THE PLACE: Seawings, a beautiful Art Deco home overlooking the sweep of the bay in Midtown-on-Sea.
THE CRIME: The gilded Holden family - Piper and Gray and their two teenage children, Riva and Artie - has vanished from the house without a trace.
THE DETECTIVE: DS Saul Anguish, brilliant but with a dark past, treads the narrow line between light and shade.
One late autumn morning, Piper’s best friend arrives at Seawings to discover an eerie scene – the kettle is still warm, all the family’s phones are charging on the worktop, the cars are in the garage. But the house is deserted.
In fifteen-year-old Riva Holden’s bedroom, scrawled across the mirror in blood, are three words:
Make
Them
Stop.
What happens next?

This is a wonderful addition to this thrilling series!
Wonderful well written plot and story line that had me engaged from the start.
Love the well fleshed out characters and found them believable.
Great suspense and action with wonderful world building that adds so much to the story.
Such a thrilling read that I couldn't put it down.
Can't wait to read more of these.
Recommend reading.

I read a complimentary advance copy of the book; this is my voluntary and honest review.

You think you’ve read a rollercoaster book. You haven’t. Until you read Into the Dark!

Wow! What a brilliant thriller Into the Dark is. Cummins has created an exceptionally plotted, unrelentingly gripping and shockingly unexpected novel. I was fully invested in this mystery from the synopsis alone, but whilst I thought this would be a edge-of-my-seat read, I hadn’t appreciated how much more this book was going to be. Yes, you should pick this book up for the white knuckle rollercoaster of tension and thrills, but yes, you should also pick it up for the provocative social commentary and the memorable characters.

I absolutely loved the various themes that came through the different narrative strands in Into the Dark. Cummins expertly weaves multiple social analysis angles throughout the plot. I found myself thinking about wealth, greed, family, motherhood, deception, social status and misogyny at so many different points and I really enjoyed the underlying messages that pinned the heart-racing main plot together. Cummins does not shy away from the dark side of society and her honest and plausible commentary perfectly complements the narrative, but also elevates and makes this so much more than a fast-paced, unguessable mystery. The setting of Midtown-on-Sea is so vivid and really helps to bring the themes of privilege and wealth to life, in particular. It’s a physically beautiful place from all of the descriptions (and I could clearly imagine it), none more so than the Holden’s cliff-side mansion: Seawings. I found it fascinating interpreting the underlying significance of this luxurious abode, which is all expensive, flawless surface that glosses over a dark, toxic heart. The house is the physical representation of the Holden’s status, wealth and progression from the past. But all is not necessarily as it seems, no matter how bright the shine gleams…

The other aspect of this novel that is superbly executed is the characterisation. There’s a significant cast within this story, but each of them is pitch-perfectly drawn. The whole Holden family are suitably puzzling, with all but the son Artie being thoroughly unlikeable. Despite this, they are fascinating and I wanted to know more about them and their disappearance. Their various backstories and the truths that are revealed, layer the novel with tension and provide some genuine jaw-to-the-floor moments of surprise. Similarly, Julianne is an enigma and I thoroughly enjoyed trying to figure out her role within the events (needless to say, I was so far from figuring it all out!). I felt a large sympathy for her for a number of reasons, including a vile, controlling and misogynistic husband and an emotional backstory relating to her role as a mother. Cummins pens so many twists throughout Into the Dark though, that my feelings towards Julianne coiled more than a corkscrew. The most remarkable characters though are definitely DC Saul Anguish and Dr. Clover ‘Blue’ March. Neither of them are like any other character I’ve read and I adore them! They are complex, flawed, confusing and surprising on so many levels, but ultimately they are those rare kind of characters where you simply can’t get enough of spending time with them. I don’t want to give too much away about them, as they deserve to be discovered firsthand. All I’ll say, is that I hope they return to another of Cummins’s novels very soon!

Brilliant dark, twisting and unsettling thriller.

Piper and Julianne are best friends with teenage children the same age, successful husbands and picture perfect lives in luxurious beachfront properties.

When Julianne sets off to meet Piper for their regular run, the house is deserted with signs that the family have left in a hurry and without taking their cars, passports or phones

Newly assigned to the Major Crime Unit, DC Saul Anguish has a sixth sense that something isn't right, and we soon learn that nothing and no-one is quite as they seem.

A great read that kept me guessing to the end.

And there was me thinking that Fiona Cummins was writing about ordinary people!!! Okay - Piper and Julianne are both married to unlikeable men but they adjust to their marriages.
The unthinkable happens and the entire family of the Holdens - Piper, Gray and their twins Riva and Artie - disappear without trace early one morning. Foul play is soon suspected - and the police, including a new recruit, DC Saul Anguish, are called in. The tale unfolds over timelines defined by the day of the disappearance, before the disappearance and afterwards. Nothing and no-one are what they seem - another dark and gripping tale by this fascinating author.
Many thanks to Netgalley/Fiona Cummins/Pan Macmillan for a digital copy of this title. All opinions expressed are my own.

There’s a lot to appreciate in this dark, twisted tale about an unconventional friendship between two women, not least the mellifluous, lyrical prose. For me, however, the writing alone was not enough to compensate for the loose and ultimately far-fetched plot.

The opening chapters, though, are gripping, sucking you straight into the drama.

Julianne Hillier arrives at her best friend’s house early one morning to go for their regular run, only to find the place abandoned. Piper Holden, husband Gray, and their two children are all gone, and there’s a message scrawled in blood on teenager Riva’s bedroom mirror: Make. Them. Stop.

What follows, as the police investigation gets underway and we get glimpses into the characters of all the players, is mysterious and gripping. Cummins throws clues around like confetti, her foreshadowing prompting questions and niggling doubts about both families.

The pace is maintained by a punchy narrative that jumps back and forth between events leading up to the Holdens’ disappearance and the days after. It’s a thrilling read that reveals layer upon layer of deviousness, secrets and masterful manipulation.

But only up to a point.

And that point is reached about half way through, when the plot veers off on a crazy arc that pushes the reader beyond the boundaries of belief. I had enough respect for Cummins to follow this through, but I was also frustrated by the minor role played by the police investigation, and that the two characters who really piqued my interest — detective Paul Anguish and forensic linguist Blue — were not developed, and in the end seemed superfluous to the whole story.

Having rated Cummins’ last book, When I Was Ten, very highly, I expected so much more from this. Unfortunately, with its inherent implausibility and numerous hanging threads, it simply did not warrant comparison.

Into the Dark…picking this up means you expect darkness, but it also sums up how I felt throughout most of the book. By the time I’d finished I couldn’t help but feel thankful to have some light shed on events.
The story begins in dramatic fashion. Julianne Hiller goes to her best friend’s home, as she often does, for a run. Nobody answers the door. Julianne and the cleaner enter the house and find the scene as you might expect. A typical morning, yet there is no sign of Piper, her husband or their two children. They spot blood on a light, and there is the chilling phrase ‘Make them stop’ scrawled on a mirror.
Naturally our focus is steered to the disappearance. We want to know what happened. The truth is stranger than we might expect.
Over the course of the book we learn about events leading up to the disappearance. Lots of the characters are keeping secrets, some of which are more dangerous than others.
While the idea is intriguing, I finished the book feeling that we hadn’t really been given enough detail to understand why certain characters acted as they did. Our scenario was explained in terms of process, but with a lot of characters being introduced and the necessary withholding of certain elements it left me feeling disconnected to those involved. I didn’t empathise with them, and this led to a rather flattened response to the closing stages.
Thanks to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this prior to publication.

When Julianne arrives at Seawings to call for her best friend, Piper, for their early morning jog, she is surprised to find that the house is unlocked & no-one is around. The detritus from breakfast is still in the kitchen, their cars are in the garage, & their phones are still charging on the worktop, but the family, Gray, Piper, & two teenage children, Riva & Artie, are nowhere to be seen. A search by the police uncovers blood mist on the chandelier & a note written on a mirror upstairs in what looks like blood - "Make them stop". DS Saul Anguish is new in town & this is his first case in his new job. It seems like a tricky investigation only made more bearable by a forensic linguist he nicknames Blue (the colour of her hair).

As I was reading this, from one or two references to Saul's past in the book I kept wondering if I had missed something but it seems this is a follow-on from The Collector (second book in The Bone Collector series by the author) where Saul is first introduced. I hadn't realised that but it didn't really make too much difference with this case. I thought the storyline itself was well done, there's lots of twists & turns with each of the characters involved in the disappearance, but I felt that here Saul was a bit of blank for a main character. He really didn't seem to have any personality, same with Blue, & to be quite honest the story would have worked just as well without them. 4 stars for the twisty-turny plot.

My thanks to NetGalley & publishers, Pan Macmillan, for the opportunity to read an ARC.

Sorry disappointed with this one! From the ratings, blurb and opening pages I fully expected to be engrossed in this book. However, too many subplots, often not linking up to anything and unbelievable dark deeds going on from a lot of unpleasant people – are the police that inept? Did not live up to my expectations.
Thank you to NetGalley, Pan Macmillan and the author for the e- review copy.

Another twisty roller-coaster ride from the talented pen of Fiona Cummins. I read her “When I Was Ten” last year and loved it, so I had high expectations of this one – it didn’t disappoint, though I liked it a tad less than her previous book.

Peopled with rather unlikable characters, this was a cleverly plotted portrayal of embittered women and the lengths they will go to live their ‘best life’.

I loved the coastal setting rife with the smells and sounds of the sea.

I enjoyed the first part of the book best – when I hadn’t a clue what was going on and felt the puzzlement of the police investigators. Once I cottoned on to what was really transpiring I was equally invested in wondering if the perpetrators would get away with it…

The police duo of Saul Anguish and Clover March were definitely an interesting pair. Both seem to hold deep secrets, though Saul reminded me rather heavily of another fictional character named Dexter.

This is a novel packed full of suspense, treachery, betrayals, and morally corrupt individuals. Of debts owed, of double-crosses, fraud, meticulous planning, and secret lives.

“Into The Dark” was a clever and twisty thriller that will be appreciated by fans of the genre.

Into the dark by Fiona Cummins.
One late autumn morning, Piper’s best friend arrives at Seawings to discover an eerie scene – the kettle is still warm, all the family’s phones are charging on the worktop, the cars are in the garage. But the house is deserted.In fifteen-year-old Riva Holden’s bedroom, scrawled across the mirror in blood, are three words:
Make
Them
Stop.
What happens next?
What a read. Twisty and tense. I was all over the place. I tried to guess who it was. But I kept getting it wrong. Brilliant. 5*.

Fiona Cummins is the queen of goosebumps.

I love the pacing of this book, it totally takes you on a ride & I flew through it. There are so many twists, turns & red herrings that even if you briefly alight on what's going to happen you change your mind within a page or two.

I'm secretly hoping that this is the beginning of repeated appearances from Saul & Blue, a dark & deadly duo who I need more of.

A dark and intriguing twisty tale. This is brilliantly composed and full of surprises. Well done to Fiona Cummins on another brilliant book.

Fiona Cummins is a queen at writing physiological thrillers. They are literally edge of your seat, completely gripping, full of twist and turns and keep you guessing all the way through and this book is no exception. Amazing

Living up to its name - dark, deceitful and nail-biting, this is a twisty entertainer.

Synopsis –

The wealthy family of the Holdens have disappeared without a trace - Piper and Gray Holden, along with their kids. When Julianne, Piper’s best friend arrives for a run, she is shocked to find the eerily deserted breakfast scene at their sprawling home of Seawings, in the gorgeous Midtown-on-sea. As DC Saul Anguish and his team starts investigating the case, he finds that there is more to this “vanishing into thin air” than meets the eye.

Review –

The book opens with a bang – with the mysterious disappearance of the Holden family, I was instantly hooked. Alternating between the day of the disappearance, the days after and leading up to it, the narrative involves the POVs of Piper, Julianne and DC Anguish.

I enjoyed the beautiful setting and the fabulous visualization of the picturesque coastal town. I could almost hear the sound of the sea and the call of the seagulls.

We understand how the two women have bonded over the years - their difficult childhood, loss and struggles as parents. Their teenage daughters' friendship is also portrayed encapsulating school politics and tween drama.

Cummins cleverly points out some the red flags in the married lives of Julianne and Piper - using this to construct a tightly woven plot that is fully loaded with toxicity, revenge, greed, jealousy and double-crossing.

As we realize that everyone is lying, brimming with secrets, the author throws in some great twists that I didn’t really see coming.

While I loved Anguish’s insights into the case, his presence of mind, shrewdness, as well as his fling with the quirky character of the forensic linguist “Blue”, his background information was somewhat irrelevant to the storyline.

The ending amps up the degree of manipulation and retribution to unbelievable heights that feels a tad bit far-fetched.

However, the compelling and all-consuming nature of this thriller makes up for it and is sure to leave you gasping!

Thanks NetGalley & Panmacmillan for the ARC in exchange of an honest review!

A great start to the book.
Julianne calls at her old friends house to go jogging only to find Piper and her husband and two teenage children have disappeared leaving everything behind.
DC Saul Anguish takes on the case, the first on being transferred to the station he joins Forensic Linguist Clover March (Blue)
Unlike other books Saul and Blue being police are very creepy and unlikeable and it feels like another book and doesn`t seem to connect properly. Some of the story is vey unbelievable and no characters are likeable.
The story jumps all over and is just not for me.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I love Fiona Cummins writing and Into the Dark is a real cracker. A stand-alone book (for the moment anyway), readers of Cummins’ previous works The Rattle and The Collector will nevertheless recognise the origins of D.C. Saul Anguish and understand his dark background. Cummins supplies sufficient detail to allow the newest readers to enter his life, but nevertheless, there is a frisson of tension and excitement in recognising him in this new environment.

This book is set in Midtown-on-Sea, an affluent coastal resort in Essex where Seawings is the house in which the Holden’s live. I have house envy for this one; it sounds so wonderful. Not surprisingly, for the Holdens, Gray and Piper and their children Riva and Artie are very well off. Gray is an investment broker and Piper is the epitome of style and class.

Julianne Hillier is Piper’s neighbour and long term friend. They go way back and are both friends and confidantes. So when Julianne arrives at Seawings for her daily run with Piper and finds the house deserted, she knows immediately that something is very, very wrong.

Cummins does the dark underbelly of suburban life really well. Her portrayal of the perfect family slowly unravels to reveal the dark secrets, lies and rivalries that lie just beneath the surface of this seemingly idyllic life.

D.C. Saul Anguish (what a perfect character name!) is a new addition to the Essex team. He is keen to impress but nobody’s fool and we see straight away that he may have anger issues. And that’s only the half of it… He quickly comes to realise that the team has a very smart addition in the shape of Dr Clover March, a forensic linguist, whose skills soon prove to be invaluable. She is also attractive, sharp witted and distinctive – partly because of her blue hair and partly because she has a condition that causes her real grief.

It is this pairing that makes the book so interesting and there’s no doubt that these are characters you want to see again.

Cummins takes this affluent town with its perfect family and peels back the layers showing the poison, duplicity and deception underneath. Even the children have secrets they would not want found out.

Cummins deploys a timeline that moves from the present back and forth to reveal the events leading up to the disappearance and as we catch glimpses of who these people are and what they have been up to, it becomes clear that these are not the perfect people they outwardly appear to be.

Into the Dark is a beautifully twisted tale. Every time you think you have a handle on what is happening, Cummins pulls another flanker leaving you open mouthed. There are layers upon layers here and as each one is pulled back, the picture looks darker than ever.

Verdict: Ingeniously plotted, with stand-out characters and a detective duo you want to see much more of, Into the Dark is unmissable. There’s so much bubbling under the surface, it is like a deliciously bitter, dark chocolate with a core of molten lava. I loved it.

There are a lot of layers to this dark a twisty thriller, written well and easy to follow. I felt it started slow with a good build up of tension. Every character had something to hide and bring to the depth of the book. Over all a good read

We start with a missing family. The Holdens. Piper & Gray and their children Riva & Artie. Literally vanished overnight. The disappearance discovered by family friend when she arrives to go running with Piper. Let in by the cleaner, they look round. The kettle is still warm, breakfast things still out, phones, cars all there, schoolbags waiting at the door. Just the house completely deserted. Oh and no big signs of anything untoward, apart from a message. In blood. Scrawled on a mirror in the daughter's room.
Make. Them. Stop.
And so begins a twisty turny tale that is crammed full of secrets, lies and dysfunctional behaviour that kept me on my toes throughout, Blind to what was going on, unable to second guess anything, and delivering an ending that, well, I never saw that coming!
Enter DC Saul to investigate. New to the area he has to hit the ground running with this one as he soon discovers that nothing is as it first seems...
And that's all I'm saying - go in as blind as you can. You'll be better off that way. The book does rely on the twists a bit to really shock the reader so anything you learn early might mar your enjoyment.
So, characters. Well, they are all a bit strange herein as you often find with this genre. Secrets and lies and all that! It's hard to connect fully with someone who you either distrust or you can't quite work out and we have that kind of character here, most of them tbh. Apart from Saul. I really loved him as a character and really hope his time isn't done just in this book. His partnership with "Blue" was what really made the book for me!
Plot is well done and ably executed. It's a bit choppy initially as there is a lot of introducing and scene setting, background delivering and all that jazz. Nothing you wouldn't expect and nothing too much, just the necessary really. But there soon comes the time when it all starts to come together - very nicely indeed! Culminating in the ending I have already mentioned that I didn't see coming!
All in all, a good solid read that I heartily recommend for fans of the genre. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

Fiona Cummins has done it again! This book is a corker of a read!
This book is full of twists and turns, it is from multiple perspectives and also different time frames , but this isn’t confusing due to the expert writing of Fiona Cummins.
Piper and all of her family are missing , where are they? Who has taken them and is all as it first appears?
The characters all have something to hide , even the investigation team !
The story is multi faceted and the threads are all pulled together in a compelling way , with a satisfying conclusion.
I recommend you sit in your comfy chair , turn off your phone and get reading , you won’t be disappointed!
Thanks to NetGalley and PanMacmillan.

EXCERPT: Fear, a slippery coil of it, tightened in Julianne's stomach. She forced herself to look upwards.

The Holdens had bought the original art deco light fitting from a specialist dealer when the hotel had closed down a couple of years ago. With dozens of antique icicle droplets, it had cost tens of thousands of pounds.

Piper was always complaining that the bottom tier of the chandelier hung too low, especially as she was so tall. But Julianne wasn't thinking about that now.

All she could see was the fine mist of blood that coated the delicate pendalogues.

ABOUT 'INTO THE DARK': THE PLACE: Seawings, a beautiful Art Deco home overlooking the sweep of the bay in Midtown-on-Sea.

THE CRIME: The gilded Holden family - Piper and Gray and their two teenage children, Riva and Artie - has vanished from the house without a trace.

THE DETECTIVE: DS Saul Anguish, brilliant but with a dark past, treads the narrow line between light and shade.

One late autumn morning, Piper’s best friend arrives at Seawings to discover an eerie scene – the kettle is still warm, all the family’s phones are charging on the worktop, the cars are in the garage. But the house is deserted.

In fifteen-year-old Riva Holden’s bedroom, scrawled across the mirror in blood, are three words:

Make
Them
Stop.

What happens next?

MY THOUGHTS: Buckle up your seat belt and hold on tight, for here the evil hides within plain sight.

Think the Marie Celeste in a suburban home. The coffee's hot, the toast is made, the phones are plugged in and charging, keys and wallets waiting to be picked up on the way out the door, but no one's home . . .

My heart is still pounding, my mind reeling. I want to jump up and run around fist pumping, yelling 'hell, yes!'

Into the Dark starts off quite innocuously. It's like, 'there's nothing to see here folks that you haven't already seen in a hundred other domestic dramas/psychological thrillers' until it's not. The shift is infinitesimal. There's a change in the feel to the writing, it's subtly darker. Then the worms start crawling out of the woodwork, and all hell breaks loose.

The characters are cleverly and deviously constructed. What you see isn't what you get. There is so much more to every character than you could ever imagine when you begin reading. There are decades old secrets and lies. There are a number of people manipulating each other, but amongst it all is one person intent on the ultimate revenge and willing to play the long game to get it; a master manipulator at work, pulling strings, blackmailing, calling in favours owed and setting events in motion that will leave many lives shattered.

A one sitting read. Bump this one up to the top of your TBR list.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

#IntotheDark #NetGalley

I: @fionacumminsauthor @panmacmillan

T: @FionaAnnCummins @panmacmillan

#fivestarread #contemporaryfiction #crime #domesticdrama #policeprocedural #psychologicalthriller #suspense

THE AUTHOR: Fiona Cummins is an award-winning former Daily Mirror showbusiness journalist and a graduate of the Faber Academy Writing A Novel course. She lives in Essex with her family.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Pan Macmillan via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of Into the Dark by Fiona Cummins for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

This review is also published on Twitter, Amazon, Instagram and my webpage