Horror Book Reviews: The Village by Lisa Rookes
This week’s Horror Book Pick is The Village by Lisa Rookes. The novel was initially published under a different title: The Vanishing of Joni Blackwood.
Published in April 2024, the book is on the bestseller list for Horror Fiction and Gothic Fiction.
The Village has receieved positive reviews because of its unexpected and shocking ending. Many readers found the plot and characters captivating although not everyone was able to connect with the story.
Quick Book Review of The Village by Lisa Rookes
It’s All Gallows’ Eve and everyone in the village is celebrating. Joni and Cass have been friends since they were kids, and they are now hanging about, passing comments about the other residents.
The story is being told through Cass who is a mother to Millie, and Kit’s ex-wife. She is currently looking for a new relationship.
The Gallows’ queen is crowned and it is none other than Joni. Again. Joni seems to be winning every year since she is the most popular one around.
The next morning, Cass sends a message to Joni to discuss last night’s events but doesn’t receive a message back. She goes to Joni’s house, and finds her shower running. But no Joni.
Cass realizes that her friend has disappeared, and raises an alarm.
We then go back to the past in 1996. Cass, Joni, Tom, Pete, and Kit are standing in front of the railway tunnel, exchanging haunted stories about it. The kids then decide to venture in only Cass and Tom declare that they would not want to go through it considering there were stories about ghost children.
As the sample draws to a close, Cass and Tom eventually give in and decide to join their friends.
The author manages to create a chilling atmosphere even though the scene for a simple life in a village is being set. There’s something about the way Cass thinks that makes you wonder if she is indeed telling the truth or sidetracking us.
As a reader, we must solely rely on the narrator to give us an account of all that has transpired during an event but over here it seems Cass may be holding out and not disclosing everything that happened at All Gallows’ Eve.
It seems like a hunch, anyway.
The author writes well yet it isn’t compelling enough to hold your attention from the very first sentence. There is something missing and you will feel it as you read on. The writing is almost stoic which makes it hard to get into this thriller.
To Read or Not to Read
As mentioned, it took me a few tries to get into the story. That is not to say the story isn’t good or the writing isn’t capable. It is how the story is being told that makes you put an effort to follow it.
I liked the premise so I checked out the book and read the sample pages available. But my first impression was that the story is convoluted. It did not seem to flow as well in the beginning, nor were the characters introduced properly.
This is the author’s world and we are not brought into it. Rather, I felt like watching a scene from a distance.
As much as I would like to know what happened to Joni, it is the writing that makes me want to put off reading the book. The writing doesn’t do justice to the premise. It requires more clarity and better flow for me to connect with the plot and characters.
So, while I may not continue reading this book, feel free to check it out yourself.
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