I knew from the cover and the title that this was going to be dark and creepy but I didn't realise just how much it would unnerve me. I haven't read any of the previous books in the series so I can definitely say that this book can be read as a standalone, although there are a few references to previous events that I suspect happened in the earlier books. It didn't affect my enjoyment of this book in any way as the author is so skilled at seamlessly weaving enough of the back-story into the narrative to flesh out the characters I was encountering for the first time.

TJ Tully wants to expand her riding stables into the woods surrounding her property but somebody already thinks of the woods as their own and they have invested lots of time in burying their 'angels' under the woods. The killer will do anything to keep this special place as there are still angels to collect and bury there. TJ seems to have a run of bad luck after a break in and a fire threaten to destroy her stables but there is worse to come and even her angry busybody neighbour can't escape the cruel hand of Lady (Bad) Luck.

CSI Jackson Doherty has a lot on his plate; Jackson is called on to investigate the strange events at TJ's stables but he can't seem to escape his personal life. After a one night stand, he's landed himself with a stalker, Nikki. Nikki seems to know his every movements and turns up at the most unlikely of places when she perceives TJ to be a threat to her happily ever after with Jackson. I loved this aspect to the story; Nikki is an absolute fruitcake!

What I loved about Under the Woods (apart from it being set in my native North East) is that you don't have to wait until the end for a big reveal; the killer is revealed about two thirds of the way through. You might expect the pace to drop after that but it is actually the complete opposite as the danger levels seemed to increase to epic proportions. Once I knew who was collecting these 'angels', I felt as if the story became even more creepy (if that's even possible, as it's pretty creepy to start with). I felt my heart rate quicken and I even began holding my breath at times as the killer's confidence seemed to grow as time went on.

With K.A. Richardson's remarkable attention to gruesome detail, Under the Woods is a Creepfest with a capital C; I can feel my heart pounding just thinking about it. It's one of those books that you live and breathe with every page and definitely one to read with all the lights on or you'll find yourself jumping at shadows. K.A. Richardson's Under the Woods totally creeped me out and I enjoyed every minute of it. I certainly won't be going down to the woods anytime soon.

I chose to read an ARC and this is my honest and unbiased opinion. ( )