Quando Alice e Gareth Fletcher decidono di trasferirsi con i loro figli Tom, Joe e Millie nel piccolo e tranquillo villaggio di Heptonclough, nello Yorkshire, sono convinti di aver trovato il posto perfetto dove vivere serenamente. Ma quel luogo è davvero quello che sembra? I Fletcher, infatti, hanno appena il tempo di stabilirsi prima di scoprire che sono tutt'altro che benvenuti. Anche il giovane e brillante Harry Laycock, il nuovo parroco arrivato in paese pieno di ottimismo e buone intenzioni, percepisce da subito l'energia oscura e sinistra che pervade la chiesa e il cimitero, proprio il posto in cui i piccoli Tom e Joe, giocando, fanno uno strano e inquietante incontro. Quando Tom inizia a fare sogni terrorizzanti e a nutrire preoccupazioni esagerate nei confronti della sorellina Millie, i genitori si rivolgono a una psichiatra, Evi Oliver. D'accordo con il parroco, dal quale è pericolosamente attratta, la donna non è affatto convinta che il bambino soffra di allucinazioni e anzi crede alle sue parole più di quanto vorrebbe. Harry ed Evi cercheranno insieme di trovare una spiegazione agli eventi sempre più angosciosi che si susseguono con ritmo incalzante nell'arco di pochissimi giorni e che si collegano alla tragica scomparsa di tre bimbe nel corso degli ultimi anni e alla minaccia incombente del rapimento di Millie. "Raccolto di sangue" è un romanzo dalle atmosfere gotiche e claustrofobiche. ( )

SWEDISH REVIEW

Sharon Bolton har snabbt blivit en av mina favorit författare och Ond Skörd är definitivt en av de bästa böcker hon har skrivit. Från början är boken kuslig och mystisk och den behåller den tonen rakt igenom till det chockerade slutet. Men tursamt nog så har boken lite mer lättsamma ögonblick tack vare psykiatrikern Evi Oliver och kyrkoherden Harry Laycock. Det är definitivt attraktion mellan dem från första ögonblicket de träffas och sedan fortsätter det genom hela boken. Vad mer kan jag säga än att jag gillar verkligen mina mord mysterium med lite romantik. Men, allting går inte på räls, Evi har en patient som har ett gott öga på kyrkoherden.

Sedan har vi bokens själva berättelse, den mystiska flickan som Tom ser och den underliga kyrkan. För att inte glömma alla de döda flickorna. Sedan får vi givetvis inte glömma byns skumma ritualer, mellan varven trodde jag hela byn var ond som filmen The Wicker Man från 1973. Jag förväntade mig inte alls slutet, det tog mig verkligen på sängen att få reda på vem som låg bakom allting och varför.

Ond Skörd är definitivt en av de bästa böcker jag har läst detta år och jag rekommenderar den varmt!

Tack till Modernista för recensionsexemplaret!

ENGLISH REVIEW

Sharon Bolton has quickly become one of my favorite authors and Blood Harvest is definitely one of the best she has written. Right from the start is the book quite chilling and mysterious and it keeps being that for the entirely book all the way to the shocking ending. But, fortunately, there are lighter moments thanks to psychiatrist Evi Oliver and the Vicar Harry Laycock. They hit off from the first moments and after that every time they met the sparks fly. What can I say I love my murder mysteries with a bit of romance. However, not everything is going smoothly between them, she's having a patient that is quite sweet on the good Vicar.

Then we have the heart of the book, the mysterious girl that Tom sees and the strange church. And, what about the dead girls? Not to mention the village old strange rituals. I kid you not, there were times I thought that the whole village was evil, kind of like the movie The Wicker Man from 1973. I did not expect the ending, I was actually a bit blindsided to whom could be behind it all and the reason for everything was shocking!

Blood Harvest is one of the best books I've read this year and I recommend it warmly!

Thanks to Modernista for the review copy! ( )

4.5 stars. ( )

The entire story revolves around a very simple plot that Bolton manages to twist into an exciting and chilling adventure that will delight any horror fan. We find newcomers that move into a small village high in the English moors. Among them is a young Vicar who is sent to reopen the local church and there is also a family that builds a new house next to the church consisting of a husband, wife and three children. Someone appears as a vision of a dead child killed in a fire and tries to warn the family to leave the village. Someone also is not too happy to have the Vicar reopening the church. The story is told through short chapters with each character getting an opportunity to tell their perspective of events. Any fan of Elly Griffith or anyone that has read Boltons Lacy Flint series will love this book. ( )

This is the first S. J. Bolton book I've read. A British mystery/ thriller, situated along the moors and between and ancient church and a later church that has been shuttered for many years. The Fletcher family with three young children have built their new home here, in spite of the resistance of some locals.

The story proceeds with lots of twists, turns, and red herrings. There is a vicar, alanded family who owns the town and are stewards of the church, a disabled psychiatrist and a mysterious young girl whom it seems only the Fletcher children see. The usual cast of small town characters flesh out the rest of the book.

In some ways, this book reminded me of a dark Midsommer Murder Mystery. ( )