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Borderliners #1
Borderliners
A girl is found dead in a notorious New Age shop on the edge of the woods.
A Tarot card reading is, left in Elena's house. Is it a warning?
A man is watching her from the shadows of his room.
After a young woman is found dead under suspicious circumstances, the village psychotherapist, Dr Elena Lewis, is left in possession of a diary. What she reads there leads her to the door of her neighbour, the leader of secretive local community known as the Charismatics. As she investigates further, Elena meets a visitor to the village, who has a message for her. But in order to decipher it, she must look beneath the surface and trust in her abilities to see what others cannot.
A speculative thriller, Borderliners questions our ability to distinguish between dreams and reality, and on our strength in the face of those who have the power to lead us to destruction.
A Tarot card reading is, left in Elena's house. Is it a warning?
A man is watching her from the shadows of his room.
After a young woman is found dead under suspicious circumstances, the village psychotherapist, Dr Elena Lewis, is left in possession of a diary. What she reads there leads her to the door of her neighbour, the leader of secretive local community known as the Charismatics. As she investigates further, Elena meets a visitor to the village, who has a message for her. But in order to decipher it, she must look beneath the surface and trust in her abilities to see what others cannot.
A speculative thriller, Borderliners questions our ability to distinguish between dreams and reality, and on our strength in the face of those who have the power to lead us to destruction.
332 pages, Paperback
First published January 11, 2014
5 people are currently reading
785 people want to read
About the author
Kirsten Arcadio
5 books22 followersKirsten Arcadio is a writer who is passionate about speculative fiction.
She has worked for over fifteen years in digital communications chasing her dream that everybody should be able to access services and content they need online.
When she’s not reading, writing, thinking about writing, or watching Sci Fi, she’s plate-spinning digital content projects for her clients.
She loves all things Italian, including her husband, and once taught English in the Italian senate.
She has worked for over fifteen years in digital communications chasing her dream that everybody should be able to access services and content they need online.
When she’s not reading, writing, thinking about writing, or watching Sci Fi, she’s plate-spinning digital content projects for her clients.
She loves all things Italian, including her husband, and once taught English in the Italian senate.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
kts
December 16, 2018Free on kindle!
UK - http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00IG45Q92...
US - http://www.amazon.com/Borderliners-Tr...
UK - http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00IG45Q92...
US - http://www.amazon.com/Borderliners-Tr...
March 12, 2014
Kirsten Arcadio's debut novel 'Borderliners' is about a psychotherapist who ventures into a small village in the British Midlands to set up a practice. Though the village seems small and quaint on the outside, what Elena discovers turns her world upside down. Starting off with a bang, Borderliners immediately pulls you into the dark world of the village Elena has set up her practice in, and it's with a sense of barely repressed fear and eagerness that one reads the whole book. The characters leap of the page, resonating with the reader at each turn. Elena has a very strong voice, and somewhere down the line, one cannot help discovering elements of Elena's character inside you which helps in understanding the motivation behind Elena's actions as she fights a bitter battle against the dark forces of the village.
While Elena is the stronghold of righteousness, Arcadio springs a surprise with the characters of Julia and Iain. Patrons of a shady community group called the 'Charismatics', Julia and Iain are the very definition of evil. Julia'a fearsome, manipulative character inspires fear in the heart of the reader, and paired with the perennially dark Iain, she wreaks havoc in the village, stopping Elena at every turn from delving into the cryptic mysteries of the community, and thereby discovering its dark secrets. The standoffs between Elena and Julia are well-crafted - definite page turners.
From the first chapter itself, Arcadio sets the scene well, enlightening the reader on the dark mood of the book, the impossibly grim task that lies ahead of Elena. Suicides, elements of the Occult, lyrical prose - all of these set Borderliners apart from your usual off the shelf thriller. Arcadio's remarkable grip on her characters and the description of events is what makes Borderliners a treat for readers of all genres. Literary fiction readers who generally avoid thrillers will lap this one up.
In addition to that, Arcadio is a gifted writer who practically keeps the reader on edge with suspense, and her element of surprise. Borderliners is a book that readers will read, and then reread. In other words, it is an unputdownable book that stays with you long after you've turned the final page.
While Elena is the stronghold of righteousness, Arcadio springs a surprise with the characters of Julia and Iain. Patrons of a shady community group called the 'Charismatics', Julia and Iain are the very definition of evil. Julia'a fearsome, manipulative character inspires fear in the heart of the reader, and paired with the perennially dark Iain, she wreaks havoc in the village, stopping Elena at every turn from delving into the cryptic mysteries of the community, and thereby discovering its dark secrets. The standoffs between Elena and Julia are well-crafted - definite page turners.
From the first chapter itself, Arcadio sets the scene well, enlightening the reader on the dark mood of the book, the impossibly grim task that lies ahead of Elena. Suicides, elements of the Occult, lyrical prose - all of these set Borderliners apart from your usual off the shelf thriller. Arcadio's remarkable grip on her characters and the description of events is what makes Borderliners a treat for readers of all genres. Literary fiction readers who generally avoid thrillers will lap this one up.
In addition to that, Arcadio is a gifted writer who practically keeps the reader on edge with suspense, and her element of surprise. Borderliners is a book that readers will read, and then reread. In other words, it is an unputdownable book that stays with you long after you've turned the final page.
March 14, 2014
A fast paced, lively, well-researched pysch thriller introducing Elena, a pyschotherapist in a sleepy village who gets suspicious over an increasing number of sucides and decides to dig deeper into a local cult despite the antagonism receives from her neighbours who lead this community. An interesting insight into the world of tarot and cults that keeps you turning the pages right until the twist at the end.
March 6, 2015
It’s late on a stormy night when Elena, the heroine of Kirsten Arcadio’s novel, Borderliners, sets out for an unexplained rendezvous with a woman at a barn. The barn turns out to be sort of a flea market selling New Age merchandise and the woman turns out to be dead, evidently by suicide by an overdoes of drugs. Why this woman wanted Elena to meet her, how she planned to be dead when Elena arrived, and the significance of the location of the body is never fully explained – ever.
Borderliners has potential, a psychologist relocates to a small village and when four of her patients, all involved with a cult-like Charismatic Community, commit suicide she decides to investigate. Unfortunately, this feasible storyline is hampered by poor writing.
Arcadios characters are thin and one dimensional. Julia, the antagonist and cult leader, is depicted as rude and nasty, her husband, Iain, is just plain weird and has bad breath. Yet they are somehow charismatic enough to attract dozens of followers to their movement. Some research into cults and charismatic leaders and how they attract, control and hold their members would have served the author well.
The plot is hampered long passages from a ‘dream journal’, extensive musings about the interpretation of Tarot cards, dialogue between characters about comparative religions, and info dumps of backstory that are unmotivated and unnecessary. Though some of this information is interesting and appears to be an area of expertise for the author it does little to advance the plot or develop character. Indeed, some chapters are of so little significance they could be eliminated altogether.
Important plot points, when they do occur, are convoluted and unbelievable. In one case the antagonist comes out of her house, which is next door to the protagonist’s, and proceeds to have a sensitive and revealing conversation on a cordless telephone in her front yard, which the protagonist just happens to hear.
Plot glitches confuse and frustrate the reader. Early in the story Elena, the heroine, describes her mother’s response when it is revealed her daughter is clairvoyant as follows:
This only sent my mother into even greater turmoil, and rather than stopping my treatment, she intensified it.
However, when this is discussed later in the story she says:
My mother, instead, had understood.
Small thing? Maybe but it goes to author credibility. As does this rationalization; though Elena’s home is burglarized, items are stolen, threats are received, and finally she is assaulted, she reports none of this to the police. When asked why she hasn’t reported these crimes, her response is “I don’t do police.”
The author describes actions that while are seemingly impossible are entertaining. Consider;
"I lunged over to put two fingers against her neck. No pulse. Dialing 999 with one hand, I wrenched open her mouth and shoved my ear down to her face. Nothing."
How do you punch numbers into a cell phone while wrenching open an unconscious person’s mouth with the other and at the same time “shoving” your ear down to her face?
Or, what exactly is being considered in this passage:
"I bit the top of my thumbnail off as I considered this, ripping a sliver of skin out from under it. I sighed. Although it was nearly lunchtime I wasn’t hungry. It was a long time since I’d felt much like eating anything for pleasure."
When hungry, does the character eat her thumbnails for pleasure?
Here’s my favorite. The character asks;
‘Let’s have a show of hands shall we? How many people from this community have taken their own lives in the last ten years or so?’
Much of writing is craft. Craft takes practice – lots of practice. The author and the work would have been better served by critiques from beta readers and the services of a good editor before rushing to publication.
I received this book free from Story Cartel in return for a honest review.
Borderliners has potential, a psychologist relocates to a small village and when four of her patients, all involved with a cult-like Charismatic Community, commit suicide she decides to investigate. Unfortunately, this feasible storyline is hampered by poor writing.
Arcadios characters are thin and one dimensional. Julia, the antagonist and cult leader, is depicted as rude and nasty, her husband, Iain, is just plain weird and has bad breath. Yet they are somehow charismatic enough to attract dozens of followers to their movement. Some research into cults and charismatic leaders and how they attract, control and hold their members would have served the author well.
The plot is hampered long passages from a ‘dream journal’, extensive musings about the interpretation of Tarot cards, dialogue between characters about comparative religions, and info dumps of backstory that are unmotivated and unnecessary. Though some of this information is interesting and appears to be an area of expertise for the author it does little to advance the plot or develop character. Indeed, some chapters are of so little significance they could be eliminated altogether.
Important plot points, when they do occur, are convoluted and unbelievable. In one case the antagonist comes out of her house, which is next door to the protagonist’s, and proceeds to have a sensitive and revealing conversation on a cordless telephone in her front yard, which the protagonist just happens to hear.
Plot glitches confuse and frustrate the reader. Early in the story Elena, the heroine, describes her mother’s response when it is revealed her daughter is clairvoyant as follows:
This only sent my mother into even greater turmoil, and rather than stopping my treatment, she intensified it.
However, when this is discussed later in the story she says:
My mother, instead, had understood.
Small thing? Maybe but it goes to author credibility. As does this rationalization; though Elena’s home is burglarized, items are stolen, threats are received, and finally she is assaulted, she reports none of this to the police. When asked why she hasn’t reported these crimes, her response is “I don’t do police.”
The author describes actions that while are seemingly impossible are entertaining. Consider;
"I lunged over to put two fingers against her neck. No pulse. Dialing 999 with one hand, I wrenched open her mouth and shoved my ear down to her face. Nothing."
How do you punch numbers into a cell phone while wrenching open an unconscious person’s mouth with the other and at the same time “shoving” your ear down to her face?
Or, what exactly is being considered in this passage:
"I bit the top of my thumbnail off as I considered this, ripping a sliver of skin out from under it. I sighed. Although it was nearly lunchtime I wasn’t hungry. It was a long time since I’d felt much like eating anything for pleasure."
When hungry, does the character eat her thumbnails for pleasure?
Here’s my favorite. The character asks;
‘Let’s have a show of hands shall we? How many people from this community have taken their own lives in the last ten years or so?’
Much of writing is craft. Craft takes practice – lots of practice. The author and the work would have been better served by critiques from beta readers and the services of a good editor before rushing to publication.
I received this book free from Story Cartel in return for a honest review.
March 11, 2014
This book starts out running, and keeps up the pace until the end. Elena is an intriguing character, you sense there are layers more to her character. The evil permeates through this village. I'm looking forward to the next book in the series as I miss Elena already!
May 1, 2016
This book was on my to read list for a while. My friend from good reads noticed a free link to download it as a e-book so I downloaded it. I enjoyed reading it. This is my first book by this author. It had a good story to it. I look forward to reading more books by this author.
March 1, 2019
Not quite what I expected.
July 28, 2019
Brilliant book! I would recommend it for sure!
March 24, 2014
I could not agree more with reviewer Rod Raglin.
Borderliners was simply a mess, with numerous plot points left unexplained. For example, Arcadio repeatedly referred to something dark in the history of her protagonist, Dr. Elena Lewis, but she never disclosed what that "something" was. As best I could determine, Dr. Lewis had a history of serious mental illness; if so, how did she ever become a licensed psychotherapist? At one point, Dr. Lewis "thought of [her] own secret weapon, which [she] kept hidden under the floorboards in [her] bedroom," yet she never used this weapon against the villains living next door. Dr. Lewis repeatedly experienced headaches at key moments; whether this was significant was never addressed.
Arcadio did not seem to know what kind of book she wanted Borderliners to be. Despite a plethora of supernatural elements, Borderliners was not a horror or fantasy book; the villains were ultimately taken down for their all-too-human behavior, and the mystery of the missing villagers and suicides was never resolved.
Arcadio's action sequences were ridiculous. As reviewer Raglin noted, she frequently placed her characters in impossible physical situations; here is one of my favorites:
According to Arcadio, who mentioned the fact constantly whether it had anything to do with what was happening at the time, Dr. Lewis was a skilled martial artist. Holding a second-degree black belt myself, I can say without doubt that her skills were, indeed, impressive, if she could punch a book out of someone's hand after it had already been thrown; "punch" that person with her leg; and strike the back of the neck of her assailant, who was facing her before falling to the ground. I won't even address the unlikelihood that a true martial artist would "chop" the back of someone's neck, rather than using a technique truly designed to incapacitate that person.
Arcadio also failed at continuity. At one point, the village council met at a pub, "outside [which] stood the landlady, a middle-aged woman with spiky black hair and tattooed arms with an Alsatian by her side. The dirty brown of her hair was the same colour as the deep and hostile furrows in her brow." Well, which color was her hair: black or brown? At the end of the meeting, however, Dr. Lewis began "[l]ooking around for the landlord," who "produced a bunch of keys from his apron." Which was the pub owner: female or male? Within the space of only eight sentences, one character "lit up a cigarette as [he] couldn't find [his] roll-ups," only to subsequently "jump[] and stub[] out [his] roll-up."
I regret the time I spent reading this book and strongly urge other readers to pass it by.
I received a free copy of Borderliners through Story Cartel in exchange for an honest review.
Borderliners was simply a mess, with numerous plot points left unexplained. For example, Arcadio repeatedly referred to something dark in the history of her protagonist, Dr. Elena Lewis, but she never disclosed what that "something" was. As best I could determine, Dr. Lewis had a history of serious mental illness; if so, how did she ever become a licensed psychotherapist? At one point, Dr. Lewis "thought of [her] own secret weapon, which [she] kept hidden under the floorboards in [her] bedroom," yet she never used this weapon against the villains living next door. Dr. Lewis repeatedly experienced headaches at key moments; whether this was significant was never addressed.
Arcadio did not seem to know what kind of book she wanted Borderliners to be. Despite a plethora of supernatural elements, Borderliners was not a horror or fantasy book; the villains were ultimately taken down for their all-too-human behavior, and the mystery of the missing villagers and suicides was never resolved.
Arcadio's action sequences were ridiculous. As reviewer Raglin noted, she frequently placed her characters in impossible physical situations; here is one of my favorites:
She was right behind me, holding a large book in her right hand . . . She aimed it at my jaw. A short whistling punctuated the air as the book flew towards me, but I was quick. I could see she hadn't been trained to fight and I punched the book out of her hand before twisting back and raising my right leg to kick her away. I screamed, a short aggressive sound, before following through. One punch and she was down. As she fell, I saw the surprise in her eyes, and I allowed myself a smirk before I jumped over where she was lying on the ground to pin her hands behind the back and deliver a final chop to the back of her neck.
According to Arcadio, who mentioned the fact constantly whether it had anything to do with what was happening at the time, Dr. Lewis was a skilled martial artist. Holding a second-degree black belt myself, I can say without doubt that her skills were, indeed, impressive, if she could punch a book out of someone's hand after it had already been thrown; "punch" that person with her leg; and strike the back of the neck of her assailant, who was facing her before falling to the ground. I won't even address the unlikelihood that a true martial artist would "chop" the back of someone's neck, rather than using a technique truly designed to incapacitate that person.
Arcadio also failed at continuity. At one point, the village council met at a pub, "outside [which] stood the landlady, a middle-aged woman with spiky black hair and tattooed arms with an Alsatian by her side. The dirty brown of her hair was the same colour as the deep and hostile furrows in her brow." Well, which color was her hair: black or brown? At the end of the meeting, however, Dr. Lewis began "[l]ooking around for the landlord," who "produced a bunch of keys from his apron." Which was the pub owner: female or male? Within the space of only eight sentences, one character "lit up a cigarette as [he] couldn't find [his] roll-ups," only to subsequently "jump[] and stub[] out [his] roll-up."
I regret the time I spent reading this book and strongly urge other readers to pass it by.
I received a free copy of Borderliners through Story Cartel in exchange for an honest review.
March 8, 2014
I received this book via Story Cartel to give an honest review. 3 1/2 star rating.
It started off to be a good book, but I eventually got lost especially towards the end. I had to read the last chapter twice to understand what was going on. It is a very good psychological thriller but I felt as thought it was lacking a bit on information. This book kind of reminded me of The Village by M. Night Shyamlan. You have this village but all is not what is seems and when you get to the end after being completely worked up with the story you felt let down only because you really didn't understand.
Example, Elena and Vince are in the woods investigating, after they found what they needed why not call the police? Instead I want to say they wait a day, then something happens but no one is never called? You knew what they were doing but yet you didn't do anything? I felt this was more of a mind thriller one of those books that will make you want to go back to re-read because you will probably find more information that you may have missed. Which I plan on doing once I have the time.
Story line: Good, keeps you engaged within the story to find out who exactly is the Charismatic Community and what exactly is they stand for. But lacks the action of the community being found out.
Characters: Elena- well she is a psychotherapist who came from a background of being put into a mental hospital pretty much. But she overcame it all and started her own practice to help others. She has a way of helping those that need her in a good way and without all the shock therapy.
Vince- Not sure about him. He seemed to like Elena but then he put up the vibes that he didn't. It was really confusing. He did seem to want to help her bring down the Charismatic Community.
Julia and her husband- they are their own people. They are the founders of the Community within the village and they say they are "help" people but are they really? Julia has a bit of mean streak within her and you can see it when you read.
The way the story seemed to leave off I hope that there is another book? Or at least a novella to where we get answers for things.
I do plan on reading more by this author, only because I want to see what else she has to give us readers. I hate to do this but since I was kind of confused at times with the story I have to give this book a three and a half! Now my review may change again once I read this book again.
It started off to be a good book, but I eventually got lost especially towards the end. I had to read the last chapter twice to understand what was going on. It is a very good psychological thriller but I felt as thought it was lacking a bit on information. This book kind of reminded me of The Village by M. Night Shyamlan. You have this village but all is not what is seems and when you get to the end after being completely worked up with the story you felt let down only because you really didn't understand.
Example, Elena and Vince are in the woods investigating, after they found what they needed why not call the police? Instead I want to say they wait a day, then something happens but no one is never called? You knew what they were doing but yet you didn't do anything? I felt this was more of a mind thriller one of those books that will make you want to go back to re-read because you will probably find more information that you may have missed. Which I plan on doing once I have the time.
Story line: Good, keeps you engaged within the story to find out who exactly is the Charismatic Community and what exactly is they stand for. But lacks the action of the community being found out.
Characters: Elena- well she is a psychotherapist who came from a background of being put into a mental hospital pretty much. But she overcame it all and started her own practice to help others. She has a way of helping those that need her in a good way and without all the shock therapy.
Vince- Not sure about him. He seemed to like Elena but then he put up the vibes that he didn't. It was really confusing. He did seem to want to help her bring down the Charismatic Community.
Julia and her husband- they are their own people. They are the founders of the Community within the village and they say they are "help" people but are they really? Julia has a bit of mean streak within her and you can see it when you read.
The way the story seemed to leave off I hope that there is another book? Or at least a novella to where we get answers for things.
I do plan on reading more by this author, only because I want to see what else she has to give us readers. I hate to do this but since I was kind of confused at times with the story I have to give this book a three and a half! Now my review may change again once I read this book again.
March 29, 2016
I know there were only good reviews of this book, one of the reasons I took a punt at it, but for me it just didn't work. There was no flow, story seemed to jump around and I gave up at the point where Elena having been invited round to her neighbours house for a social event ends up being 'forced' to take a bath by the neighbours.
Just to weird for me
Just to weird for me
July 11, 2014
A speculative thriller with occult and supernatural undertones.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews