I loved the Sanatorium by Sarah Pearse, another eerie, atmospheric novel that had me on the edge of my seat, which is why I picked The Wilds. With DS Elin Warner as a central character, I knew I was in for a treat. There are echoes of Daphne du Maurier in Pearse’s writing, even though she has her own unique and expressive voice.

On holiday in Portugal with her brother, Isaac, Elin finds an encampment in a forest which may have something to do with Kier, a young woman who disappeared a year ago. With a track record of traumatic investigations, this is a distraction she doesn’t need. But a recce of this nature; searching for a missing person, is part of her fabric. There’s no way she can ignore this case.

Sliding back three years to Kier’s story, where she is running the terrible events of the past, we learn about her relationship with her boyfriend which appears on the outside to be idyllic. But very soon degrades to jealousy and beyond. As the past converges with the present, the story becomes so unsettling, it is clear nothing is what it seems. This spine-tingling, atmospheric thriller keeps you looking over your shoulder with that undefinable feeling you’re being watched. But Elin, for all her complexities, emerges as a proficient investigator. Slowly dark hidden secrets emerge from the shadows and when she uncovers a shocking revelation, she is finally able to gain the loyalty of the members in the encampment. The distressing truth of what happened to Kier is finally revealed.

Pearse has such a wonderful sense of setting, and the tension makes you turn the pages. Dark, suspenseful, and downright unsettling, this is a book to savor. With twists and turns galore, it is another example of a skillful writer which, if Hitchcock were still around, would make the screen.

The third book in the DS Erin Warner series and just as good as the first two. In 'The Wilds' Erin is in Portugal, on a break with her brother when she gets caught up looking for the sister of his friend who has gone missing. The book flits between two time periods which is confusing initially but becomes clearer as the book moves on. The main theme of the book is abusive relationships and coercive control but introduced in such a way that the reader is subtly made aware of the different ways this can happen. There are twists aplenty and I certainly didn't see the ending coming! Although the book could be read as a stand alone, personally I would recommend reading the first two books before this one to get the full 5* experience.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an advance copy. All opinions are my own.

I found this book very hard to get into because of several factors - the characters were far too similar - both female leads had a strong connection with their brother, had a difficult childhood, were both looking for another female. The names of many characters were unusual so it was hard to remember which was which, and also the two views kept swapping back and forth in very short times. Normally when you have a dual-view narrative, you get immersed in one story and then it goes to the next narrative and you become immersed in that. But this story is sometimes only one page long for one, then it hops to the next one which may also only been two or three pages long. There simply isn't enough time to get to know the characters or be gripped. There's also a LOT of "Suddenly they heard a noise" and a LOT of "She had a feeling..."

The story had some good elements to it. I liked the maps and art, what the camp was there for... the idea of escape... but unfortunately I just couldn't get into a story which jumped around so much and had characters which were interchangeable.

4 stars - a missing person dual timeline set in a Portuguese national park.

The third instalment in the detective Elin Warner series. The story is set at a national park in Portugal where Elin is bonding with her brother Isaac hiking, when Isaac announces he is also looking for clues/ information on his friends missing sister Kier.

I really enjoyed the setting of the national park in this one and loved the descriptions of the forest, scenery and waterfalls.

The story alternates between Elins present tense and Kiers past tense pov and each chapter ends on a mini cliffhanger so I found it hard to put down.

The mystery in the story kept me guessing throughout and the identity of one of the characters shocked me.

I did find the ending a bit too convenient however, but overall I did enjoy the story and the character development of Elin.

Before going into this book I assumed the story would continue on into another book but the authors note at the end stated this was the last story. Given that, I feel as if Elin didn’t get the happy ending she deserves and it was left very open.

Bit of a slow burn start, but the momentum and tension built well, keeping me interested and turning the pages. The relationship between the main character and her brother is interesting, but they must be the unluckiest humans in the universe! The book came to a satisfying conclusion and I look forward to Sarah Pearse’s next.

This is the third and final book in the detective Elin Warner series. I did not realise that when I started reading . I had previously read the first book but was not aware of the second. However this book seemed to flow on naturally enough from book 1 , the Sanatorium.
I felt that book 1 was primarily a thriller but I thought that this book focused a lot more on toxic relationships with its short and long term impact on people, and I think I enjoyed it a bit less for that reason.
There were great twists in this tale of two siblings getting away from everything in a Portugese national park where there is a hidden agenda for them being there.
Keir has gone missing and her twin brother has asked for help in trying to find her.
The chapters alternate between events in Devon in 2018 leading up to Keir going missing and Elin and her brother Isaac in the park in 2021.
With the revelations in the second half of the book I began to wonder if the investigations were going to cause more problems then they solved and was expecting a very sad ending , but I felt that things turned out as well as could be hoped for.
Thanks to NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK for the ARC.

DS Elin Warner is on a much-needed holiday in Portugal. Stumbling across a small encampment in the middle of a forest raises suspicions, particularly as there are possible links to a young woman who hasn’t been seen in over a year.

The Wilds by Sarah Pearse is the third book to feature DS Elin Warner, following on from The Sanatorium and The Retreat. Fans of these books will be aware of the atmospheric setting of each and The Wilds is no different. With the majority of the story set in a Portuguese national forest, the landscape itself is overbearing and oppressive, which adds to the sinister feeling you have as you read.

Elin has had a traumatic couple of years dealing with cases and hasn’t quite come to terms with them, she’s also recently split from her long-term boyfriend. Her brother, Isaac, has suggested a walking holiday in Portugal and it is only after they arrive that she discovers Isaac has an ulterior motive. The sister of a friend has gone missing and the last time she was seen was in the same forest in Portugal.

The last thing Elin needs is a missing persons case to investigate and you can feel her frustration at being blind-sided by Isaac. The encampment where Kier, the missing woman, was last seen makes Elin suspicious. She gets the feeling that something isn’t quite right and that they aren’t being entirely truthful.

Intertwined with Elin’s investigation is Kier’s story. We jump back three years and meet Kier as she returns to the town in which she was raised for her twin brother’s wedding. Kier finds it difficult to settle in one place, mainly because she’s running from the horrific events of her childhood, events which are slowly revealed to the reader. With Kier is her boyfriend, Zeph. Initially, we meet a couple who are ideally suited and very much in love. Gradually you begin to realise that things in the relationship aren’t right, and that what we are witnessing goes beyond jealousy.

As the two story-lines begin to converge you get an unsettling feeling that you are being watched and that not everything is as it seems. A shocking revelation has Elin reeling and she questions her own judgement. Elin’s professionalism wins out as she is able to gain the trust of members of the encampment and finds out the distressing truth of what happened to Kier.

Detective Elin Warner is back. This time taking a break from work in a national park in Portugal with her brother.
This third book is different from the first two, but equally as compelling.
Elin becomes embroiled in her brother's plan to find missing woman, Kier. Her disappearance is linked to a camp in the mountains.
An excellent psychological thriller.

This story feels different from the other two involving the detective, Elin; this is more character-focussed with beautifully described scenes. Each chapter is either focused on Elin or Kier, told from either viewpoint, between 2018 and 2021, building up the picture of what is happening. Elin and her brother, Isaac, go to Portugal hiking together but become involved in finding out what has happened to Kier. It focuses heavily on differing relationships, such as those between partners, coworkers, siblings and friends. Various topics are explored such as bullying, stalking and domestic abuse. I particularly liked the author’s note at the back of the book highlighting the important issue of coercive control and how relationships may seem loving but be anything but. I didn’t find it quite as exciting as the other two books in the series, but overall, I did enjoy the story. It’s perhaps, a little slower than the other two.

I’d read the other two books by Sarah Pearse was was pleased to receive a review copy of The Wilds.

There’s a change of tone for this third and final instalment of the Elin Warner trilogy. This is less a whodunnit and more a psychological thriller. It took me a little while to get into the story but once I was hooked in I couldn’t stop. The short chapters and dual storyline flowed really well. There are some big and challenging themes here which are handled well. I was confident in the author’s handling of the narrative and all plot lines were well sewn up in the end.

Wow what an incredible destination thriller that is a huge page turner!!

We follow Detective Elin Warner in the third book of the series to Portugal for a much needed break with her brother to reconnect but unknown to Elin that her brother has not only brought her here to reconnect but to also to look into the disappearance of his friends sister who went missing from the very place they are trying to reconnect in. They begin their own investigation and begin digging around, looking for information and proof that she was there which takes many twists and turns.

The twists and turns in this book catch you out big time and they are brilliantly done to keep you guessing from the start until the end. I thought I had it kind of sussed but gosh I was wrong! The setting portrays this book perfectly, set in the wilderness which can be dark and claustrophobic yet also so beautiful and calming!

This book brings an end to the Detection Elin Warner series and the book brings this perfectly to a close. This book does tie in with the 1st two and ties up some loose ends that you have running around your head! I do strongly recommend reading the 1st two before reading those as references are made back to the previous books!

Thank you so much for the opportunity to read and give my honest review!

An atmospheric dual timeline novel set in Portugal's national park. Elin Warner is hiking with her brother Isaac, but he's really taken her there to try and discover what happened to his friends sister Keir who disappeared a few years previously. The story then takes us back 3 years to Keirs story, just before her brother Penn's wedding.
I found this a slow burn novel, with many descriptions of the park, the darkness in the forest almost felt claustrophobic at times. A few characters interspersed making you wonder who you could and couldn't trust added to the mystery.

The Wilds a who and why dunnit thriller by Sarah Pearse was very hard going at the beginning with all the talk about maps and exploring but as the story unfolded it was very moving, emotional and absolutely amazing thriller.

Kier Templer has had a very harrowing childhood and now as an adult she wants to spread her wings and live her life on the road travelling to new places. as she wants to put the past behind her which included her twin brother.

The mystery of her disapperance is investigated by by Detective Elin Warner and Isaac who follow breadcrumbs until they both discover a disturbing map which she had left behind.

Whilst investigating they come across a Pira which means a wood pile but it represents 'The Wilds' because that is what they were built for and Elin says that what we call the feelings inside us that can't be tamed, feelings that burn you, feelings that take you to the edge.

I love these words from the book 'I am not the wilds and the wilds are not me.'

Perfect for those who enjoy:
- Plot twists
- Missing person storylines
- Series books
- Descriptive fiction

With thanks to Little, Brown Book Group UK | Sphere and Netgalley for an ARC copy in return for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and Sarah Pearse... I thoroughly enjoyed 'The Sanitorium', so I was looking forward to this book, but I hadn't appreciated that it was part of a series. Having said that, this book could be read in total isolation, and it would only encourage you to read Books 1 and 2 (I've already downloaded The Retreat).
I enjoy the descriptive narrative, the self-doubt, and the complete honesty of the characters. They are real, everyday people with real worries, challenges, and thought processes. I was hooked from the beginning, enjoyed the story from different aspects and appreciated how the story unfolded before me. I did guess parts of the ending, but liked the conclusions and really look forward to more investigations by Elin.
An abusive relationship, an outcome investigated by troubled siblings, a twist of friendship and betrayal and a pace of story that keeps you glued.
Thank you.

Interesting characters that are well developed. I haven’t read the first novels and feel a little hindered by this as I have no idea what has happened to impact the characters as they appear in this book. The jumping back and forth in the book was easy enough to follow. The double character of Steed - baffled me completely!!

I may well go read the previous books to see if it starts to make more sense

Thanks for the read - I enjoyed it

When I tell you I was excited to receive this book! I've been patiently waiting for this third installment of Elin's adventures, and I was not disappointed! The scene setting is once again perfect, I feel like I could really picture the camp and the claustrophobia of the campervans. The plot twists got me, didn't see them coming which was fab. This tidied up loose ends and had call backs to the previous novels of The Sanatorium and The Retreat which I loved. Grateful to get the opportunity to read the advance copy and Sarah Pearse has smashed it again, it's a five star read for me!

The third instalment of Detective Elin Warner and another good read by Sarah Pearse.

This one felt completely different: The Sanotorium was eerie and atmospheric; The Retreat was a crime thriller; and The Wilds was more of a slow unravelling of the complexities of relationships, vulnerabilities and abuse.

I found myself constantly guessing and trying to work out the mysteries surrounding Kier. Pearse cleverly has you second-guessing the characters and thinking ‘who is the abuser?’ in some instances. The characters all felt 3-dimensional to me and I enjoyed following Kier’s story in particular.

Marking at 4 stars because, as with the previous books, Elin Warner leaves me feeling quite apathetic… I just don’t gel with her as I want to! However, in this book I did find myself understanding her character much more. I also wasn’t sure about the reveal of Elin’s stalker and that storyline. Perhaps more could’ve been made of it, or I would’ve been shocked more had I more recently read the previous books so things were fresh in my mind. Overall, a really good mystery that will keep you guessing, and a very sensitively and well-portrayed example of coercive abuse.

A ‘why done it’ that’ll keep you guessing until the very end!
This is my favourite of all of the Elin Warner books so far. The Sanatorium was an eerie thriller, The Retreat was very much crime thriller and this book is more of a mystery with a lot of heart.
Place, emotion and relationships are huge themes and it’s one big giant puzzle revolving around Devon and Portugal with dual timelines and crossing paths.

Very different to Sarah’s other two books and it felt so much deeper emotionally. I whizzed through it in a day!

A great thriller that really did keep me guessing until the end; just when I thought I had it all figured out, there was another curveball thrown in to the mix. It doesn’t matter if you haven’t read the previous books about this character as this can be read as a standalone book.