Liz Jensen's The Uninvited is an extremely dark read that will have your heart palpitating at some points but will have you practically falling asleep at others. What better way to begin a book than having a seven-year-old child putting a nail gun to her grandmother's neck? Warm and fuzzy this novel is not. Hesketh Lock is investigating cases of business sabotage followed by rash suicides. Before going through their violent ends, the saboteurs insist that someone is inside them. Children are also committing horrific acts to their parents and other adults. Lock desperately tries to determine if there is some parallel here, even when things hit way too close to home.
At times, I couldn't stop reading The Uninvited, as Jensen lulls you into a state of contentment for awhile and then pulls the rug out from under you. However, I wanted to like this book much more than I did. After an unbelievably terrifying first page, the novel slows down drastically, and the ending is just too far-fetched for me. However, if you're a fan of movies about creepy children (like Village of the Damned and Children of the Corn), this book might be right up your alley.
MY RATING - 3
