When my hold for this audiobook (read by Angela Dawe) was ready through Libby, I was so excited. I had been waiting for months. It’s Kelley Armstrong‘s first full-fledged dive into the horror genre, even though many of her other books have elements of horror. And she is one of my current favorite authors.

I really enjoyed this story, especially the character dynamics and the larger, unsettling backstory that emerges during the couple of days in which Hemlock Island takes place.

The pacing is fast – like most of Armstrong’s books. It only took me a few days to listen to the story because I was so engrossed. And while I was able to speculate early on as to what was happening, there were many surprises and a whole lot of creepiness. This book would make a great movie, that I likely wouldn’t want to see. (I may like to read a good horror book, but I rarely like to watch horror movies.)

The story is told through the main character, Laney, and I could easily relate to her, even though our backgrounds are very different. This may be because she (like so many other main characters by Kelley Armstrong) displays traits of ADHD.

The setting is hugely important to the story – as one might guess from the title. It’s the classic trapped on an island with a murderer tale. And this island is located in Lake Superior, which makes it even less accessible than some other islands.

If you’re looking for an intensely creepy October read, I highly recommend this one.