tashreads2manybooks's Reviews (1.06k)

Totally worth the hype. 

I don’t even particularly like science fiction, but found this audiobook riveting. It was funny, suspenseful and heartwarming. 

Not sure how I feel about this one yet. It is beautifully written but there is not much plot to this novel. All the tension (and there is a lot) comes from the internal struggles, imaginings, delusions- from the psyche of the disturbed and disturbing Mrs March. I would go as far as to say there are some psychological horror aspects to this story, the imagery is potent and left me feeling quite uncomfortable.

I consider myself relatively hardcore when it comes to horror, I’m not usually squeamish and can handle a fair amount of gore and body horror. But at 35% I had to give up on this book - when someone (spoiler?) ate their own eyeball, and that wasn’t even the worst of it believe me. This book is gruesome and grotesque and not at all for the faint of heart - if it sounds like something you can stomach go for it. I’m going to find a cosy little haunted house or serial killer book now 😜

Many thanks to NetGalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

If you are after a feel-good ghost story this Halloween, then this is it. After losing her mother, Amy accompanies her detective father to the town of Seabrook where he is investigating a missing persons case. There she meets a rancher, Ryan, and they spend a beautiful day together. But something is a bit off about Seabrook. People keep staring at her, random people know her name, and the crumbling, inoperative lighthouse begins to shine again.

I prefer my ghost stories a little darker, but if you like romance with a hint of supernatural mystery then The Lighthouse is for you.

The long awaited new Paula Hawkins has arrived, and it really is what it says on the tin. A slow burn. If you expect twists and turns and jump scares on every page, you will be disappointed. This story takes its time to build characters, relationships and backstory - and if you have the patience, it all comes together in the end and I think it has a decent payoff. 

I loved how one of the strongest characters was a usually disregarded woman in her 80's. Life for a woman doesn't begin and end in her twenties, and Hawkins included a range of female protagonists in all stages of life who had agency and motives.  

Despite the lukewarm reviews, I thoroughly enjoyed my time with this audiobook. It helped that it was narrated by the sublime Rosamund Pike.