This one was just not my cup of tea. Was expecting a thriller from the premise but got a sci fi instead and this is not my genre. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to review it.

I received a complimentary copy of She Never Left from NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

This was a really weird one. I enjoyed the book, but it almost felt like it was in an entirely different genre (sci-fi) from what I normally read (realistic or historical fiction). I love the idea for the novel, though--very creative!

There are a lot of aspects of She Never Left that I really liked. This is the story of Jane Render, a woman in her late 30s living in Chicago and working as an agent/editor for her cousin TJ, a well-known author. Jane is recovering from a painkiller addiction and TJ is a nomadic soul who doesn't take much in life seriously. Both are at loose ends and have dissatisfaction with their lives. The two women grew up together in a small town in lower Illinois, and decide to return for their 20 year high school reunion. While there, they confront secrets from their past, reunite with classmates, and work on TJs next book.

This is the basic premise. However, there is also a creepy, almost sci-fi vibe to the story, as the small town where they grew up has a patch of woods they all call The Thicket, where psychedelic, bioluminescent mushrooms grow in plenty. There are plenty of flashbacks to their time in The Thicket as teenagers, and their experimentation with the mushrooms and subsequent hallucinations. They experiment again as adults and many scenes are written with a fever dream quality. Their friend Evie disappeared one night in the The Thicket and was never found...what really happened to her? What else is hiding in The Thicket? Why does the light in the middle of The Thicket go off when tragedy strikes? What secrets is TJ hiding about her parents? Why does Jane have a high school classmate who has been stalking her since high school?

There are a lot of oddities in this book. Once it ends and the mystery of the town is revealed, a lot of it makes more sense. However, there are still plot points that are left unresolved. I think the overall idea is interesting, and I liked the atmosphere the author creates. However, the execution of her story doesn't quite all come together and it's not really credible . Also, I didn't like the POV from Lincoln, Jane's stalker. It did not make me sympathize with him at all. Two and a half stars..

I was lucky to receive an advance copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review and opinions. I didn't love or hate this (does that make sense?). Sort of bizarre and a little bit of sci-fi which really is not the type of book I read. I finished it and was glad I did but not one of my favorites.

CONTAINS SPOILERS
The book follows TJ and Jane, two traumatized cousins and writing buds who have left their small hometown of Ketchum, where kids disappeared under strange circumstances. They go back for a 20 year reunion, where they confront Jane's stalker and the events of years ago, when their friend Evie went missing.

I've noticed a lot of chatter about this book with a general consensus: it's not quite what I was expecting, based on the blurb - I would expect more mystery, thriller, especially with the stalker, but it ended up reading more as sci-fi. This isn't a bad thing, but I found myself getting bored throughout the book. It took me a long time to read, almost the full time limit from NetGalley, and when I did get back to it, I found that I rushed through it.

I felt for Jane and TJ, and was scared of Lincoln - the author did a GREAT job with Lincoln's psychotic personality; the chapters where he was narrating were particularly spooky. Unfortunately, this book just didn't hit the mark for me. The Thicket was scary, the atmosphere written well, but I had a hard time trying to understand what was real and what wasn't. The ending with Jane in the mental hospital particularly confused me but I had a hard time understanding what was going on through the book's flashbacks to the Thicket, as well as the Thicket's own narration. A little more clarification at the end of the book would have been better for me.

Good writing, but maybe the synopsis needs to be fixed a bit to contextualize the book better.

If you’re looking for that kind of creepy horror/sci-fi thriller, then I’d point you in the direction of this one.

It’s taken me a week to complete my read, probably the longest ever with any book. From early on I realised this wasn’t going in the direction the blurb had indicated. Although I found I needed to discover what had happened to Evie, the story quickly turned into something far more complex. There were times when I began to lose interest, and others when my curiosity peaked and pushed me to read more.
This is not a traditional psychological thriller, it’s more of a sci fi thriller. I am sure many will enjoy this story but it wasn’t for me. I watched and enjoyed every episode of Stranger Things and empathised with the characters. However, it was difficult to connect with Jane and TJ, agent and author returning to their hometown for a 20 year school reunion. Both in their late thirties, they came across as much younger in the way they spoke and acted.
The story is quite gripping at times, but I felt I would probably have enjoyed it more watching it as a film rather in book form. Yes, it has elements of Stephen King about it and I’m sure those who enjoy this genre will not be disappointed. However, had the synopsis been truer to the story I probably would not have requested it.
My thanks to C M Harris, Harper Collins and Netgalley for an ARC of She Never Left in exchange for an honest review.

This book was OK for me, took me a while to get into and then things started to slot into place.
Not my usual genre, but still a good read .

Didn’t love it, didn’t hate it. Kind of a strange book, with no particular ending. Thank you Netgalley, for the early read.

I'm afraid, for me, this was an OK read. I think my disappointment is due to the fact it's not the book it's marketed to be; rather, it's a weird, sci-fi, supernatural mystery. I found it a difficult book to get through, although, if you aren't as confused as I was, it may be one for you.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the opportunity.

This had what I love in books - class reunions, murder, mystery, intrigue.

Unfortunately I felt like we had too many people, timelines, locations, plots to keep up with and I simply couldn't keep up.

This has all the right ingredients, so if you don't mind a lot of people and timelines to keep track of you will likely really enjoy this!

Excellent story! Totally engrossing!. Looking forward to reading more by this author! Could not put this down!

Oh boy, there is a lot going on in this book. A high school reunion, mental health issues, a stalker and drug use. There were different timelines and many points of view...I usually love that format but I found it confusing this time around. It seemed the whole book was really slow going and the ending fell flat.

Unfortunately this is a DNF for me,

I really struggled to understand what was going on? But this is probably more me as have heard people raving about it.

Occasionally when I don’t understand a book in ebook, I will ‘get’ it better when I read as a hard copy, so I will attempt this again once released.

She Never Left by C.M. Harris is a riveting contemporary novel that I devoured in just one sitting. It had me completely hooked until the jaw-dropping conclusion that I did not spot coming!
The lines between reality and illusion are blurred. As the reader I could not always spot which was which but clung on with heart racing to the end.
There are alternating voices and time periods as the story unfolds.
She Never Left was cleverly and intricately constructed. I did not always grasp what was going on but I was rivetted from start to finish.
This is definitely not a book you want to read alone or at night!
I received a free copy via Net Galley. A favourable review was not required. All opinions are my own.

Cousins, TJ and Jane, live in Chicago, but decide to go back to a small isolated town for their 20th school reunion. There they meet up with several of their friends including Lincoln, who was with them when Evie disappeared in the woods, known as the Thicket, 20 years prior. Everyone has secrets and though this book had some intrigue, it did not hold my attention and seemed to be of the Sci Fi genre, which is not something I would normally read. I gave it a good chance, but I could not identify with any of the characters.
I do thank the author, publisher and Netgalley for my ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The plot caught my imagination in a vice from the very beginning. This is a chilling, evocative psychological thriller that is totally addictive to the point I just can't stop thinking about it.
The author pays a homage here to H.P. Lovecraft and his Cthulhu mythos stories and the Old Ones. She cleverly combines the tropes of pure horror with the pace and suspense of an enthralling psychological mystery.
An expertly written novel that is darkly compelling and razor-sharp.

Sorry to say this book did not hit the mark for me. The blurb caught my attention as a gripping psychological thriller. I was confused for most of the book. I’m sure it was my inability to connect reality to the psychedelic/mystic adventures in the book.
Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book

2.5 Stars

Sometimes the light's all shinin' on me
Other times, I can barely see
Lately, it occurs to me
What a long, strange trip it's been
-Grateful Dead

Cousins, as well as writing partners, TJ and Jane decide to attend their 20th high school reunion in hopes of gathering some material to get them over the hurdle of writer’s block. But when they show up in their hometown, they discover Jane’s long-time stalker is creepier than ever, the town folk are still whispering about TJ’s family tragedy, and then there are the memories of time spent within “the thicket”, and the loss of their friend Evie…but what if she never left…

So, it has taken me a wee bit to prepare my thoughts on a review as there is a lot going on in this story…perhaps too much. What do you get when you mix together a high school reunion, a stalker and a mysterious “thicket”? Mass confusion for this reader! Reading this book has most certainly been “a long, strange trip”, which for some may be exactly what they were looking for, but for others, such as myself, totally lost. The cover and blurb completely drew me in, but as the pages turned, I kept getting confused with the POV and time changes. This is most likely just reader preferences, so don’t let my low rating dissuade you from giving this story a chance. While not my fav, it could be yours!



**I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book that I received via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own. **

This book has been described as “Sharp Objects Meets Stranger Things”, so if you’re looking for a dark, sci-fi-esque thriller, this one might be for you!

This story has an intriguing premise but didn’t hit the mark for me. Jane and TJ return to their small Illinois hometown for their 20th high school reunion. There’s a lot to unpack in this novel – classmates and townspeople who have disappeared or died, an obsessive man who has stalked Jane for years, drug use and childhood abuse. A spooky woods everyone calls The Thicket features prominently, the setting of high school dabbling into psychedelic mushrooms and home to a fungus that is almost sentient.

The depiction of The Thicket is really creepy and atmospheric, the author did a great job setting the scene. This book was a little more sci-fi than I was expecting, which isn’t my usual genre, so maybe that’s why I struggled to connect. It was hard for me to figure out what was real vs what were the characters’ hallucinations, and maybe that was the point, but I had a hard time keeping up.

Many thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter, for providing me an advance copy of this book.