The Child Garden by Catriona McPherson ~ Book Review

Book Synopsis:

Eden was its name. "An alternative school for happy children." But it closed in disgrace after a student's suicide. Now it's a care home, its grounds neglected and overgrown. Gloria Harkness is its only neighbor, staying close to her son who lives there in the home, lighting up her life and breaking her heart each day.

When a childhood friend turns up at her door, Gloria doesn't hesitate before asking him in. He claims a girl from Eden is stalking him and has goaded him into meeting her at the site of the suicide. Only then, the dead begin to speak—it was murder, they say.

Gloria is in over her head before she can help it. Her loneliness, her loyalty, and her all-consuming love for her son lead her into the heart of a dark secret that threatens everything she lives for.

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About the Author:

Catriona McPherson was born in South Queensferry. After finishing school, she worked in a bank for a short time, before going to university. She studied for an MA in English Language and Linguistics at Edinburgh University, and then gained a job in the local studies department at Edinburgh City Libraries. She left this post after a couple of years, and went back to university to study for a PhD in semantics. During her final year she applied for an academic job, but left to begin a writing career.

These days, McPherson lives with her husband on a farm in the Galloway countryside, where she spends her time writing, gardening, swimming and running.

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Review:

At first I wasn't too sure about this book. From the synopsis I was super excited to read it. When I got started it took me about 25-30% of the book to really get into the story, once I did though I thoroughly enjoyed it. There are many characters we are introduced to within this story and the author does a great job with the detailing of each. We meet a group of school kids from years ago and Gloria, her son Nicky and Miss Drumm. What took me awhile to grab onto in this story was that Gloria decided to hide a body and investigate the whole "murder" herself from snooping into the lives of each kid that went to Eden. It is a sort of cozy mystery.

The story is a spooky tail of a cursed bridge, the devil inside a rock that needs to be rocked 13 times daily and people "committing" suicide from not being able to handle the past event. It has some creepy parts and folklore. I enjoyed the story once it picked up, Gloria's character did bug me and I think that is why it was harder for me to get into it at the beginning. We didn't know much about why she lived in a rickety old house alone with a dog and a couple cats in the middle of nowhere at the beginning.

I give this book a 3 out of 5 stars. I would read more from Catriona McPherson as I did enjoy her writing style.

~*Disclaimer: This post was written by Genuine Jenn. I receive a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are honest and my own.*~