BOOK REVIEW | THE CARETAKER | MARCUS KLIEWER

 

BOOK REVIEW | THE CARETAKER | MARCUS KLIEWER

ABOUT THE BOOK

EXCITING OPPORTUNITY:
Caretaker urgently needed. Three days of work. Competitive pay. Serious applicants ONLY.

Macy Mullins can’t say why the job posting grabbed her attention―it had the pull of a fisherman’s lure, barbed hook and all―vaguely ominous. But after an endless string of failed job interviews, she's not exactly in the position to be picky. She has rent to pay, groceries to buy, and a younger sister to provide for.

Besides, it’s only three days’ work…

Three days, cooped up in a stranger’s house, surrounded by Oregon Coast wilderness.

What starts as a peculiar side gig soon becomes a waking nightmare. An incomprehensible evil may dwell on this property―and Macy Mullins might just be the only thing standing between it, and the rest of humanity.

Follow the Rites...

Follow the Rites...

Follow the Rites...

Review

The second book by Marcus Kliewer, The Caretaker sees our down and out protagonist, Macy take a job being a caretaker for an older gentleman in the more affluent area of Brookview. 

After attempting to get work in the traditional way, Macy answers an advert to look after David. Meeting his wife Grace, Macy soon finds that Grace should be reported and hung out to dry by the trade descriptions department as she describes that unfortunately Macy isn’t actually being a caretaker for Grace’s husband, because he died a while back. She explains that what she actually needs is someone to be a house sitter. And for doing this, she will pay Macy $9k for it. All she has to do is follow a complicated set of routines and that’s it. 

As you can guess, there’s a reason for the routines but not one we can repeat - coz spoilers! But suffice it to say things go horribly wrong.

The Caretaker is a masterclass in anxiety provoking fiction. Each time something happens, Kliewer imparts layers of upcoming dread until it is almost overwhelming to the reader. 

The story is a locationally contained story that occurs mainly in the house, but occasionally we have forays into the surrounding gardens around the property.

Characterwise, the story completely revolves around Macy with very little input from those around her. 

The plot is very simple and does not deviate from its trajectory. There are no side plots, no embellishments that come together. There is one simple premise - Follow The Rites. That’s it!

Throughout the tale, Kleiwer adds more and more suspense in an almost Hitchcockian manner until it becomes almost cloying in its immediacy. 

However, you need to be aware that you will leave the story with more questions than what you started with, and by the end of this compulsive tale you will be left with a bit of a head scratcher. 

If you enjoy unreliable narrators and stories that will leave you feeling that there could be a whole lot more. Perfect for fans of Paul Trembley.