What do you think?
Rate this book
The Seeker
When graduate student Aine Cahill uncovers a journal proving that her aunt Bonnie was an intimate companion of Henry David Thoreau’s during his supposedly solitary sojourn at Walden Pond, she knows that she has found the perfect subject for her dissertation.
She decides to travel to Walden Pond herself to hunker down and work on her writing, but it quickly becomes clear that all is not as it seems in Thoreau’s woodland retreat. The further Aine delves into Bonnie’s diary the more she finds herself wondering about her family’s sinister legacy and even her own sanity—is there really a young girl lurking in the woods?
As tragedy strikes a nearby town and suspicion falls on Aine, she scrambles to find the truth behind Thoreau’s paradise.
She decides to travel to Walden Pond herself to hunker down and work on her writing, but it quickly becomes clear that all is not as it seems in Thoreau’s woodland retreat. The further Aine delves into Bonnie’s diary the more she finds herself wondering about her family’s sinister legacy and even her own sanity—is there really a young girl lurking in the woods?
As tragedy strikes a nearby town and suspicion falls on Aine, she scrambles to find the truth behind Thoreau’s paradise.
352 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2014
14 people are currently reading
810 people want to read
About the author
R.B. Chesterton
4 books45 followersHumorous mystery author Carolyn Haines creates darker novels under her pen name of R.B. Chesterton.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 72 reviews
April 27, 2014
Is there a sequel? Hated the ending. With this book again, the author leaves more questions than closure, more questions than answers. Liked it, just didn't love it.
March 6, 2014
This book was interesting, but I felt that I was pulled along more by wanting to know what was happening than by any interest in the characters or their lives. I also didn't appreciate the cliffhanger, which happened after nothing was resolved.
May 3, 2014
Title - The Seeker
Author - R B Chesterton
Genre - Horror
Story Summary -
Graduate student Aine Cahill is working on her dissertation at Walden Pond on Henry David Thoreau. Having uncovered documents that lead her to believe that Thoreau did not spend his time at Walden Pond alone but instead in the company of a woman, her own aunt Bonnie, Aine believes she has found the perfect subject for her writing.
But Aine has a history of poor decisions and her family history is a burden she is carrying heavily. Drugs and death followed the Cahills and Aine was determined to break that cycle.
"...At fourteen, I left Kentucky on a Greyhound bus. With Granny's help and an education, I would defy my DNA. I would lead a happy, normal life. I, Aine Cahill, would be the exception to the Cahill Curse..."
But Aine has secrets of her own. A history of violence and pain. As she digs deeper into her aunt's and Thoreau's clandestine affair, she cannot help but see parallels between them and the affair she is beginning herself with the Park Ranger, Joe Sinclair. The Ranger who has his own demons. A destroyed past, a teaching career gone, a fiancé gone, a dead mother and a little blonde haired child who disappeared in the woods one day to never be seen again. A little girl that many suspect Joe of taking.
Yet it is not only the dark secrets of Joe and Aine that they need to fear but the darkness of Walden Pond itself. Of Aine's hidden gift of communicating with the dead and the doors she will open up as her aunt Bonnie had done before her. Of the little blond girl who walks the woods. The dead child who haunts Walden Pond.
Review -
After reading the Darkling by Chesterton I was eagerly looking forward to The Seeker. But where the Darkling had true moments of fear in it, the Seeker moves too slowly and never gains the momentum that would hold a reader with fear.
It is a good story and actually far more involved than is delved into here. Aine's past is a contradiction of memories and falsehoods. Are the Cahill's really cursed or is it her own madness that has recreated a false reality around her?
The character of the little blond ghost is extremely well done and at times frightening, but you never get a true sense of who she is and why she is there. What exactly is the Cahill curse and will Aine ever escape it? The ending left too much up in the air on that note.
A good book that needed to be re-visited and fleshed out some more to make it a really good book.
Author - R B Chesterton
Genre - Horror
Story Summary -
Graduate student Aine Cahill is working on her dissertation at Walden Pond on Henry David Thoreau. Having uncovered documents that lead her to believe that Thoreau did not spend his time at Walden Pond alone but instead in the company of a woman, her own aunt Bonnie, Aine believes she has found the perfect subject for her writing.
But Aine has a history of poor decisions and her family history is a burden she is carrying heavily. Drugs and death followed the Cahills and Aine was determined to break that cycle.
"...At fourteen, I left Kentucky on a Greyhound bus. With Granny's help and an education, I would defy my DNA. I would lead a happy, normal life. I, Aine Cahill, would be the exception to the Cahill Curse..."
But Aine has secrets of her own. A history of violence and pain. As she digs deeper into her aunt's and Thoreau's clandestine affair, she cannot help but see parallels between them and the affair she is beginning herself with the Park Ranger, Joe Sinclair. The Ranger who has his own demons. A destroyed past, a teaching career gone, a fiancé gone, a dead mother and a little blonde haired child who disappeared in the woods one day to never be seen again. A little girl that many suspect Joe of taking.
Yet it is not only the dark secrets of Joe and Aine that they need to fear but the darkness of Walden Pond itself. Of Aine's hidden gift of communicating with the dead and the doors she will open up as her aunt Bonnie had done before her. Of the little blond girl who walks the woods. The dead child who haunts Walden Pond.
Review -
After reading the Darkling by Chesterton I was eagerly looking forward to The Seeker. But where the Darkling had true moments of fear in it, the Seeker moves too slowly and never gains the momentum that would hold a reader with fear.
It is a good story and actually far more involved than is delved into here. Aine's past is a contradiction of memories and falsehoods. Are the Cahill's really cursed or is it her own madness that has recreated a false reality around her?
The character of the little blond ghost is extremely well done and at times frightening, but you never get a true sense of who she is and why she is there. What exactly is the Cahill curse and will Aine ever escape it? The ending left too much up in the air on that note.
A good book that needed to be re-visited and fleshed out some more to make it a really good book.
January 27, 2014
I was only going to give this book two stars... until I got about three quarters of the way through when it started to REALLY pick up. The thing I was most annoyed with was the that there was so much going on that did not seem to connect. A love triangle, a touch of supernatural, a family curse, mystery, Thoreau, murder--and that's not even the half of it--all in a 300-page novel. However, R. B. Chesterton (a.k.a. Carolyn Haines) really did a nice job of tying everything in at the end.
Also, I was not a big fan of the main character, Aine Cahill. I found her pretentious.
Also, I was not a big fan of the main character, Aine Cahill. I found her pretentious.
May 5, 2014
Okay, if you like paranormal reading. A lot of twists and turns. For me, an unsatisfactory ending.
November 16, 2015
Overall, this book was disappointing. It started out strong, and I was intrigued by the premise. I loved the idea of a journal that showed Thoreau had someone else with him at Walden Pond, and I especially loved that the heroine had risen from such a difficult background to achieve what she had. Unfortunately, things started going south somewhere around the halfway point. My sympathy for the heroine began to wane about the time she had sex with a teenage boy. Yes, he was nineteen, and yes he came after her, and yes he seemed to understand the game. But...big BUT...he was nineteen and she was twenty-eight and that nine-year difference can better be represented in dog years. Not to mention that she was already involved in a sexual relationship with the man she really cared about. To jump into bed with a teenager because she was hurt and lonely was so not OK. Especially given Patrick's subsequent obsession with her--which any thinking adult could have anticipated--and his statement that made it seem like he'd been a virgin at the time. Maybe the author was trying to make a point about the Cahill clan always making bad decisions, but this decision didn't hurt the heroine as much as it did a young man she should have cared for enough to turn away.
More importantly, I didn't think the story arc was all it could have been. There was too much recapping of information that had already been presented. It seemed like the author told us 150 times that Aine was from Kentucky, that her family was cursed, that they sold hillbilly heroine, that her granny got her out of there, etc., over and over. By contrast, information that should have been presented was withheld until far too late in the story (I'm sorry, she was accused of what toward her little brother? How does that not warrant a mention before the final act of the story?) I understand that Aine was an unreliable narrator (actually, she was a certifiable narrator) but why keep presenting the same information over and over? And at such odd times. At one point, Aine is in the middle of a haunting episode and starts thinking about how Thoreau should have married her aunt. Really? Is that what you're thinking as a malevolent spirit tries to destroy you and everyone you love? Then came the end of the story when the author seemed to be pointing the reader to the conclusion that Aine, rather than the victim of a haunting, was the delusional victim of severe mental illness, leaving me to wonder why I spent so much time listening to the story.
Nor did I think the writing quality was all it could have been. I understand that this is not an offering from a major publishing house, but surely there's someone there who knows what "belie" means? "But the dread that wedged heavy in my breast belied my fears." Yeah, no. There were also numerous problems with verb tenses. Why authors struggle with this, I will never understand. How can writers be so uninformed about their own language? Regardless, sentences that should have been in past progressive or past perfect were in simple past. Annoying. And not the sort of thing I want to encounter in the books I read. Unfortunately, the audio recording was not great either. The narrator's southern accent seemed to come and go, and there was one section of the book where it seemed like every other sentence was re-dubbed, making for an irritating listening experience.
Overall, this book had potential, and I was intrigued enough by Aine's story to stick with it, but it could have been much better. The cliffhanger ending would seem to indicate that there will be a sequel, but I'm sure I will have forgotten about this book long before the next one comes out.
More importantly, I didn't think the story arc was all it could have been. There was too much recapping of information that had already been presented. It seemed like the author told us 150 times that Aine was from Kentucky, that her family was cursed, that they sold hillbilly heroine, that her granny got her out of there, etc., over and over. By contrast, information that should have been presented was withheld until far too late in the story (I'm sorry, she was accused of what toward her little brother? How does that not warrant a mention before the final act of the story?) I understand that Aine was an unreliable narrator (actually, she was a certifiable narrator) but why keep presenting the same information over and over? And at such odd times. At one point, Aine is in the middle of a haunting episode and starts thinking about how Thoreau should have married her aunt. Really? Is that what you're thinking as a malevolent spirit tries to destroy you and everyone you love? Then came the end of the story when the author seemed to be pointing the reader to the conclusion that Aine, rather than the victim of a haunting, was the delusional victim of severe mental illness, leaving me to wonder why I spent so much time listening to the story.
Nor did I think the writing quality was all it could have been. I understand that this is not an offering from a major publishing house, but surely there's someone there who knows what "belie" means? "But the dread that wedged heavy in my breast belied my fears." Yeah, no. There were also numerous problems with verb tenses. Why authors struggle with this, I will never understand. How can writers be so uninformed about their own language? Regardless, sentences that should have been in past progressive or past perfect were in simple past. Annoying. And not the sort of thing I want to encounter in the books I read. Unfortunately, the audio recording was not great either. The narrator's southern accent seemed to come and go, and there was one section of the book where it seemed like every other sentence was re-dubbed, making for an irritating listening experience.
Overall, this book had potential, and I was intrigued enough by Aine's story to stick with it, but it could have been much better. The cliffhanger ending would seem to indicate that there will be a sequel, but I'm sure I will have forgotten about this book long before the next one comes out.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 12, 2016
I picked up this book because of its compelling premise; that Henry David Thoreau was not really alone at Walden Pond, but rather holed up in a cabin love nest with his mistress. (!) For a former English major forced to endure many hours of examination of Walden Pond’s themes, this is a titillating idea; one that could potentially breathe new life into old, tired analysis. Sadly, however, The Seeker is more of a supernatural mystery than any sort of in depth study of what could have been an incredibly interesting historical and literary theory. Author Carolyn Haines, writing under the pseudonym R.B. Chesterton, illustrates her writing skill through her depiction of Aine, the possibly unreliable narrator at the heart of what turns out to be a very creepy story about personal demons, past transgressions, and how often a family legacy is more like a curse. She is a good writer, and does a great job of creating characters that seem more than two dimensional, but it was actually the genealogical aspects of this book that I found the most interesting, along with the original stated premise; which turned out to be a more minor aspect, there to drive the mystery story plot more than anything else. The supernatural elements of this story were pretty stock; nothing to make me really stand up and take notice. Because of this, I found myself losing interest halfway through the book, and it was a struggle to finish it. I did, however; and was not rewarded with an answer to the mystery, but rather an open ended conclusion that wasn’t really a conclusion at all. The ending of The Seeker closes with more questions, and not many satisfying answers; leaving the reader an unwitting namesake for the title itself.
February 25, 2014
Original review can be found at http://kristineandterri.blogspot.ca/2...
* I received an advanced readers copy of this book from the publisher via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.*
My feelings were mixed when it came to this book. It started out quite slow but at the same time it was extremely busy. There were so many different plot points that it was hard to keep it all straight and determine what the book was actually about. There was the Cahill curse, the Bonnie and Thoreau connection, murder and a paranormal twist. It made it difficult to follow along and I found myself skimming paragraphs on numerous occassions. The story didn't really start to pick up until around the 70% mark for me. The characters in the book I could take or leave. I didn't fully connect with any of them. The story leaves you hanging at the end which indicates a sequel but I'm not to sure that I am interested in reading the rest. Having said that, I probably will because I always feel the need to know how a story ends.
The sentences were well written with beautifully descriptive phrasing but it was the story itself that fell a little bit short. I am guessing that perhaps the next book will be a little more exciting as the ending of The Seeker held my interest more than the rest of it.
* I received an advanced readers copy of this book from the publisher via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.*
My feelings were mixed when it came to this book. It started out quite slow but at the same time it was extremely busy. There were so many different plot points that it was hard to keep it all straight and determine what the book was actually about. There was the Cahill curse, the Bonnie and Thoreau connection, murder and a paranormal twist. It made it difficult to follow along and I found myself skimming paragraphs on numerous occassions. The story didn't really start to pick up until around the 70% mark for me. The characters in the book I could take or leave. I didn't fully connect with any of them. The story leaves you hanging at the end which indicates a sequel but I'm not to sure that I am interested in reading the rest. Having said that, I probably will because I always feel the need to know how a story ends.
The sentences were well written with beautifully descriptive phrasing but it was the story itself that fell a little bit short. I am guessing that perhaps the next book will be a little more exciting as the ending of The Seeker held my interest more than the rest of it.
June 30, 2014
I love the premise of The Seeker: a graduate student (Aine Cahill) looks to turn history on its ear by exposing the "truth" about Thoreau's ostensibly solitary time spent on Walden Pond. The idea that she--and she alone--has the secret diary of the the woman who might have been Thoreau's companion and lover lends an immediate intensity to the tale. Chesteron (Carolyn Haines) takes southern gothic literary tradition back to its Yankee roots, painting Walden Pond as not just a pastoral, inspiring place, but as a dark keeper of secrets both criminal and supernatural. The story has such an aura of romance (literary, not sexual, though there is some quite steamy sex here!), one finds oneself not quite prepared for how terrifying the story becomes. It begins with a classic gothic scenario: small footprints and a mysterious young girl who may or may not be a ghost. There's even a Barbie doll (dolls are a theme--watch out for them). But as the bodies begin to pile up, and Aine Cahill is drawn more deeply into the harrowing world of the diary, the story seems to turn inside out, and we're compelled to follow, eyes wide and shoulders tense, half-afraid but ready for what writer Mark Haddon describes as "a glimpse into that outer darkness." Believe Cahill, or don't--but trust Chesterton to take you on a surreal, darkly satisfying journey to the very boundaries of imagination.
March 18, 2015
This author, R.B.Chesterton, is writing under a pseudonym, and is actually a long time favorite author of mine, Carolyn Haines. She writes a fun series, the "Sarah Booth Delaney" series; Sarah is a modern southern belle and a private detective, who is assisted by the ghost of her great-great-grandmother's nanny. I enjoy the series, but my favorites have been some of Haines stand-alone books, such as Penumbra and Revenant. So I was excited to see that this book was actually written by this author. But this book was a great disappointment. Haines usual great crafting of sentences is there, her skill with language, but the story is so disjointed that I almost gave up before finishing. And the major character jumps from being adamant about a plan, action, or impression, to being adamant about just the opposite, to the point that I became quite exasperated with her. I hope Haines future writing demonstrates her usual well-developed plot and characters that, if not engaging, are at least believable. The cliffhanger ending may indicate a sequel, but it wouldn't be worth the time if the writing is like this one.
September 25, 2014
Aine Cahill, a doctoral candidate, rents a cabin in Concord, MA, to write her dissertation on Thoreau. However, she quickly encounters mysterious events and ghostly appearances, which relate not only to her research but to a family curse she has long sought to escape. As events spiral out of control, and people around her start dying, Aine is pulled further and further into a haunting madness—is she going insane, or is there really a vindictive spirit intent on destroying her life?
This was a taut thriller that I read in about a day and half. The main character is complex and well-conceived, the atmospheric setting is palpable, and the plot continues to draw in the reader like a fisherman reeling in a prize catch—not a scene is wasted. Even the writing itself is beautiful and complex, and fits well Aine’s first-person voice. The only mark against this book is the shockingly abrupt ending, which may suggest an intended sequel (a practice I detest), but which was so abrupt that I felt the author owed us some explanation. Is there a sequel planned, or does the story just end in climax without dénouement? The end of the book gives no indication; hence my withholding of the fifth star. The ending aside, however, this is a book well worth a read.
This was a taut thriller that I read in about a day and half. The main character is complex and well-conceived, the atmospheric setting is palpable, and the plot continues to draw in the reader like a fisherman reeling in a prize catch—not a scene is wasted. Even the writing itself is beautiful and complex, and fits well Aine’s first-person voice. The only mark against this book is the shockingly abrupt ending, which may suggest an intended sequel (a practice I detest), but which was so abrupt that I felt the author owed us some explanation. Is there a sequel planned, or does the story just end in climax without dénouement? The end of the book gives no indication; hence my withholding of the fifth star. The ending aside, however, this is a book well worth a read.
January 15, 2021
Still Seeking a Proper Ending!!
The premise of this story was top notch. The execution was okay, but the author repeated information too often and I found myself wanting to skip ahead. And then there is the ending...or lack of ending! I'm not a person who needs a Hollywood ending with everything wrapped up in a bow, but the ending to this book was non-existent. Nothing was truly answered and it was as if the author was either flummoxed on how to end the story or was trying to set it up for there to be a sequel. If she was setting it up to be a sequel, The Seeker wasn't gripping enough for me to want to find out how the main character's life moves forward.
The premise of this story was top notch. The execution was okay, but the author repeated information too often and I found myself wanting to skip ahead. And then there is the ending...or lack of ending! I'm not a person who needs a Hollywood ending with everything wrapped up in a bow, but the ending to this book was non-existent. Nothing was truly answered and it was as if the author was either flummoxed on how to end the story or was trying to set it up for there to be a sequel. If she was setting it up to be a sequel, The Seeker wasn't gripping enough for me to want to find out how the main character's life moves forward.
November 1, 2014
The Seeker was an easy read and one that you just did not want to put down. Unfortunately I did not like the ending. It left me with too many unanswered questions. Maybe there will be another book to continue the story.
May 5, 2014
This was a book I received in a giveaway. I really enjoyed the premise and storyline with the exception of I felt it was drawn out with irrelevant details that did not add to the story.
March 26, 2014
Loved book until the last page
May 9, 2014
It started promising, but then it became very boring and frustrating. I kept reading hoping it would get better, or that at leas I would know what happened. At the end, there is really no resolution.
October 11, 2016
This book started out alright. The ending ( if you can call it that) left you asking what just happened?
January 21, 2019
Okay-ish at the start, I found that the story quickly became repetitive about the drive for the main character. Additionally I found that numbers scenes dropped off in the middle like they were half written and that the ending felt like it was less than half done, like it was thrown in as an after thought. Even the supernatural elements of the story (which had drawn me in to reading the book in the first place) seemed like they were just stuck in there for the sake that the writer said it was a supernatural tale.
That being said there were some well written passages but none of them seemed to relate to the story as a whole which was upsetting.
While this was a bit upsetting but I would be interested in reading something else from the author...maybe it will be fun.
That being said there were some well written passages but none of them seemed to relate to the story as a whole which was upsetting.
While this was a bit upsetting but I would be interested in reading something else from the author...maybe it will be fun.
April 20, 2019
An odd, somewhat strange read. It was easy to get lost and confused with that the main character was talking about, and for some reason I couldn’t picture the setting - she walked everywhere so I imagined everything was close by, but next thing you know there’s a great distance between the cabin and inn, or the inn and Walden Pond. There were conflicting things about Aine that I just couldn’t get over, mainly: “I spent too much on office supplies to I don’t want to splurge and buy a coffee and a donut... OH but let me rent a car for a day, then simply “not feel like” returning it on time so charge me the extra day.”
Overall, a good, spooky read. But just “good.”
Overall, a good, spooky read. But just “good.”
August 1, 2017
I wanted to love this book. Picked it up at the bargain section of my local bookstore and was instantly drawn to the plot line. While reading, I was hooked - it was a page turner that I couldn't put down and then... it ended, and when I mean ended. I literally mean ends. That's it. No wrap up. No satisfaction. It. just. stops. I honest to god though I was missing the last chapter in my copy or something.
This is by far one of the only books I feel like I completely wasted my time on.
This is by far one of the only books I feel like I completely wasted my time on.
December 29, 2018
I liked the premise, then I read the last page. As a licensed mental health therapist, the suggestions that Aine was delusional is laughable-if the author had googled symptoms of psychosis she would have been more accurate. Maybe the author became as bored as I did with all the redundancy and just stopped writing. Waste of my time.
June 5, 2017
Aine Cahill is at Walden's Pond to complete her doctoral thesis on Thoreau and a possible relationship with her great-great aunt. She also tries to avoid the family curse. Suddenly several murders occur that are connected to a girl that has been missing for a decade. Is Aine going mad?
September 19, 2022
Nice and atmospheric. The underlying idea of Thoreau's biggest claim to having lived in solitude at Walden to be refuted by a found journal was brilliant. Unfortunately, while entertaining some of the plot was hardly believable nor explained well.
August 30, 2018
Super scary, but wondering if there will be a sequel. I feel like there wasn't really a resolution and want to know what happens next.
June 20, 2019
This author spun a frightening tale, makes you afraid of things that go bump in the night!
Even though I don't ordinarily enjoy scary tales, I did this one
Even though I don't ordinarily enjoy scary tales, I did this one
January 12, 2020
Terrible cliffhanger ending. Really should be considered horror genre.
July 1, 2020
The story kept my attention, however the ending didn't tie up the loose ends. There really needs to be a sequel.
July 4, 2020
I liked the premise of the book, but the main character felt too inconsistent, and the ending didn't really feel like an ending.
July 22, 2021
I loved the story, every goosebump-filled minute. But the ending was too abrupt and nothing was resolved. Was really hoping for a sequel!
April 21, 2022
I really enjoyed this. Ghost story/mystery about a young woman doing her dissertation on Thoreau, from the angle that his life may not have been solitary. With the ending, I suspect a #2
Displaying 1 - 30 of 72 reviews