The Darkness Within Ourselves

The Darkness Series, Book 1

De: Jessica Huntley

Narrado por: Candace Fitzgerald

Running and hiding won’t save you because The Darkness lives within … and it will never stop hunting you.

Amber and her four best friends are about to reach their teenage years when the unthinkable happens; one of her friends, Kieran, is killed in a freak accident.

Twenty years later, Amber no longer speaks to her friends and is still haunted by that day in the form of severe psychological issues, including sleep paralysis, insomnia and hallucinations of a terrifying entity she calls The Creature. But it isn’t just in her head; it is real.

Unbeknown to Amber, her former friends have also been suffering from their own psychological nightmares, each trapped and twisted into people they no longer recognise. Then a piece of evidence is found from that day and Amber and her former friends are forced to relive the events leading up to Kieran's death, learning truths along the way that they would rather not know about themselves.

Can they work together to rid themselves of their demons and find out what really happened to Kieran all those years ago?

The Darkness Within Ourselves is the first book in "The Darkness Series", a gripping psychological thriller series that is guaranteed to keep you awake at night. If you like fast-paced thrillers with dark twists and themes of mental health then you’ll love this terrifying story of psychological disorders by author Jessica Huntley.

** Winner of the Editor's Choice Award in the BookShelf Fiction Awards 2023**

TRIGGER WARNINGS: Mental health issues (severe depression, agoraphobia, suicide), loss of a child (stillbirth), domestic violence, death.

©2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 Jessica Huntley (P)2024 Jessica Huntley

Gripping

This was a fantastic audio book, with great narration! One mistake as a teenager haunts not only you, but your friends that were there as well. This was a dark and twisted story with some twists that may shock you. You will connect with all the characters, not only on the fateful day, but through their trauma as well. Your heart will ache, you will be angry, and you may even want to hug a character or two. I will be checking out the rest of the series as well!

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

The Darkness within

This was a terrific story! I totally enjoyed it. Narration by Candace Fitzgerald was perfect. I was given this book free for an honest review.

The Darkness within ourselves

Omg. This book got me right off the start. I've very much enjoyed this book. The darkness took on different things for each of the characters. This was the first psychological thriller that i have listend to. I am ready for the next book. The narrator Candace Fitzgerald was so good. She had the perfect tone. Jessica Huntley did amazing job with this book and has a way with words.

Great story!

Great story and narration. Intrigued to listen to the next book in the series. Characters were thoughtful, a few unexpected twists but easy to follow. Fun!

Riveting Psychological Thriller

This was my first experience with this author's work, and it won't be my last. From the opening paragraphs until the very end, I was so engrossed in the story that I had to drag myself away to complete daily tasks. I felt for Amber and her friends who suffered from severe psychological issues caused by an unresolved trauma from their pasts. I liked how the author combined events from the past within the context of Amber's present-day life. I enjoyed how I never really knew where the story was going and all the unexpected twists and turns. I was amazed by Candace Fitzgerald's narration as her performance kept my attention focused on the story. I was given a copy of the audiobook. I volunteered, without financial gain, to post this review which reflected my honest opinions regarding this audiobook.

Great Debut !

The Darkness Within Ourselves is a gripping, addictive psychological thriller that hooked me straight from the start. This book was much deeper than I expected, but wow it was so well done ! Jessica has a way with words that is just so beautiful even in the darkest themes. As much as this is thrilling it was also emotional and just gut wrenching.

The darkness was so creepy, chilling and eerie. There was always a sense of lurking. I loved how it took on multiple forms for each character, I truly thought that was a super original and creative aspect ! The mental health aspect was amazingly well done, Jessica just hit the spot with this book. It was nicely paced, the suspense constantly building, the intrigue never letting up which just made for a great read.

The ending wraps up nicely with a somewhat of a cliffhanger. I'm highly looking forward to the sequel, I'm jumping in right away. I think this book is highly underrated and deserves more hype !

🎧 The narration by Candace Fitzgerald was so good. She had the perfect tone, she set the chills and eeriness to the scenes. The emotions were felt in her voice. I loved how creepy her voice was when she was portraying the darkness. Great listen!

✨️Thank you to @jessicahuntley for my gifted audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

Psychological thriller ☠️🖤

This book does touch on some potentially triggering subjects. This book kept me on the edge of my seat. I kept wondering are the characters crazy, or is there really something nefarious going on? It also did strike me as sad, because these friends get torn apart by what happens.

5 teenage friends go out in the woods, only 4 come back. Amber, Jordan, Tyler, Brooke, and Kiernan. Kiernan is killed in a accident. Or was it an accident? This tight group of friends are never the same.

20 years later the 4 survivors are plagued with unrelenting guilt. There is also a physical manifestation of their guilt, "the darkness." This darkness changes the once happy friends. Is this darkness or creature they all see real or in their heads? It does have a good ending. What will guilt make you do? There's also book 2 and 3. I can't say I've read a book or series exactly like this.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

Great Audio !!!

This book was so good. Can what we do as kids effect us as we become adults? Well it certainly did a group of best friends. And not in a good way. The narrator was superb and the story was well organized and very suspenseful. Hope to listen to more from this author.

Gripping Tale with Unraveling Secrets

This was an absolute delight to read! The story was engaging, with thoughtful character development that really brought each personality to life. The narrator added a wonderful touch, enhancing the experience beautifully. Overall, it was an impressive, five-star journey—satisfying from beginning to end!

How much guilt can you live with?

This was a great suspenseful, chilling story about 5 friends. During a dare, one of them dies and the other 4 cover it up and do a blood oath in order to protect each other. But after the incident, something dark haunts each of them, tearing apart their lives. They each feel so much guilt knowing that they should have done the right thing and didn't. Now years later, when evidence resurfaces and the case may be reopened, they try to make things right with the darkness, but it comes at a price. I listened to the audio version. The narrator did an amazing job portraying the desperation and fear of the characters. I enjoyed her reading, though, the pace was just a tad bit too slow for my liking and that was easily fixed by adjusting the playbook speed. Overall, great experience.