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Upon the cliffs of a remote Scottish island, Lòn Haven, stands a lighthouse.
A lighthouse that has weathered more than storms.
Mysterious and terrible events have happened on this island. It started with a witch hunt. Now, centuries later, islanders are vanishing without explanation.
Coincidence? Or curse?
Liv Stay flees to the island with her three daughters, in search of a home. She doesn’t believe in witches, or dark omens, or hauntings. But within months, her daughter Luna will be the only one of them left.
Twenty years later, Luna is drawn back to the place her family vanished. As the last sister left, it’s up to her to find out the truth . . .

It kind of felt like the wrong time of year to read this one, I’d have liked to have picked it up closer to Halloween if I’m honest. But I ended up picking up this one as audiobook and I really enjoyed it. I actually think, having read the final 30 pages in physical format, that the audiobook was a more accessible way to pick this up. Having a whole cast of narrators was just great for this book, as it kept the chapters distinct and easy to follow.

The haunting tale of this book was woven throughout time, and kept me interested throughout. Told between 1998 and 2021 across multiple narrators, I can see this one being impossible to put down if I’d read it physically. There’s a lot of historical references and background which I enjoyed seeing throughout the story, too.

We form stories about our lives to create meaning out of them—without meaning, they feel shapeless and without purpose.

The characters were easy to sympathise with and I enjoyed the different viewpoints of the mother and sisters, which built on my love for the family aspects. The island setting of this book was haunting and felt just perfect for the story. It was full of atmosphere and I could picture the island well, which I always appreciate from an auidobook.

I was trying to work out the secrets of this book and work out where it was going, and I honestly don’t think I’d have guessed the ending. It was a bittersweet ending which I actually really liked, as I was a little hesitant about how it would end. My only complaint would be some of the details of this book were sometimes a little far-fetched or worked out a bit too conveniently.

When something lies beyond the realm of meaning, it’s terrifying.

Overall, this was really enjoyable read and I’d definitely recommend the audiobook if you think you’d like to read it! I’d also recommend reading it around Halloween if you can.

★★★★
4 out of 5 stars

-Beth

May your shelves forever overflow with books! ☽

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