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Really good! This is the first novel I have read by this author and I will definitely be on the lookout for more!
This is a twisty, tense, absorbing page-turner which had me reading late into the night. Recommended!
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Sorry I really didn’t enjoy this one. Quite repetitive, kept recapping the same information almost every other chapter
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The Wilderness Retreat was a great read with plenty of twists and turns as expected for a psychological thriller. The story starts with Bella, a single mother, dropping her son, Asher, off to start university. She’s very upset and is suffering ‘empty nest syndrome’ before she’s even left Asher. To try and soften the blow of their separation, Bella's sister has bought her a birthday gift of a week’s wilderness retreat in Sweden which she is travelling too immediately after dropping him off.
There was also a sub-story in italics which wasn’t clear about the timeline at first. However, the sub-story uses a frequent trope which got me a little too ahead of the plot. Fortunately it wasn’t such a big bit of the plot as I expected it to be so this didn’t matter.
Once Bella gets to Sweden we meet the other five guests at the retreat and the two owners and it all gets very tense as odd and disquieting things happen. Also we start to hear of some connections between these eight people from the past.
I really enjoyed reading this but was slightly disappointed by guessing something too early on and I was also uncomfortable with the amount of narrative focussing on how much Bella was missing Asher. I was starting to think that there was maybe something sinister in their relationship which was going to be a big plot twist. There wasn’t but I didn’t enjoy that aspect of the story.
I am looking forward to reading Jennifer Moore’s debut novel, ‘The Woman Before’ published in 2022 and also any future books by her.
With thanks to NetGalley and HQ Digital for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
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Not my cup of tea and a very strange psychological thriller. Characters were all a little odd with their own secrets. Didn't keep my interest.
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This book is an unforgettable carousel of emotions. To all this, you can add unforgettable twists and turns. The interesting plot does not let you forget about yourself. The perfect psychological thriller. The further I got into this story, the more I was convinced I was going crazy. What has the author done to me?
I don't regret the late night. I'm still in shock, and I didn't expect such an ending.
The main character is flying to a week-long relaxation camp in Sweden. Her 18-year-old son is just starting college. She can't contact him because she had to give up her phone for a week. I understand the suffering of a mother who has no news from her child. There is a group of people at this camp. Each of them are hiding something. Our heroine Bella is in shock. Someone slipped a note into her room saying "I KNOW WHAT YOU DID". On top of all this, she hears strange noises. I was terrified. I was worried about Bella. Is she in danger?
An interestingly constructed thriller. There is something to be afraid of. Taking "The wilderness retreat" in my hand, I couldn't stop reading. I definitely need to know other works by Jennifer Moore.
Finally, I'll leave you with a question: will the mother ever see her son again?
Plus, nothing is what it seems.
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I have read some really good thrillers lately but unfortunately this wasn't one of them.
I chose it after reading the blurb, a retreat in a beautiful lodge in a remote region of Sweden where everyone has to surrender their phones, what could go wrong?
This book was more damp squib than thrilling. I didn't like the main character Bella at all and found that I didn't care what happened to her because she kept doing stupid things. I found myself skimming over the repetitive passages about her son and a rotten apple!! The story didn't really start to pick up until near the end and by then I guessed most of what was happening.
I probably wouldn't recommend this book to readers who enjoy a good thriller, it wasn't good or really bad, just ok.
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Loved the setting to this book. Beautiful retreat in a forest with luxury food and drink and an interesting set of characters. Obviously you know something is going to happen, and I was hoping for a great original storyline sadly despite a promising start, the book did not live up to expectations.
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Bella Burnstone's life is changing. Her career as a composer is beginning to take off and her 18 year old son is off to university. To cope with the departure of her son Bella has been gifted a week at a wilderness retreat in Sweden. A luxury retreat in the middle of the forest with seven other guests and four members of staff. Shortly after arriving Bella begins to experience things that make her doubt her own sanity.
Bella is a likeable character. For eighteen years it's just been her and her son, Asher. Having gotten pregnant just as she started university she dropped out and raised her son on her own, never revealing to anyone who the father is. There is a close bond between Bella and Asher and this helps you to understand the mixed feelings Bella is going through as her son leaves home.
The wilderness retreat is a gift from Bella's sister, the hope is that it will take her mind off Asher leaving for university. The retreat is in the middle of the forest, a chance to get away from the stresses and strains of everyday life, particularly as there is no phone signal.
The other guests are a mixed bunch, some are eccentric, others seem to be hiding secrets; Oscar is an aspiring thriller writer, keen to find novel ways of murdering his characters. Krista is a grieving widow, her husband was killed in a hit and run and a psychic has told her there is a Scandinavian connection to the driver who has never been found. T (yes, that's a name) is newly single, having recently being dumped by his partner. Hamer is a practical joker. Lena is a journalist who is writing a review of the retreat. Two other guests are due to arrive the following day, one of whom is guest speaker, someone who has links to Bella's past.
The story starts slowly, you understand how Bella is torn between needing to take her mind off events at home and her reluctance to cut herself off completely from the outside world. As little things begin to happen to Bella there is a sense of paranoia. Bella, and the other guests, begin to question her sanity as no-one else seems to be experiencing the same things.
As the tension builds and Bella tries to figure out why things are happening to her one of the other guests goes missing. No-one else seems to notice the missing guest and this adds to the sense of paranoia and isolation.
I enjoyed the slow build, the tension, the neurosis but I found Bella's reaction to everything a little strange. I found far too many of her actions to be passive. The who and why didn't come as a surprise either, although there were still some revelations towards what I felt was an abrupt ending.
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A new author for me and I wasn't disappointed.
Bella is given a gift of a trip to a secluded retreat just as her only son goes off to university. Some well need rest and relaxation are expected. But obviously not.
A good plot which keeps you guessing. I would recommend.
Thanks to Netgalley for letting me read this!
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Eight strangers gather together in the depths of Sweden at a retreat, looking for rest and relaxation. They aren’t expecting Maurer and madness….
Bella travels to the retreat on the same say that her only son, Asher, leaves for university. This break is just what she needs as a first time empty nester. The other guests all have their own reasons for attending too, but just who has murder on their minds?
This book was a great story to begin with but towards the end got twistier and twistier! A great read and one I would recommend.
Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read and review.
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Thank you for allowing me to review this book . Jennifer Moore is a new author to me. I found the Izzy story confusing to begin with as it was in italics and thought the stories were happening at the same time & Izzy was Asher's girlfriend. Bella was a convincing mum as her son leaves for university. The retreat was as creepy as I expected from the title I was relieved to finish the book and know the outcome. However, the suspense was real until the end. I won't spoil the book for readers by giving away to much, but if you enjoy creepy, suspense thrillers this is fir you.
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Bella has been given a surprise gift, with a stay at a wilderness retreat in Sweden. Her only son has left to go to University .and she needs something to take her mind off it.
After just one day she receives a mystery note which she thought was referring to the 'theft' of an apple! This thriller has plenty of twists as someone from her past arrives and is not particularly welcome.
The setting is well described but not so the characters. II struggled in the middle section but luckily the ending was good.
Thanks to Net Galley and HQ Digital for the chance to read and review.
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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.
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'The Wilderness Retreat' is an okay read, I adored the concept but I thought it was too long and as a result it lost oomph. The premise is good and I enjoyed getting to know the characters, why they are at the retreat and of course a remote retreat means trouble lies ahead...
This book is very atmospheric which I liked, it is also quite creepy which was good up to a point but at times it seemed like references were there just to be there and it did not really bring anything to the plot.
As I have said, I liked the cast of characters and getting to know them and their backgrounds was interesting. They all felt very human whilst not necessarily all likeable. The book does unfortunately lose pace in the middle section and I found my attention drifting but it does end with an action packed finale.
Thank you to NetGalley and HQ for an advance copy.
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i was lucky enough to be accepted for this arc by Netgalley, creepy thriller with lots of twists that kept me hooked and had me shocked, which is what i love about a thriller, i was reminded of one of my favourite authors Shari Lapena, and also Catherine Cooper's The Chalet comes to mind! i am looking forward to reading more from Jennifer Moore, this will also be reviewed on my instgram @just.a.girl.who.loves.books7
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The Wilderness Retreat is a decent page-turner, the perfect read if you want to fly through something that keeps your attention without taxing your brain too much. For me the plot was kinda clunky and I felt the build up of tension that defines these types of books wasn’t really there, for example the “terror” being waged on the protagonist consisted of a mysterious note and a maggoty apple for more than half the book and large portions of the book is descriptions of how much she is missing her sons which ended up being too repetitive. Having said that the plot was decent as was the setting and it seems the type of book that will invariably be made into a movie at some stage.
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This all started of well and I enjoyed the first third or so of the book but it all seemed to become too far fetched with wooden characters and an unbelievable plot.
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Thank you for the advance copy of this book. I absolutely loved it! The suspense grew as the story continued and a great twist at the end. I felt the characters were relatable and I would really recommend
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Bella has been given a surprise gift, a stay at a wilderness retreat in Sweden. She hopes it will take her mind off her only son's departure to University. But a mystery note, and a figure from her past, start to cause unease and a sense that she's being targeted.
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I really enjoyed this and got into it very quickly (which is unusual for me at the moment). It's a very tense read and I just wanted to keep reading to find out what was really going on. It was slightly frustrating at times when the main character wasn't believed but it also made sense to the story.
The different characters were interesting and their backstories were good, and I liked how they added to the plot, although I did slightly skim-read the main character's past at times - I think mainly because I wanted to get back to the present and find out what was going on.
I did guess a few parts of it but not the final ending and why it was that way which was great! I really liked how it turned out in the end and that it didn't end too abruptly after the reveal. A very good psychological thriller.