A unique read full of mystery and tense moments. I was drawn in from the first page, both mesmerised by the storyline and wondering how it was all going to work out. Hints of stranger things with another dimension. Loved it!

Cat and El are mirror twins, who have clearly not had a great childhood, for many differing reasons. To help get them through, they retreat into a fantasy land, known as Mirrorland. There are many characters within their extremely vivid imaginations.
As adults, the twins become disconnected from each other, leading separate lives on separate continents. Until El disappears after sailing away, her and the boat are nowhere to be found. Cat returns to her former home, and to El’s husband.

I struggled to get through the book at times, I read 4 or 5 other books whilst reading this book, as, in parts, I found it frustratingly slow going. The sections set back in time, during Cat and El’s time in Mirrorland, I found hard work. These parts read like a fantasy sci-fi read, as opposed to the thriller/psychological suspense I thought I was getting.

It is extremely hard for me to review this book, had I known of the high level fantasy content, I wouldn’t have chosen to read it, so I’m probably not the best person to write a review.
I think the book should be marketed more in the sci-fi genre, to find the corrrect readers, as I think many thriller/suspense readers as myself will struggle to connect with the story. I’m sure many will love this book, sadly I didn’t, just 3⭐️⭐️⭐️ from me.

Thank you HarperCollins and NetGalley and apologies for the delay in reading.
This was a bit slow for me, and I wasn't sure about the style of writing, but once I got into it it was ok. A good storyline.
My first book by Carole, and hopefully not my last

The pace moves along nicely and kept me turning the pages. The characters are interesting and well-developed. Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

This on wasn’t really for me, I couldn’t get into the writing style, I tried several times, I kept going back to it. It’s well written but just not to my taste

I have to admit to love-hate feelings for this book!
Twins Cat and El had been estranged for some years but when Cat disappears, El returns to Scotland to the old family home and is unwillingly drawn into her memories of their childhood. I found the childhood memories tedious and repetitive but the story did keep my interest to the somewhat obvious ending.

A wonderful debut novel.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 13 December 2021

I really enjoyed reading this book. It keeps you guessing all the way through right until the very end. You kind of get the feeling that something is amiss but you just don't know what. Would recommend to anyone who enjoyed The Girl on the train.

I’m going to use a cliche because it’s true – I couldn’t put this book down. Every page was a pleasure to read.

The narrative takes you from past to present, as Cat returns to her childhood home to try and make sense of her twin sister’s disappearance. But there are so many reasons she left and coming home brings all those things back to the surface. Switching like this can often be clunky and awkward, but here it works so well and the flashbacks, the details of the twins’ strange childhood, are beautifully done, so evocative and detailed.

As the past is slowly revealed, the tension really grows, and the reader is pulled along by the narrative, as almost every page seems to reveal another piece of the puzzle. It’s expertly done, absolutely gripping.

A very impressive debut. Very much looking forward to her next book.

Bit of a weird one but a good one! Loved it and will look forward to reading more from the author for sure

This was a bizarre plot and I found myself confused and befuddled with it! I don’t know if I enjoyed it or not! Thank you to netgalley for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

Fantastic book. Very well written. Plot was amazing. Had me hooked from the start right til the very end!

I found the synopsis of this book really intriguing however I really struggled to get into the story.
I found the book slow to start and while there was an attempt at intrigue I just couldn’t get into feeling anything about the story/ plot.

A tour de force that took a grip of me straight from the outset and kept me there until the end. Carole Johnstone succeeds in making us believe the power of a child's imagination can be so strong that it affects the whole of the rest of her life, and leaves her unsure what is true and what is not. Beautifully written and totally engrossing.Highly recommended.

Such a great book! I enjoyed reading this one so much! I highly recommend this book. Side note: the cover!!!!

This was a slow burner for me and it didn’t compel me until the middle. It actually starts with a significant event and continues this way throughout but I found it too layered and unnecessarily complex. It clicked a little more about half way through and the read got better for me. Once this happened, a lot of what had gone on in the first half became clearer.
Cleverly written for sure but the lands were not for me.
PS If you ever have plans to watch The Shawshank Redemption, do it before you read this book.

Well, what a crazy ride this was! A discombobulating but heady mix of dark fantasy and twisty thriller, with edges that warp and blur and characters who flit between worlds like wraiths. It’s incredibly complex, and it takes a while to get to grips with what’s going on. But once you do, it’s one heck of a riveting read.

The premise is deceptively simple: Identical twins Cat and El have been estranged for twelve years, living on separate continents, when El vanishes without trace in a surmised boating accident off the Scottish coast. Despite what everyone else thinks, including the police, Cat knows with the instinctive certainty of a twin, that El cannot be dead, and she’s determined to prove it.

It’s when Cat returns from California to the former family home in Edinburgh, now occupied by El and her husband, that she (and we) get sucked into the titular Mirrorland; a make believe world from the twins’ childhood, populated by a fantastical and sometimes scary cast of characters, where the girls hide from Bluebeard and the Tooth Fairy.

What follows is a tense, atmospheric, and often mystifying dual timeline that segues back and forth between Mirrorland and the present; the two linked by a scavenger hunt, seemingly set by El before she disappeared, which triggers shocking, long-buried memories in Cat.

Johnstone throws so much uncertainty into the narrative, repeatedly fudging the distinction between fantasy and reality, that the need to know how things are going to resolve is utterly compelling. And when the cogs do finally slot into place, it’s in a manic slew of horrific, earth-shattering revelations.

The only thing that didn’t completely work for me was the ending, which I felt undermined the authenticity of the story overall. But, hey, it’s a debut, and still a stunning one at that. With her provocative exploration of the vagaries of memory, Johnstone is clearly more than clever plotting and fabulous writing, and I look forward to her next book.

A complex thriller that took me a while to get into but once i got into the follow of the story it took me on a twisted journey into the darkness inhabited by El and Cat. Two identical girls whose memory of the past differs from each other. The story reveals itself through the eyes and memories of Cat as she uncovers clues left like breadcrumbs by her missing sister El. We follow her through the pain and heartache and eventual realisation of what really occurred during their childhood. Lost secrets are slowly revealed as the tension mounts in the book and the pace just seems to run away with you. A slow burning psychological thriller that takes you on a twisted, chilling ride with plenty of twists to make it all the more interesting.

An OK read that is quite slow paced. At times it seems predictable but at others there'll be a fantastic twist! Worth a read but not overly exciting.

This was everything you need for a thriller and crime story. It is not as black and white as you first think and like most typical thrillers, is full of twists. This is a first for me by the author and one I enjoyed and would read more of their work. The book cover is eye-catching and appealing and would spark my interest if in a bookshop. Thank you very much to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

3.5/5.

I struggled to finish this book as I found the Narrator, Cat, annoying, unreliable and unrelatable
I'll give it one of those it's not you it's me votes to it and give it the benefit of the doubt as I am currently finding it a little difficult to find books which really grab and keep hold of my attention and this is one book which missed the mark. As an only child myself, I found it especially hard to grasp the strange intense relationship between twins Cat and El and the weird triangle with friend Ross who later marries one twin and their mythical childhood world of Mirrorland, which held little magic and much to confuse and annoy. I think this will appeal to readers in their 20s who may find it easier to relate to the characters.