🕮 Atmospheric 

🕮 Unsettling

🕮 Page-Turner

Pros: Blending gothic horror and mystery, this is a dark, twisted, and disturbing story with enough suspense to keep readers guessing. Mixing horror and religion is nothing new but Winstead puts her own spin on the trope, by adding elements of the supernatural and small town issues. The southern Louisiana setting is perfect for the story and the use of non-linear storytelling adds to the mystery.  Ruth and Everett are both interesting characters and I found myself really invested in Everett’s story.  The ending is a bit of a shocker and anyone interested in reading should be aware of the content warnings. I liked this book more than I expected to. 

Cons: Some of the characters are over the top, bordering on caricature, and I found Ruth’s naivete to be annoying at times.