The Drowning Kind by Jennifer McMahon #bookreview #horror #thriller #fantasy #historical
Title: The Drowning Kind
Author: Jennifer McMahon
Publisher: Gallery/Scout Press
Publication Date: April 6, 2021
Page Count: 274
My rating: 4 stars
About the book:
A woman returns to the old family home after her sister mysteriously drowns in its swimming pool…but she’s not the pool’s only victim.
Be careful what you wish for.
When social worker Jax receives nine missed calls from her older sister, Lexie, she assumes that it’s just another one of her sister’s episodes. Manic and increasingly out of touch with reality, Lexie has pushed Jax away for over a year. But the next day, Lexie is dead: drowned in the pool at their grandmother’s estate. When Jax arrives at the house to go through her sister’s things, she learns that Lexie was researching the history of their family and the property. And as she dives deeper into the research herself, she discovers that the land holds a far darker past than she could have ever imagined.
In 1929, thirty-seven-year-old newlywed Ethel Monroe hopes desperately for a baby. In an effort to distract her, her husband whisks her away on a trip to Vermont, where a natural spring is showcased by the newest and most modern hotel in the Northeast. Once there, Ethel learns that the water is rumored to grant wishes, never suspecting that the spring takes in equal measure to what it gives.
The Drowning Kind by Jennifer McMahon is a thrilling supernatural historical horror novel. This is one story that is told with different points of view and different timelines, one in the current and one in the past in 1929.
Jax hasn’t had much contact with her older sister, Lexie, lately due to her manic behaviour but after finding numerous missed calls Jax gets the news that Lexie has died. Jax immediately head to their grandmother’s estate that Lexie had inherited and finds that Lexie had been looking into the past.
In 1929, Ethel Monroe is married to her husband, Dr. Will Monroe, and she desperately wants to have a child of her own. Ethel tries everything she can to have her own child but nothing has worked so in order to cheer her up and distract Ethel her husband plans a trip to Vermont.
For me when starting The Drowning Kind it was the type of book that felt as if I were reading two different stories. It didn’t take long though to get into both sides as I wondered how and when all of this would tie together. There was just enough intensity to the events to give a slightly chilling vibe while reading that also slowly built along the way to it’s highly chilling ending.
I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.
Find this book online:
Goodreads / Amazon**
About the author:
Carries Book Reviews 
Nice review Carrie. I gave this 4 stars as well. I loved the story and enjoyed both timelines, but I wasn’t thrilled with the way bipolar was portrayed. I also had mixed feelings on the ending.
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Thanks Kim! I completely understand that, I felt the main character didn’t exactly ever try to understand her sister so that was the view we were getting of it.
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This sounds really good 😊
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It was, you should enjoy it if you like a supernatural thriller read Jenny.🙂
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I enjoyed this book more than I thought I would, as I don’t really do spooky stories. You’re right, it definitely does a slow build of that creepy feeling.
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Oh I’m glad you enjoyed it too! It’s really kind of crossover horror/thriller as it does have horror in it but not like full on Stephen King either.🙂
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This seems to have received mixed reviews, Carrie, but glad you enjoyed it. I have only read one book by this author which was only an okay read for me. I requested this but wasn’t approved. 🤷♀️❤📚
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I don’t really do a lot of horror but I didn’t mind her work so I would probably go ahead and click the next I saw…. What am I saying, of course I’d click because I can’t seem to stop myself from clicking.🤣
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Me either … and we’ve just gone back into lockdown here in New Zealand, so I have time on my hands. I predict I will be doing some extra clicking 😂🤣❤📚
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I honestly don’t think US will bother with any type of mandatory rules as far as the pandemic is concerned any more. Sad really since we are back to like 100k cases a day in the country. I just try to stay away from everyone as much as I can even though I did get vaccinated, don’t want anything to do with getting sick.😠
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I don’t blame you. Stay home, stay safe and keep on reading. ❤📚
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