Gina Rae Mitchell

Mirrorland by Carole Johnstone | Review

A book blog tour from The Write Reads.

Thank you to Carole Johnstone, Scribner Books, and Dave & the Gang at The Write Reads for providing me the information for this tour.

Book Details

Mirrorland by Carole Johnstone
Published by Scribner on 04/20/2021
Genres: Suspense, Detective/Sleuth, Literary Fiction, Mystery, Psychological Thriller
Format: Audiobook, eBook, Hardcover, Paperback
Pages: 320

With the startling twists of Gone Girl and the haunting emotional power of Room, Mirrorland is a thrilling work of psychological suspense about twin sisters, the man they both love, and the dark childhood they can’t leave behind.

Cat lives in Los Angeles, far away from 36 Westeryk Road, the imposing gothic house in Edinburgh where she and her estranged twin sister, El, grew up. As girls, they invented Mirrorland, a dark, imaginary place under the pantry stairs full of pirates, witches, and clowns. These days Cat rarely thinks about their childhood home or the fact that El now lives there with her husband Ross.

But when El mysteriously disappears after going out on her sailboat, Cat is forced to return to 36 Westeryk Road, which has scarcely changed in twenty years. The grand old house is still full of shadowy corners, and at every turn Cat finds herself stumbling on long-held secrets and terrifying ghosts from the past. Because someone—El?—has left Cat clues in almost every room: a treasure hunt that leads right back to Mirrorland, where she knows the truth lies crouched and waiting...

A twisty, dark, and brilliantly crafted thriller about love and betrayal, redemption and revenge, Mirrorland is a propulsive, page-turning debut about the power of imagination and the price of freedom.

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Source: NetGalley, Received from the author or publisher for review., The Write Reads Tours

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Purchase Links for Mirrorland

Amazon      Amazon UK     BookShop/IndieBound

Barnes & Noble     Kobo      iTunes 

Waterstones     The Book Depository     Chapters/Indigo

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My thoughts on Mirrorland

Mirrorland is a genre-defiant story. Is it a thriller, a detective procedural, a psychological suspense novel? Let’s just say all of the above!

The story starts with a slow build by re-telling the past when Cat and El were young twins creating their alternate, imaginary world. This is interspersed with current-day happenings. If you don’t pay close attention, this can throw the reader off the story. But a tale such as Mirrorland deserves to be read slowly, letting the words build the suspense and drama.

I would never have guessed this was the debut novel from Ms. Johnstone. It has a very polished feel. The pacing picks up in the second half of the book to where you just keep frantically reading page after page to find out exactly what will happen next. Every time I thought I had it figured out, a new clue is revealed that proved me wrong.

The characters are so fleshed out that I felt I knew them. Just like real people, sometimes you love them and other times you hate them. That is definitely the case here. And I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the deeply dark gothic home that is as much one of the main characters as it is a setting.

This story has stayed in my mind. Don’t be surprised if I keep coming back to add even more thoughts to my review.

This dark, twisted, suspenseful tale will thrill lovers of mysterious family dramas, psychological thrillers, and just darn good fiction.

I received a copy of the book for the tour. This review is my honest, unbiased opinion.

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Mirrorland by Carole Johnstone | Review

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Purchase online from a local book store.

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