linked together, anchored by the ominous stone castle on the hill. Welcome to Brackenhill, where nothing is as it seems." - Jennifer McMahon, author of The Invited
"A Gothic chiller filled with secrets, lies, and things that go bump in the night. I was riveted from the first page to the last." - Riley Sager, New York Times bestselling author of Lock Every Door
"A looming castle, a woman haunted by her sister's unsolved disappearance, and long buried secrets clawing their way up to the surface—Kate Moretti deftly weaves it all together in a gripping gothic ghost story of the first order. Girls of Brackenhill is full of chills, thrills, and dark surprises. You won't stop turning the pages until the stunning end—and even then you'll be sleeping with the lights on. Don't miss it!" - Lisa Unger, New York Times bestselling author of The Stranger Inside
This information about Girls of Brackenhill was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Kate Moretti is the New York Times bestselling author of six novels and a novella. Her first novel, Thought I Knew You, was a New York Times bestseller. The Vanishing Year was a nominee in the Goodreads Choice Awards mystery/thriller category for 2016 and was called "chillingly satisfying" (Publishers Weekly) with "superb" closing twists (New York Times Book Review). Moretti has worked in the pharmaceutical industry for twenty years as a scientist and enjoys traveling and cooking. She lives in Pennsylvania in an old farmhouse with her husband, two children, and no known ghosts. Her lifelong dream is to find a secret passageway.
The Flower Sisters
by Michelle Collins Anderson
From the new Fannie Flagg of the Ozarks, a richly-woven story of family, forgiveness, and reinvention.
The House on Biscayne Bay
by Chanel Cleeton
As death stalks a gothic mansion in Miami, the lives of two women intertwine as the past and present collide.
The Funeral Cryer by Wenyan Lu
Debut novelist Wenyan Lu brings us this witty yet profound story about one woman's midlife reawakening in contemporary rural China.
Your guide toexceptional books
BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.
