The Haven

by Amanda Jennings

A dark and glittering literary psychological thriller for fans of Will Dean and Lucy Atkins from the author of The Storm and The Cliff House…

Two decades ago, Tara and Kit leave everything behind to join a group living in a tumbledown farm on a glorious expanse of Bodmin Moor, Cornwall. For Kit, it’s a chance to break away from his wealthy family and the soulless upbringing he loathes so much; for Tara, the chance to give their young daughter Skye everything she never had – a childhood full of nature and freedom. Breathtakingly beautiful and remote, Winterfall Farm provides them all with an idyllic home, a new family and the opportunity to work and live off the land. At first, it seems too good to be true.

But as the seasons change, the behaviour of Winterfall’s charismatic leader, Jeremy, becomes increasingly erratic. Rules and discipline are imposed. The outside world seems increasingly further away, and as new faces arrive at the farm, tensions rise with devastating consequences…

The Haven is the compelling new novel from Amanda Jennings, author of The Cliff House.

Genres: Thriller, Audiobook, Suspense, Fiction, British Literature, Mystery, Cults

379 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 17, 2022

About the author

Amanda is mother to three daughters and lives in chaotic contentment just outside Henley-on-Thames with a houseful of pets and a husband. She is the author of five books, Sworn Secret, The Judas Scar, In Her Wake, The Cliff House and The Storm which is coming out in July 2020. She is currently working on her sixth novel. A psychological thriller set on the wilds of Bodmin Moor, in Cornwall. If she isn't by the sea then she would like to be.

Reviews

[Caroline · Rating 5 out of 5]

Totally engrossing! A young couple buy a farm in Cornwall to start a commune with a group of friends and live sustainably but then things take a turn for the worst….!
This is so gripping, I loved living their idyllic life on the farm then cringed as it all turned sour and then it went really dark and sinister! Absolutely loved it. A cracking thriller that was as thoroughly enjoyable as it is original!!

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very slow thriller and at times I thought it read more like a drama because of the lack of suspense. It wasn’t until the final quarter did the pace really ramp up and I enjoyed how Jennings manipulated the reader, making them feel as isolated as Tara and Dani.

To be honest, I don’t think the plot was overly original. Focusing on Tara, Kit and Jeremy, they decide to leave the trappings of mainstream living and purchase a farm on the remote Bodmin Moors. The dream? Living off-grid and being completely self-sustainable. With some other like-minded couples and friends, the trio hope to create their own utopia and approach this new way of life with hope and optimism.

However, from encounters with the locals who criticise their ‘free’ living and Jeremy’s sporadic trips away from the farm, life is not as free and happy as Tara was hoping. Caring for her daughter, Tara is very conscious that some conveniences, such as medicine and hot water, are something she isn’t prepared to completely remove from her life. After all, why be miserable in a more simplified lifestyle? Leading to clashes with enigmatic, self-appointed leader, Jeremy, Jennings slowly prepares readers for a happy ever after that goes disastrously wrong.

Jeremy’s influence over the group slowly grows. At first, he is looked at for guidance and is the main driving factor behind life at the farm. However, there is a darker side to his nature and he relies on the older members of the community to support some of his more radical beliefs. It is Tara who first resists Jeremy’s initial ideas, causing conflict between her husband and Kit, who are like brothers because they are so close. Towards the latter part of the novel, some of Jeremy’s beliefs are quite chilling and I was fascinated to see which characters would blindly accept his rules and who would stand up for themselves.

I enjoyed how the narrative switched between key characters: Tara, Kit (her husband) and Dani. Dani is a young girl of 14 whom Jeremy ‘saves’ from the streets of London. Her life is appalling and I found the descriptions of Dani’s home ‘pre-farm’ to be very sobering. However, Jeremy’s intentions are never fully revealed and I think Tara was right to suspect that he has another motive, especially when Emily is also brought to the farm and join the community. With these different perspectives, readers witness how the characters respond to their environment and Jeremy’s increasing guidance. It shows how this craved for utopia is not necessarily delivering on all levels.

I found this to be an interesting take on a type of ‘cult’ living. The closing comment about creating a utopia particularly resonated with me: a utopian paradise could be achieved, if it wasn’t for the humans within it. Different people have different values and ideals, so having an environment where everybody is completely happy is nigh impossible and doomed to fail. Perhaps a bit pessimistic, it certainly makes you want to try and make the best out of what you already have.

With thanks to HQ Digital and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Robert Intriago · Rating 3 out of 5]

I almost gave up on this book. The first half dealt with a group of idealistic people that decides to buy a farm. The story up to this point described the process that they go through to achieve their idea of utopia. I was getting absolutely bored reading about “hippies”, but I wanted to know why readers had given such a high mark to this book. The story does improve and it becomes interesting in the second half. A couple of the characters do invite your attention. Overall the second half of the book does not compensate for the boring first part.

[Ken · Rating 4 out of 5]

A first time read from this author, I definitely want to read more.

I like that the bulk of the novel takes place during 2002 as Kit and Tara want to escape the pressures of conventional life, the pair anlong with daughter Skye move into the remote Winterfall Farm - an isolated smallhold over the stunning Bodmin Moor.

This is very much in the vain of family drama, as the tension slowly builds.
The charismatic leader Jeremy's behaviour becomes erratic and as winter is fast approaching, the outside world seems so far away.

The characters are really interesting as the drama builds in a tense page turner.

[Thebooktrail · Rating 3 out of 5]

Get yourself to the Haven here

Ooh like The Beach but set on Bodmin Moor in Cornwall. There's some twisty characters here and in a remote setting, they are like bomb waiting to go off. The idyllic haven set up is as far from idyllic as it comes although no one knows it yet. Tense stuff!

[Liz Barnsley · Rating 4 out of 5]

A highly readable psychological drama from Amanda Jennings, full of intriguing characters and with a compelling central theme.

We've all dreamt at one time or another of living off the grid, away from the rat race- personally though I'm always thrust back into reality by the thought of not having my mobile phone or television- but the characters here actually gather an eclectic group of like minded people and give it a go. Unfortunately the ego of one will end in disaster for all...

The Cornish setting is beautifully described and the narrative is addictively clever. It is a vivid story full of both hope and the harsh light of reality, as things start to become darker the truth of human nature comes to the surface.

Really enjoyed it. It made me want to move to Cornwall...somewhere with signal though for sure. Just in case!

Recommended.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tara, Kit and Jeremy leave their mundane lives behind and purchase a farm on the remote Bodmin Moors. Their dream is to live off grid and be completely self sustainable. Along with other like minded couples and friends they hope to create their own utopia and approach this new way of life with hope and optimism.

Their new idyllic lifestyle brings many challenges and Jeremy assumes the role of leader, but it soon becomes apparent that their original aims differ greatly from Jeremy's vision and a darker more controlling side of his personality emerges with devastating consequences.

A gripping read that I would definitely recommend.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Pauline · Rating 4 out of 5]

A group of university friends decide that they don’t want to live the way their parents did and make plans to start a commune.
They move to a farm with some other like minded people and strive to be self sufficient and live off the land.
Life is hard but the are determined to make it work but not all the residents are in the same frame of mind.
This book had me hooked from the beginning and I really enjoyed it.
Thank you to NetGalley and HQ for my e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Tony Riches · Rating 5 out of 5]

I spent part of my childhood in Cornwall and remember visiting a remote farm for sale on Bodmin Moor. The appeal of the landscape was compelling, but the practicalities meant it was out of the question.

These same issues slowly become important to the small community who escape their bleak lives in the city, and escape to the country in their ‘haven’, at Winterfall Farm on Bodmin Moor.

I like the way Amanda Jennings switches point of view, with subtle shifts in writing style, to weave the experiences of different characters into the story.

After an idyllic start, one of the characters observes, ‘The trouble with Utopia is it looks ideal on paper, but when you add people it can never work. Each individual brings their own set of past experiences, their own hopes and expectations.’

This is the essence of The Haven, and I soon found I couldn’t put the book down as the pace increases from a leisurely amble to a brisk run, with an unexpectedly harrowing ending.

In her author’s note Amanda Jennings mentions that she wrote this book during the pandemic, and there were many times when she yearned to be living in an off-grid farm on Bodmin Moor. Those feelings shine through in her storytelling, to create a book I will remember for a long time.

Tony Riches

[Balthazarinblue · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 stars

This is the kind of gentle thriller, verging on family focused 'women's fiction', that makes for the perfect Sunday afternoon read. It was fast paced and interesting enough to keep me entertained but easy to put down and pick up while you're doing other things. It is one of those books that runs more on vibes than actual plot; there's a lot of creeping, insidious unease but only a few instances of actual bad shit going down. I was hoping for a more dramatic ending - it really felt like it was building to it - but after sleeping on it, I think the ending we got is pretty fitting for the story the author wanted to tell. If books were movies, The Haven would be a made-for-TV movie, back before Netflix was putting out actual blockbusters. I'll make a note to check out Amanda Jennings other books because honestly this kind of low action thriller is exactly what I need every now and then, and Jennings has a very readable style. I didn't even mind the chapters alternating POVs, which is usually a personal pet peeve.

[Anne Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve noticed that other early reviews of this book have focused almost entirely on the story after it moves to Winterfall Farm, but I’d just like to linger a little on the book’s earlier chapters – the family complexities that bring Kit and Tara together, Jeremy a significant other to their relationship. One of the author’s strengths has always been her exceptional characterisation – while the couple’s chosen lifestyle wasn’t something I found particularly easy to identify with, the emotional issues around their family relationships are never anything but searingly real, and at times acutely painful.

And that strength in characterisation is perhaps even more striking when the group – the blurb calls them “group of friends”, but their diversity and differing backgrounds makes it rather more complicated than that – take up the opportunity to live off-grid at the farmhouse on the wilds of Bodmin Moor. The relationships between them are fascinating, and Kit and Tara’s own relationship continues to play out and develop – with the added joy and complication of young daughter Skye, and the idyllic childhood their new lifestyle offers her – against the testing early days of self-sufficient and communal living.

The writing – always taut and spare, every word carefully chosen and loaded with meaning – moves from the excitement of their new adventure (and it’s joyful and rather wonderful in the summer sunshine – I was ready to don my rainbow clothing, tie ribbons on my dreads, and travel to join them) to the point where the tears in the fabric of their new lives begin to become evident. The whole idea of complete self-sufficiency is an intoxicating one – but it doesn’t prevent them craving a hot bath or a working heating system when the golden sunny days are over, or the availability of conventional medicine rather than the dubious contents of Mary’s cupboard in the kitchen.

At first, the equilibrium of the group is disturbed by the arrival of Dani – little more than a child, with a disturbing and emotional back story of her own of domestic violence and life on the streets – causing ripples and more than a touch of conflict. And then Jeremy’s behaviour becomes a cause of concern, when he begins to emerge – slowly and insidiously – as the collective’s leader, imposing his ideas on the group, his behaviour increasingly bizarre. There’s a steady and inexorable escalation in tension – palpable as it builds via a series of twists and turns to a stunning climax, followed by a calmer (and particularly satisfying) rounding off of the story in the present day.

The writing is, as always, quite wonderful. I very much liked the three voices who told the story – Tara and Dani in the first person, Kit in the third person so keeping you always a little removed from his thoughts and feelings. And there were other characters in the collective – every one of them a well-drawn individual – that I rather took to my heart. The setting is vividly detailed and recreated – as well as the descriptions the author unfailingly excels at, the book is filled with moments I felt I was part of. I also thought the story was perfectly paced – the paving of the way into the story, the brief idyll, then becoming increasingly claustrophobic as the tension and darkness builds and the cracks begin to appear.

In essence, the story is about the impossibility of creating Utopia – once you add people, and human nature comes into play, it’s doomed to failure. So you always rather know how the adventure is likely to end – but experiencing the steps along the way made this book a thoroughly compelling read, and I was entirely engaged throughout by the complexity of its characters and the emotional aspects of their journey. An unforgettable read – and one I’d highly recommend.

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5⭐️

well jeremy was a fucking psycho wasn’t he? i couldn’t help but roll my eyes when mary was trying to fix a dog bite with plants!!! you absolute rocket

[Tanya R · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am stunned with how much I loved this story!

I thought this was going to be simple story of a group of people who decide to live in a commune. That idea always appeals to me. A more simple life, growing your own food, stepping away from the craziness of the big cities. In theory, I really like the thought of this lifestyle.

Jennings did a wonderful job of starting the reader off with becoming empathetic for the main characters so that you are easily brought into the story and are rooting for them throughout the book. I was so happy as everything came together and the commune lifestyle was working for the group. Family found stories are always one of my favorite genres to read.

But then, everything goes sideways! There always has to be that one bad apple. The last 20% of this book had my heart racing and I actually had tears in my eyes at one point.

If you enjoy slow burn, psychological dramas, definitely pick up this 5 star read!

[Hattie · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5⭐️

[Caroline O'Sullivan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book.
The ideology of a space where one lives off grid and without hierarchy sounds good but unfortunately someone always seems to need to rise to the top snd instil their ideologies and hierarchies.
A very good read snd I’m looking forward to reading more by the author.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publishers HQ for a great read.

[Linda Hill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jeremy, Kit and Tara are starting a new idyllic life.

Amanda Jennings writes the sort of books that make your heart ache because she has the ability to convey the very souls of her characters and connect them to the reader’s so that they experience everything as intensely as if it were them participating in the action. And that action is perfectly depicted here so that I experienced a gamut of emotions from sadness to fear, and elation to rage as I read The Haven and found it totally mesmerising.

It was Tara with whom I felt the most affinity because she is so brilliantly portrayed through her first person strands, but all the characters in The Haven, from the most minor like the neighbouring farmer or Tara’s parents, to the most central like Tara, Dani, Kit and Jeremy are absolutely real and vivid. The Haven has a cast of flawed, messy, complicated human beings who illustrate every aspect of reality.

The rural Cornish setting is every bit as important as the characters, with the fables and superstitions of its history serving as portents and warnings for present lives. Cornwall shows benevolence and malevolence in its seasons and weather, so that through the Cornish setting Amanda Jennings steers her reader’s reactions and experiences of reading The Haven with utmost skill. The depth of research that must have gone in to The Haven, particularly with regard to alternative medicine and sustainable living, makes the narrative totally convincing. The Haven is one of those stories you can read without being anxious because you know the author will exceed every expectation in a beautifully written and meticulously plotted narrative that is moving as well as being entertaining.

The ebb and flow of off-grid country life at Winterfall is fascinatingly compelling. I loved the way Amanda Jennings illustrated the fine line between inspiration and insanity, between love and hate, and between friendship and enmity. What we see in The Haven is the elusiveness of genuine happiness. Indeed, it is during winter that the utopia begins to fall so that the setting is perfectly named.

The Haven is impossible to categorise. It’s partly a thriller, partly literary fiction, partly a psychological exploration of relationships and ideals, but however it might be described, The Haven is always gripping, immersive and completely entertaining. I thought it was wonderful and I loved it.

[BookMadLibrarian · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was meant to be paradise…

Winterfall farm stands over Bodmin Moor. It’s remote location is perfect for Jeremy, Kit and Tara, three friends who want to break away from the craziness of the world and create a safe place for them and a select group of friends. Tara and Kit want to raise their young daughter Skye to be a free spirit, living off the grid and being self-sufficient. At first, everything seems perfect. The group are focused on getting their homestead right. But when Jeremy returns from a trip to London with a young runaway, tensions quickly rise and Winterfall no longer appears to be the promised piece of paradise that its founders wished for.

The Haven is a suspense-filled story with a wonderful cast of eccentric and diverse personalities striving to create a utopian place in the world for themselves. A number of the characters are immediately likeable and you feel connected to them and their stories. Others, specifically Jeremy, are just downright creepy and unlikeable! As the self-imposed leader of the farm, Jeremy slowly develops a god-like complex; a budding cult leader. His fanatical ideas become more and more radical over time and this adds to the sense of tension throughout the story.

Full of interesting characters and drama, The Haven is an addictive read. I really enjoyed Jennings’ writing style. Thank you to NetGalley and publishers for the arc. The Haven is out now.

[Vivienne · Rating 4 out of 5]

My thanks to HQ for an eARC via NetGalley of ‘The Haven’ by Amanda Jennings in exchange for an honest review.

I found ‘The Haven’ more of a suspenseful family drama than a thriller. It focuses upon the lives of a group of university friends who decide to escape from the stresses of modern life and establish a commune in Cornwall.

In 2002 Kit and Tara along with their daughter, Skye, and a few close friends move to Winterfall Farm, an isolated smallholding on Bodmin Moor. Even though Kit’s trust fund had paid for the farm, his close friend Jeremy tends to assume the leadership of the group. They are living off-grid and working the land, despite little to no experience.

Everything goes well at first and then Jeremy returns from a trip to London with 14-year-old Danni, a young runaway. As the nights draw in, Jeremy’s behaviour becomes increasingly erratic. Rules are imposed, the outside world is increasingly shunned, and when he brings a second girl back to the farm, the situation quickly reaches a breaking point ….

The narrative viewpoint switches between a few key characters building up a picture of their varying responses to events. While ‘The Haven’ was quite a slow burn the tension did build up to an addictive level in its final chapters.

It was an interesting premise though I had hoped for a bit more about the spiritual side of their community. There was a Solstice celebration at a stone circle with a legend matching the Nine Maidens, though knowing how well known such sites are it’s hard to imagine them having the place to themselves for a party.

Overall, ‘The Haven’ was quite an interesting tale about an idealistic attempt to create a utopian community.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

[Abi Hall · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really didn’t know what to expect when I picked up this book except something dark and twisted and that’s exactly what I ended up with.
A university couple fall unexpectedly pregnant which changes there lives immediately. Both coming from less than loving families leads them to moving to Cornwall with their best friend to live an unconventional hippie lifestyle on Bodmin moor. The project starts successful but soon leads to problems which is shown through a dual narrative.
The book gives you a different perspective on how society can be perceived. The things the group stood for were all most likely true and morally better but the book shows how everyone and everything is flawed and a perfect lifestyle is never attainable. It shows how people can be manipulated unconsciously. Despite enjoying the narrative I felt as if the build up to what happens is too long but most likely necessary to make the end as dramatic as it is. I would have liked to read more about what happens after things go to pot as it only gives a small anecdote. It was a good read with a unique narrative which maybe I found a little hard to relate or connect to.

[Gemma · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an intriguing, psychological thriller that is sure to keep you hooked from start to finish. Each chapter is from one of three different points of view; Tara and Kit who are a couple and best friends with the 'leader' of the farm, and Dani who is a 14 yr old child who has escaped from an abusive home. At first everything seems perfect at the farm but soon Jeremy's leadership turns more into a dictatorship and things start to go from bad to worse. It is an intense and dramatic story with hints of horror within it as no one knows what Jeremy is capable of. It reaches an extreme climax with devastating consequences and you won't be able to put it down until it is finished.

* Thanks to Netgalley for a copy in exchange for an honest review *

[whatzoreads · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first Amanda Jennings and it won’t be my last. Totally absorbing read with a satisfying ending. This book only reinforces my own long held beliefs that I could not live without hot water in the depths of winter without going batshit crazy. In short will not be swapping suburbia for communal living on the moors anytime soon. However, as a catalyst for characters making mad moves and moody behaviour in the book it’s a solid four gold stars ⭐️

[Jonathan Chambers · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Haven in question is an off-grid commune-but-not-a-commune started by a young couple and their young daughter and a selection of friends - but, in typical fashion, utopia can’t exist when people are thrown into the equation. I can’t say I loved the story but I can admit it was well-written and did raise some interesting questions, particularly about the lengths some people will go to to try and preserve their vision of perfection.

[katie newbold · Rating 2 out of 5]

I won't include the plot as you can see it in other reviews earlier than mine.

This was so slow. So boring and so unrealistic. And just when it finally started to get going... It ended, in the most unrealistic way.

So disappointed, glad to have finished and won't be re reading...EVER

[Chrys · Rating 5 out of 5]

the most idealic communal lifestyle... until it's not.

[Miss HR · Rating 5 out of 5]

Couldn't put this book down was so good

[Jude · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars! Probably wouldn’t categorise The Haven as a thriller - it was very slow to get there, but I enjoyed it nonetheless! And it hasn’t put me off moving somewhere remote and being more self sufficient (although I probably won’t start a commune…)

[Karen Reed · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this book wasn’t 5 stars but kept me interested till the end 😊

[Tilly · Rating 4 out of 5]

4⭐️
-> honestly the pace was fairly fast and I was able to get through it fairly quickly
-> I did like the mix of povs and felt like we got opinions from lots of people although it was a bit confusing at times
-> the plot is really entertaining, tense and thrilling
-> there were moments of suspense, sadness and joy
-> I think the most tense moment could have been wrapped up slightly better but it was still good
-> I enjoyed it more than I thought I would, and I think it’s honestly such a great thriller (definitely unique and interesting to read)!

[Cat Jarvis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Slow build up but, I love most of the characters which made following their stories easy and enjoyable. The end was exhilarating, haven't felt this way about a book for a long time ❤️

[Belle · Rating 3 out of 5]

When Tara falls pregnant by Kit she drops out of university and they move into a depressing flat in Cowley. Kit soon also drops out too and gets a job in a timber yard. They are both estranged from their (horrible) parents and, apart from their daughter Skye, life is a bit rubbish. Kit has a slightly weird friend, Jeremy, who suggests establishing a commune in Cornwall using the money from Kit's trust fund. Kit agrees and they buy a run-down farmhouse which they share with various new-age types that Jeremy has rounded up. Despite Jeremy's insistence that they shouldn't have electricity, heating, or hot water, at first everything is wonderful, they grow an amazing crop in record time, they buy two goats that produce prodigious quantities of milk, and chickens that produce prodigious quantities of eggs. They make crowns of flowers, run through sunlit meadows, and feast on trifle and cake (all made using a woodburning range). Jeremy - who is getting progressively weirder and has developed a disturbing fondness for meditation and flowing robes - brings home a homeless fourteen year old,Dani, he has found in London. This causes a bit of friction but Tara takes Dani under her wing and things settle down.

Winter comes and Jeremy brings home another older stray, Emily, apparently as potential breeding stock because he thinks the commune/cult needs more children. As it gets colder Tara is less enthusiastic about the no hot water no heating thing, but goes along with it because Kit doesn't want to upset Jeremy. Meanwhile Jeremy is withholding dessert from anyone who misbehaves and suggesting they would all benefit from spending an hour a day in silence. No one pays much attention to Jeremy apart from mad herbalist, Mary. I won't spoil the ending other than to say that Jeremy fails miserably as a cult leader and the climax is a bit of an anti-climax.

This is easy to read and it isn't any worse than a lot of psychological thrillers (although the author does have a fondness for terrible metophors - 'her blood turned to curds and whey.' 'her discontent was like the pus from a boil that had been lanced.'). The main problem for me was the reliance on new age/cult cliches and stereotypes. It also left some important questions unanswered like why did Mary smother herself in flying balm? And why did no one tell Jeremy to get stuffed and switch on the boiler?