Sometimes a book just doesn't work for me. I want to like it, but the story just doesn't rock my boat. Unfortunately, In the Vines is one of them. I was really looking forward to reading the book, however, from the start did I feel a bit confused when it came to the story, with the jumping between present and past.

We have the story from two years earlier with Mop's aunt having an affair with a married man. She's waiting for him to reveal this to his wife, but things go a bit wrong there. In the present story, we get Mop's situations as she is hiding from a crazy person with her "companion". These stories are interwoven until the end when Mop's situation is explained.

I think my problem was that the story just didn't live up to my expectations, I wanted a creepy family story, and this one was more puzzling. I wanted to know the truth, why is Mops hiding from someone that wants to kill her? But, her aunt's storyline failed to impress me. On the plus side was Mops storyline better, her arriving at her aunt's place for the first time in two years and finding out that her aunt is a bit ... odd...

In the Vines is a book that, if you are engrossed in the story will thrill you. The mystery is interesting. However, I admit that I speed read now and then towards the end. I liked the flashbacks to Mops growing up and I also found the beginning (the restaurant scene) pretty cool. I just wished I had like the story a bit more...

I want to thank Thomas & Mercer for providing me with a free copy through NetGalley for an honest review! ( )

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Mary Olivia Pentecost, known as Mop, is who this book starts with. She is hiding in a burned cellar, along with someone else, a companion, while a mad woman holding a bloody hatchet is ramagings her Aunty’s lawn looking for them. That’s quite a scene to start a crazy book like this one!

The story goes like this. Two years after her mother has died, Mop is seeking closure, by driving to her Aunty’s New England estate. Aunty Liv used to be the closest relative Mop had, besides her mother. She practically lived in the Aunty’s house, when not in the family Rye estate. And so was her mother.

However, the person Mop finds is not the Aunty Liv she once knew and cherished. She has changed and the secrets she has been keeping for two years now have come to haunt her. How many secrets can a wealthy family have and how can they affect Mop’s life? She is about to find out!

Shannon Kirk has her own writing style that can drive a reader mad, until they understand what is actually happening. In this one, Kirk has created a dark Gothic atmosphere to support her narration.

The games a mind can play on a person are the protagonist here. Several of those have been going through the main characters, creating this creepy, crazy setting the book lies on. It’s when you lose track of time and reality and even yourself that unexpected things happen. The main characters are as crazy as hell, and that’s an understatement! Past events, have led to the awful horrible situation Mop finds herself in the very first chapter, but they are also hidden behind what happened two years ago, during the night of the fire and maybe a couple days earlier. ( )

So creepy

I didn't mind this book. There are some very messed up parts and I loved the ending. I was not a fan of Aunty Liv's chapters. It made the story incredibly confusing to be told in her psychotic voice. But it was a very good story in it's whole. ( )

What a stunning cover.

After seeing this book all over Instagram, I found that I was able to request a copy from Netgalley and was approved. I was excited to start this as soon as I got it so thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a copy.

Dark dark dark, just the way I like them. It wasn't an easy read for me though. It was all over the place and some of it was quite unbelievable to me BUT the rest of the book was whacked, also, just the way I like them so it's a little difficult for me to review. I will say, at times, it was gory so be aware of this.

The book is told in alternating narratives and time frames (past and present) with Mary Olivia Pentecost (MOP for short) as one of our narrators and Aunty Liv Vandonbeer as the other one. It's a story of one of the wealthiest and closest New England families and what's happened over the past 2 years. I'll give you a hint. Lies were told. Crimes were committed. There was love and death.

Sidenote: I love that Aunty has a "Glory hole" in her kitchen while mine is just a "junk drawer". ( )

Every character in this book is NUTS! I don’t even know where to start. Mop (Maria Olivia Pentecost) is from an extremely wealthy family. When her mom dies tragically and her aunt shoves her aside, she becomes lost. This does little to describe this strange family. Like I said....I don’t even know where to start. And Mop is the sane one!

This story is confusing, especially in the beginning. It has lots of flash backs with different narrators. Usually this does not bother me. But the way this one is laid out it became disorienting. However, there is something about this storyline which keeps you reading. Who did it? Who is the woman in the barn? Who is the woman chasing them? Lots of unanswered questions keep you glued to this book.

I fluctuated between 3 and 4 stars. But this story is so riveting it deserved 4 stars! ( )