The Children on the Hill
Ratings27
Average rating3.9
From the New York Times bestselling author of The Drowning Kind comes a genre-defying novel, inspired by Mary Shelley’s masterpiece Frankenstein, that brilliantly explores the eerie mysteries of childhood and the evils perpetrated by the monsters among us. 1978: At her renowned treatment center in picturesque Vermont, the brilliant psychiatrist, Dr. Helen Hildreth, is acclaimed for her compassionate work with the mentally ill. But when she’s home with her cherished grandchildren, Vi and Eric, she’s just Gran—teaching them how to take care of their pets, preparing them home-cooked meals, providing them with care and attention and love. Then one day Gran brings home a child to stay with the family. Iris—silent, hollow-eyed, skittish, and feral—does not behave like a normal girl. Still, Violet is thrilled to have a new playmate. She and Eric invite Iris to join their Monster Club, where they dream up ways to defeat all manner of monsters. Before long, Iris begins to come out of her shell. She and Vi and Eric do everything together: ride their bicycles, go to the drive-in, meet at their clubhouse in secret to hunt monsters. Because, as Vi explains, monsters are everywhere. 2019: Lizzy Shelley, the host of the popular podcast Monsters Among Us, is traveling to Vermont, where a young girl has been abducted, and a monster sighting has the town in an uproar. She’s determined to hunt it down, because Lizzy knows better than anyone that monsters are real—and one of them is her very own sister. “A must for psychological thriller fans” (Publishers Weekly, starred review), The Children on the Hill takes us on a breathless journey to face the primal fears that lurk within us all.
Reviews
Popular Reviews
Reviews with the most likes.
Great psychological read! I absolutely loved it! This is one that is perfect for a weekend read.
This was an interesting idea, a tribute to Frankenstein combined with a story about kids trying to solve a mystery at a mental institution where their beloved grandmother works as a doctor. It was unfortunately combined with a less compelling story about two of the kids as adults, one as a podcaster/monster hunter and the other as a “monster.”
I did like the bit with the kids at first; I love stories where young people have to be self-reliant and get themselves into and out of trouble. That part did feel like a YA novel though, and that's not how this is marketed.
A big problem is that most of the story is built on twists—entirely predictable twists—and melodrama. Dear lord, the melodrama. Showing people having temper tantrums and crying fits leaves the reader out of the emotional moment; it doesn't pull them into it.
There are way too many things packed into the book and none of them are done well. There's a missing persons mystery, evils of eugenics, feminist empowerment, romantic attraction (out of nowhere I might add), memory and identity issues, the entire who's-your-Monster theme, and so on. All of this in a loosely strung, gimmicky plot. I would have liked a little more storytelling, a little less concept.
I loved The Winter People, but this one was just fine. I considered not finishing it a few times but wanted to get to the big twist that I've heard of. I will say the ending took me by surprise and I enjoyed the outcome. However, I found it too slow to get there. Much of the middle felt unnecessary and could have been edited out. I felt like the last 100 pages or so had more action than the whole book.
