The Hiding Place: A Novel by C.J. Tudor

(Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book!)

about book:

The thrilling second novel from the author of The Chalk Man, about a teacher with a hidden agenda who returns to settle scores at a school he once attended, only to uncover a darker secret than he could have imagined.

Joe never wanted to come back to Arnhill. After the way things ended with his old gang--the betrayal, the suicide, the murder--and after what happened when his sister went missing, the last thing he wanted to do was return to his hometown. But Joe doesn't have a choice. Because judging by what was done to that poor Morton kid, what happened all those years ago to Joe's sister is happening again. And only Joe knows who is really at fault.

Lying his way into a teaching job at his former high school is the easy part. Facing off with former friends who are none too happy to have him back in town--while avoiding the enemies he's made in the years since--is tougher. But the hardest part of all will be returning to that abandoned mine where it all went wrong and his life changed forever, and finally confronting the shocking, horrifying truth about Arnhill, his sister, and himself. Because for Joe, the worst moment of his life wasn't the day his sister went missing.

It was the day she came back.

With the same virtuosic command of character and pacing she displayed in The Chalk Man, C. J. Tudor has once again crafted an extraordinary novel that brilliantly blends harrowing psychological suspense, a devilishly puzzling mystery, and enough shocks and thrills to satisfy even the most seasoned reader.

my thoughts:

I LOVED The Chalk Man - it was one of my favorites this year.  So, I was super excited to get my hands on a copy of Tudor's latest, The Hiding Place.  I just knew that I would be in for a creepy treat.  And, hurrah, I was right!! This new book is spook-tastic!

Joe grew up in Arnhill and he never wanted to come back to it once he left.  However, an email leads him back to his hometown.  Along with some pretty hefty debts he owes to some pretty scary people - the kind that break kneecaps. So, he gets a job teaching at the local high school, where he used to go.  He rents a rundown cottage that has just been left abandoned due to a murder-suicide.  And, he is carrying around an old doll he bought for his little sister when she was still alive.  Life is pretty grim for Joe.

As the story unfolds, we learn about Joe's teen-aged years and what really happened to his little sister.  We also learn that Arnhill is not some quiet, little town - there is a history and it is dark.  Suffice it to say, Tudor has once again written a spellbinding tale.  This time it covers fractured relationships, betrayals, death, and the supernatural.  And it is truly great reading experience. I just loved it to bits.

I would happily recommend The Hiding Place to fans of Tudor and fans of suspense-thrillers - you will LOVE this book!!



Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book!