Runaway The

Lisa Childs — 2020

Bestselling author Lisa Childs launches a new romantic suspense trilogy with The Runaway, an atmospheric, fast-paced novel set on an island off the coast of Maine, where a former insane asylum has been reopened as Halcyon Hall. But despite its efforts to present itself as a spa for the rich and famous, it can't escape its haunted past. When Bainesworth Manor calls out to the cursed, they come. And they never leave again... "Atmospheric, emotional, and well-told." --New York Times bestselling author, Lori Wilde I'm in trouble. Come get me. On a remote island off the coast of Maine lies a secluded estate. There, behind wrought iron gates and rock walls, sits Halcyon Hall. Today, it is an exclusive spa catering to wealthy elites and pampered celebrities. But once, it had another name--and a terrifying reputation . . . Rosemary Tulle has come to Halcyon Hall desperate to find her younger sister. Seventeen-year-old Genevieve left a brief, troubling message on Rosemary's phone, begging to be picked up. But Rosemary is not on the visitor list, and no one will let her in . . . Halcyon Hall was once Bainesworth Manor, an asylum for the insane. Such places often draw whispers about gruesome treatments and tortured inmates. In the case of Bainesworth, the reality may have been far worse. Now, staff insist that Genevieve ran away, but Rosemary's instincts say otherwise. Rosemary and Genevieve share an unsual bond, and she knows Genevieve wouldn't have just left. Compelled to turn for help to a man she hoped never to see again, judge Whit Lawrence, she tries to learn the truth about Genevieve. But it will mean uncovering secrets about Bainsworth Manor, and about Rosemary's own dark past--secrets with the power to kill . . . "Childs knows how to keep readers riveted." --RT Book Reviews "Grabs you from page one . . . Lisa Childs paints an eerie, haunting suspense that will keep you riveted until the very last page!" --Rita Herron USA Today bestselling author

Reviews

Lynn Braden@ftbooklover

Jan 5, 2023

Rosemary Tulle has come to Halcyon Hall after receiving a call from her sister, Genevieve, begging her to come and get her. The former mental asylum holds many secrets of former residents and the atrocities they faced there, but now, some of those secrets are coming to light and not everyone wants them to. While looking for her sister, Rosemary crosses paths with her former boyfriend, Judge Whit Lawrence, who is running for governor. For years, she has blamed the judge for something that happened to her when they were kids, but now she must face the fact that what she thought about him might not really be true.

The Runaway is a mishmash of secrets held by an abundance of characters in this first book in the Bane Island Trilogy. There are moments and events in this book that had promise, but multiple subplots and underdeveloped characters overshadow what might have been a better story. Even though Rosemary is a psychologist, she runs around screaming and yelling with very little plan in mind. Many of Whit's actions are illogical and the romance between the two just isn't believable. Even though Genevieve is the center of the story, we never get much about her until the very end of the book. Overall, The Runaway contains many elements of a good suspense romance but never delivers on the execution that might have saved this story.