Much like life.. I truly had no idea what was going on in the book! I kept trying to figure it out.. and it turns out I’m dumb!
When Alice finds out that her father has died. Taking time to handle her grief she hires a girl to run her art store. When a special piece catches the interest of a customer, Alice receives an invite to stay at his hotel for a weekend. Upon Alice’s arrival cellphones go missing and people start dying…
This book was interesting. Pieces of story didn’t seem to fit with each other but I guess that was by design. Parts of this book seemed rushed, and others took forever. I truly enjoyed the insane reveal at the end.
A twisty insane tale of just what a parents love can truly mean.

This is a really gripping read! Such a mysterious atmosphere throughout, I loved it! Alice wants to find out about her early childhood, which she can’t remember. I really love discovering old family secrets! She goes to the guesthouse on an island and soon a storm comes and cuts them off from the rest of the world. Suddenly there are more mysteries to solve, with lots of twists and turns. We see from different points of view, which keeps it interesting. Add in some creepy puppets and it’s a fabulous thrill ride!

A grieving daughter, a family of secrets, and a gothic abandoned house isolated on an island. This twisty book kept me turning the pages, and was fully of plenty of creepy surprises.

4.5⭐

The Island House was fabulous. I loved the atmosphere, the mystery, the twists and turns and most of the characters in this book. Amanda Brittany was able to make it easy for the reader to be able to imagine everything about this book in great detail.

Alice has just lost her father to a tragic accident and receives a mysterious post card in the mail with the picture of a house that she has seen on her dreams. She is instantly pulled to the house and cannot stop thinking about it. She feels like she knows the house, but cannot put her finger on why it feels so familiar.

Alice is struggling with the loss of her father and the break up with the Leon, who was the love her of her life. After her father's death, Alice takes some time off from her little business to grieve the loss of her father, with the help of her new found friend Faith who agrees to look after Alice's store.

Faith and Alice have become fast friends and when Alice receives an invitation to stay that the newly renovated Flynn House, she cannot resist the urge to go. You soon jump on the twisty ride of the Flynn House past, and the alternating point of views of people from that lived there.

This book is so good! It will keep you hooked from the beginning to the end.

To be honest this started off rather slow and boring but eventually it picked up on the island on insanity...

Alice is still grieving the loss of her father and trying to get her life back on track when she gets an invitation to some new hotel called Flynn House. She just wants to make and sell her sculptures and get on with her life. Maybe figure out the complicated nature of her relationship with her ex boyfriend Leon and maybe tell her friend Faith that she can do way better than her boyfriend Mitch. But... mysteries surrounding her past and her father’s draw her to Flynn House. Where the past does not want to stay where it belongs and things quickly spiral out of control. Oh and there’s a double murder and a missing hotel owner, not to mention a storm and they are all trapped on an island with no way out and no communication.

So why are Alice and the other guests at Flynn House exactly? Once Alice reached the island you get flashbacks to the events that went on many years ago in the very house that became the hotel and the lives of the children that once lived there. And naturally the past is connected to the present and all of the guests unknowingly have something in common....

It started out a little hard to get into but I do like these types of stories where people are lured some place and get stuck there and have to figure out who among them is the killer and why and all that. This was pretty good once it got going and had some good twists it was creepy and kept the gothic feel throughout.

Also puppets are creepy.

What a fab dark and creepy story this was! I love gothic thrillers and this was quite a rush. The plot have flown well, edge of your seat well, and it kept me guessing throughout.
Thank you for the arc and good luck with the book.

A woman who has lost her dad and who doesnt know her mum has some challenges ahead of her. She gets a letter inviting her to a house. Here, she will find out something about her past and indeed her future. Inside that house, strange things start to happen. that's not before the mysterious and disturbing things take over.

I want to thank Netgalley and the author for gifting me the ebook. This was an interesting read. It is kind of slow to begin with but gets interesting as the story continues.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

I am giving this one 5 stars because it was a blast to read. I finished it all in one sitting and freaking loved every moment of it. I could read locked-room mysteries all day, every day and never get bored. This one was well written. Well paced. Creepy. Had a suitably atmospheric setting. Plenty of twists and turns. A good mix of likable and annoying characters. And the ending was a crazy ride! 🙌🏻 Not much more to say...LOVED IT!

**ARC Via NetGalley**

The Island House by Amanda Brittany

The Island House is a gripping thriller set in a creepy old mansion – my favorite type of scary story. Alice is an artist dealing with the recent death of her father and with flashbacks about a creepy old island house. The island house is only accessible by during a short period of each day. The secondary story line is that of two siblings who were raised in the island house by their abusive ventriloquist father and a never-ending line of nannies. I don’t want to give any spoilers, but the author does a magnificent job of weaving the lives of the siblings into Alice’s life and the culmination of one terrifying overnight stay at the house. The overnight stay was reminiscent of Clue, which added an entertaining element. I was very surprised at the ending of this book – it has a great twist at the end.

My only complaint is that the first chapter of the book threw me off. It states that the house was built in the eighteenth century, which would be the 1700’s. I was really looking forward to a long line of troubled happenings in the house across centuries. It turns out the first chapter was inaccurate – the house was actually built in the 1950’s – this was a disappointment to me.

I literally could not put this book down, I read it in a day! Can’t remember the last time a book plot line grabbed me as much as this one did, I absolutely loved it and was on the edge of my seat frequently. The gothic imagery really created a creepy atmosphere and growing sense of unease as the novel progressed and I never would have guessed the ending in a million years! Very well written and just utterly brilliant.

A very well written, atmospheric, locked room thrill ride! I found it to be quite fast paced, chilling, creepy, and unputdownable! The author did a great job at writing this story in an unique and captivating way, with well developed Characters, which kept me intrigued throughout! I would definitely highly recommend this one, even though it’s on the tense, creepy side! Will definitely have a hard time putting it down!

The Island House is one of the best thrillers I've ever read so far this year. Amanda Brittany created a compelling story, with a fabulous setting and an incredible atmosphere. This is the perfect book for fall and I loved every second of it.
Our main character Alicia, is dealing with the loss of her dad, who passed away. Now she's facing the consecuences and her past is back. She doesn't remember anything until the age of 7 and she doesn't even know her mom. One day she gets this invitation letter to attend a gothic and mysterious gothic house, that somehow has to do with her and her past. Once she gets there, weird stuff starts to happen and secrets resurface in the most unexpected ways.
I've enjoyed reading about Alicia and her past. The present got me hooked because it was intense and there was so much stuff happening at once and I couldn't stop reading. It's a book that will keep you on edge and wanting more and I can't recommend it enough

This is a thriller read that had a gothic touch to it and was a locked room mystery. I love all those elements in a book. Well done.

This was a very creepy, edge of your seat read. I devoured it in a day. I’ve read that this is a first book by this author so, I hope she writes more as I would love to read them. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

BOOK REVIEW
The Island House by: Amanda Brittany
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Synopsis: Once you’re on the island you’ll never want to leave… until you can’t
A DARK FAMILY SECRET
When Alice’s father dies after a tragic hit and run, his death stirs up unanswered questions about her childhood. Who was her mother, why did her father never speak of the past, and why can’t she remember anything before the age of seven?
AN ISLAND CUT OFF
But when she receives an anonymous letter containing a photograph of a refurbished gothic guesthouse surrounded by water, and an invitation to stay, old memories fight to resurface. Alice has visited before. She is certain of it.
WHO WILL SURVIVE?
Convinced the clues to her past lie at the hotel, she checks in. But once on the island, a wild storm rages, waves crash violently into the rocks, and the house is cut off by the roaring sea. Then two guests are found dead. And the hotel owner is missing. Will Alice ever uncover her secret past?
And will anyone leave the island alive?
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Review: Let me first say thank you to @netgalley & @hqstories for the digital copy of this book. I’ve been meaning to do a review for this one for while, but I have had mixed feelings. Part of me wanted to love this one. I really enjoyed the main character! She was beautifully written. On the other hand, it felt like this book dragged on. I did enjoy going between the past and present during the chapters and how it all comes together in a shocking ending. The ending of this one definitely makes me lean more to the recomeding side.
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Recommend: I ended up enjoying the book but not as much as I hoped I would, so for that if you want a book with a SHOCKER ending and one you will probably guess then I 100% recommend this one! Just know at parts it is a little drug out.
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WOW!

I started this and had to finish it -- it immediately sucks you into the storyline and played out in my mind like any of the great "big scary house with weird things happening" movies. I was guessing throughout as to what was really happening but was not expecting that ending!

Perfect book to read during the Fall!

A twisty mystery set in a fascinating setting that definitely kept me reading long past my bedtime. The red herrings and plot twists were entertaining and original.

Alice is an artist with her own store. Police come and inform her that her father has been killed in a hit and run. Alice is crushed. She is uplifted later when one of her pieces is sold. The guy that bought the spooky castle piece invites her to the castle to spend the weekend.
I loved this book. It would be great for an October read.

The Island House is quite a thriller. Loaded with mystery and intrigue, the story focuses on Alice Hadley and the mystery surrounding her past…a past she can’t quite remember. After her father’s death, while Alice is still processing her grief she gets invited to a mysterious (and rather creepy) house (hotel) on a remote island. While reluctant at first, little tidbits of information about the location soon have her suspecting there might be a link between this strange house and her father.
I have to say for a thriller, The Island House, features way more POVs than I am used to as well frequently jumping back and forth in time, but I must admit it actually works. Amanda Brittany has managed to created a compelling story. The intrigue and subtle hints in the early parts of the book hooked me and had me dying to know what the backstory to the house and it’s residents. I will say once you reach the island and the hotel there is a high need for suspension of disbelief related to the entire place being run by such a tiny staff, but I still thoroughly enjoyed the story. It’s quite the wild ride, and I will definitely be checking out more of Ms. Brittany’s work in the future.
I’d like to thank HQ Digital and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review The Island House.