Book Review: The Drowning Kind by Jennifer McMahon

So THAT happened…

I’m not sure what to say about this one – or, perhaps more appropriately, what I CAN say without giving anything away. I liked it, mostly. I found it odd and off-putting and eerie and never knew what in creation was going on (mostly in a good way).

The characters were not terribly likeable but were oddly compelling. The mystery was seriously twisty – from the opening pages I didn’t know whether this was going to be horror, supernatural, a Scooby Doo-type “aha, it was Old Man Carruthers in a mask!”, a Gone Girl-type unreliable narrator tale, or an exegesis on the evil of men… The pacing and plotting were well-managed and kept me just the right amount of off-kilter for the story throughout.

The inability to pigeon-hole this story is, to my mind, one of its greatest strengths – and potentially one of its weaknesses. You need the right reader in the right frame of mind to be willing to travel down a path with no markers. I think there are enough of us out there that McMahon will do well with this one, but if it doesn’t work for you, that may well be why. The writing is quite easy to fall into, and the gothic atmosphere is thick as Tupelo honey, despite the story being set in New England. I quite enjoyed it, mostly – and when I didn’t, it was because of creepiness rather than any failing at all of the story. I really liked the ending, and actually reread it because I was flipping pages so fast that I couldn’t believe it at first… This is a crazy read – in a good way – but it may not be for everyone…

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my obligation-free review copy.