Thank you Netgalley and Salt Publishing for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Charlotte Tierney’s “The Cat Bride” is a strange, atmospheric plunge into gothic horror, where family trauma, madness, and supernatural uncertainty intertwine—and where reality itself seems to blur at the edges. This book may not be for every reader, but those who enjoy unsettling, slow-burning tales where truth is slippery and tension never fully resolves will find much to appreciate.

The story follows 16-year-old Loveday (often called Lowdy) and her mother, Aster, who are forced to return to Aster’s crumbling childhood home after fleeing an unnamed scandal. At the center of their troubled family history is the local legend of the “tynx,” a genetically engineered tiger-lynx hybrid that once escaped from their family’s now-defunct zoo, killing a man before it was supposedly put down. Yet, with Lowdy’s return, sightings of the creature begin again, and the boundaries between myth, memory, and madness quickly erode.

Tierney excels at creating an eerie, claustrophobic atmosphere where every character seems a little off-kilter and nothing can be fully trusted—not memory, not family, and certainly not reality. The book constantly leaves you guessing: is there truly something supernatural at play, or is this the unraveling mind of a traumatized teenager? That ambiguity is both its greatest strength and its potential weakness. If you’re looking for clear answers or neatly tied-up resolutions, you may find yourself frustrated by the book’s open-ended, cyclical storytelling and elusive conclusion.

The pacing is slow, sometimes frustratingly so, especially in the middle where scenes of gaslighting, memory distortion, and paranoia spin out without necessarily building tension. This brooding, meandering quality did help add to the book’s dreamlike, feverish tone even though I personally didn’t particularly enjoy the pacing; I found it difficult to get into this book.

Lowdy herself is a complex, haunting character: fragile yet determined, caught between her mother’s protective lies and her grandmother’s cryptic half-truths. The novel deals with heavy themes—family secrets, the grotesque realities of growing up, child abuse, and the unreliability of memory—while maintaining a weird sense of dark humor and trivia-laden dialogue that occasionally lightens the mood.

Overall, “The Cat Bride” is not a straightforward horror story—it’s a fever-dream meditation on trauma, family curses, and the monstrousness that can live within us as much as outside of us. If you prefer your gothic novels clear-cut and tightly plotted, this may not be the right fit. But if you appreciate a slow, brooding descent into madness and myth, Charlotte Tierney’s novel will leave you haunted and guessing long after you’ve closed the book. Perfect for anyone intrigued by the eerie idea of a cursed zoo—and the monsters we carry with us.

This is such an odd and unique story that I think could easily become as well loved as many other iconic gothic horror novels. It's eerie and dark and deals with shameful and grotesque feelings surrounding growing up and processing family trauma and secrets.

16-year-old Lowdy and her Mumma are forced to move in with her estranged and dying grandmother who is infamous in the town for running a now defunct and at the time very controversial zoo. Mumma left when Lowdy was a baby after Grandma's cross bred Tiger-Lynx ("tynx") creation escaped from its cage and mauled a man. After the incident, the tynx was euthanized but since the return of the two, apparent sightings of the creature have been popping up as it terrorizes the people of the town. Lowdy's mom wants her to have no part in the madness, but Grandma insists that there's more to the story than Mumma is letting on.

This was incredibly well written. I never knew exactly where the story was going in the best way possible. There was so much back and forth of deciding whether this was actual supernatural horror or the psychological distress of a sick and traumatized teen, it felt very open ended. It quickly became one of my favorite modern gothic horrors and I hope to read more from Charlotte Tierney in the future.

Thank you Netgalley and the publishers for allowing me to read a copy of this ARC

This was a really slow build for me, found myself abandoning it a couple of times.

There are some really dark themes throughout the book, but it wasn't the main horror but the child abuse that threw me most the time.

It was probably just a bit too triggering for me to truly appreciate.

Definitely an interesting one. Another new-to-me author. Tierney has crafted a story that will constantly have you constantly wondering if it’s supernatural or simply madness. It’s a slower paced book and probably could lose a bit in the middle as it came to feel a bit redundant.

The Cat Bride follows 16yo Loveday and her mother, Aster. After an incident at their last place of residence the pair is forced to return to Aster’s childhood home where her grandmother still resides. At one point her grandmother kept a zoo full of lynx and a strange creature called a tynx which seemed to be a blend of a lynx and a tiger. The zoo was closed when the tynx managed to escape and kill a man. Loveday is kept on a short leash by her mother, but soon finds ways to explore the area and chaos ensues.

To put it simply, the book is pretty wild. It’s difficult to keep track of the character’s true motivations mostly because each time you turn a page they’re doing something strange. I have a bunch of unanswered questions about this one, and if you like your books wrapped up neatly this probably wouldn’t vibe for you. It’s well written and the characters are incredibly complex/bat shit insane. I enjoyed it and would love to read more work by Tierney. I do wish maybe an epilogue had been written to clear some things up, but I also appreciate a subjective ending. If you like books where you can’t quite figure out if it’s psychosis or something deeper, I’d give this one a go.

This is a weird one. I am not smart so it took me a second to figure out what was going on. It is one of those strange books that makes you think.

The Cat Bride is regarding about what has happened to a zoo that was shut down by a mysterious tiger-lynx hybrid that was put down for being a man eater. Personally for me is not one to really rave about or even recommend to anyone. It’s an enigma of a story, a little slow paced, not really interesting. The story is one that I didn’t really understand or get into it or the gist of it. I couldn’t cypher what the story or characters were about or what they are or even what was happening. The further I read the book the more complex, dull and confusing. The ending was just as bad I actually didn’t understand it at all. The book might be up someone else’s alley but not mine.

60/100 or 3.0 stars

I really tried to like and get into this story, but I just couldn't do it. The writing style was not working for me at all. Stream of consciousness usually is not a problem for me, and sometimes I can really get into stories with narration like that, but this was just not working. I did not connect with our main character or anyone else, and didn't really care enough to read more to figure out what was going on. I got 26% in before I had to give up. The synopsis and few reviews on here made it sound great, but it just didn't work for me.

The Cat Bride by Charlotte Tierney begins with a bloody introduction to our mysterious "tynx" a tiger and lynx hybrid animal that continues to haunt a family long after it should be dead. Lowdy is a teenager growing into herself in spite of a childhood illness. Her mother is wild and secretive. her grandmother is crazy- or is she? Tierney weaves a wonderful tale of mysticism and horror that draws readers in and keeps them guessing what they already know.

This was a surprisingly strange kind of book that played with perception, reality, and the readers' own sense of self along with Lowdy's. At times I was thinking of it as a modern, more feminist take on Banks's THE WASP FACTORY. It has the air of a dream about it, always on the verge of becoming a nightmare, and I absolutely adored that aspect. In short, its the kind of unusual, almost uncategorical book that only works in the hands of a hugely talented author -- and TIerney is clearly that author! Loved it and will be telling people who love unusual perspectives and uniquely powerful voices (like I do!) to check it out.

I really enjoyed this horror novel. It was unique and definitely something new. That's exactly what the horror genre needs. I loved the folklore and mythology in this story. I have always been fascinated with everything about felines. Big and small. I will definitely recommend and buy this novel when it comes out

This has a unique blend of different horror tropes that makes the book pretty original. The horror is not written on my nose and I appreciate that. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to review a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Rambling and almost stream-of-consciousness tale of cats, finding a new life, discontent, coming of age, and did I mention cats? And maybe a special cat that is more. Sometimes hard to fo.low, but imaginative.

I really enjoyed this as a horror novel, it had that feel that I was looking for and enjoyed the overall feel of this. The idea of a tiger-lynx worked well with the horror concept. I was invested in what was happening and thought the characters worked well in this universe. Charlotte Tierney has a strong writing style and am excited for more.

This is one of the most unique horror novels I've ever read! Part mental illness, part supernatural and completely eerie! I loved it and look forward to reading more from this author.

Broody, reflective, atmospheric, felt reminiscent of V. C. Andrews. I have never read a zoo gothic before, so that alone is really interesting. The story might have benefited from a faster pace. There are cycles of gaslighting, memory loss, and child abuse, but they spin out rather than spiral into tension. The story grew tiring and killed the tension. I did like the ending scene a lot, but the story didn't feel over yet. It was also very funny and full of trivia, which I did enjoy.