 More thriller than chiller set on the remote Suffolk coast Neil Spring returns with his sixth novel, The Haunted Shore, following on from the success of The Ghost Hunters (2013) which was successfully transferred to TV, The Lost Village, and others. Although Spring’s 2013 debut received great praise, I found it a bit of a slog and lost track of his work after his second novel, before deciding to revisit him a fresh look with this latest effort. Although The Haunted Shore was a decent and perfectly serviceable read, it reminded me of the reason I stopped reading him in the first place; an overwhelming feeling of familiarity of having been here before, with little in the way of scares. Also, the supernatural element is very low key and kept so far on the backburner I would question whether this novel should be shelved in the horror section of a bookshop, as it is much more of a thriller, with ‘chiller’ overtones which could be happily read by thriller fans who do not care much for horror. Although main character Lizzy, who narrates in the first person, is far from likable and has many flaws she is also quite appealing because of the inner demons she is battling with. As the entire book is seen from her point of view, she spends a fair bit of time moping and feeling sorry for herself. Why? She is an online gambling addict and after a huge spending splurge goes horribly wrong, she dips into her work credit card fund and finds herself in a huge amount of trouble. After a call from her elder brother, who says she must take more responsibility in looking after their frail father, heads back to her childhood home on the Suffolk coast where the remainder of the novel is set. Some of the scenes where Lizzy feels the addictive pull of the online casinos were amongst the strongest in the book, especially as she has nobody to turn to and is trapped with her painful secret. Spring has used real locations in his earlier fiction to good effect and sets all the action in the (real) remote hamlet of Shingle Street which is a scattering of houses on the north Suffolk coast. I like these types of coastal rural spots and the author had me searching on Wikipedia to see what Shingle Street genuinely looked like. It is described as a cold, bleak and windswept place, which Lizzy does not have particularly happy childhood memories of and is only returning due to desperation and escape. The descriptions of the shoreline and the atmosphere created are amongst the strongest features of the book, although after a while they become slightly repetitive, but still helped develop a convincing sense of time and place. Considering that Lizzy is in a mess and her mental state is fragile, the reader is never quite sure of the various odd things she begins to see and hear, such as strange figures on the beach, the quiet ambiguity with the potential supernatural works well without any genuine fireworks. The location becomes even more prominent because of the fact that Lizzy’s father lives in a converted boathouse and has spent years developing the surrounding buildings, to the extent that it became somewhat of an obsession. However, now in his eighties and frail, with spiral staircases this is obviously no longer a safe location for him to live. Hoping to hide from her creditors, or naively looking for a fresh start, Lizzie turns up at the boathouse only to find that her father has a housekeeper/carer who she immediately takes a dislike to and seems to be unnecessarily abrupt and aggressive. The complex family dynamics, much of which is unsaid and from the past, are a key part of the story. The majority of the novel centres on the antagonism between Lizzy and the newly discovered carer Hazel and this was not the strongest part of the story, as it was blatantly obvious there was something dodgy going on, even if it was not for the reason you might initially think. Hazel’s character was lifted straight out of any of a hundred gothic horror novels, a dour and strict figure who was so unfriendly any sensible employer would have given her the sack in 24-hours flat. Lizzy’s brother Colin was a further weak link; what exactly was this guy’s problem? He said very little, did not seem to like anything or anyone or keen to help Lizzie with any of the problems which arose. Ultimately, I just did not see the point of having this character in the story as he contributed so little and was a boring closed book. Once the mystery element of the story begins to kick forward, and Lizzy begins to shake herself out of her maudlin mood, The Haunted Spring picks up some pace and has some decent twists and turns which take it into some slightly unexpected directions. Ultimately though, this was not enough to genuinely hold my attention, but I am sure other readers might enjoy it more than I did. If you are after a thriller with some supernatural overtones The Haunted Spring is a solid read, particularly if you have been enjoyed Spring’s other work. Just do not expect many scares or a full-blown horror novel, it is a much quieter read with a convincing atmospheric location and intriguing connection with local Suffolk history. Tony Jones  'A spooky and unsettling tale about strangers, love and deceit' Sunday Express 'A creepy tale' Daily Mail 'Imbued with addiction, loss, regret and the fallibility of memory . . . a perfect read for the Halloween season and beyond' Starburst 'Perfect chiller-thriller for autumn nights' Lancashire Evening Post When Lizzy moves to a desolate shore to escape her past, she hopes to find sanctuary. But a mysterious stranger is waiting for her, her father's carer, and when darkness falls, something roams this wild stretch of beach, urging Lizzy to investigate its past. The longer she stays, the more the shore's secrets begin to stir. Secrets of a sea that burned, of bodies washed ashore -- and a family's buried past reaching into the present. And when Lizzy begins to suspect that her father's carer is a dangerous imposter with sinister motives, a new darkness rises. What happens next is everyone's living nightmare . . . From the bestselling author of The Ghost Hunters and The Lost Village, The Haunted Shore is a terrifying tale of suspense that does not let up until the last page is turned. Praise for Neil Spring: 'Neil Spring is a Agatha Christie meets James Herbert' Stephen Volk 'A deft, spooky, psychological drama based on a true story' Daily Mail   Comments are closed.
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