The Memory House by Mary Alford - Book Review

 Recently, one of my friends sent me a copy of The Memory House by Mary Alford, and I'm grateful that she did! From the moment I read the first sentence until the last page, this story had me hooked!

Some truths aren't buried.
They're hidden inside us.
When grief counselor Elise Warren inherits Coldwater Hollow, the crumbling Victorian estate of her estranged father, she expects to settle his affairs and finally leave the past behind.
Instead, she finds hidden journals, secret recordings, and evidence that her father’s controversial psychological treatments may have harmed more than they healed.
As Elise digs deeper, fragments of her childhood begin surfacing—memories of a frightened girl named Ivy, whispered warnings from her long-missing mother, and a darkness lurking beneath the house itself.
But the more Elise uncovers, the less she trusts her own mind.
Someone has been inside Coldwater Hollow.
Someone is watching her search for answers.
And someone desperately wants one missing piece of evidence to stay buried.
Because if Elise remembers what really happened twenty years ago, she may discover that the greatest mystery was never what happened to Ivy.
It's who Ivy was.
And the truth could destroy everything she believes about herself.
The Memory House is a gripping psychological suspense novel about memory, identity, and the dangerous secrets families bury in the name of protection.

I'll try to narrow down all the great qualities of this book to my top three, or you'd be reading this post forever. 

1.) The psychological angle felt fresh and new. The author did an amazing job of creating a tight web of psychological suspense that kept me guessing until the big reveal!

2.) The characters felt lifelike. Both of the main characters intrigued me, and Elise's history of memory fragmentation added so much that left me wanting more. 

3.) The setting felt like a character. The house itself took on a life of its own until it became like a character in the story. I love it when that happens!

If you haven't read The Memory House yet, you really should! It is an excellent read. You can get a copy here.

Comment below with your favorite part about Thanksgiving for a chance to win an ebook copy of The Memory House.