Book Review: The Haunting of Leigh Harker by Darcy Coates

Release date September 7th, 2021 from Poisoned Pen Press

From the publisher:

From bestselling gothic horror author Darcy Coates comes a chilling story of a quiet house on a forgotten suburban lane that hides a deadly secret…

Leigh Harker’s quiet suburban home was her sanctuary for more than a decade, until things abruptly changed. Curtains open by themselves. Radios turn off and on. And a dark figure looms in the shadows of her bedroom door at night, watching her, waiting for her to finally let down her guard enough to fall asleep.

Pushed to her limits but unwilling to abandon her home, Leigh struggles to find answers. But each step forces her towards something more terrifying than she ever imagined.

A poisonous shadow seeps from the locked door beneath the stairs. The handle rattles through the night and fingernails scratch at the wood. Her home harbors dangerous secrets, and now that Leigh is trapped within its walls, she fears she may never escape.

Do you think you’re safe?
You’re wrong.

Review of advance reading copy provided by the publisher through Edelweiss:

The Haunting of Leigh Harker is a chilling horror story that will keep readers turning the pages well into the night. This gothic ghost story, which is also a murder mystery, is both beautifully written and sure to keep readers guessing. While the first act is a bit slow to get the plot moving forward and runs the risk of readers giving up early because they believe they have the whole book figured out–they don’t. Once we cross into the second act and our initial suspicions about Leigh are confirmed, the book moves onto an entirely different level of mystery, suspense, and horror. Darcy Coates expertly maneuvers her characters through their own revelations and fears while always keeping the reader both guessing and on the edge of their seat.