Date: January 12, 2025
Author: Sarah Pearse
Genre: psychological thriller, gothic mystery
Page 60. Joke. ‘Making a belt out of watches, it’s a waist of time’
P. 61 fun fact. If you’re drunk, you don’t feel extreme cold. Which is why many have become drunk and died of hypothermia… Fun Danyelle fact. Based on this knowledge, 30 years ago I did in fact save somebody’s life. It was the middle of a frozen January upper Michigan night when I had happened upon some random stranger passed out in the snow after bar close and I woke him up and sent him stumbling on his way. This is quite the realization that, wow, it was likely this random bloke really could have died that night.
Oh my goodness! Its 10:17 pm at night, (current times) and I made it to ending minus 40 pages, got scared and had to set it aside until the light of tomorrow. I’ve been going along in this book thinking to myself why does the blurb on the cover page compare this novel to Stephen King’s The Shining? Thus far I haven’t read about any supernatural occurrences but expect it should be getting scary very soon. I mean the name is Sanatorium.
Now, imagine this, being stranded, in said old sanatorium turned sheek new hotel in the Swiss alps. Now imagine not one, but two avalanches totally cutting off any possible attempts at a rescue and there’s a killer on the loose!?
Now, imagine an underground tunnel that was once used for removal of the dead bodies so patients wouldn’t see and become upset. The characters come across a hidden entrance that nobody else knows about and proceed to climb into the dark hole of the tunnel. I shouted to them in my mind to stop. To get themselves a safety buddy. You know, send out a quick text so people at least know where to start looking. But alas, they didn’t.
Well done, Mz. Pearse! You’ve scared me.
The conclusion. I finished this up during the bright light of midday and must say I am sorely disappointed. The ending was predictable and not a ghost in sight. How can the publisher proclaim this to be a story of similar caliber to The Shining? Without any ghosts. They don’t even discuss the possibility of ghosts. Like Elaine on Seinfeld said to the Soup Nazi, “Next!”