The House on Sprucewood Lane

by Caroline Slate

Book Overview

The debut novel from "a promising writer in the psychological suspense genre" ("Publishers Weekly")--a Literary Guild Selection--is a highly-charged, intelligent thriller that centers around a family... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0743418891
• ISBN13: 9780743418898
• Release Date: July 2003
• Publisher: Pocket Star Books
• Length: 432 Pages
• Weight: 0.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.4" x 6.8"

Customer Reviews

The House on Sprucewood Lane

A really exciting good read. A true page turner. It was hard to put down once I got into the story.

be careful what you wish for

Ms slate has conjured a mystery that is as much self-confession as it is slight of hand & inquiry. I especially liked the risk she took in balancing the psychology of all the characters with the psychology of the author [come] 'detective.' She (Ms Slate) has a special talent rarely seen in 'mystery' writers: where the writing itself carries the passion & the intrigue! I felt it well fleshed-out & 'unafraid.' A great read!

I couldn't put it down

This is a terrific read. Fast-paced; Well-developed, complex characters; and a gripping plot with just the right twist at the end. The author really gets at the heart of complicated relationships with people who we're supposed to trust.

The House on Sprucewood Lane

This book has it all. Suspense, mystery, and an empathetic and analytical look into the interior life of damaged people who are actually improved by their immersion in tragedy. Caroline Slate uses her quick wit to perform a sleight of hand in the moment to moment rendering of the mutually distrustful relationship of family members who all suspect each other in assigning guilt for the commission of a particularly heinous crime. It is also a story of the love between a traumatized woman and her disturbed young nephew. And it is a love story as well, between two people who had no reasonable hope for emotional fulfillment ever again in their lives.This is a frightening, uplifting and yet tender work with impact on brain AND heart. I strongly recommend it.

A Great Read

I came across an early copy of this book at a friend's house when visiting New York last week and was intrigued by the theme. I have just finished reading it and want to recommend it to all the perusers of this website. Slate writes easily and colloquially,and is especially good at dialogue. The characters are very well drawn, as layers of their personalities are gradually revealed. The plot is complex and carefully unfolded for the reader; and the suspense (the whodunit factor) is killing. It is a difficult theme but neither unlikely nor untimely, as any newspaper reader knows. Don't start this book unless you have a free afternoon because you won't be able to put it down.