A haunted town. Unexplained disappearances. A decades old mystery.
It doesn’t surprise me at all that this on ended up snagging my attention.
Nothing pleases me more than a book that has me jumping at shadows and, while this one may not have been as thrilling or chilling as I’d have like, it was an absorbing read.
Once again I find myself grateful for the stubborn bloggers who spent far too long insisting I give this a chance.
If you like a good, creepy atmosphere, unexplained disappearances, and one woman’s determination to shine a light on this town’s horrifying past..
I would check it out.
Happy Reading!
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The Lost Village by Camilla Sten
Publication date: March 23,2021
Pages: 366
Genre: Horror, Thriller, Suspense
Standalone
First line: It was a stiflingly hot August afternoon, so much so that the breeze coming in through the open windows did almost nothing to lift the swelter inside the car.
Sixty years ago this small, isolated mining town became national news when, by all accounts, every last one of its 900 residents just.. disappeared.
When searched the town was found to be deserted by all but the badly beaten body of a young woman and the cries of a baby.
Alice, a documentary filmmaker, grew up on her grandmother’s eerie stories of Silvertjärn.
Now she’s come with a small team to tell its story and, possibly, discover the truth of what happened so long ago.
Three and a Half Stars
Characters: Well written. Believable.
Storyline: Intriguing.
Pace: Fitting.
Writing: Absorbing.
Cover: 4/5
POV’s
Now: Alice
Then: Elsa (Alice’s great grandmother)
Two men, Albin and Gustaf, answer a call to check out the small town of Silvertjärn but when they arrive.. it’s been deserted but for a single corpse, tied in the center town, and the sound of a baby crying in the distance.
Years later a small documentary team with ties to the town’s past have come for the truth..
I try to make a mental note of everything around me: that last buzz of sunshine, the artificial smell of spruce in the car, the feel of the cold air against my cheeks as I open the car door.
This is Silvertjärn.
This is where it all begins.
We slip back and forth in time from before the residents of Silvertjärn disappeared and now with Alice’s crew attempting to make their documentary. We also see short memories – stories from Alice’s grandmother, who had grown up in the town, dispersed throughout the storyline. Letters from her younger sister, Aida, who has vanished with the others.
As a big fan of Roanoke, the lost colony, I was invested from page one. My curiosity compelled me to follow Alice in discovering the mystery behind what happened to these people.. and I found myself plunged into a chilling race against time and surrounded by unknown forces intent on preventing me the satisfaction. It was great.
Some of the roofs have fallen in completely, and nature has started to reclaim the land in earnest; it’s hard to make out where the buildings end and the forest begins. The streets are empty and overgrown, and the rust-withered train tracks jut out of the station and into the forest like a punctured artery.
It’s beautiful, but in an almost obscene way, like an overblown rose about to shed its petals.
The author’s writing style perfectly suits this kind of haunting ghost story and does a brilliant job of keeping you immersed in the telling. The peculiar quality given to their surroundings lends a sense of ‘otherness’ to the story. And it’s done in a way that, with the little nuggets of history presented, becomes addictive. Throw in a few hair raising, pulse pounding moments and this creepy, unsettling atmosphere will drag you along almost against your will.
Everything is too still; a sort of stillness that only comes with the subtle vibration that sets into your skin when you sense a presence.
The group of characters here are not the likable sort.
Alice doesn’t appear to know what she’s doing. Ever. But I did find her determination admirable (even if it does border on obsessive).
Max is almost entirely forgettable.. he’s an old friend who happens to be funding the project, although, it never did feel like he was a part of the team. Emmy, who went to college with Alice, seems to just like stirring the pot. Then there’s Robin? No.. Robert, a technician who is probably only there because he happens to be in a relationship with Emmy. And Tone.. who’s connected to the town in ways that they may never fully understand. Somehow, though, this unprepared “team” of disagreeable characters work well for the story..
I did feel like the ending was a bit of a let down.
It was almost like the next chapter is missing, you know, the one that ties these last few together before it gently releases you from all the horror.. Instead I was left with questions I don’t feel were fully explained.
Despite that.. it was all too easy to get swept up in the strange mystery of this cursed town.
Death.
Murder.
Possession.
The fear and uncertainty drag you under until your breath stills and your heart races.
I absolutely recommend this book to all my fellow fans of horror, ghost stories, and mysteries that keep you guessing until the very end.
*phew* This was fun.. and somehow exhausting.
I blame the heat. I can’t think straight when my brain is shriveling into a mass of heat induced nothingness.
Thanks so much for stopping in to check out this review, I hope it was helpful!
Do you love ghost stories?
Which one is your favorite?
I agree, I enjoyed this, but I felt it teased us too long and the ending was a “that’s it?”
I agree! I practically heard the balloon deflating at the end.. It was good but it had the potential to be so much more.
This one sounds creepy – I was thinking about it, but maybe won’t add it to my TBR. Thanks for the heads up!
It was a bit creepy, mostly because the author was so great at creating the atmosphere for it. But, yea, if you don’t like hair-raising.. it may be best to skip this one.