The Companion

I was immediately hooked, and I loved so many things about this book.The characters were a big part of what instantly drew me in. Margot has a strong voice and was so relatable. Laura was well-developed and intriguing, and Agatha tugged at the heartstrings.The setting was awesome - the exact type of thing I love in a book. A creepy, old house with mysterious, locked rooms. A beautiful, but haunting garden. An unexplainable tension hanging in the air. And the pacing was perfect - I was on the edge of my seat until the final page.And the plotline was strong. Some things I knew fairly quickly, but there were others that took me by suprise. I loved the nods to classic literature as well. There was a bit of a Secret Garden vibe, as well as a Jane Eyre vibe.

Margot is the sole survivor of a tragic family car accident. She ends up at the Palmer orphanage until a rich family chooses her as their ward. When she first arrives at the mansion, Mr. and Mrs. Sutton are kind and treat her as if she’s special. Margot is soon told about their daughter Agatha who doesn’t speak or show emotion. Agatha used to be a normal teenager but then she became angry and eventually shut down. Mrs. Sutton tells Margot that doctors believe a brain infection caused damage to her frontal cortex and changed her personality. Margot meets Agatha’s brother, Barrett. He’s protective of his sister but eventually warms up to Margot. The longer she’s in the Sutton home, the more strange things she discovers and the foreboding keeps growing. I like Margot and rooted for her throughout the book. Creepy, suspenseful fun, 4 stars!

I was afraid Laura will catch me reading this book.

Ok.. so I was not ready to read this book, because Katie Alender is my favorite Author of all time. Well her and Randi Cooley Wilson are tied. I probably was a little stockery writing to Katie telling her I needed another one of her books, and kept writing going where are you Katie waiting for book to come. Long and behold here she was back from the dead (lol). No one knows how excited I was except for my hubby which he just rolled his eyes.. This book has been on my shelf a while calling to me, so I said yes come to momma, dang it I did not really like.. No offense to the person who did the cover but NO, just No! Come on Katie you have some of the best covers out there girl, this was not it. Now was there creep factor in this Yes it had good creepy vibes. The plot was to blah & this just did not keep your attention worthy. Katie I have read and loved everyone of your books and this just did not seem like you.. wordy in places, slow in other places and I knew who was doing it by 130 something page after that I just did not care. I know when some authors take a break and then try to come back it's not the same or takes a couple of times to get back on that horse, so to poo on this book is not what I'm doing just disappointed it was not what I thought it to be.. Margot is orphaned, gets taking in by these weird rich people, has to take care of their 19yr old daughter who has been mute for a while which on investigating what's happening Margot is beginning to discover that the family she is living with is not who they seem to be-like I said creepy factory. Read for yourself to see what you think.. I will still be holding out for Katie's next book with high hopes it's like her older ones. Recommend if you like friends, love intrest and creepy vibes.. 15yrs and up

I have always loved this book so when I bought it I was so excited that it was a nice hard covered book! I’ve had it for months now and looks and feels as sturdy as when bought.

I was really excited for this book. It was a quick, easy read, that kept me wanting to know what would happen next. But I have to say I was disappointed to feel that the climax of the story was one I have already read before. Sharp Objects had a very similar villain and I was sad to realize that the story was heading in that direction. I felt like parts were drug out for a not so horrific ending that could have been reached in less time. I also found myself annoyed with Margots character. She seemed dense and naive when the answers were right in front of her face. Weak when everything should have been telling her to fight back. Overall I still enjoyed it for what it was, I finished in two sittings. I am a fan of big spooky houses but I wouldn’t call this a gothic tale.

So this is not normally a genre I'd pick up, but I was caught by a trailer I saw for it. I read the book in three days. I was absolutely taken by it. Katie it was so so so good. I hope this book gets the attention it so deserves. I'm recommending it to my book club.

I prefer supernatural themed books over psychological thrillers and this toes the line between the two but I really enjoyed it. The pacing was great with lots of little twists.

This book has a fantastic opening. Honestly, it will suck you in. The writing is good and the story could have been superb but, for some reason, I got to the end and felt like it had been a lot of build up for nothing.It felt to me that threads that were there, that could have been made more of, went nowhere and there were some big logic gaps in this book. I don't want to say too much about it, as it will give away the plot. However, towards the end, certain characters just dropped out of sight (which didn't make sense). Barrett, who added a bit of interest to the novel was soon dispatched to a friend's house (fine - we knew where he went). But John Sutton, Laura's husband, disappeared with no explanation, apart from the fact he was working away a bit. But even then, the guy would have had to return on occasion. It's like this whole 'thing' was going on but John had never realised anything was suss (despite being a supposedly intelligent and worldly lawyer). And Mr. Albright - the family's right-hand man - also went AWOL.There were elements of the book (which made the reader think there might be some supernatural element) - the lilies that flowered overnight that were never explained and didn't end up meaning anything. It's like the author thought they might go in one direction with the novel but then changed their mind. The family history wasn't embedded enough or explored enough to really provide a good explanation as to the motivation for certain actions. And, retrospectively, a lot of description was simply repetitive (the sluggishness, the dreams etc). Elements were introduced that could have been good (closed passageways being explored) but were never put to use later on.All in all, this book simply didn't live up to its early promise.

It's a really good book

I really enjoyed reading this book even thought the twist was predictable. I loved the writting. It was like watching a movie. In fact, this book would make a great movie.I hadn't read a book in two days in a very long time. Definitely a book I would recommend to annyone who enjoys reading a mystery.