Creepy and atmospheric.  An unsolved mystery of epic proportions and a woman engrossed with her family’s ties to it.  

Sten does a magnificent job of creating the perfect ambience for this eerie abandoned town where 900 people vanished without a trace, a woman was stoned to death, and a baby miraculously survived.  The uncertainty and gloom emanated from this deserted town and took on a life of its own, almost becoming another character.  

The story is intricately woven through a dual narrative, as well as auxiliary letters and sermons from before the disappearance. I wish the author had taken those tools a step further and given a clearer picture of the desperation in the town that led to its belief system completely collapsing.  Because of this, I found the ending to be both somewhat predictable as well as lacking substantive reasoning.  However, this did not take away from my enjoyment of walking the ominous streets of the lost village.

Sten weaves a cautious tale in this mystery- beliefs built in desperation can be taken to extremes and have dire consequences.  

Thank you to Camilla Sten, St. Martin’s Press, Minotaur Books, and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.