Review: The Stillwater Girls by Minka Kent

Two sisters raised in fear are about to find out why in a chilling novel of psychological suspense from the author of The Thinnest Air. 

Ignorant of civilization and cautioned against its evils, nineteen-year-old Wren and her two sisters, Sage and Evie, were raised in off-the-grid isolation in a primitive cabin in upstate New York. When the youngest grows gravely ill, their mother leaves with the child to get help from a nearby town. And they never return.

 As months pass, hope vanishes. Supplies are low. Livestock are dying. A brutal winter is bearing down. Then comes the stranger. He claims to be looking for the girls’ mother, and he’s not leaving without them.

 To escape, Wren and her sister must break the rule they’ve grown up with: never go beyond the forest.

 Past the thicket of dread, they come upon a house on the other side of the pines. This is where Wren and Sage must confront something more chilling than the unknowable. They’ll discover what’s been hidden from them, what they’re running from, and the secrets that have left them in the dark their entire lives.

Kindle Edition, 256 pages

Published April 9th, 2019

by Thomas & Mercer

****

I love a good mystery, ones that keep me guessing, with twists and turns that are plausible, a book that I can polish off in a matter of days because I have to know what's going on. But I find myself picky these days, a few have been iffy and when publishers say 'if you liked such and such book then you will love this one', well what if I didn't love or even like such and such book?

I have a few favorite authors where I know I'll get a good ride but I also have a free favorite bloggers/reviewers whose opinions I trust - Laurie The Baking Bookworm for example. It was her review that pointed me in the direction of The Stillwater Girls.

I didn't read too much of the blurb but enough to get the just.  I was captivated right away, how can one not be after the first few chapters? There are 2 storylines here, one with 2 teens abandoned in a remote cabin somewhere in the woods.  While the other is a young woman with longings and unfilled dreams.  There were vivid pictures of both lifestyles with its hardships, suspicions and trust issues.

My curiosity of the connections and where the plot was going kept me guessing and while
I thought a couple things predictable I was taken aback by the ending. Well done Minka Kent.

Minka Kent is a new author to me, will definitely keep my eye out for more of her books. 

My thanks to the publisher for an advanced copy (via Netgalley) in exchange for an honest review.