The Dead Room

by Catriona McPherson

In this atmospheric thriller from Catriona McPherson, a young widow seeking refuge from her grief wades into the mists at the far end of memory lane—where something even darker awaits.

Reeling from the death of her husband, thirty-something audiobook narrator Lindsay Hale retreats to her Scottish hometown and the comforts of old times. The bungalow where she grew up is just as she left it, next to the scrapyard her family still owns. But something is wrong…something beyond grief.

Something she can only glimpse from the corner of her eye.

Lindsay’s brother and best friend are there to welcome her back. An elderly widow helps Lindsay make sense of her new normal, and a kind man hints at unexpected possibilities. But when her widow friend vanishes, only Lindsay seems to notice. And while she starts “recognizing” strangers, she begins forgetting familiar faces.

Every night, as Lindsay’s dream house fills with nightmares, she wonders whether she’s truly unraveling—or if something more sinister’s at play. Buried secrets surface and reality bends, forcing Lindsay to face the terrifying truth that her new haven isn’t so safe after all.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Thriller, Ebooks, Mystery Thriller, Scotland, Amazon

307 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 1, 2026

About the author

Catriona McPherson (she/her) was born in Scotland and immigrated to the US in 2010. She writes: preposterous 1930s private-detective stories about a toff; realistic 1940s amateur-sleuth stories about an oik; and contemporary psychothriller standalones. These are all set in Scotland with a lot of Scottish weather. She also writes modern comedies about a Scot-out-of-water in a “fictional” college town in Northern California.

She has won multiple Anthonys, Agathas, Leftys and Macavitys for her work and been shortlisted for an Edgar, three Mary Higgins Clark awards and a UK dagger

Catriona is a proud lifetime member and former national president of Sisters in Crime.

Reviews

[Paige · Rating 2 out of 5]

I felt like I was having a stroke the whole time reading this. Not a fan

[taylor:)]

this was so all over the place that half the time I didn’t even know what the hell was happening. at first I thought maybe that was the point!!! like confusing the reader would really help them understand what the character is going through once the twist was revealed, NOPE!!!!! not even close, 283 pages that were not worth it for the “twist” at the end😣 1/5

[OutlawPoet]

This was a DNF for me.

It went from slow burn to no burn and I just couldn't maintain. Not much was happening and I decided to move on to something a bit more entertaining.

[Cynthia Stephens · Rating 3 out of 5]

Potential unfulfilled

This novel had great potential to be intriguing and scary but it sadly didn’t live up to it. One of the most frustrating things is how Lindsey’s childhood trauma is teased out throughout the entire story yet never fully fleshed out. I kept waiting to get the full details but it never happens. Her childhood trauma supposedly defines her ptsd and how she reacted to the unsettling events that occur but I never understood fully how or why or what exactly her dad did to her and her brother. Speaking of her brother…why the heck didn’t she confront him right at the beginning for his oddly unwelcoming behavior? After it was he who had encouraged her to move back “home”. She is so wishy-washy with her interactions with him that you are left completely dissatisfied. Another thing left wholly unexplained is why her alleged best friend ends up hating her so much in the end. Where did that come from? So much time is spent on the supposed odd things she thinks she sees but she never tries to get any answers on the real things she’s confronted with. As far as the supporting characters go, Peggy and Bunny were fantastic but we don’t get nearly enough time with them.

[Danielle · Rating 1 out of 5]

Thank God this was free on Amazon. I have no idea what I just read. Or if I can get any of my precious hours back.

[Lisa MacDougall]

I’m giving up on this one pretty early so no review. I’m just not really enjoying the writing style. It’s kind of clunky and confusing. Interesting start but it’s lost me! DNF at 20%.

[Deb]

DNF.

[Debbie DiFiore · Rating 4 out of 5]

Started out slow

But it ended up being a very good story. I knew from the beginning though what was going on. Maybe not all the players but enough to figure out where it was headed. Very creepy and disturbing. But every time she drank tea or coffee or anything I knew it was drugged. I wanted to yell at her through the book and say wise up. I loved Peggy March. And the epilogue was priceless! Totally made me laugh and cry. Very appropriate.

[Jennifer T. · Rating 4 out of 5]

**3.5 stars**

This was a decent mystery, I liked the main 2 characters even though Lindsay was a little too naive to be believed, but then I’ve probably spent too much time reading mystery books and watching true crime shows.

The audiobook narrators were excellent but the Scottish accent is my favorite and even though I got the ebook ARC from NetGalley I bought the audiobook just so I could listen to the Scottish narrators.

This was a great way to pass the time on my long work commute.

Thanks to the author and Thomas & Mercer publishers for the e-arc I received via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. I did buy the audiobook from Audible.

[Louise Ridout · Rating 1 out of 5]

I gave up on this after 12% as it just wasn’t my style. I found the writing style all over the place and clunky, and just not enjoyable sadly. DNF. Free advance copy via amazing first reads

[Sue Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Intriguing, mesmerizing. Wonderful ending.

[Jane Rejnert · Rating 4 out of 5]

This had me guessing the whole time!
But what a surprising ending!

[kneecolereads]

I read this as part of the Amazon first reads.

This one had a lot going for it, especially the setting. The Scottish atmosphere and language were such a fun touch and easily my favorite part.

Unfortunately, the writing style didn’t quite click for me. I found it hard to follow at times and it kept pulling me out of the story. The twists also didn’t fully land the way I hoped they would.

I’m really glad I read this as a buddy read because the group made the experience way more fun.

Overall, it just wasn’t for me.

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lindsey moves back to England after her husband dies. On her first day back home, she meets a kindly elderly woman named Peggy who invites her home to rest. As Lindsey settles back into life, she finds herself deep in a twisted mystery that will consume her.

A very slow burn that didn’t really pick up until about 50% in once it got going, it was really good!

[Pam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Slow start

I found it was hard to get into the story until about 50% into the book. Being in Scotland some of the words were slightly confusing since im in Canada but that adds to the characters.

[Kath · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well wasn't this book the gift that kept on giving! Although, that said, it did go all round the houses and back again. often quite confusingly, so you really do need to have all your wits about you...
We start in Hawaii where audiobook narrator Lindsay is still reeling from the death of her husband after a somewhat drawn out illness. She is grieving and, although we all know that is not the best time to make life changing decisions, she decides to sell up and move back to Scotland - initially to stay with her brother and his family who still live in their childhood home next to the family junkyard business. But things go awry when she arrives earlier than expected and the elderly lady she meets en route to her family home disappears without trace...
And that's all I am saying as there are so many shenanigans, secrets, lies, and dysfunctional behaviour that is all convoluted and interconnected and to even try and hint at anything else might inject spoilers. Although I will say this, I spent the majority of the book confused, even though there were some key things that, to me, were glaringly obvious, the whole big picture didn't become totally clear until the very end...
Characters...well... where do I start. The majority are all horrible people. But I can't go into the whys and wherefores here, obvs. Lindsay was naïve and a tad on the dense side of things - but then she didn't really have her wits about her being as she was still grieving the love of her life so...
Yes, it's all a bit messy and you do have to keep quite a few balls in the air, often for quite a while, but it does all make sense by the end. That said, I do understand some of the frustrations and points made buy other reviews, but personally, I am glad I stuck with it as it did all come good eventually...
My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

[Alison Rose · Rating 1 out of 5]

So like...words mean things. If you call a book a "thriller", it should be...oh, I don't know...thrilling??

This was not.

Lord, this was boring. For the first half, it didn't even feel like it was meant to be a thriller at all, more like a very tedious women's fiction novel with a tiny bit of weird behavior going on. Even once it finally remembered what genre it was ostensibly part of, the plot was so convoluted and thin that I was both lost and bored. I couldn't even figure out why Lindsay moved home in the first place. I can understand that after a tragic loss of a spouse at a young age, maybe the memories in your home might be overwhelming...but leaving the place you lived for a decade and going back to a place you don't seem to have any affection for, to family members who barely give a shit about you, was just nonsensical. And like I said, at first all that was going on was that they were acting a bit weird and she was having creepy dreams. Honestly by around the 40% or so mark, I was halfway checked out. The writing felt very forced and like we were being spoonfed. And I'm getting a bit tired of thriller authors thinking that all they have to do to create an eerie atmosphere is to write some half-baked gaslighting into the plot. There are these hints at childhood trauma that never really got fully explained or fleshed out, and like, why bring that kind of heavy topic into it if you're just gonna be like, lol never mind.

I don't know...this story is already fading from my brain and I just finished this like an hour or so ago. Just glad I didn't pay for this, except in annoyance.

[Joselyn Moreno · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Vibe: Claustrophobic, dizzying, and deeply psychological.

The Story:
Imagine moving into a house that was supposed to be your sanctuary, only to find that the walls are holding secrets—and so is everyone in your life. Lindsay is a professional audio editor who knows how to listen for what’s hidden, but when her own brother and her closest friends start telling her she can’t trust her own mind, the world starts to spin.

The "Dizzy" Factor: This book is a masterclass in gaslighting. There were moments while reading where I felt just as disoriented as the protagonist. It’s a "semi-going-crazy" type of book that keeps you off-balance until the very end.

The Audio Element: I loved how Lindsay’s career in audio editing played into the plot. She’s literally trained to hear the truth, which makes the attempts to lie to her feel even more "diabolical."

The Neighborhood "Vibe": The town feels wrong in that delicious, small-town noir way. It’s the kind of place where the "Neighborhood Watch" might be watching you for all the wrong reasons.

The Verdict:
It is a messy, complicated journey through grief and deception. While the middle had me spinning with all the different "rationalizations" the characters were making, the ending provides a powerful reclamation of power. If you like thrillers where you can't trust anyone—not even the person holding the legal documents—this is for you.

[Swapna Peri ( Book Reviews Cafe ) · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The Dead Room" by Catriona McPherson is a gripping atmospheric thriller that follows a young widow grappling with grief after her husband's death. She seeks solace in a misty, eerie setting that blurs the line between memory and something far more sinister. McPherson's skillful prose draws readers into a slow-burn tale full of emotional depth and mounting dread.

The story shines with its clever blend of psychological suspense and supernatural hints, keeping you guessing about what's real and what's haunting the protagonist's mind. Vivid descriptions of the isolated locale heighten the tension, while relatable characters make the stakes feel personal. It's a page-turner that balances heart-wrenching loss with chilling twists.

Fans of moody, character-driven mysteries will love this standout from McPherson, praised as her best yet for its taut suspense and ingenious plotting. Perfect for a cozy yet creepy read, it lingers long after the final page. Highly recommended for thriller lovers seeking originality and emotional punch.

Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for the ARC

[Karine · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first half of the book - simmering and rather dark - had me completely hooked. At a slow and atmospheric pace, the author gives us a good insight into grief, the return to one's roots and insight into the complicated relations of siblings who have a shared trauma. It is sometimes complicated and erratic, just as I would expect and sometimes even frightening. The only thing that broke this tension were bouts of humour, which detracted from the dread.

The second half is where the action gets going and that is where I didn't feel as involved anymore. I think it was a very interesting story, but there were bits that were a little over the top, like the romance and the friendship situations. All in all, I think that the author tried to accomplish too much: a sombre noir, an Agatha tribute, a dissection of trauma and all that with a touch of humour. If the book would have been all in for the fright ride it would have been one solid scary read, so I believe it is somewhat of a missed opportunity.

Thank you NetGalley, Thomas Mercer and the author for allowing me to be an early reader. All opinions are my own.

[Marilyn Lablaiks · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Slog & a Gem

The first 200 pages drove me mad. Lots of atmosphere, lots of repetition, vague hints of secrets & lies. Honestly tired of unreliable narrators & women who constantly cry & aren't sure what is real or if they are going mad. These themes & writers tricks are everywhere since Covid & all the madness that preceeded and followed those days when everything you thought was true turned out to be a lie, and everything you thought was a lie, a conspiracy, a tale told by an idiot turned out to be true. One star off because of the frustration of the first 200 pages.
Then suddenly in the last hundred pages it all comes together like the blinding light of revelation. Lindsay our whining confused unreliable narrator shakes off the grief and confusion and faces the reality of her past and present. Stay with it dear readers, the last 100 pages make this twisty novel 5 stars.
I still think the author could have made the first 200 pages less of a slog. Less repetition and maybe a little less opaque concerning the characters childhood family.

[Rebecca Kostley · Rating 1 out of 5]

I never write reviews. This book was such a struggle to read. I realize it may have been intended to confuse the reader, to throw them off track, but come on! It was the most confusing jumble I’ve ever tried to make my way through. I paused at least twice per chapter to see if I’d misread something, only to find out I hadn’t. Too many times I asked myself “where is this coming from?” or “what is she talking about?” I saw another review mentioning that they’d figured out she’d been drugged??? When? By whom? She was having trouble functioning before she even got to her brother’s house! I did push through, though I thought of giving up about halfway. I had to see where it went. I wish there was more explanation of what exactly happened with her parents when she was young, but we were left hanging. Also, why did they need her to come home if they’ve done this 6 times before? It just seems they would unnecessarily involve a witness. Except for a quick wrap up, this left me feeling very dissatisfied and confused.

[Rodney Saunders Jr. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Unmet Potential

The plot is decent, and there were some parts I liked, including some details in the ending I will not spoil.

The writing, on the other hand, is just not that good. Oftentimes confusing and incredibly difficult to retain as a result. The author says no generative AI was used, and while I believe her--some parts, including her influences, the plot itself, and other intricacies here and there did feel innately human--so much of the writing is just so WEIRD it reeked of AI for a while. Half of my First Reads book club speculated on that (or just did not finish as a result, referencing another review that the writing gave them a stroke...yikes).

There is a lot of potential here, all that being said. It feels like Sixth Sense meets Shutter Island, if you can imagine that. Sounds good, right?

It could have been.

I thought it would've been 1 or 2 stars for me, but the ending was nice enough to give a boost. I try to be nice, too.

[Sarah Cramer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Why One Star: This is the most confusing book I’ve ever read. I kept going back to see if I’d missed dialogue because the characters’ speech is so disjointed and hard to follow. Perhaps the author did this intentionally to make the reader feel off-kilter, but it mostly just left me feeling disoriented.

There are also some pretty important questions that never get answered. While a few answers are hinted at, they’re never fully developed, making it difficult to understand the characters’ motivations. In the end, this left me feeling dissatisfied with key aspects of the story.

Why Five Stars: Overall, the story is actually quite thrilling. Once I reached the halfway point, I couldn’t put it down; I had to keep reading to find out what was really going on. There were several twists I didn’t see coming at all, and I’m glad I stuck with it despite my earlier misgivings.

[Janine · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars. This is a fairly good psychological thriller about a young widow returning to her home and native country seeking to heal her grief and get a fresh start

Atmosphere is everything in this book. Lindsay Hale returns home to her brother in Scotland. She meets an elderly widow who befriends her and offers her emotional support. Then she finds her dream home. But suddenly the widow is missing and no one but Lindsay seems to notice. She starts forgetting familiar faces and recognizes unfamiliar ones. But worse than that, she experiences strange dreams in her new home. Is she losing her mind or is it something else?

The book gives you goose bumps. It’s chilling and teases you as it does Lindsay as she starts to realize things aren’t what they seem and, of course, there are secrets to unravel.

My thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for allowing me to read this ARC.

[Pamela · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this book, in the final analysis. It took me a while (not the author's fault, I'm sure) to fully appreciate when the narrator was speaking and when another character's thoughts were expressed. I do understand that the whole point of the story is that the narrator herself is struggling with whether her thoughts/actions are reliable or not, but I found so many characters entirely unlikable (again, intentional, I believe), that I struggled with why the narrator would give credence to their views. A good read, ultimately, but a bit of a difficult one to fathom for a bit. I will try other books by this author--I think she did an admirable job depicting the uncertainties which can come accompany deep grief. >^..^<

[Hannelore Cheney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the eARC.
Lindsay Hale has returned from Hawaii after her husband's death, to stay with her brother and family back in Scotland. She is heartbroken and finds it difficult to navigate life.
She buys a home for herself and eventually finds a boyfriend, but she feels off mentally and she has strange episodes.
The suspense ratchets up slowly but surely and I loved it so much I had to stop reading before my head exploded!
Even with all the suspense, there were parts that made me snicker; there's some good humor sprinkled in there. All in all I enjoyed the heck out of the book, which is beautifully written as well

[Antigone Walsh · Rating 2 out of 5]

Contrived & Convoluted

Frankly I was disappointed in this book. A recently widowed woman returns to her family home in Scotland. Eh route she meets a charming and understanding widow. But all is not as it seems and she finds herself caught in a deadly conspiracy fueled by greed.

The story is convoluted and feels contrived. With the exception of the elderly widow the characters are unlikable. It did not make much sense that the protagonist would return "home" after ten years in Hawaii. Her relationships seemed strained at best and it would seem that over a decade she would have cemented connections in Hawaii. It wasn't scary or intriguing.

[Richard Tolleson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got this book as part of the Kindle First Reads program. I got this because I recently visited Scotland and I was interested to read a book set there. I don't mean to say that's the best part of the book, but the setting definitely makes the story more than just a run-of-the-mill thriller. Author Catriona McPherson creates a creepy, tense, frightening story that hooks the reader and doesn't let go. I couldn't put this one down. I don't want to say anything about the plot--if I went in blind, you can too. Trust me, if you like tense thrillers grounded in reality, you'll like this one. Read with the lights on!

[Stuart · Rating 3 out of 5]

This has to be the most confusing book for at least 50% of its content. I would have scored it less but the woman in question (Lindsay) had been widowed and was struggling with everyday life afterwards. But (like me when I became a widower) could not seperate the knowledge of his drawn out death with everyday life - even though she had known it was coming for some time. So on that basis alone it scored an extra star.
The story itself tho kind of rambles all over the place as she weaves a childhood memory into the fabric. The premise of the dodgy dealing concerning old peoples homes, scrapyards etc all blends well in the end, but not my cup of tea at all