But then a lone car leaves the middle of town, the townsfolk lose sight of it before it reaches the end. For one to turn up on the outskirts of a small, rural, mountain town is hardly new. But mostly they focus on “What was the bear even doing here?” Bears are all over the Pacific Northwest. Now that’s definitely strange, yeah, as bears are usually more afraid of you than you are of them. Early on, there’s a hiker that gets mauled by a bear. And I’m not sure he did enough research on the setting before he dove right in. A small and isolated town in the mountains is a picture perfect backdrop for a grassroots conspiracy, but it has to actually feel like a small, mountain town in Washington. So when the curtain is pulled back late in the story-well, mind-blowing it was not. It was so obvious who was behind the conspiracy that I knew inside of the first few chapters. The main issues start around the halfway mark.

The tense and mysterious atmosphere that permeates the text through its 75% mark is nothing short of masterful, and provided me with more than enough reason to keep going even after things got a little… weird. The revelation that the townsfolk were losing their instincts due to something unknown was an interesting turn, if a bit confusing. Instinct contains a fairly interesting mystery, with a slow build that had me wrapt up through the first big reveal. Up to the 2/3 mark, I was quite invested. One that threatens not only Silvertown, but the world itself.

But as Whittaker continues to dig into the investigation, a conspiracy begins to take form. It seems as if many of the townsfolk-Mary included-have lost their survival instincts. Then a helicopter parent ditches her toddlers to have lunch with a complete stranger.įrom there, things… just get weirder. A few weeks later, a hiker terrified of animals dies after trying to hug a bear. Johnny Rogers, a certified homebody falls to his death after a spontaneous midnight hike. Most didn’t take the omen at face value.Īs the population of Silvertown begins to decline. A few of the more superstitious townsfolk still avoid her on the street and cast dirty looks as they mutter behind her back. Officer Mary Whittaker is the town’s latest resident, and was the 666th resident when she moved two months back. I honestly have no idea who wrote the official blurb. Welcome to Silvertown, Washington, population 665. Welcome to Silvertown, Washington, population 602. Many thanks to Skybound Books and NetGalley for the ARC! All opinions are my own. This in no way alters or affects my opinion. I was kindly provided with a review copy in exchange for an honest review.

Instinct jason hough