Kat Ellis

"Lola Nox is sent to live with her estranged maternal grandmother in the mining town where her horror movie director father's most iconic film was set, when paranormal incidents and whispers of a century-old monster make her question if she'll make it out alive"--

Harrow Lake

Geoffrey Froggatt

This book was all build up with no payoff. It was interesting enough on premise alone. A horror story following the nepotism baby of an infamous horror movie director? Count me in. Though technically our protagonist Lola isn’t a nepotism baby, she isn’t working in the film industry. Though the shadow of her father hangs over her. When her father is brutally attacked in their New York apartment, she's quickly packed off to live with a grandmother she's never met in Harrow Lake, the eerie town where her father's most iconic horror movie was shot. A lot of the plot feels like it isn’t going particularly anywhere, but halfway through the book we’re reminded that Lola has only been in Harrow Lake for a few days, so in real world time a lot has happened despite not much rising action throughout the meat of the book. A lot of the story is Lola navigating her parents’ past through the lens of the town and the townspeople. There are a lot of interesting elements to this story. Lola’s parentage, her infamous director of a father, her mysterious actress of a mother. Her father’s infamous horror movie shot in Harrow Lake, the mysterious small town setting with a haunted history. The urban legend of Mr. Jitters. The missing girls and disappearances. The teeth imagery. All of these interesting elements were wasted on a cliched ending. This was a massive disappointment. There were so many angles and paths this story could have explored and it somehow ended up exploring the worst one. It felt like the author had built up this haunting mystery and didn’t know how to finish it, and just threw together all the elements into an ending with zero thought or care about everything that came before it. The Twin Peaks influences are obvious, but unfortunately the execution here is flawed and lazy. I’ve said it a hundred times before, that the worst stories are those with wasted potential, and tragically that’s exactly how I feel about Harrow Lake.

I have no clue how I feel about this. I almost feel like it would've been better as a "true horror" i.e., with supernatural elements versus whatever this horror/thriller/mystery mashup was. I still don't feel like I have enough answers--I have no clue what was imagined or real, maybe that's the point, but I'm not one for open-endedness that doesn't seem fully intentional. All of these side plots and side gimmicks led nowhere and I am genuinely just confused, so I will list them here for anyone who's curious:

-Why did Grandmother take Lola's bag and hide it?

-Who stabbed Nolan? Was it Lola or was that just her imagination?

-What was up with the phone lines going in and out--there were no storms or anything?

-What really happened with Nolan's recovery? Is that why Lola wasn't allowed back?

-Where did the missing girls go if Mister Jitters really was just a tale?

-What happened to Lola in the three year gap between the final chapter and the book blurb?

Overall, I don't really know what was real and what wasn't and it frustrates me

Holly

I have no clue how I feel about this. I almost feel like it would've been better as a "true horror" i.e., with supernatural elements versus whatever this horror/thriller/mystery mashup was. I still don't feel like I have enough answers--I have no clue what was imagined or real, maybe that's the point, but I'm not one for open-endedness that doesn't seem fully intentional. All of these side plots and side gimmicks led nowhere and I am genuinely just confused, so I will list them here for anyone who's curious:

-Why did Grandmother take Lola's bag and hide it?

-Who stabbed Nolan? Was it Lola or was that just her imagination?

-What was up with the phone lines going in and out--there were no storms or anything?

-How did Lola end up in the gondola??

-What really happened with Nolan's recovery? Is that why Lola wasn't allowed back?

-The whole movie projector thing??? 

-Where did the missing girls go if Mister Jitters really was just a tale?

-What happened to Lola in the three year gap between the final chapter and the book blurb?

-Was Lola sleepwalking? 

Overall, I don't really know what was real and what wasn't and it frustrates me

** spoiler alert **
           3.5✨
Wow, that was absolutely insane. 

Lola's father is a horror film director that is overbearing and controlling. After her he was attacked by a stranger she is sent to her mother's hometown. 

The town is extremely weird. They have a bunch of strange traditions and odd characters. To be honest many of the characters were underdeveloped. (The characters I found to be more fleshed out included Lola, her grandmother, her mom, and I think his name was Carter. )

*SPOILERS*
(view spoiler)[
The story starts interestingly enough with Lola finding her father stabbed. His assistant then sends her to her mom's hometown where her father met her mother and filmed one of his most famous movies. Her father had told her that her mother left them when she was 5. While she is staying at her grandma's house, she begins to dress like her mother's character in the movie. 

Her grandmother refers to her as Lorelai on occasion because of how much Lola resembles her mother. There are also other things that add to the spooky feeling this book has like the jittering noise Lola hears sometimes or the fact that girls disappear from the town. Unfortunately, many of these added creepy things go unsolved. I really would have liked to know what caused Lola to hear those noises and see her childhood imaginary friend. Were they a coping mechanism for stress and anxiety? Were they only in her imagination? Was it something more? Also what happened to the girls that disappeared? Was it a serial killer? Did they leave of their own accord? There were just so many things left unsaid.

With that being said I really liked the two main reveals. I'm not gonna lie, I thought that Lola stabbing her father was a really interesting twist. It made a lot of sense in that he was very controlling and she felt trapped. I say this because it was clear that her intent was not to kill him but to get away. It was pretty clear that he had killed Lorelai from the beginning, but the reasoning was not really developed. He could have killed her just because she attempted to leave, but that just feels empty. I also wanted to know why he wouldn't let Lola into his films? 

Another twist that I found super interesting was that Cora was conducting the interview and that she was live-streaming it. Also, the fact that she tazed him was hilarious. Overall the ending was just really good. I love that Lola was able to get out and write that book and live her life.


 (hide spoiler)]

THE MUST-HAVE THRILLER OF 2020 THAT WILL KEEP YOU GRIPPED, KEEP YOU GUESSING, AND KEEP YOU UP ALL NIGHT... 'If you like Stephen King, snap this up!' - Cass Green, Sunday Times bestselling author of In a Cottage in a Wood 'A captivating and creeping mystery full of brilliantly twisting turns and dark secrets' - Holly Jackson, bestselling author of A Good Girls' Guide to Murder 'Scream meets The Babadook in small-town USA' - Kirsty Logan, award-winning author of The Gracekeepers Lola Nox is the daughter of a celebrated horror filmmaker - she thinks nothing can scare her. But when her father is brutally attacked in their New York apartment, she's swiftly packed off to live with a grandmother she's never met in Harrow Lake, the eerie town where her father's most iconic horror movie was shot. The locals are weirdly obsessed with the film that put their town on the map - and there are strange disappearances, which the police seem determined to explain away. And there's someone - or something - stalking Lola's every move. The more she discovers about the town, the more terrifying it becomes. Because Lola's got secrets of her own. And if she can't find a way out of Harrow Lake, they might just be the death of her...

Candyce Kirk

3.5 stars

I started Harrow Lake with an open mind and hoping I wouldn’t be scared too much, haha. While reading I had to say that I was sucked into the story from the start. The creepy vibe is something I did feel that grew throughout the story. Harrow Lake doesn’t seem like a place I’d want to be sent while my father was recovering.

Kat Ellis’ writing made me fly through this book and added to that creepy feeling. At times this book got slow for me, but it didn’t take long again for it to pick up. While I don’t agree with everything that happened, this author definitely surprised me with some twists in Harrow Lake. I definitely felt like I was in an old horror movie when she described the setting. It was interesting to see how much the town didn’t change to keep tourists coming.

The one thing that made it hard for me to completely get sucked into the story was being able to connect with the characters. It stayed kind of shallow for me at times. I didn’t learn enough to become completely invested, especially in Lola. Her character did interest me, but also left me with a lot of questions. There is clearly a lot that has happened in her past and I felt like that took a bit too much of the backseat in this book. Especially her use of “Optimal” during the book. I really needed more information about this and felt I was missing a big part of her story/history. It’s clear that there is a lot going on with her relationship with her father as well. I think it would’ve grabbed me a lot more if that went deeper in Harrow Lake.

That being said, after reading Harrow Lake I would love to visit a town like Harrow Lake (as long as I can make it out alive), even though I’m a scaredy cat. I loved the element with Mister Jitters. I love the mysterious/scary part of the horror story. Also, it does get ‘horrory’ in the sense that there are elements that made me think “ewww”, but not as much as I expected to get in a book like this. I also really enjoyed the cast of side characters in Harrow Lake. We didn’t learn a lot about all of them, but they really added to the story and atmosphere.

All in all, even though this book left me with some questions, I thought Harrow Lake was an interesting read! It definitely keeps me wanting to explore this genre and pick up the other books Kat Ellis has written. I enjoyed reading outside of my comfort zone and her writing style kept me going!

Kirsty

I really enjoyed this one. It creeped me out throughout and there were so many questions I had that, thankfully, got answered at the end. I wish the reveals were more shocking but I didn’t see them coming so that’s a huge plus too.

Sam Kiszonka

Mr. Jitters is coming.

Harrow Lake is a well written paranormal horror, thriller, mystery (? haha), it pulls you in from the start & keeps you guessing until the end!!

This book had an amazing 80’s horror movie vibe! An unreliable narrator, an attempted murder, a local urban legend, a creepy ass town [and townspeople] and a cult horror movie!! What more could you want?!!

I absolutely adore Kat Ellis’s writing and world building! I became super invested in Lola and her connection to Harrow Lake & Mr. Jitters. I don’t want to go into too much detail, but it was definitely interesting to see how it all played out. The ending left me shook and so sad! I really wasn’t expecting it!

Overall, this is a well written book that is hard to put down. I just had to know what was happening! & Mr. Jitters definitely kept me on the edge of my seat! I highly recommend this book to horror / thriller lovers, & just anyone looking for a good scare!

I received this book in exchange for an honest review, this has in no way affected my thoughts or opinions . Thank you to the author, Kat Ellis, and the publisher, Penguin Books Australia, for this opportunity

Jessica Williamson

4.25 

Okay, but what even did I just read? 

This has ALL OF THE CREEP factor. Literally all of it. Both paranormal and IRL creeps. CREEEP!

There were a lot of hints dropped along the way about what was going to happen at the end of Lola's story, and I feel like they might have been a bit heavy handed because I wasn't able to fully enjoy the creep on the page because I knew where we were going to end up ultimately. However, this IS a YA, meant for readers half my age so in that age bracket, it may be just right. 

The characters were well done, I had a few issues with Lola but, again, teens. The other characters Were okay but not great. Except Cora. I really liked her. 

But the plot and the pacing of this novel is where it really just GOT me. While I felt like the plot was a bit predictable, I looooved the journey of everything getting to where it was going. This was an absolute creepy joy to read. 

Cannot recommend enough for someone looking for an immersive creepy read. 

Cover 3; characters 4; plot 5; pace 5; writing 4; enjoyment 4.

Adrianna Giunta

This was a fun quick read. I didn't see the plot twist coming at the end but other parts of the book were kind of predictable. I didn't feel any connection to the characters, the plot was confusing at times and overall it was just okay. One thing I did like was the atmosphere that was built up around Harrow Lake. I just felt like there was so much more potential in this book that was left unexplored.

Emily C Peterson

3.5. Super creepy and atmospheric, but wrapped up too quickly with too many unanswered questions

Kerri McDonald

Before we dive in, I want to say thank you to Dave @TheWriteReads and the publisher, Penguin Books, for sending me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!

So I grew up on horror movies, right? I remember watching The Night of the Living Dead at a ridiculously inappropriate age and being terrified of zombies for years afterwards! I’ve watched a gambit of classics when I was young and, as I grew up, I found myself gravitating to the genre. And I found that I wasn’t scared as I had once been. No more hiding under blankets because I saw a mummy scooping some guy’s brains out with a coat hanger for this girl!

I say all this to really get to one point: I don’t scare easy.

Why do I bring this up? Because most people go into horror novels expecting to be scared! I’m sure you want to know if Harrow Lake delivered.

Well… sort of?

I will say that this book delivered on the creep factor. There’s something about an isolated, small town that’s only famous because a surreal horror movie was filmed there that lends itself to being utterly creepy. I think the author did a masterful job of instilling a deep sense of foreboding as we discover the town of Harrow Lake alongside our main character, Lola. The residents are strange, the town itself is on the verge of literal collapse, and the atmosphere is perfectly odd.

But, still, was I scared? Not even once. But I don’t necessarily think that’s a bad thing! Why? Because the entire time I was reading this, I felt like I was watching a campy horror movie. And I love campy horror movies! They aren’t necessarily the scariest, but they definitely are fun as hell. That’s how I felt about Harrow Lake. It was terrifying, but I had a blast reading it!

I think my favorite part of the whole book was Lola. She was such an interesting main character! She clearly had her own issues before being shipped off to the town where her famous father filmed his most iconic movie. I do love a book with an unreliable narrator, as well. I like to be kept on my toes as to whether or not I should take everything I’m being told with a grain of salt. It adds to the suspense for me, so I appreciated not knowing whether Lola’s POV was 100% trustworthy.

Also, like I said, the creep factor of this book is top notch! I’d imagine more so if you’re not a fan of bugs. I liked the weird backstory of the Big Baddie. I thought the strangeness of the town and the people who lived there was wonderfully written. The isolation and the hostility could almost be felt radiating from the pages! It all combined to give this book a certain chilliness that I appreciate in my horror in any format.

I will say, though, that I guessed pretty much every twist before it occurred. I think there was one twist I didn’t see coming and it was a minor one. But, again, I have watched a lot of horror movies and this book felt like a horror movie in paper form. Honestly, if it’s ever made into a movie, I would definitely watch it! So I can excuse a little predictability because it was still an engrossing ride.

Final thoughts: Though this was a bit predictable, it was a thrill to read and definitely delivered when it came to creepiness. If you’re looking for a dark story that reads kind of like a campy horror flick, you’re going to love Harrow Lake!

Harrow Lake

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