The Haven

I’ll admit, I went into *The Haven* expecting a straightforward ghost story—maybe something moody but predictable. What I got instead was a slow-burn psychological horror that left me checking over my shoulder for days. Andrew McDermott’s narration is the audiobook’s secret weapon: his voice is smooth, almost hypnotic, which makes the moments when it fractures—when Richard’s sanity starts to slip—that much more effective. There’s a scene midway through where he delivers a single, breathless line about ‘her’ standing at the water’s edge, and I actually paused the playback to collect myself. That’s how good he is. The story itself is deceptively simple: a couple retreats to a quiet cove, the husband becomes fixated on a spectral woman, and things go sideways. But Webb’s writing thrives in the ambiguities—is Richard being haunted, or is he haunting himself? The pacing drags slightly in the first act as the setup unfolds, and I wished for a bit more texture in Kate’s character (she often feels like a device rather than a person). That said, the payoff is worth it. The final act delivers a gut-punch of an ending that’s both inevitable and shocking, the kind that makes you immediately want to replay the last chapter. The production is crisp, with no distracting edits, though I’d have loved a touch more atmospheric sound design—just a hint of waves or wind—to deepen the immersion. Still, for fans of *The Woman in Black* or *The Turn of the Screw*, this is a must-listen. Just maybe not before bed.