The Uninvited by Tim Wynne-Jones

Mimi Shapiro had a disturbing freshman year at NYU, thanks to a foolish affair with a professor who still haunts her caller ID. So when her artist father, Marc, offers the use of his remote Canadian cottage, she’s glad to hop in her Mini Cooper and drive up north. The house is fairy-tale quaint, and the key is hidden right where her dad said it would be, so she’s shocked to fi nd someone already living there — Jay, a young musician, who is equally startled to meet Mimi and immediately accuses her of leaving strange and threatening tokens inside: a dead bird, a snakeskin, a cricket sound track embedded in his latest composition. But Mimi has just arrived, so who is responsible? And more alarmingly, what does the intruder want? Part gripping thriller, part family drama, this fast-paced novel plays out in alternating viewpoints, in a pastoral setting that is evocative and eerie — a mysterious character in its own right.
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When I first started reading this book, it felt silly and random. Certain plot points were just unrealistic and turned me off to reading it. It took me over a week to get through it - an eternity for me.

However, somewhere between the halfway point and the three-quarter mark the pace did start to pick up speed. A few interesting plot twists kept me reading. My main concern was that halfway through the book is too far. Many readers would've abandoned ship by that time.

Ironically, my favorite character was a very minor one, one that made very few appearances: Marc Soto. This guy had children crawling (sometimes literally) out of the woodwork. His assholishness caused so many problems for, well, most everyone he'd ever known. And he didn't seem to care. This was, perhaps, what interested me most.

I also wanted to know more about Mavis, Cramer's mother. I'm very interested in psychology and her mental instabilities just made me want to get to know her better.

I felt like the story came to an abrupt end that left some things unresolved. I wondered whether Cramer's feelings for Mimi were left unresolved or just dissolved.

Overall, I was very disappointed with this novel. I will not be picking it up again. If it sounds appealing to you, I would recommend getting it from the library.


2 out of 5 stars