#BlogTour – #BookReview of #SoPretty by @Ronnie_Turner @OrendaBooks @RandomTTours #RandomThingsTours #EvilAlwaysComesHome

I’m excited to welcome you today to my stop on the blog tour for disturbing but brilliant novel So Pretty by Ronnie Turner. Thank you to Anne Cater and Orenda Books for giving me the opportunity to read and review this dark and chilling book.

About the book:

Fear blisters through this town like a fever…

When Teddy Colne arrives in the small town of Rye, he believes he will be able to settle down and leave his past behind him. Little does he know that fear blisters through the streets like a fever. The locals tell him to stay away from an establishment known only as Berry & Vincent, that those who rub too closely to its proprietor risk a bad end.

Despite their warnings, Teddy is desperate to understand why Rye has come to fear this one man, and to see what really hides behind the doors of his shop.

Ada moved to Rye with her young son to escape a damaged childhood and years of never fitting in, but she’s lonely, and ostracised by the community. Ada is ripe for affection and friendship, and everyone knows it.

As old secrets bleed out into this town, so too will a mystery about a family who vanished fifty years earlier, and a community living on a knife-edge. Teddy looks for answers, thinking he is safe, but some truths are better left undisturbed, and his past will find him here, just as it always has.

And before long, it will find Ada too.

About the author:

Ronnie Turner grew up in Cornwall, the youngest in a large family. At an early age, she discovered a love of literature and dreamed of being a published author. Ronnie now lives in the South West with her family and three dogs. In her spare time, she reviews books on her blog and enjoys long walks on the coast. Ronnie is a Waterstones Senior Bookseller and a barista, and her youth belies her exceptional, highly unusual talent.

My Review:

So Pretty by Ronnie Turner is a dark, disturbing but oh so brilliant read that had me gripped from the very first page and didn’t let go until the final, shocking page had been turned.

Teddy Colne arrives in the small town of Rye desperate to escape from the demons of his past. But little does he know that fear runs through the town like a fever, with the locals warning him to stay away from an eerie establishment known as Berry & Vincent, a place filled to the brim with the strange and macabre. Despite their warnings, Teddy starts working for the mysterious Vincent, a man who never speaks but hovers around the edges, watching his every move.

Ada and her small son Albie have lived in Rye for two years, escaping a damaged childhood and years of never fitting in. Isolated by the community, Ada is lonely, so when newcomer Teddy arrives she finds herself increasingly drawn to the young man. Told in alternating chapters by Teddy and Ada, the mystery hidden behind the doors of Berry & Vincent is slowly revealed as old secrets from the past begin to emerge. But are some secrets better left undisturbed? Or is Teddy’s past about to catch up with him once again?

Complex and thought provoking, So Pretty is an incredibly difficult novel to review as it is such a completely unique and unsettling read that chills you to the bone as you move deeper and deeper beneath the surface of the story. It is so cleverly written, with a darkness running through it that makes for more than an uncomfortable read at times. Immensely readable and yet so difficult to describe, So Pretty is one of those books that gets under your skin, the underlying sense of menace making me shiver unlike anything I’ve ever read before. It feels almost as though you should look away from the sheer horror of it all, but can’t quite bring yourself to tear your eyes away.

Ronnie Turner’s writing is stunning as she bring this darkly gothic tale so vividly to life. So Pretty is a creepy and original thriller that is as disturbing as it is shocking. I don’t want to say too much for fear of giving something away, so all I will say is that this book is sheer brilliance from beginning to end and I loved every terrifying and chilling word of it!

So Pretty by Ronnie Turner is an absolutely stunning page turner of a novel that I would highly recommend and I can’t wait to read whatever this talented author comes up with next.

So Pretty by Ronnie Turner is available to purchase now: