In the second book of the Stillhouse Lake series, we are a few months on from the end of the last book, with Gwen and her kids (Lanny and Connor) on the run from her ex-husband Melvin, a serial killer who is pure evil.  He has escaped from prison and seems to have one objective, to get Gwen.

Tired of hiding, Gwen makes a decision.  Along with her friend Sam (whose sister, Melvin murdered) she is going to go on the offensive.  Leaving her kids with friends, she heads out, determined to find Melvin and end things once and for all.

Finding him, though, proves more difficult than they might have thought, with the trail leading them across country and into some dangerous situations with men you wouldn’t want to cross on a good day.  It means a tense story, one with twists, turns and “I didn’t see that coming” moments.  I loved this bit of the book.

However, it also separates the family unit, and I’m not sure I was as keen on that.  I’m in mixed minds if I’m honest.  It made for a different story from the first, where Gwen was busy protecting her kids, which I liked.  But it also meant a lack of interaction between them, which I didn’t – I felt there was a bit of energy missing as a result, something that had made the first book for me.

It’s a hard one because I still enjoyed the book a lot and I would recommend it to anyone who asked.  It’s well written, with the story being told by Gwen, Sam, Lanny and Connor – who all have different voices and perspectives – and there is a pace there that kept me turning pages.  I think it’s just that I didn’t enjoy it quite as much as the first one….argh!

Is there anyone else out there who has read both books and feel the same or am I suffering from “over-excitement-itus” by looking forward to this book too much?

  About the book…

Every time Gwen closed her eyes, she saw him in her nightmares. Now her eyes are open, and he’s not going away.

Gwen Proctor won the battle to save her kids from her ex-husband, serial killer Melvin Royal, and his league of psychotic accomplices. But the war isn’t over. Not since Melvin broke out of prison. Not since she received a chilling text…

You’re not safe anywhere now.

Her refuge at Stillhouse Lake has become a trap. Gwen leaves her children in the protective custody of a fortified, well-armed neighbor. Now, with the help of Sam Cade, brother of one of Melvin’s victims, Gwen is going hunting. She’s learned how from one of the sickest killers alive.

But what she’s up against is beyond anything she feared—a sophisticated and savage mind game calculated to destroy her. As trust beyond her small circle of friends begins to vanish, Gwen has only fury and vengeance to believe in as she closes in on her prey. And sure as the night, one of them will die.

Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
Number of Pages: 348
Publication date: 12th December, 2017
Books in the series: Stillhouse Lake

Note: I received a copy of this book in return for a fair and honest review. All thoughts, feelings and opinions are my own.