The prologue pulled me right into this one...like holy hell what is going on here?! 

This is really the story of two heroines. Thirteen years ago, Kandace is a troubled girl sent to Lilith House Reform School due to her behavior. 

In the present, Scarlett Lattimore and her seven-year-old daughter, Haddie are moving into the dilapidated old school with the intention of making it into an event space. 

But strange and creepy things seem afoot. Haddie is a very sensitive child and feels deeply. Along with the strange new noises, there are rumors of a dark past for the house, monsters in the woods, and old legends. Scarlett might have bit off more than she can chew and she has to think about the well-being of her intuitive and inquisitive child as well. 

It is hard to tell if the people of Farrow will welcome or be skeptical of the newcomers. There is the stoic and awkward Deputy Camden West, her new contractor, Mason, a woman who glares whenever she is near, the people from the church, and a host of unique and intense individuals living in town. It is hard to tell the true intentions of others. But all of them and their interactions are pieces that make up the framework of the larger puzzle.

Are Scarlett and Haddie in danger? Will she come to regret her decision to move to Farrow?

This is a twisted, compelling, haunting, intricately woven story like nothing this author has written before. It spins an eerie tale with a mix of good, evil, dark, light, damage, perfection, evil, innocent, sin, and penance. The darker topics are tempered by the ideas of fate, truth, and redemption, and there are some heartwarming and almost enchanting moments too. There is some romance, but it is not the center of the story. The growth of the characters and uncovering and dealing with the truth are more important.  It is told in flashbacks and the present in multiple points of view so the story alternates back and forth slowly weaving the past and present together and releasing the secrets of Lilith House and Farrow.

It is full of tension, intrigue, mystery, suspense, action, and surprises. I pride myself on figuring out twists early in books and I figured out a couple early on, but I swear there were maybe five towards the last part that had me just reeling! Just slapped me right in the face! She totally got me!

This book is not my normal genre and I am not usually a fan of darker books, but it grabbed me from the beginning and I could not let it go until it shared its last secret with me. The fact that it was such a unique, riveting, and unpredictable journey makes it a top read of the year. This is the kind of book you need to vent to or talk to someone while reading or right after finishing to share the surprises. And I still cannot stop thinking about it today. 

It isn’t often that I’m compelled to sit down and write a review the moment I finish a book, but this book caught me so completely I couldn’t start another until I had processed some of my thoughts on paper.

Scarlett and her young daughter have moved into Lilith House with grand plans of renovating the former girls school into an event center. But the house has a dark past, and that darkness seems to permeate everything around them. Her daughter begins to see a horned thing in the woods. The deputy sheriff is by turns hot and cold and clearly hiding something. And there is something off about the townspeople she meets. As she tries to turn the house into her dreams, she begins to wonder if there is something more sinister going on.

This is everything I didn’t know I needed right now. As I reached the climactic moments I couldn’t decide if I wanted to race to the end or slowly savor what was left. In the end I found a middle ground, pausing every now and then to reflect (or send a message to Kim with an OMG!) but moving steadily through to those final moments. 

I loved watching Scarlett and her daughter interact. Even as Scarlett’s worry for her daughter grows, she is always careful to consider what effect events, actions, and words will have on Haddie. Haddie is such a special character that I fell in love with her differences from the beginning and knew she had a unique part to play in this story.

As the darkness surrounded them, I couldn’t help but wonder exactly where the story would lead. Narrated by Scarlett and by her friend, Kandace, who lived at Lilith House just before it closed thirteen years before, the parallels between the past and present kept a chill running through the story as secrets are slowly revealed and tensions in the present rise to dangerous levels. 

I love this story. It is not a romance, as I usually read, but the story of a town, a house, and the things that are covered up in the name of righteousness. In fact, the romance is secondary or even tertiary to the other aspects of the book. There are so many small details, insignificant in the moment, but immense in hindsight. So many threads between the past and the present, legend, and reality. I was surprised several times throughout the book, even as I was looking for the twists - they were not where or what I expected. 

Sheridan continually surprises me with the depth of her writing.When I think of her I often think of her Signs of Love books, but between Fallen and the Where series, I am here for everything she writes - whether it is romance or thriller, she can do it all!

Fallen is very dark and graphic. If you want to know the triggers see spoiler tag: HERE

THIS. BOOK.

I'm a total hardass on books, especially this year. Most of my year has been spent rereading. I can't even tell you how many books I've started and tossed to the side. While I was excited to read Fallen, I was also a little leery.

I'm just going to say it again... THIS. BOOK.

The characters. The writing. The plot. The romance. The suspense. The flow. The darkness. The redemption. The twists. The emotions. The intricate details. The poignant moments. The ending.

And again... THIS. BOOK.

It made the fifth spot on my 6 STARs shelf, for the year. It's that freaking phenomenal.