Married couple Jack and Ali Gardiner move to a self-sufficient spiritual commune in the English Fens, desperate for fresh start. The local village is known for the witches who once resided there and Rosalind House, where the commune has been established, is a former psychiatric home, with a disturbing history.

When Jack and Ali arrive, a chain of unexpected and unexplained events is set off, and it becomes clear that they are not all that they seem. As the residents become twitchy, and the villagers suspicious, events from the past come back to haunt them, and someone is seeking retribution…

At once an unnerving mystery, a chilling thriller and a dark and superbly wrought ghost story, The Lingering is an exceptionally plotted, terrifying and tantalisingly twisted novel by one of the most exciting authors in the genre.

MOMOBOOKDIARY REVIEW

OMG! This is brilliant– and terrifyingly creepy!!

The Lingering is a twisted supernatural tale. A new couple, Jack and Ali, have moved to the self-sufficient commune.  They are starting over after something happened in their old life – details are sketchy – you will need to read the book to find out more!

The commune lives within ‘Rosalind House’ which is an old psychiatric home within  a small village – the setting has many old buildings which were used and now sit at varying stages of decay.  The locals from the next village all share stories and history of the haunted buildings, which include tales of witchcraft and ghosts!

I especially loved this setting as I live very close to an old village* which was previously a psychiatric home/hospital and the land sits currently with many derelict buildings just as described in this novel. The author has a brilliant way of describing the village ensuring you get the ghostly feeling however after personally walking in a similar situation it has my over-active mind going full speed.  

When I choose a book I am looking for a read that will draw me in and spark my imagination from the start.  I want to find it impossible to put down, for it to unnerve me and will leave me breathless until I reach the end of the book. This book hit 10/10 every time!

It is true when I say this book changed my life – I will not be walking my dog up by the old hospital any time soon!

Thank you to TBC Reviewer Request Group and SJI Holliday for the opportunity to read and review this novel.

BOOK DETAIL

• AUTHOR: SJI Holliday
• TITLE: The Lingering
• PUBLISHER: ORENDA BOOKS
• FORMAT: ebook
• PUBLICATION DATE: 27 Sept 2018 (ebook) and 15 Nov 2018 (paperback)

REVIEW PUBLISHED

Barnes & Noble, Waterstones, Kobo, Amazon, BookBridgr, Goodreads

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

S.J.I. (Susi) Holliday is a pharmaceutical statistician by day and a crime and horror fan by night. Her short stories have been published in many places and she was shortlisted for the inaugural CWA Margery Allingham prize with her story ‘Home from Home’, which was published in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine in spring 2017. She is the bestselling author of the creepy and claustrophobic Banktoun trilogy (Black Wood, Willow Walk and The Damselfly) featuring the much-loved Sergeant Davie Gray, and has dabbled in festive crime with the critically acclaimed The Deaths of December. Her latest psychological thriller is modern gothic with more than a hint of the supernatural, which she loved writing due to her fascination and fear of ghosts. She is proud to be one of The Slice Girls has been described by David Mark as ‘Dark as a smoker’s lung.’ She divides her time between Edinburgh and London and you will find her at crime-fiction events in the UK and abroad.

Follow Susi on Twitter, Facebook and Goodreads or visit her website sjiholliday.com

*If you are interested in the village I refer to above then check out Bangour Village Hospital, West Lothian. Grid Ref: NT 031 708