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Hidden Pictures by Jason Rekulak

"Mallory Quinn is a 21-year-old recovering addict who's been given a second chance. She's just landed a Summer job as a Nanny for an affluent family in a New Jersey suburb. Her charge, a five-year- old boy, Teddy, loves to draw and constantly gifts her pictures. At first, they're the usual childish images of sunny skies and happy people. When the pictures start to show a black-eyed, ghoulish woman, though, Mallory is both terrified and intrigued, wondering if somehow he's giving her pieces to a long unsolved murder that happened in the town more than forty years ago. This book was intense, gripping, and snagged me hook, line, and sinker from the first terrifying image of Anya. It was a roller coaster ride, and I loved it!" 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐⭐

Pros: The pacing was great, and the pictures, which I sometimes feel are kind of a cheat, were incredible at ratcheting up the tension and drawing you into the story. 

Cons: Sometimes it was hard to get an emotional read on the characters; you knew what they were feeling through dialogue, but Rekulak wasn’t big on showing it/Why are men so creepy in stories? I'd like to read a book where an older man isn't automatically attracted to a younger woman.

Full Review: 

Mallory Quinn is 21 years old, 1.5 years sober, and eager to start her new life. Her sponsor, Russel, has managed to land her an interview as a nanny for the Summer with a family in an affluent New Jersey suburb. 

Teddy, her charge, immediately adores her, as does his mother, Caroline. The father, Ted, is a harder case, but Mallory eventually wins him over. It all goes well until Teddy starts giving Mallory drawings. In the pictures, there's a terrifying, black-eyed woman always standing close by, hiding under the table, lurking in corners, always close by. Teddy says her name is Anya and that she speaks to him. 

It's unsettling to say the least, and when Mallory shows the pictures to his parents, they simply shrug it off and say most gifted children have an imaginary friend. 

When the pictures become more and more disturbing and seem to be pointing out possible clues of a long-ago "ghost story" and unsolved mystery of the murder of a woman named Annie Barrett, Mallory can't let it go. She starts digging into Annie Barrett's history, and as the pictures grow more and more detailed, she'll soon realize that she's opened up a can of worms that could very well cost her her life. 

This book had me, hook, line, and sinker from the first childish drawing of "Anya." I was properly terrified but also intrigued, and I just kept reading. I would've read the book all in one go if I didn't need to eat/sleep and work. Rekulak and his illustrators were phenomenal at piecing together the story of Anya and daring you to try and piece the mystery together as well. If you're looking for a truly disturbing mystery/thriller that will have you questioning everyone and everything, this book is for you. 

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