A brilliantly crafted whodunnit mystery, with jaw-dropping twists!

There is nothing I love more than a good old murder mystery, especially one set during a snowstorm! What I loved about this book is that it had all the great qualities of a murder mystery, yet it also had all the suspense of a psychological thriller. It really is so cleverly written.

The story is told in multiple POVs and two timelines (now and one year ago). The main character Amelia is having a terrible time, her mum passed away shortly after her sister went missing and now, she’s lost a baby and her boyfriend has left her.

Urged by her boss to take a break from work she decides to go back home to see her dad and brother. On arrival she finds out they are about to head off to Drummondale House in the Scottish Highlands, a place where only a year ago Amelia’s sister Lark went missing. She joins them on their trip, hopeful that they might find some answers as to what happened.

When some familiar faces join them at the holiday cottages, Amelia soon starts to realise that it wasn’t such a good idea to go back there, especially when history starts to repeat itself and another teenage girl goes missing! With freak weather, murders, scary masks and rarely any phone signal, Amelia and the rest of the characters must find a way of getting help and getting out of Drummondale House. Can they all trust each other, and can they all get out alive?

I really did enjoy this book and found myself guessing throughout and suspecting everyone! Whilst I was right on a couple of bits, I did not guess the ending and what a cracking ending it was. So cleverly plotted I’d be surprised if anyone solved this mystery.

There are lots of characters to keep track of, but I didn’t find this to be a problem and enjoyed having so many suspects. Do make sure you read the title of each chapter, so you know who you are reading about and if it is the past or the present.

Like a book version of Cluedo, this would most certainly make a great TV Drama. If you loved An Unwanted Guest by Shari Lapena then you’ll love this one.

Thank you to Amanda Brittany, HQ & NetGalley for my ARC of this book.

Amanda's sister disappeared a year ago from their holiday cottage the the Scottish Highlands. The following year the Family go back to see if they can find any trace of her. And so the twists and turns begin. There are a lot of characters to keep up with in this book along with snowstorms and power failures and the story switches from the present to a year ago at times becoming a little confusing. I m admit that the ending was unexpected just when I thought I had it sussed.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Oh wow this was intense. I was convinced I knew what happened but I was so wrong. This book had twist after twist that led to me not being able to put it down. I was addicted to it from the prologue all the way through to the epilogue. I don’t think I’ve quite wrapped my mind around all the twists that happened in it yet and I’m very tempted to read it again to see if I can put it all together this time.

It’s told through multiple POVs and two timelines. It gradually introduces the suspects from the abduction last year and reintroduces them in the present day. This book seems like a simple plot about two abductions exactly a year apart. However, it very quickly begins to unravel into something so much more. This was the first book I’d read by Amanda Brittany but I will definitely be on the look out for more of her books.

Like other reviewers, I felt like this one started off really slow. The jumping perspectives and timelines also pulled my attention away. However, on the advice of the other reviewers, I kept at it, and the second half flew by. There were multiple solid twists that I didn't figure out, which is always a huge plus. While I feel like there are a few things that could have made this book spectacular, overall it was a great read.

This book was a ride from start to finish.
First, I loved the setting of the Scottish Highlands. It really added to the atmosphere, I loved the addition of the snow trapping the group in the house, the getting lost in the woods, it all felt like the typical setting of a horror movie. The atmosphere was beautifully haunting and creepy and it really added to the suspense.
I really enjoyed the plot and the pacing, I couldn't put the book down because I was so intrigued what would happen next and it was really keeping me intrigued during the whole read.
I struggled with the change of perspectives between Ruth and Amanda at first, as well as the switch between past and present. During the second half, those switches were less frequent and I felt like that greatly improved the reading.
I was really positively surprised by the ending. It was well set up, the plot twists were unexpected and although I had a theory, I was proven almost completely wrong. All the clues and hints were carefully lied out during the book and the ending was almost perfectly constructed, which really wrapped up the book beautifully.

It didn’t quite score top marks because it was a little slow to start and I was disappointed with the ending. Although there was a major twist, it felt very rushed and the last few chapters wrapped everything up far too quickly in my opinion.

However let’s talk about the main bulk of the book which I thought was incredible. As mentioned it did start off a little slow, but when it got started, it was nail-bitingly good. I was actually nervous and scared whilst reading it. The setting in the Scottish Highlands was so haunting and the thought of them all trapped their together was like a horror film.

Amelia’s sister, Lark, disappeared a year ago and with no leads as to where she is they all go back to see if they can unearth anymore clues. However they get snowed in and are unable to leave. Meanwhile someone is leaving creepy masks in the forest and murdering each of the party one by one. It’s during these moments that I was most scared. I was on the edge of my seat as they searched the forest and you will suspect every single member of the party as being the murderer.

The book splits between a few characters from present day to a year ago, where you get to see the days leading up to Lark’s disappearance. A few chapters are also from an unknown character simply labelled as ‘Me‘ who detail their time in captivity – I won’t say anymore!!!

Overall it’s such a fast paced, on the edge of your seat book with plenty of twists and suspects that will have you guessing throughout.

Chilling. I have read many, and I mean many, psychological thrillers/suspense novels, and it’s quite hard to fool me. But, this time around I did not figure it out until just before it was all revealed. Cleverly written and plotted. The beginning was a bit slow, and there was a lot of building up the big picture, and going back and forth between now and then. The book is also written from several different perspective, and it took me a while to get used to it.

A family that has suffered so many tragedies, and a father who is not willing to believe he’s daughter is dead. All the surviving ones return to the Highlands, to the exact place their beloved daughter and sister disappeared a year ago. Something strange is going on, and then another young girl goes missing...

I read it in one go, because I wanted to know whodunnit and what it was all about. I love the main setting in a remote snowed in place in Scotland. I did not really relate to anyone in the book. Everyone was so shattered into pieces due to too many tragedies. This made the characters a bit too distant. Overall an enjoyable read.

I received a free copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Wow edge of your seat books loads of twists and turns. Loved that it was in scotland. If you find it boring at the beginning please keep reading it just gets better and better

This book was definitely such an interesting concept and it had a ton of twists and turns. I swore that i had it figured out and I was very wrong. It definitely took such an unexpected turn when you find out the truth behind the disappearances.

Two families blended together in sorrow return to the last place they remember being happy in Scotland.
The last holiday before their mum died and also before their mums partner Jackson and her daughter Lark went missing
One year later they return as Larks dad Robert and sister Amelia don’t believe Lark is dead so they are also accompanied with Thomas their brother and his live in carer Maddie
And then Rosomund and her step daughter Eloise also turn up
But this year there is thick heavy snow and they are all stuck in the middle of nowhere and there is a killer on the loose
But who is the killer and why??
Edge of your seat white knuckle rollercoaster of a book

A murdery mystery set in a remote, Highland estate cut off by snow from the outside world, this has all the ingredients for a good thriller, but I felt the pace let it down a little.
One year ago, 17-year-old Lark and her stepfather Jackson disappeared from the remote Highland estate where their extended family were holidaying. It was assumed that Jackson and Lark had run off together, but her sister Amelia has always doubted it. One year later, the family return, hoping to find clues to Lark's whereabouts, but set in chain a whole new series of events. As the snow falls and they are cut off from the outside world, another teenager goes missing and members of their group are picked off one by one. Will Amelia survive, and will she solve the mystery of what happened to Lark? This has all the ingredients for a first class thriller, and almost made it for me, but I felt the pace was off. Just as an eerie, suspenseful or mysterious mood was set, we were switched from past to present or vice-versa. In a frenetic few chapters of violence and bloodshed, things come to a climax at the estate - but there is still a third of the story to go, and though the plot twists and machinations continue, the narrative lost momentum for me at the point. However, there are some good characters - especially the Mrs Danvers type housekeeper, Ruth, and her is-he-isn't-he a murderer/kidnapper son Finn, and they help to carry the story, keeping me reading to the final twist denoument, which is, in the end, worth waiting for.

A solid 4 star read. Good premise. Great characters. Enjoyed the writing style. Plenty of suspense to keep me guessing. A plus point for me was I never guessed the culprit.

My thoughts about this brilliantly written gripping thriller, was just mindblowing.with amazing characters,with a hardhiting story, that has lots of suspense and mystery. grips you from the start till the end. What I loved about the story, was how far would you go, to find out, what really happened to your sister, when she goes missing one year ago. Author Amanda Brittany not only writes a fantastic story, but she really takes you on the darkest secrets, of what really happened One year ago,  when Amelia Taylor’s sister, Lark, vanished without a trace from a family holiday in the Scottish Highlands, was just fantastic. Author Amanda's writing is just incredible, loved how she balances the storyline, and the characters together is just amazing. My favourite character was definitely Amelia, who I thought was just a fantastic character. What I loved about Amelia was, she would do anything to find her sister was fantastic. Amanda Brittany's I Lie In Wait is one of those thrillers, you won't be able to put down. A breathless ending, when the mystery is revealed, defiently takes your breath away. A well written mystery thriller, that will grip you from the start, till the end. Highly recommended. I would like to say thank you to author Amanda Brittany, HQ Stories and netgalley for giving me a chance to read and review this outstanding thriller.💥💥💥💥💥⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

absolutely brilliant book. The plot was very engaging and the characters believable! I thought I had the ending figured out but of course I hadn't! Really enjoyed reading

Such a great read

This is my first book by this author and will not be my last it is a real page turner with great strong characters, this one was a really good mystery and kept me guessing at somethings but did get others didn't see that ending coming though.

I Lie In Wait is a great example of a book with so much potential plot-wise, which completely let me down structurally.

When I'm talking about the structure of the book (there may be a better word for it), I'm talking about perspectives, timelines, chapter length, pacing... I Lie In Wait I think tried to do too much for a story that was already very interesting and didn't need much flair.

We would be in the perspective of Amelia, and then suddenly whiplash into the past. When we return back to the present, we're probably in somebody else's perspective. It moves very quickly and is very hard to catch up with. It's definitely not a leisurely read for me, I found myself constantly reading back for character names and actions that I missed.

That was the biggest let down for me, but I'm very confident if there was a total rewrite of I Lie In Wait it would be an easy 4-5 star book. I would recommend this if you're looking for a thriller that wastes no time getting into the story.

I suspect this novel would be most suited to readers of the ‘murder mystery’ genre, as it had a real ‘whodunnit’ vibe to it.

The story is narrated mainly in the voice of Amelia, a woman who has in the past year, lost her mother to terminal cancer, had a brother become paralysed and whose sister (Lark) has mysterious disappeared.

Fast forward one year from Lark’s disappearance, and the family find themselves revisiting their fated holiday in the Scottish Highlands to look for clues as to what happened to Lark. From here on in the bodies stack up as we find ourselves questioning who has a motive to kill and what that motive might be!

There is nothing pretentious about this story, it is a easy to follow, fun and entertaining read, at times reminding me of the teenage slasher movies of the early 90s with its reference to mask wearing protagonists and grisly fates to those who deem to go out alone at night...

My thanks to Netgalley, author and publisher for the opportunity to review this book in exchange for an advance copy.

I Lie in Wait had me guessing the whole way through. The premise of the story is that Amelia’s sister Lark vanishes and on the year anniversary of her disappearance Amelia and he family head to Scotland to try and find her. While they are there people are murdered, a masked mystery person haunts Amelia and her family and you are left wondering which guest at the Scottish house is a killer....?
I didn’t guess the ending or the final twist so for me this was a brilliant book. The book is written at two different times; a year ago and in the present so you get some confusing repetition at the start. Both the past and present are set in the winter, with the same characters and some of the same events so until you get a quarter through it can be a bit unclear as to which time you are reading in; although the chapters are headed with Now vs A Year Ago to try and help. Unpredictable and thrilling!

Oh I really enjoyed this one and couldn’t put it down! What on earth had happened to Lark and was her stepfather, who disappeared at the same time, to blame? Her sister Amelia is heading back to the scene of the crime with her father, brother and his carer to search for clues on the anniversary of her suspected abduction. I was convinced that I knew EXACTLY what had happened to Lark but sadly I was so far away from the shocking truth that I’m ashamed to call myself a crime fiction fan!

Told in two timelines from a year ago and the present day, I Lie in Wait gradually introduces the suspects from the previous years devastation and then reintroduces them in the present day. Sadly, Lark and Amelias mother has since passed away without knowing the fate of her youngest child so it’s an extra difficult return to the beautiful Scottish Highlands for her family and friends as the memories return. But present day events start to overtake Larks abduction when another girl goes missing and it becomes clear that a murderer is on the loose…

I Lie in Wait is a twisty, edge of your seat thriller that had me hooked from the opening prologue. The themes of family and loss are unexpectedly poignant for a psychological thriller and I found the descriptions of Amelias relationships with the various members of her family very realistic and often moving. I loved searching both timelines (and that of a third narrative!) for clues as to what happened to Lark as everyone seemed to be hiding some very dark secrets of their own! I found it a very “visually” told book and could see the snowy highlands and the cottages where they were staying quite clearly in my mind which made me conclude that this storyline would transfer perfectly into a tv drama. I’d love to see it played out on the small screen-the creepy masks especially would make for some great scary moments for the audience to jump out of their skins!!

Fans of CL Taylor and Ruth Ware should hopefully have discovered Amanda Brittany by now but if not treat yourself to I Lie In Wait. I’ve enjoyed all her books in the past but this one is definitely top of my favourites now!

Amelia is depressed following a failed pregnancy and break up with her partner. She needs comfort and support from her family, but discovers that they are revisiting the lodge where her sister Lark disappeared a year ago, and decides to go with them.
The setting is Drummondale Lodge in the snow-bound highlands of Scotland, and this is a chilling, atmospheric thriller. Strange things start to happen, someone is murdered and another disappears. Fearfully, the family decide to return home. However, with roads blocked, electric lines down and no internet connection, they are stuck at the lodge. Each character in the book is well described by the author. Ruth (the woman who runs the lodge), her son Ryan, and family members all have their story to tell giving insight and depth.
Chapters are short and told by several characters – Amelia tells the main story, with Ruth and others giving their viewpoint. Narration flips between present time and a year ago when Lark mysteriously disappeared. The pace increases as the story unfolds, although it does seem to lose its way a little at times, the sense of threat keeps you absorbed in this gripping thriller.
A rollercoaster ride, with an unexpected twist at the end.