Hemlock Island

by Kelley Armstrong. Pub Date 9/12/23

4.5*s. Best enjoyed when you need a delicious survival horror thriller–which should be ALWAYS!

Publisher’s Synopsis

“Laney Kilpatrick has been renting her vacation home to strangers. The invasion of privacy gives her panic attacks, but it’s the only way she can keep her beloved Hemlock Island, the only thing she owns after a pandemic-fueled divorce. But broken belongings and campfires that nearly burn down the house have escalated to bloody bones, hex circles, and now, terrified renters who’ve fled after finding blood and nail marks all over the guest room closet, as though someone tried to claw their way out…and failed.

When Laney shows up to investigate with her teenaged niece in tow, she discovers that her ex, Kit, has also been informed and is there with Jayla, his sister and her former best friend. Then Sadie, another old high school friend, charters over with her brother, who’s now a cop.

There are tensions and secrets, whispers in the woods, and before long, the discovery of a hand poking up from the earth. Then the body that goes with it… But by that time, someone has taken off with their one and only means off the island, and they’re trapped with someone—or something—that doesn’t want them leaving the island alive.”

REVIEW:

Set on an island in Lake Superior, Hemlock Island is a supernatural thriller that throws together murder mystery, greed, betrayal, revenge, and the occult into a delicious and perfectly baked hotdish perfect for anyone who loves a good horror novel. It felt very much in the same vein as Riley Sager and Grady Hendrix’s novels – big fan! Strained relationships and betrayal star alongside severed arms, hex circles, and bone windchimes, creating an atmospheric survival horror that really makes you wonder if they’re ever going to get off of that island. 

Being from the Duluth area, Lake Superior has always been prominently featured in my life and memories. It made it that much easier to imagine a secluded island with a single isolated house surrounded by the cold waters of the largest of the Great Lakes, and to know exactly how cold that water can be. The smells and atmosphere are honestly unmatched, and I would love to read more stories that feature the setting. 

The twists and turns in this story were great. The mystery kept me turning page after page, absorbing each gory and mysterious detail. The mystery was kept largely mysterious, the gore was properly gory, and the is-it-or-is-it-not-a-murderer was like a constant pull. It felt like I was in a macabre Edgar Allen Poe story of a girl who is slowly pulling a bucket out of a dark well, overtaken by some force with an unknowable name that has existed since time immemorial. The conclusion was also extremely satisfying, with equal parts “that checks” and “holy shit” which you don’t always get with stories like this. I’m not going to say I found it fair, but life rarely is and the perfection of horror like this is that it is tied up, even if the bow isn’t the prettiest. The satisfaction is that it’s there, fair, and was a bloody good time.

Overall, Hemlock Island is a great read and Kelley Armstrong is an author you need to have on your watch list if you don’t already. I was a fan of her YA back in the day, but I’m so ready for more adult horror!

Thank you to Netgalley, the author, and St. Martin’s Press for this advanced copy in exchange for this review. I really loved it and can’t wait to see what Armstrong has for us next!