The Lost Village by Camilla Sten

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Obsessed over the long-ago disappearance of an entire mining town, Alice and her production team set out to the abandoned village create a documentary. Camping in the village square, cooking over a portable grill, and bathing in the nearby river are far from glamorous, but everyone on the team is dedicated to helping Alice make her dream documentary a reality. Everyone knows that part of Alice’s fascination with the village is her grandmother’s ties to the village. Her grandmother moved away shortly before her family and the entire village disappeared. But not the entire village, a lone baby was found nearby. What the team doesn’t know, is that Alice isn’t the only person with a connection to the village.

As the team searches the village for clues, they encounter strange occurrences that quickly escalate to violence. With no way to contact the outside world for help, Alice and her team must fight to stay alive. But what are they fighting?

This is such a great thriller! I loved how the author includes two time lines, the present day with Alice and her team and Alice’s family from 1959, the year of the disappearance. While you would think that Alice’s grandmother and great-grandmother would provide all the clues to the disappearance, the author doles out the information in small bits, constantly keeping you guessing. But that’s not to mean this a slow book, it actually flies by as the team seems under constant threat from the mysterious force that is trying to force them away from the village. The “Lost Village” is a character itself. While it was once a prosperous mining town full of young families, it held it’s own dark secrets. Gossip spreads quickly in a small town and the village church was a huge influence on the villagers. A young woman named Birgitta, left on her own after her mother’s death, is cared for by Elsa, Alice’s great-grandmother. Birgitta’s difficulties to care for herself, from what appears to be a cognitive deficiency of some kind, causes the village to pity her, but not enough to provide her with proper housing and decent food. As a new pastor gains influence over the villagers, they grow to fear and despise Birgitta, much to Elsa’s disbelief. As the village becomes more hostile towards Birgitta, everyone’s true colors come to light. The same occurs with Alice’s production team. The more danger they find themselves in, the more they become suspicious and fearful of each other. It was really interesting watching the two storylines overlap in that way.

This is an excellent thriller filled with horror elements and an intriguing mystery. It’s a compelling and fast paced story that will keep you guessing and on the edge of your seat. I can’t wait to see more from Camilla Sten!

If you would like to add this creepy and thrilling book to your shelves, you can find ordering information here:

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for the opportunity to read and review this title. All opinions and mistakes are my own. This post also contains affiliate links and I earn from qualifying purchases.