The Short Straw is a slow burner of a novel that follows three sisters – Nina, Lizzie, and Aisa – as they return from lunch with their father. They become lost in a bad storm and take shelter at an imposing old house that is semi-familiar to them from their childhood because their mother used to work there as a maid. Aisa heads out into the night to try to get help, whilst the other two are left in the crumbling house with its shadows and secrets…

The book moves along at a fairly slow pace, introducing the characters and their intricate relationships, all against the backdrop of the raging storm. It cleverly alternates between present-day chapters narrated through each of the siblings’ eyes and chapters from their mother’s perspective, who had worked in the house years ago. This dual narrative adds depth to the story, and I found it particularly engaging. Throughout the narrative, an ever-present sense of looming danger persists, with the house itself becoming a menacing character.

While The Short Straw unravels the mystery of Jane’s mother’s past, it doesn’t fall squarely into the thriller genre. Instead, it creates an incredibly tense atmosphere. The present-day narrative didn’t need dramatic action to keep me engaged; I found myself on edge for much of the novel just from the lurking sense of danger, enjoying both the present-day and historical narratives. As well as the resolution of the mystery, I enjoyed the author’s skilful character development and the constant suspense that kept me enthralled.

If you appreciate novels that seamlessly flick between different timelines, The Short Straw serves as a superb example of a slow-burning story that skillfully maintains intrigue and suspense throughout its pages.

I did mostly enjoy reading this.
I did get confused a few times though.
It was exciting in places but then a bit of a disappointment towards the end.
Not a bad book but not amazing either.
Thanks for the opportunity to read this.

In the short straw we meet sisters Nina, Lizzie and Aisa. The sisters aren’t particularly close and after spending their dad’s birthday with him they are heading back to their separate lives when 1st a diversion and then the discovery they’re running out of petrol sees them heading towards the village they left as small children. A sudden storm hits and they realise they are near to the old mansion their mum used to clean at. Making the decision to head there as the car is seriously low on petrol, they are heading that way when the car has a bump. Badly injuring Nina’s ankle. They manage to get her up the driveway to the mansion only to discover it is derelict.
Realising they are lost and alone, with no electricity and no way of contacting anyone they decide to draw straws to see who is going to brave the storm and head to the village to call for help.

Youngest sister Aisa picks the short straw and heads off, while Nina and Lizzie explore the mansion. Childhood memories begin to come back. Are they alone in the mansion?

Aisa meanwhile is running out of battery on her phone and as she is walking towards the village she suddenly realises she is not alone, who is out there in the woods with her?
Will she manage to call for help and get back to her own life?

The book is told in 2 timelines the now, as the girls realise that everything is not as it seems and begin to wonder if they are safe.

And the past, from the point of view of their Mum, Rosemary who used to clean the mansion 1st for the old brigadier and then for his son and his family.

I found this a very interesting but somewhat predictable book. I enjoyed the twists and turns but did work each one out as I read, Howe that is also part of the fun

Holly has a good style of writing which makes you want to keep reading to find out if your theory is correct.

Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this title

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for this ARC.

I found this one a little slow to get going at first, but once it did I couldn't put it down. Although the ending wasn't a huge surprise it was still an enjoyable read.

This one is not so much a thriller but more a creepy atmospheric family drama full of family secrets.
It is a slow burn which took me a while to get into.
However the plot is an interesting one about three sisters who find themselves in a bit of a dilemma.
There car has broken down in a remote area & it looks like a large abandoned rundown mansion is the only place they can seek refuge.
They realise this is the place their mother used to work & it brings back memories of their childhood not all of them good.
As children they would decide things by drawing straws & whoever drew the shortest had to do the deed.
One of them had to head back into the dark eerie night to get help.
Once again they fell back on their childhood system & drew straws for it.
This is a character driven story full of dark secrets that begin to unfold.
Well written & I did enjoy it although the pace of the book was a little slow.

Wednesday, 4 October 2023
Review - The Short Straw by Holly Seddon

The Short Straw by Holly Seddon
Publisher: Orion
Release date: 14 September 2023
Back cover blurb: Three troubled sisters find themselves lost in a storm at night, and seek safety at Moirthwaite Manor, where their mother once worked. They are shocked to find the isolated mansion that loomed so large through their childhoods has long been abandoned. Drawing straws to decide who should get help, one sister heads back into the darkness. With the siblings separated, the deadly secrets hidden in the house finally make themselves known and we learn the unspeakable truth that will tear the family apart.










Three sisters. All grown adults. Lizzie, Nina and Aisa Kelsey find themselves taking refuge in an abandoned house after their vehicle runs out of fuel in the midst of a storm.

Morthwaite Manor is familiar to them, though not as adults. Their Mother, Rosemary worked there when the girls were young, and they spent time there with the owner's daughter Jane.

They are shocked to find the once almost palatial house in an abandoned and derelict state. But that is the least of their worries.

Aisa is impatient to get to the airport for a flight, Lizzie has missed an important date that she hasn't told her sisters about, and Nina has her own secrets and reasons for not wanting to be there.

None of them want to enter the dilapted manor house, but they must to shelter themselves from the violent storm. Once inside they must decide which one of them will volunteer to go back out into the treacherous conditions to find help.

Morthwaite Manor is a mobile blackspot, and none of the girls can get a signal. In order to refuel the vehicle they need to call a breakdown company, or find someone that can help in the village. It's dark, late and cold. So they do what they Kelsey girls have always done to make a decision, they draw straws.

But who got the short straw? And what lies in store for them?

I don't want to say too much more as this is absolutely a novel that you should discover for yourself. A great thriller that would make a fabulous movie!

Three sisters are stranded on a stormy night and they draw straws to decide who will go to get help but then they are separated and it could possibly turn out to be a murderous and scary night. I loved how atmospheric it felt with the isolation and the treacherous storms and I am disappointed it wasn't storming here while I was reading because that would have really set the scene so I have decided to reread it on a stormy night. It was exciting and unexpectedly thrilling ride and the plot is chilling. A great spooky story to get you in the mood for Halloween.

The Short Straw by Holly Seddon is the story of three sisters who find themselves lost in a storm at night and seek safety at Morthwaite Manor, a place where there mother once work.
The place that the isolated manor that featured so large in their troubled childhoods has long since been abandoned.Having run out of petrol they choose straws to see who will go to the nearest village to get help or a phone signal. Whilst the others wait and even when the chosen sister returns the secrets from their childhood are unveiled.
Recommended

my god this had me on the edge of my seat! It was creepy and chilling and gave me genuine heart palpitations 🤣
I love the idea of ‘drawing the short straw’ to go and get help and it really added to the tension both in the book and between the sisters as we all know how much turmoil siblings can cause already!
This was the perfect atmospheric read for this time of year as it starts to get cold and rainy and stormy here, it really sets the scene well for this creepy abandoned mansion house, with the family secrets trope weaving throughout which I love.
All in all this was an emotional and gripping read that is very good for spooky season and all in all a brilliant thriller. It had me on the edge permanently, really made me invested in the family, their history and the secrets that inevitably will bind them all together forever. An easy 5 star read for me! Cannot wait to read more Holly Seddon!

Holly Seddon has written some brilliant thrillers, and The Short Straw is her latest offering. This is the story of three sisters who breakdown in a storm snd take refuge in Morthwaite Manor, where their mother worked when they were children. The combination of an abandoned house, no ameneties, a storm and three sisters who are very different and not use to spending time together make for an interesting and compelling read.

The Short Straw is very much a character led read, with chapters from the point of view of the sister’s in the present and their mother Rosemary in the past. The sisters Nina, Lizzie and Aisa make for a fascinating character study. Nina is the eldest, seen as the capable one, the one who takes charge as she has done since childhood, a trait that annoys her two sisters. My favourite sister was Lizzie, she is the quiet sister, who avoids confrontation and who is seen by her sisters as being too dreamy and ineffectual. I felt like I connected with her the most, she is an introvert who works with sick animals and prefers animals to people and has a house full of books. The younger sister Aisa, is a free spirit, who travels around the world petsitting and having no permanent home. She is the one who rebels against authority, especially that of her sisters. I was captivated by their relationships, the way they saw each other and reacted to each other especially in a time of crisis.

I really enjoyed Holly Seddon’s writing, her sense of characters and her setting. Her writing really portrayed the setting of the house, the storm, the rural setting brilliantly, it sent a chill down my spine as I was reading. The split timeline added interest, as their mother’s story and theirs entwined and the full story of Morthwaite Manor and it’s inhabitants are slowly revealed. As I mentioned before, The Short Straw has the perfect combination for a thrillers; set in a storm at night, a brokendown car, an abandoned big house, no electric and no reception for their mobile phones. The potenial was there for a brillliant story but unfortunately for me the book fell short of this. It was a slow start, but it did pick up towards the end but then fell flat for me. I’m sure many will disagree with me, however the characters and setiing were brilliant.

The Short Straw was an interesting read, the sisters made for a fascinaing case study, at how they saw each other and how they reacted when put together. The writing and setting were atmospheric and a times chilling, I hate the thought of being in an abandoned house, trapped during a storm. Overall this is a tense and unsettling undercurrent.

I seemed to spend most of my time whilst reading this book trying to go along with things that would never happen in real life. Starting with the journey itself which was made to sound like a convenient dropping off of family along the way but in reality no one would consider this sort of trek. Then the sisters memories from their childhood lives of roads and where they led to which again would simply never be thought of.
It does have lots of interesting secrets too but it seemed more of a family saga than any kind of thriller.

Great read with lots of pace and tension.

Three siblings are on their way to their homes and very different lives following a mercy visit to see their father, who they keep in contact with sporadically.

The night is cold, windy and the conditions treacherous and their car runs out of fuel. They find themselves near the home they shared many years before and by a mansion that their mother spent her life working in.

Very spooky and lots of twists and turns on the way. A great read.

Thanks to Netgalley, the author and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I love everything by Holly Seddon and this was another great read. Chilling and creepy describes it best. Heart pounding tale! My thanks to netgalley and the publisher for my copy.

The Short Straw by Holly Seddon is a gripping and scary gothic style family drama that once started you will not want to put down. Very much a character driven tale, this is a book so deliciously creepy that it sent shivers up and down my spine as Nina, Lizzie and Aisa find themselves increasingly isolated, the tension palpable as the night gets darker and the storm begins to take hold.

Atmospheric and with an intense claustrophobic feel to it, this is an addictive and compelling story of family relationships and hidden secrets. A moving and emotional story that captivated me from the opening page, The Short Straw is the perfect book to read as the nights draw in and the days grow colder.

Nina, Lizzie and Aisa are three troubled sisters who, after a visit with their elderly father, get lost in a storm on their way home. Seeking shelter at Moirthwaite Manor where their mother once worked, the sisters find the isolated mansion abandoned. Without any power and no signal on their phones, they draw straws to see who should go for help. With the siblings now separated, the dark and eerie house finally begins to let go of its horrifying secrets – secrets that will change all of their lives forever…

What follows is a creepy, tense and beautifully written family drama that’s told from the perspective of Rosemary in the past and Nina, Lizzie and Aisa in the present day. A dark and intense slow burner of a read, the tension ramps up to almost breaking point as the story gathers pace, leading to a shocking turn of events that I can honestly say took me completely by surprise.

A tale with family at its heart, The Short Straw is a book that I thoroughly enjoyed and I can’t wait to see what this talented author comes up with next!

Holly Seddon has written a moving and intense gothic family drama that I would highly recommend.

Absolutely fantastic, tense and thrilling I couldn’t put this book down and read it in hours.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC in return for my honest and unbiased opinion.

This was nothing like I expected. Abandoned mansion house in the middle of nowhere, violent storm, car breaks down, three sisters alone, ghosts, unhinged serial killer on the loose, Gothic horror? Forget it. This is very different, although the atmosphere is permanently thick with menace, it’s also a very emotional read.

It’s told in two timelines (a third thrown in just briefly for good measure), one revolving around the girls mother Rosemary in 1993, the other in the here and now. Nina is the eldest child, working as a midwife, her relationship with girlfriend Tessa seemingly on the rocks. Then there is Lizzie, frumpy, prefers animals to people and works at a dog rescue centre. Finally there is Aisa, who moves around, house-sits, has no fixed abode and is currently pet sitting a cat called Poisson in Paris. She has to get back.

In 1993, the girls lived with their mum in a two-bed cottage near Morthwaite Manor, the aforementioned mansion, where she was the housekeeper. Their dad is Bob, who was one of the boys who lived at the manor – it was a home for the unwanted and unloved, where boys could start a new life (theoretically) under the protection of the Brigadier and his wife Mrs Proctor. Alan also lived there and is now a gamekeeper of sorts, who appears to shoot at anything that’s not nailed down, mainly rabbits and birds. He prefers to live in a tent in the grounds.

They had a son, William, who went off to university, but came back to look after the house after his parents died. He is married to Selina and they had a daughter Jane, the same age as Lizzie.

Thirty years later, the three sisters are visiting their dad, but on the way home, they run out of petrol and have to abandon the car and find somewhere to shelter. Morthwaite Manor is close by, so that’s where they head. But when they get there, the place has been left to go to wrack and ruin. The front door is unlocked though, so they go in.

They draw straws to decide who will go for help and so it begins. No ghosts, no serial killers, no monsters under the bed, just the unlocking of the terrible secrets of the past – secrets long forgotten, but ones that will bind them all forever. I loved it.

Many thanks to @Tr4cyF3nt0n for inviting me to be part of the #CompulsiveReaders #blogtour and to NetGalley for an ARC.

The Short Straw is a dual timeline story with current events taking place in an old Manor House in Cumbria in the midst of a big storm. Three sisters, Nina, Lizzie and Aisa have been travelling back from seeing their father and were en route to their different destinations when their car ran out of petrol. With no car and no phone signal due to the storm and the Cumbrian geography, they take refuge in the nearby deserted Moirthwaite Manor where their mother, Rosemary, used to work as a housekeeper.

The sisters draw straws to decide who will go for help. One heads off and the other two set about exploring a place they remember from their past.

I enjoyed the dual timeline aspect, and the different perspectives on the characters who lived in the manor house. Seddon does her best to infuse the whole book with a gothic air, but this is not always wholly successful. This book is much more of a tense, slow burn, family drama than a suspenseful and creepy chiller. The description of the manor and the atmosphere created by the storm is well done though. I like Holly Seddon’s writing which is at its best when looking at the fraught relationship between the sisters and the secrets that are being kept.

She handles those secretive undercurrents especially well, driving the reader on to understand what happen in the past and how that has impacted on the present.

Verdict: I enjoyed the secrets of the house and its occupants being slowly revealed, though in the end I could see where the story was going, but I did not find the house noises and intended creepiness quite as unsettling as I believe the author intended. Holly Seddon writes well, but for me, this would have worked better as an intense family drama without the sometimes irritating behaviour of the sisters and the noises in the night..

Three sisters get stranded in an old manor, and it just so happens to be one that their mother worked at years ago. As the night unravels we hear from each sisters pov as well as a flash back storyline that all ties together at the end.
I must admit for the first half of the this book I really struggled I really thought I was going to DNF but once I got past the half way mark the book really took off and the atmosphere and intrigue of where the story was going really kept me glued.

Thanks to NetGalley for the chance to read this arc.

When their car breaks down during a storm, the three sisters, Lizzie, Aisa and Nina, finding shelter in the familiar surroundings of MoirthWaite Manor.
But while this is familiar because their mother used to work there the place is now abandoned and may just how secrets they aren’t ready for.

Seddon gives us a bit of a slow-burn narrative, which is character-driven and set within a dual timeline.
I loved the atmosphere this storyline gives that I had chills up my spine, and found my imagination running away with me I was only able to read this in the daytime.

These three sisters have a great interaction and the writing has such details you will be able to see every scene in front of you.
This is an author I will look forward to reading again.

Three sisters - Lizzie, Nina and Aisa have just left their father after his birthday celebrations and are driving through a storm when they lose control of the car and end up stranded. They decide that the sensible thing to do would be to wait for help in Moirthwaite Manor where their mother used to work. It's a place they are familiar with and is much safer than staying on the road at night in soaking wet clothes. The problem is that when they arrive, they find the old manor house completely abandoned so one of them has to head into the nearby village to get enough signal to call for help. Arguing as sisters do, they decide to draw straws to decide who should go for help. Aisa gets the short straw and heads out into the dark, but with the strange atmosphere and memories resurfacing in Moirthwaite Manor, it's hard to decide which is the safer option!

Before I started reading The Short Straw I didn't know much about it other than the basic synopsis and the fact that I had read a few of Holly Seddon's previous novels. At first glance I thought it looked like a typical 'popcorn thriller' but as I was reading I began to realise that this was actually a real hidden gem. There are a lot of the thriller elements you would expect but there were also some really creepy moments that were so unexpected, and these took the story to a completely different level.

I know that it's not everyone's cup of tea, but personally, I love horror elements mixed in with thriller or mystery stories. However, even though the story and tropes were exactly the kind of thing I love to read, it was actually the relationship between the three sisters that really caught my attention. Being the eldest of three sisters myself, I really appreciated the dynamic between them and thought it was spot on - that element of competition and jealousy which was underlying, and the reality that these relationships aren't always perfect.

The Short Straw is a really satisfying, creepy and intense thriller, perfect for reading on dark autumn nights. If you are a fan of Alex North or Riley Sager - this book has a similar successful blend of thriller and horror. Definitely one to add to your spooky season TBR!