Cover Image: This Little Dark Place

This Little Dark Place

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Member Reviews

⭐⭐⭐💫

While I enjoyed the overall the storyline, I found myself to be a bit underwhelmed by the pacing. It tended to be slow at points, but it definitely has the creep factor and was a compelling debut. It is a book I would still recommend to friends.

With many thanks to netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
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This book is nothing like I have read before. It was dark and twisted, but it was good, It held me from the first page. I really enjoyed the suspense!! 
Thank you Netgalley for the copy of this book..
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This Little Dark Place by A. S. Hatch is a psychological thriller that definitely had me turning page after page until the very end. This book was so full of twists and turns. I felt like I was on the edge of my seat and I just wasn't sure what was to come next! Bravo A.S. Hatch! I look forward to reading more books by this author in the future! 
*Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
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In A.S. Hatch's, This Little Dark Place, this shocking thriller is so startling and borderline creepy from start to finish. It all started when Daniel told Lucy about how and why he got incarcerated in a letter. We're introduced to Daniel and Victoria, a loving couple who's been trying to make a baby and start a family.  But later on, things grew distant when Dan worked in his workshop and Vic paid less attention to him.  That's when he started correspondence with Ruby, who spent time behind bars for assaulting her partner Lee. After losing his mother Ivy and a baby, they move into his inherited cottage in the countryside. Before the move, Vic spends more time at the gym and less with him until they grew apart and went their separate way. Time alone in the cottage, he resumed his correspondence until it grew creepier, deeper and darker and a bit more intimate. Later, when Ruby's free, she tracks Dan down at his home and helps decorate it. But he didn't know if he could believe her or trust her. Later, when Vic wants to reunite with him, Dan needed to do something with Ruby. But when he disposes her, things turn deadly with a shocking ending on what happened to Dan.
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I started this book with intrigue however was left feeling very deflated.
Nothing seemed to happen ot was all very one level. Just plodded along.
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This little dark place is just that...dark. Twisted. Captivating. Intense. I couldn’t stop reading, needing to know the answers. What a story and what an ending.
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This is a book of letters written by Daniel. Through them we meet his girlfriend and his prison pen pal. There are plenty of plot twists and unexpected happenings which kept me completely hooked to the end. Highly recommended.
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Overall I liked this book. It jumps around quite a bit making it confusing at times. I didn't find it as thrilling and twisty as I had hoped, as I figured out the ending well before the end of the book. Overall 3/5 stars from me.
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This was such a weird read for me. I almost felt like I was the author of those letters I felt his fears his ups his downs but it’s not until near the end that you realize about two of the characters in the book and then it all makes sense. The author should add a prologue maybe? If they reunited? It left me with Hope 

 Very good read !!!!
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I was so intrigued and kept waiting for this book to pay off.  It never did for me.  I just wanted to like it so much but I could not care about anything that was happening. I could not get involved.  I could not get lost in the story.  By the end, it just didn't matter to me.  I just wanted to finish.
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The story concept was really interesting and for that, I give this story two stars. This is the debut novel of the author.
Now to the plot or rather something that was supposed to be it... 80/90% of the book it is very little they happen and the ending was SO OUT OF NOWHERE that I was rereading that part for quite a few times. Still nothing.
This format would be a blessing or a curse for the book. And it happens to be the second option. Unfortunately, as the whole story had potential that was lost in the middle of something that I'm not sure what to call.
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This novel has such a brilliant and appealing synopsis. We immediately know it will be a psychological thriller riddled with suspense and we are NOT let down.
The novel revolves around the characters of Daniel, Victoria and pen-pal Ruby. We are aware that Daniel is enrolled in a pen-pal programme, but the messages end up going so much deeper than a mere friendship…
‘Two damaged souls, reaching out for a connection’
It isn’t long before Daniel is divulging far too many details of his personal life and relationships. When Ruby reciprocates this response, we the reader immediately know it isn’t going to end well for either of them…
‘I didn’t intend to write back to her but of course I did’ 
Daniel is at times, an unreliable narrator and I never knew if he was telling the truth or playing games. You just simply can’t trust him and neither should Victoria or Ruby.
The novel is fast paced, edgy and modern. A cracking debut might I add. I raced through the pages and couldn’t wait to get to the end.
Daniel is most definitely a weirdo, but that doesn’t make him a criminal or does it? 4*
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This was so eerie.... I was quite mesmerized by the plot and the writing. I liked the novel concept.

A pen pal program caused Daniel and girlfriend Vic to come in contact with Ruby. Initially the mail were neutral till they became intimate and Ruby decided to meet him and never leave him.

The story started with letters to Lucy whose identity was kept a secret till the end. I was tempted to read the last few chapters first. The writing was superfluous in the way it created a sense of isolation for Daniel. The complications and shocks kept dropping on him. 

The suspense built up with every page and my need to know who Lucy was too grew exponentially. The ending was certainly not what I expected. The book was certainly chilling. 

Overall, a dark thriller which kept awake late at night. This was a great midnight read.
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A very dark and suspenseful book! A.S Hatch delivers a solid story line with some dark twists and great characters! So glad I got chosen to review this book!
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I so desperately wanted to say I loved this book. The writing was outstanding, it was both emotive and evocative and dripping with tension.
The characters came alive in my head, I could see them, hear then and experienced their lives on every level. I connected with them through every page of the book..
I loved the concept of the book, it was intriguing and very clever.

However, I found my reading experience an extremely confusing one. It was difficult to orientate myself to time and place, it jumped about constantly and although by the end it made sense and worked itself out, my personal reading experience would have been enhanced with some clearer orientation throughout and this is the only reason I did not award a higher star rating.
I'd rate 3.5 but have rounded it up to 4 stars
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This is a slow burn of a novel. The narrator, Daniel is writing to a woman called Lucy, 16 years after the events he’s narrating. From the outset, there’s a sense of menace. Who is Lucy, why is she writing to Daniel and why would she have seen his pictures in the newspapers?
Daniel is the classic unreliable narrator. His relationship with two women determines his life’s course. One is his wife, Victoria. The other is Ruby, with whom he starts an online correspondence. But at all times, we feel Daniel’s side of the story is not the full picture, and long to know how both women experience the events he is describing..
Suspenseful and well-written, I’d definitely recommend this book.
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I really enjoyed this book from beginning to end. Great character development,  and I didn't want to put the book down towards the end. I read this book in two day, which is always a good sign of enjoyment.
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Unfortunately this book really didn't hit the mark for me and I gave up about 30% of the way in. I tried to enjoy it but felt it was too forced and slow. A great synopsis that didn't translate into a great read for me personally.
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This book was very slow moving for me. Unfortunately it was a DNF for me, I may circle back around to this for a reread but wasn't in the mood for a book this slow moving. 

It has received great reviews from others, just wasn't for me.
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I received a digital advanced reader copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a very interesting read. It was written in a very unique format. I loved how it was letters written by our protagonist. The story was very dark and twisty. I kept questioning who could be trusted. 

I really just could not put this book down. I ignored all my house work until this was finished. The tension builds so quickly, you can just feel that something big is around the corner at every page turn. 

The writing style in my opinion was amazing. It really kept me on edge. The ending was SOOO GOOD. I won’t say the story is creepy per say, but the story is intriguing and really just catches your attention. 

Thank you to the author, the publisher, and Netgalley for allowing me to review this story.
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