Review: Halcyon

Halcyon by Rio Youers
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This one had a great opener then steadily moved its way into disturbing psychological thriller territory.

It's got a bit of a strange, supernatural thread running through it, but the strong foundation is the way it peers into the notion of pain and its causes.

It starts with a family: Martin, his wife Laura, and their two girls, Shirley and Edith. Edith has a touch of The Shine, so if you're not big on psychic visions etc this one may not be for you. For me, it was just enough to add an interesting angle, and not enough to take away believability.

That's one of the things I really appreciated about this book - there's that supernatural element, but it's subtle enough to have you questioning how much is real, and how much could have alternative explanations.

It takes roughly a third of the book to even get to the secluded island paradise of Halcyon, but it's not like things are boring until then. You can feel it setting up for something BIG and there's still plenty of drama and questions to keep you keen.

Halcyon is a dream I'm pretty sure most of us have had at some stage in our life. That fantasy you have when life gets a little too much and you just want to leave everything behind and go off grid. This novel really works with that, building the paradise we all know is too good to be true. There's definitely a cult vibe and the book acknowledges that which makes it even more honest.

Valerie is one of the most messed-up villains I've read in a while. I mean, she has some dark, dark secrets. But I also like that she's scarred and a fighter coz you kinda have to grudgingly admire that, even though she's clearly batsh*t insane.

The story takes a lot of twists and jumps around a bit in time which was a little confusing but overall I really enjoyed it and found it hard to put down. There are some graphically violent scenes, but overall this is more of a psychological horror, and one that will leave the wheels turning once you've finished it.

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