Another example of a drama masquerading as a thriller. There were elements of the gothic here but not enough to elevate the plot to something more than average. Not for me I'm afraid

A great read, a pageturner, descriptive, atmospheric, it was chilling and full of suspense. Wanted to read in 1 go.

This was spooky! And the dual timelines kept me interested throughout. This definitely isn't a straightforward thriller but it's still satisfying.

I liked this book but I didn’t love it. I liked the story line and how the writer used different POV throughout the book.
I was wanting so much more creepiness to keep me gripped. When I saw the title I was expecting more scene setting and having a more eerie feeling.
The characters were ok, however Ava really annoyed me and her behaviour just baffled me. But it was nice to read about characters from the past, I wish there was a little more on them.
One part I did love is at the end the writer gives you some facts on what this book is actually based on which I found really interesting.
I’d say there are some trigger points in this and some parts I found quite sad to read about.
Overall I still would recommend this book purely because it is based on some true events.

Thank you to Netgally for a copy of this book!

This novel was very gripping, certainly kept me turning the pages. Will definitely be reading more by this author. Cannot recommend enough .

An intriguing read.
Some what engaging dual timeline.
Well drawn characters but the majority unlikable.
More of a family drama than a thriller in my opinion.

While I enjoyed the writing in this book, I think the description was a little misleading. I wanted so much more from the Overtoun Estate, I thought a lot more of the book would be set at this creepy old mansion. The main storyline was by far the least interesting to me, I wanted to hear more from the two storylines in the past. I easily predicted how all of the different timelines fit together, which was fine because I thought the two past storylines were very intriguing. I do really appreciate that this is loosely based on a real place, it was a lot of fun to be able to see pictures and look at the real story.

This is my first read by CD Major. The Thin Place runs through three different timelines. We have Marion, who we find in 1929, a 24 year old desperate to find a husband, and move away from her parents. Constance, a young, deeply unwell girl, living in 1949. Finally Ava, living in the present day. The thread which holds all of these characters together is the brooding Overtoun House, a clearly unhappy house, where unexplained things seem to happen.
The prologue had me gripped instantly. An awful scene of an onlooker being unable to stop a terrible act from happening. It was interesting to read in the Historical Notes that this is a genuine location, where these very strange incidents have happened. Overtoun House and the bridge certainly seem to have strange powers over people, and dogs.
Although I found myself reading through the book very quickly, Ava really frustrated me. I found her behaviour dumbfounding, and therefore her story didn’t sit well with me. I wasn’t invested in Ava, so wasn’t drawn into the book.
I did work out what I think to be the two major plot lines, well before they were unveiled in the story. This, and the frustrating Ava, make this a 3⭐️⭐️⭐️ read for me. I’m sure other readers will love the Gothic mystery and the feeling of otherness, but it wasn’t for me.

Enjoyment: 3.5
Total rating: 3.86

The Thin Place is a creepy and atmospheric story told in multiple PoVs with parenthood and loss at its core. Major did a great job weaving historical facts and local lore throughout the book without distracting from the story. My favourite part was the character work; I found it easy to empathize and connect with them.

Even though Major deals with the subject well, this is a book I recommend checking trigger warnings ahead of time. I was caught off guard.

Disclaimer: In exchange for an honest review, I am thankful to the publisher and NetGalley for providing a copy of The Thin Place

I just couldn't get into this book. Tried a few times. Others gave it 4 stars so I would recommend you try it out.

This was a spooky and atmospheric Gothic mystery. It was well written and had a clever plot. I enjoyed reading it.
Many thanks to Amazon Publishing UK and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Enjoyable, easy read for late night, home alone. I had no difficulty getting into the story, or maintaining my interest.

This book has all the ingredients that I love - a creepy old building, secrets of the past and a heroine who stops at nothing to look for the truth.

CD Major has written a beautiful, atomospheric book - thoroughly recommended!

I am a member of the American Library Association Reading List Award Committee. This title was suggested for the 2022 list. It was not nominated for the award. The complete list of winners and shortlisted titles is at <a href="https://rusaupdate.org/2022/01/readers-advisory-announce-2022-reading-list-years-best-in-genre-fiction-for-adult-readers/">

Strange things happen on the bridge near the old mansion. Is it a thin place? A place where the distance between heaven and earth closes in? Or is there more to this eerie story?
Three generations and an unexpected twist bring this dark tale to its perfect conclusion.

Thank you Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer.

3 for neutral. Tried to read a few times, but could never get into this one, will update if able to finish at a later date, I am a moody reader, so may be effecting my enjoyment of this one,

It took me a while to read this one, but I am glad I did. When I first picked it up a few months ago I wasn't in the right mood for it so I put it aside to try again later. Well later finally came and it drew me right in and I really enjoyed this story. I loved the atmosphere, the creepy older house and the mystery surrounding it and the bridge and the area.

Ava is a journalist. She is also pregnant and wants to know more about her mom's past. Her mom never speaks of it, she refuses, and that is just not okay with Ava. She is going to be a mom now so she deserves to know everything. Okay, Ava could be annoying and super entitled at times, but I still enjoyed this read. Like her mom doesn't owe Ava her past. She would tell Ava anything that would be pertinent medical history-wise, but just because you want to know the details of what is obviously not a good time in your mom's life doesn't mean you are entitled to them. She was this way with everyone. She wanted to know more info about something and would pretty much demand people tell her which...you can want to know and if people want to share great, but they don't owe you anything.

Now because Ava is determined to find all of her mom's dark secrets she remembers once they went to this nearby town so she starts looking. She finds Overtoun Estate and this bridge where dogs are said to have killed themselves on. Everything will be fine and then suddenly dogs just jump over the side and it doesn't end well for them. One of the crazy things is the author said this actually exists! There is such a bridge and no one knows why they do it. There are theories, but no definite answers. Ava swiftly becomes obsessed and has to find out what is going on there. The house feels off. There is something there, she just knows it. The locals believe it could be a thin place - where the barrier between the living and the dead is very thin. She is so obsessed she pretty much doesn't think at all about anything else. Not about her baby that is coming, not about her family, nothing. She definitely is determined once she sets her mind to something.

This story is also told from the point of view of two people in the past. The first, Marion, moves to Overtoun House when she is newly married and tells of what happens to her there. The other, Constance, is a young girl who lives in the house. I loved the way all three stories were woven together and how you find out what is actually happening. It was such a fun read and as I said above I loved the atmosphere and how creepy it all could be. How you really felt like the house, the bridge, the past was a presence the characters had to deal with. How they were like a living thing. I really enjoyed this one and I am glad I picked it up when I was more in the mood for this story.

Thanks to Netgalley, the author and the publisher for a copy of this book

This book is based on the fascinating history of Overtoun House and Bridge in Scotland. Since the 1950s the bridge has been nicknamed the dog suicide bridge for the over 600 incidents of dogs jumping off the bridge into the ravine below.  Of these over 50 dogs have died.  Explanations over the years range from an irresistible animal scent to the paranormal. 

Ava Brent is first introduced to the mystery when,  as a journalist,  she is assigned to cover the story. But everyone in town is reluctant to share any information,  fearing the strange atmosphere the house and grounds have over the town. Ava feels that same strange pull after her visit,  compelled to keep returning and digging into the mystery... to the point of obsession.  Soon,  the rest of her life is falling apart, sacrificed to her obsession, even her relationship with Fraser and the pregnancy they've longed for. Told in 3 timelines between Ava, a woman named Marion who married and became mistress of the estate,  and a sickly child named Constance whose bedroom overlooked the bridge,  the ending will leave you gasping. 

I didn't realize this was based on a true location until the explanation at the end.. so of course I then had to look up the history myself! I was dragged into this creepy mystery from the first description of Overtoun and unable to stop reading. I absolutely loved it!

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The book has 3 story lines with multiple points of view. This made the book difficult to follow at times— but I thought it was well researched and written. I love that it is about a real place.

A little creepy and spooky this book with some irritating non-likable characters, but an interesting read.

Thank you to Netgalley and Amazon Publishing for approving me to read 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐧 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞 by C D Major.
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𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐮𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐝. 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐛𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐝 𝐮𝐩 𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫? 𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐲 𝐝𝐢𝐝 𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥 𝐬𝐨 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟?
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The premise The Thin Place really hooked me in. The story follows a journalist (Ava) who decides to investigate the Overtoun estate, which is shrouded in mystery and folktales from the local people.
Visitors hear a baby crying, dogs have jumped off the bridge at the estate and died, but what real secrets are hidden there?
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𝐈𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐞𝐧𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐨𝐮𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐲-𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐈 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐣𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐦𝐲 𝐝𝐚𝐲𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐬. 𝐈𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐦𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐈 𝐟𝐞𝐥𝐭 𝐚 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐰𝐫𝐚𝐩 𝐢𝐭𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟 𝐚𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐲 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐬, 𝐢𝐜𝐲 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐨𝐫𝐠𝐚𝐧 𝐚𝐬 𝐈 𝐜𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐦𝐲 𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐤 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬.
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Overtoun itself seems to have a personality of it's own, and the perspectives switch between Ava in the present day, Constance in the past (a young woman who married a previous owner of Overtoun), and Marion in the past (a child who lived at Overtoun, and who herself was shrouded in secrecy).
Gradually, as Ava becomes obsessed with the story of the mysterious estate, the unhappinesses that existed in the house are revealed to the reader.
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𝐌𝐲 𝐥𝐞𝐠𝐬 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚 𝐦𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐚𝐬 𝐈 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐬𝐜𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡𝐲 𝐨𝐧 𝐦𝐲 𝐛𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐭. 𝐀 𝐧𝐨𝐢𝐬𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐚 𝐠𝐚𝐬𝐩 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐬 𝐦𝐞 𝐬𝐢𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐈 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤 𝐢𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐌𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫. 𝐒𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐭 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥𝐬 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐬𝐩𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐦𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐡𝐞𝐫.
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I don't want to give away the plot here, but I do want to call out that there is reference to serious mental illness, child abuse, and Munchausen syndrome/Munchausen by Proxy.
I feel it's important that readers are aware of this going into the book, especially as the story wasn't really what I was expecting; I thought this would be more of a supernatural thriller with a focus on Overtoun being a 'thin place' rather than a story that covered such heavy-hitting topics.
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𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐚 𝐂𝐞𝐥𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐛𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐠𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 ‘𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐬’– 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐡 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐬𝐞𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐚 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝.
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If you like thrillers, and have read other books by C D/Cesca Major and enjoyed them, I'm sure this would be a story you'd also enjoy.