FIONA

An atmospheric thriller features an orphan searching for a home.

For Fiona, called Fee by her friends, going to Scotland after high school is a chance to connect with her deceased mother's roots. Working as an au pair for Lady Lily Moffat, her mother's best friend, seems like a way to really start living. But it doesn't take long for major complications to develop. Even before she arrives, Lily and her husband are killed. Poppy, her charge, is lost in her grief. And Charlie, Poppy's older brother and now legal guardian, is incredibly attractive to Fee—but he has a girlfriend, Blair, who's not about to let Charlie go. As the plot grows ever more labyrinthine, Fee worries she's going crazy, just as her mother did. But is it schizophrenia, or is she being gaslighted? Fee doesn't know whom to trust or turn to—so she'll have to rely on herself to solve the mystery and keep Poppy and Charlie safe, because anyone can be her enemy, even characters who appear to be friends. As a thriller, it’s an uneven one. Most of the evil characters lack motivation for their actions, undermining Fee's terror—but that terror is vividly portrayed, heightening the tension. The inevitable romance between Fee and Charlie adds interest for readers not daunted by the novel’s length.

Scotland, romance, terror—a mostly solid combination.