In the middle of the Mojave Desert, beyond the town of Bones, lies a family home called Sundial. In its heyday, it was also a research lab. But over time, and with a series of horrific events, it comes to stand all but abandoned. The property remains a sanctuary for Rob Cussen, who was raised there by her father Falcon and his girlfriend Mia, her twin sister Jack, and a family friend named Pawel. Now, Rob is fleeing to Sundial, a place she once couldn’t wait to leave. And this time, its secrets will not stay buried in the desert dust.

"While it is obvious from the start that none of these people are as they appear to be at first blush, [Ward] builds to the suspense and doles out the reveals cautiously while still managing a page-turning style."

Rob and her daughter, Callie, are at the center of Catriona Ward’s latest psychological thriller. SUNDIAL alternates between their perspectives and from Rob’s childhood at Sundial to her move back with Callie in tow. Rob hopes that this relocation will save Callie, as well as her younger daughter, Annie. After finding evidence of a horrific hobby and what seems to be an attempt on Annie’s life, Rob is worried that Callie, who is not yet a teenager, is violently dangerous. Taking her to Sundial is both a way of protecting Annie and getting Callie away from Irving, her doting father and Rob’s abusive husband. Yet Sundial may not be the safe haven that Rob is seeking.

Rob’s memories of Sundial are laced with grief, sorrow and confusion. Life there was lonely and strange. Falcon and Mia ran a lab that experimented on dogs, trying to override their aggressive instincts. For some years the property welcomed graduate students, but all that ended when Jack, suffering more and more from mental health issues and drug dependency, ran away with one. Consequently, her time at Sundial grew even more difficult. Tensions with her family increased, she came to doubt some of the experimental work, and she started looking for opportunities to leave it all behind.

Back in Sundial with Callie, Rob begins to recall the truths that Jack shared with her years ago and the truths that she kept hidden. What really happened to their mother? Who was Pawel, and why did he live at Sundial? What went on at the neighboring property called “the puppy farm,” and how did the crimes there connect to the work at Sundial? As Rob puts together the puzzle pieces of her life, she is still trying to keep her daughters safe --- from each other, from the inheritance of family trauma, and from Irving.

SUNDIAL is an exciting novel. From the desolate setting and the fraught family relationships, to the slow unveiling of truths hidden from even the characters themselves, Ward does a great job crafting the story and controlling the pace and narrative. While it is obvious from the start that none of these people are as they appear to be at first blush, she builds to the suspense and doles out the reveals cautiously while still managing a page-turning style.

Moving along a spectrum from creepy to heartbreaking, SUNDIAL delivers a nightmarish vision of three generations dealing with pain, illness, sacrifice, loss and brutality yet never totally giving up hope. Ward once again has conjured up a unique, darkly weird and often surprising tale.