Salvage by Duncan Ralston

Synopsis from Amazon:

Something is Lurking Under the Lake... When Owen Saddler's little sister mysteriously drowns, Owen is determined to uncover the circumstances by following in her footsteps, even if it means diving into the murky--some would say haunted--waters of Chapel Lake. Thirty years earlier, the town of Peace Falls had been flooded to build a hydroelectric dam, and its ruins remain below the surface of Chapel Lake. The strange disappearance of the town Pastor, along with many of the parishioners, still haunts the citizens of Chapel Lake. But does the church haunt the lake itself? Is Owen really seeing ghosts... or has he descended into the depths of madness? Salvage is the debut horror novel of author Duncan Ralston (Gristle & Bone). A darkly disturbing story of depression, religious fanaticism, and the afterlife, Salvage seeks to illuminate the evil within us all.

My review:

When I read the synopsis for the book I wasn’t sure whether I’ll like this book. I get scared by just about anything, even my own shadow, however I still like to read stories with mystery and ghosts and supernatural events in them just for a little excitement.

I certainly wasn’t disappointed. The beginning of the book was slight slower for me than I expected but once the ghost of Lori, Owen’s recently deceased sister, appeared I was hooked.

Owen’s pure love for his sister is beautiful and it’s this love that leads him to Chapel Lake to discover and relive Lori’s last moments alive. He soon finds that Lori was on a mission to discover the childhood Owen has lost.

Owen goes on a journey of revelations about his own family, sinister past and the Mystery that is lurking under the water in the long-ago flooded Church.

When Owen meets ‘Crazy’ Jo and rekindles a long lost friendship, he realises that the only way to truly find out what happened to the religious flock and it’s devious Minister, is to go under the water, face his fears and risk his own life.

This book took me through a variety of emotions and I even shed a few tears. It is well written keeping the reader on their toes at all times.

I have received ARC of this book from Netgalley in return for this honest opinion.

My score: 4/5