Tag: Horror

The House That Horror Built – Christina Henry

I can’t imagine a day where I’ll reach my haunted house story limit. There’s something about a menacing presence causing havoc in the place that’s supposed to be safe, one where the harsh realities of the world aren’t supposed to intrude, that never gets old.

This haunting introduces us to Harry, a single mother with the weight of the world on her shoulders. She’s just gotten a new job cleaning the home of a reclusive horror movie director, a man whose work Harry is a fan of.

That door was always locked, and it wasn’t her job to be curious about it.

This is a story where the characters are as haunted as the house. It’s more character driven than I was expecting and I surprised myself by enjoying this, even when it seemed to be taking away from the haunting I picked up the book to experience.

I liked Harry, who’s doing her best to keep her head above water. Her love for her son, Gabe, and her efforts to give him a better life endeared her to me. Gabe, an absolute sweetheart, oftentimes seemed too good to be true but I had a soft spot for him as well. Mr Castillo, Harry’s employer and a man with a troubled past, was the one I kept wanting to know more about.

Much of the book unfolded as I expected it to but I definitely wasn’t right about everything. There’s the expected strange noises and other spooky goings on scattered throughout the book but it isn’t until near the end that things really heat up.

I had hoped for more scares but I have a pretty high threshold for horror so it takes a lot to rattle me. This isn’t my favourite haunted house book but it was a fun read.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Titan Books for the opportunity to read this book.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

Single mum Harry Adams has always loved horror movies, so when she’s offered a job cleaning for revered horror director Javier Castillo, she leaps at the chance. His forbidding Chicago mansion, Bright Horses, is filled from top to bottom with terrifying props and costumes, as well as glittering awards from his decades-long career making films that thrilled audiences and dominated the box office — until family tragedy and scandal forced him to vanish from the industry.

Javier values discretion, so Harry tries to clean the house immaculately and keep her head down — she needs the money from this job to support her son. But then she starts hearing noises from behind a locked door. Noises that sound remarkably like a human voice calling for help, though Javier lives alone and never has visitors. Harry knows that not asking questions is a vital part of keeping her job, but she soon finds that the house — and her enigmatic boss — have secrets she can’t ignore…

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Beyond the Bounds of Infinity – Vaughn A. Jackson & Stephanie Pearre (editors)

I have a weird relationship with anthologies. I usually find my way to them because they include a story by an author I love that I can’t find anywhere else. If I’m lucky, I find another couple of stories to enjoy, then drag myself through the rest. By the end, I decide it wasn’t worth the effort. Until the next time a favourite author is included in one.

It’s Mary SanGiovanni’s fault that I’m here. I’ve loved everything I’ve ever read of hers and couldn’t pass up the opportunity to read something new. It didn’t surprise me that I loved her contribution to this anthology. What did surprise me was that I didn’t find a bad one in the bunch!

Sure, I enjoyed some more than others but I didn’t dislike any! I don’t know if that’s ever happened before. It was actually difficult to pick my favourites. In the order you’ll find them in the book because they’re all so different and I can’t rank them…

Fractures of Her Reflection by Amanda Headlee

If Dava doesn’t tap her bedroom door three times, bad things will happen. Her therapist doesn’t understand this.

The horror when people with preconceived ideas don’t trust your judgement about what your reality looks like. When professionals believe that their expert opinion trumps your lived experience. When validation comes at a cost.

“Does this have something to do with awakening?”

Effigies of Monstrous Things by Pedro Iniguez

Mario just wants his kids to be able to live in a home without mould. It’s clear his landlord isn’t going to fix the problem so Mario has decided to investigate for himself.

The horror when, no matter how hard you try, you’re stuck in a loop. Of being a single parent and doing your very best but not being able to get ahead. The illusion of safety. The injustice when people in authority abuse their power.

“The sculpture is nigh complete…”

Cracks by Mary SanGiovanni

Billy shows his classmates the rock he found in the woods. It’s a pretty rock. His classmates also like looking at the rock.

The horror of being the only one who can truly see what’s going on, understanding the gravity of it and knowing that the someone who needs to do something about it is you.

“Don’t make it harder to play the games.”

I am so glad I read this anthology. I have renewed hope for the ones my favourite authors will make me read in the future.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Raw Dog Screaming Press for the opportunity to read this anthology.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

Welcome to a world of horror viewed through a kaleidoscope lens. Embark on a journey to untangle the writhing tendrils of human terror in a dimension where the possible and impossible blend; an unstable realm where comfort can be found in the coldest pits, and dark gods feast upon the sweetest suffering, where infernal sounds birth silent letters that drift along midnight shores and the unexplained lurks beneath crumbling urban structures. Step over the edge of what you think you know, and find yourself … Beyond the Bounds of Infinity!

Featuring stories by L. Marie Wood, S.A. Cosby, Jessica McHugh, and Mary SanGiovanni alongside newer voices like Cassius Kilroy, Jessica L. Sparrow, and Vicky Velvet, Beyond the Bounds of Infinity offers a collection of weird fiction and cosmic horror stories that are diverse down to the cellular level. From Taíno folk horror to the horror of identity in a world that just doesn’t understand, from cozy to apocalyptic, and everything in between, let these authors show you what fear really is, and what it means to them.

Are you brave enough to step into the madness that awaits within these pages?

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The Redemption of Morgan Bright – Chris Panatier

This is a nightmare onion of a book, where every layer you peel away reveals something even more disturbing.

The DSM is now in its eleventh edition and the medical model’s pathologisation of mental health is alive and well. Flavour of the edition is domestic psychosis, proving once again that, no matter how far in the past the 1950’s are, there will be groups of people intent on replicating the worst parts of it.

Morgan Bright has recently been diagnosed with domestic psychosis so she’s the newest inmate patient at Hollyhock. Charlotte Andrew Turner arrives that day too. Their relationship is … complicated.

But I’m telling you, there’s something off with her.

I read 35 books between my first and second reads of this book; the reread was even better. I agonised over this review for months, trying to figure out the best way of shoving this book in your face and hollering ‘Read this!’ without including all of the things I need to talk about but can’t because spoilers. I have turned myself inside out over this, so much so that I’m convinced I can never visit Nebraska, just in case someone from Hollyhock finds me.

I loved trying to figure out Charlotte. This is probably the only time in my life that my thought process will be ‘Dissociative Identity Disorder? Nah, too easy. Tulpa?’ The fact that DID could ever be the easy option should give you a hint of the horrors that await you at Hollyhock.

This isn’t the type of thing you just dump on someone. I wouldn’t want your brain to collapse.

It’s all the more horrifying because the majority of the evils perpetrated against women in this book are committed by other women. This somehow makes it worse. If you see Enid in your travels, please be sure to take a cleansing breath and punch her for me.

This book is guilt, grief and paper dolls. The body horror is sublime and oh so squishy.

“It’s beautiful in that way.”

If you’ve read even a couple of my reviews, it’s likely you’ve heard about how I sent an email to the address listed in the book and it bounced back. Or that I visited the website only to discover it doesn’t exist. You may have witnessed me mumbling to myself about missed marketing opportunities. And if I ever write a book… And maybe one day…

Well, I’m here to tell you that one of my longest standing bookish dreams has come true! There’s a website mentioned in this book and it actually exists, and it’s glorious! Every time I think about it my smile becomes as wide as the women photographed on its pages. And I’m fine. Really. This is not an indication that you need to refer me to Hollyhock. Please don’t send me to Hollyhock!

So, is there a happily ever after? Why, yes, the book does have an ending. Thank you for asking.

Welcome to Hollyhock. Come for the food.* Stay for the twirling. We hope you survive enjoy your stay.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Angry Robot for the opportunity to read this book.

* BYO coffee.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

A woman checks herself into an insane asylum to solve the mystery of her sister’s murder, only to lose her memory and maybe her mind.

From the subversive voice behind The Phlebotomist comes a story that combines the uncanny atmosphere of Don’t Worry Darling with the narrative twists of The Last House on Needless Street.

What would guilt make you do? 

Hadleigh Keene died on the road leading away from Hollyhock Asylum. The reasons are unknown. Her sister Morgan blames herself. A year later with the case still unsolved, Morgan creates a false identity, that of a troubled housewife named Charlotte Turner, and goes inside. 

Morgan quickly discovers that Hollyhock is… not right. She is shaken by the hospital’s peculiar routines and is soon beset by strange episodes. All the while, the persona of Charlotte takes on a life of its own, becoming stronger with each passing day. As her identity begins unraveling, Morgan finds herself tracing Hadleigh’s footsteps and peering into the places they lead.   

The terrifying reality of The Redemption of Morgan Bright unfolds over the course of chapters told from the points of view of both Charlotte and Morgan, police interviews, and text messages. 

File Under: Horror [ Twirl With Them | Sisterly Bond | It’s a Doozy | Be Careful What You Wish For ]

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The Indian Lake Trilogy #3: The Angel of Indian Lake – Stephen Graham Jones

Jade Daniels, reporting for duty.

This was one of my most anticipated reads of the year but that final page was something I’ve dreaded for so long that I got to a point where I didn’t even know if I could open the book. For months, every time I thought about saying goodbye to Jade Daniels, my skank station eyeliner would run. I’m not usually a crier so this is saying a lot.

Jade did something that’s rare for me in horror reads. She got under my skin, without using a knife. I thought about her when I wasn’t with her. I wondered what she was up to.

Over the past couple of years she’s taken on a significance that reached well beyond the pages. I took her with me when I needed to channel some badassery. I believed I could survive my Proofrock because Jade showed me it was possible.

She became more than a character to me. I don’t think my Sharona was expecting to become so well versed in why Jade is my final girl when she met me but, well, here we are. I consider it a very good use of our time.

This book was chaos. It was “ghosts and swings and baking goods”. It was insides becoming your outsides.

“That’s probably not jelly, is it.”

It was the past refusing to stay there. It was trauma and running for your life. It’s Jade Daniels … in heels?

It upped the ante when it was already maxed out. It was emotional, so emotional. My first on page tears happened during the dedication and my tissue count wound up rivalling the book’s body count.

I’ll never be ready to say goodbye to Jade Daniels so I’ve decided I’m not going to. This trilogy may have reached its bloody conclusion but I want a HEA for Jade. I’m imagining she’s living in a rom-com now. She finds that just as amusing as I do but she’s loved and learning to love (and trust) in return.

Of course, even though her walls are lowered somewhat now, there’s a part of her that will remain ready to put her movie knowledge and lived experience into action. They don’t always stay dead, you know.

“Was the shark cool, at least?”

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

It’s been four years in prison since Jade Daniels last saw her hometown of Proofrock, Idaho, the day she took the fall, protecting her friend Letha and her family from incrimination. Since then, her reputation, and the town, have changed dramatically. There’s a lot of unfinished business in Proofrock, from serial killer cultists to the rich trying to buy Western authenticity. But there’s one aspect of Proofrock no one wants to confront … until Jade comes back to town. The curse of the Lake Witch is waiting, and now is the time for the final stand.

New York Times bestselling author Stephen Graham Jones has crafted an epic horror trilogy of generational trauma from the Indigenous to the townies rooted in the mountains of Idaho. It is a story of the American west written in blood.

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Carrie – Stephen King

‘They laughed at me. Threw things. They’ve always laughed.’

My TBR pile is currently grumbling fairly loudly at me but I couldn’t let the 50th anniversary of Carrie’s introduction to the world pass without a reread. I was twelve years old when I was introduced to Carrie White. A major departure from The Baby-Sitters Club, which I’d been reading prior, this was my gateway book to the Kingdom, and horror in general.

Carrie wasn’t the first telekinetic person I’d met. That honour goes to Matilda Wormwood, who found her way into my heart a couple of years earlier. It was Carrie, though, who taught me righteous anger.

Our high school experiences were nothing alike, yet I related to Carrie, this hurt, wronged girl railing against injustice. The angry part of preteen me found her scorched-earth approach appealing. There are a few people who knew me when I was a teenager that should be very grateful my telekinesis never kicked in.

Flex.

This book had both short and long term impacts on me. Throughout high school, I thought of Carrie every time I changed back into my school uniform after PE. She also changed my reading landscape, opening up a world of books that weren’t written with kids in mind, ones that would challenge, scare and ultimately enbiggen my world.

She appealed to the outsider in me, who spent high school and a significant amount of time afterwards trying to find someone who could understand me. Carrie was the first hero/villain I cheered on as they unleashed hell on those who had hurt them and the randoms whose only crime was being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

I don’t know anyone who doesn’t know this story so the only thing I’ll say about this specific reread is that it’s the first time I’ve thought about how appropriate Ewen High School’s colours are: white and red.

Over thirty years after my first read and several rereads later, my love for Carrie – the book and the person – remains as strong as ever. If anything, I appreciate her even more now.

‘I don’t like to be tricked.’

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

Carrie White is no ordinary girl.

Carrie White has the gift of telekinesis.

To be invited to Prom Night by Tommy Ross is a dream come true for Carrie – the first
step towards social acceptance by her high school colleagues.

But events will take a decidedly macabre turn on that horrifying and endless night as she is forced to exercise her terrible gift on the town that mocks and loathes her …

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Robert Grim #2: Oracle – Thomas Olde Heuvelt

Translator – Moshe Gilula

How could a sound that had ceased forty years ago suddenly echo again on a cold winter morning … and feel so wrong?

Luca and Emma weren’t expecting to find a ship in a tulip field on their way to school. It wasn’t there yesterday and it seems pretty impossible that it’s there now.

This sounds like a job for Robert Grim.

I can’t say that Robert Grim was exactly enjoying his retirement or even remembering much of it. He doesn’t live in Black Spring anymore, though, so that’s progress.

He’s not exactly advertising his services but even he can’t deny he has a unique skill set. His involvement in this investigation isn’t what you’d call voluntary. That’s not how these things work.

This is one of those rare series where I enjoyed the sequel more than the first book. I was all about the mystery of the ship but it turns out that’s only the beginning of this story.

While this book was still dark, there was some hope to be found. I had Luca, a gutsy kid, to cheer on and I needed that.

I struggled with the fictional animals meeting their maker in HEX. There was some of that here too but none that I’d built a relationship with first so that made it easier.

If you absolutely had to, you could read this book without having read HEX but you would be missing out. It provides much needed context for the character of Robert Grim. This book also includes spoilers for the first so you won’t want to read them out of order.

Supernatural phenomena followed their own set of rules … until they didn’t.

I spent the whole book trying to figure out how Robert Grim survived the Black Rock Witch and I was given an explanation but I need to know more. Thankfully this book ends with an opening for another so I may get to explore this further.

Oftentimes when I’m reading a book, I think about what I would do if I was plonked into the storyline. If I had made my way to Every Man’s End, I would unquestionably not be here to tell you about it. I would have investigated the ship that shouldn’t have been, the bell would have tolled and, well, if you read the book you’ll know what would’ve happened next.

‘And what did you think?’

‘That they should have listened to the kid, dammit.’

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for the opportunity to read this book.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

On a foggy winter morning two children discover the impossible: the wreck of an eighteenth-century ship stranded in a field.

One enters the hatch on the deck and is never seen again. And she isn’t the last to disappear…

Soon a government agency begins to investigate, determined to uncover the ship’s secrets before a media storm erupts. They enlist Robert Grim, a retired specialist of the occult, to unravel the mystery, who soon realises the ship could be a harbinger of an ancient doom awakened under the sea. 

In a maelstrom of international intrigue and pure terror, Grim must race against time as he comes face to face with an open doorway to the apocalypse.

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A Botanical Daughter – Noah Medlock

Simon does his work in the basement. His “cadaverous creations” range from social commentary to the whimsical.

It wasn’t his fault he was good at stuffing God’s creatures and posing them to lampoon the social mores of the day.

Gregor works in the light, cultivating floral and fungal wonders from near and far, guided by his imagination and innovative spirit.

He had better things to do – there was botany afoot.

Simon and Gregor have never had the opportunity to have a child. Until now. Their relationship is unconventional for the time and, as a result, secret. The same could be said of their daughter.

I’ve been obsessed with this cover since I first saw it. I also may have been a tad obsessed with the blurb.

Sometimes the reality of a book doesn’t line up with your expectations but that’s not the book’s fault and it’s not always the worst thing that could happen.

The writing was more poetic than I thought I’d find and that was a pleasant surprise. There was a formality to some of the writing, which I also didn’t expect, but that fit well with the time period in which the book takes place.

I was awed by the amount of research that must have gone into the potential repurposing of each plant. As someone who has successfully managed to kill an air fern, I’m clearly not the most horticulturally minded person. As a result, I sometimes glazed over when I encountered details that were beyond me.

I swear I will see the day when humans fully understand the botanical kingdom, and the botanical kingdom fully understands us.

I never really connected with Simon or Gregor but I had a soft spot for Jennifer. I wanted to spend more time with Rosalinda.

I spent the entire book waiting for hell to break loose and probably hyped it up too much in my mind. There was the body horror I’d hoped for but not as much as I’d wanted.

To be fair, I’m not sure there’d ever be enough body horror for me. At this point, I may be somewhat immune. I’ve just binged all of the Saw movies and wasn’t squeamish once. If you’re not as bloodthirsty as me, you’ll probably find the right amount of body horror here.

And, you never know, you may be invited to very-high tea.

Now all we can do is hope, pray, and water.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Titan Books for the opportunity to read this book.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

It is an unusual thing, to live in a botanical garden. But Simon and Gregor are an unusual pair of gentlemen. Hidden away in their glass sanctuary from the disapproving tattle of Victorian London, they are free to follow their own interests without interference. For Simon, this means long hours in the dark basement workshop, working his taxidermical art. Gregor’s business is exotic plants – lucrative, but harmless enough. Until his latest acquisition, a strange fungus which shows signs of intellect beyond any plant he’s seen, inspires him to attempt a masterwork: true intelligent life from plant matter.

Driven by the glory he’ll earn from the Royal Horticultural Society for such an achievement, Gregor ignores the flaws in his plan: that intelligence cannot be controlled; that plants cannot be reasoned with; and that the only way his plant-beast will flourish is if he uses a recently deceased corpse for the substrate.

The experiment – or Chloe, as she is named – outstrips even Gregor’s expectations, entangling their strange household. But as Gregor’s experiment flourishes, he wilts under the cost of keeping it hidden from jealous eyes. The mycelium grows apace in this sultry greenhouse. But who is cultivating whom?

Told with wit and warmth, this is an extraordinary tale of family, fungus and more than a dash of bloody revenge from an exciting new voice in queer horror.

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Robert Grim #1: HEX – Thomas Olde Heuvelt

Translator – Nancy Forest-Flier

“Nothing’s normal here.”

Katherine van Wyler was sentenced to death for witchcraft in 1664 but that’s not where her story ends. Hundreds of years later, the Black Rock Witch remains, her eyes and mouth sewn shut.

Once you move to Black Spring, you will never live anywhere else. The residents of this insular community are used to living alongside this emaciated, chained woman but they’ve been lulled into a false sense of security. If Katherine’s eyes ever open, her power will be unleashed.

This book has been on my radar for years and waited patiently on my Kindle for two. The upcoming release of the sequel gave me the perfect excuse to dive in and then I almost didn’t finish it. To be honest, if I hadn’t already committed to reviewing the sequel, I probably wouldn’t have.

“She’s not going to let you go. You live in Black Spring now. That means the curse is on you as well.”

It’s rare for a book to have a negative impact on me. Reading is my joy. Even when I read memoirs of people who have experienced the horrific, I find hope in their resilience.

This book, though, had a significant impact on my mental health. You could say it did its job, with the witch reaching out from the pages to infect me with her curse. It got to the point where, each time I started reading, I’d think ‘Abandon all hope, ye who enter here.’

But nothing was all right, nothing could ever be all right

I don’t think of myself as a reader with many rules. I’m happy to wander between genres and dip my toe into unfamiliar territory. Do what you want to the humans, especially if we’re in a slasher, and I’ll likely forgive you. I may even cheer you on. If you harm my fictional animals, though, we’re going to have a problem. I had a big problem with what the animals, one in particular, experienced in this book.

I don’t want you to think this wasn’t a good book. It was. It was well written. I got attached to a couple of the characters. I needed to know what hell was going to be unleashed once Katherine’s eyes opened. But wow, it really did a number on me.

“Peacocks. You know what that means, right?”

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

Whoever is born here, is doomed to stay until death. Whoever comes to stay, never leaves.

Welcome to Black Spring, the seemingly picturesque Hudson Valley town haunted by the Black Rock Witch, a seventeenth-century woman whose eyes and mouth are sewn shut. Blind and silenced, she walks the streets and enters homes at will. She stands next to children’s beds for nights on end. So accustomed to her have the townsfolk become that they often forget she’s there. Or what a threat she poses. Because if the stitches are ever cut open, the story goes, the whole town will die.

The curse must not be allowed to spread. The elders of Black Spring have used high-tech surveillance to quarantine the town. Frustrated with being kept in lockdown, the town’s teenagers decide to break the strict regulations and go viral with the haunting. But, in so doing, they send the town spiralling into a dark nightmare.

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Bite Risk: Caught Dead – S.J. Wills

The moon was almost full when I got my claws on this book. Six Howl nights have passed since I first met Sel, which is appropriate because that’s how long it’s been since the Rippocalypse.

It was much easier getting into Tremorglade this time around because it’s no longer cut off from the outside world. Thanks, Sel. Now the entire world has been introduced to the corpus pilori virus. Thanks, Sel!

When you’ve already helped cause the end of the world, what’s left to be afraid of?

The people of Tremorglade have had a long time to get used to turning into Rippers and would be only too happy to lend a hand to the newbies, especially Olive. Depending on your perspective, transforming into a Ripper once a month is either the best thing ever (think Ripper Cultists) or the end of the world.

Immutables, people who don’t Turn, are now in the minority and some have little dog syndrome. They’re trying to convince anyone who’ll listen that Rippers should be put back in their cages, but Rippers aren’t dangerous anymore, right? Right?

The main characters don’t know who to trust and neither did I. I viewed practically everyone with suspicion and wondered if that was in part a result of the us versus them mentality of some of the characters. Fear of the other was the impetus for a whole bunch of dastardly deeds.

Having several narrators telling the story can be distracting for me sometimes but it worked really well here. It’s a good thing, too. Otherwise we wouldn’t know what was happening for entire sections as you don’t remember what you do when you’re Ripped out.

My favourites from the first book all returned for the second in some form or another and I got to meet some of the newbies. My favourite new character wasn’t a newbie at all. She was there all along but because she’s only eleven, Sel hasn’t really paid that much attention to her before, even though they’re next door neighbours.

Mika is oftentimes the voice of reason. She’s determined, persistent and gutsy. And she has a pony called Jelly Bean. I absolutely adore her!

After waiting six entire full moons to be able to sink my teeth into this book, I got sucked straight into it. The story was engaging from page 1 and was as good, if not better, than the first book.

I hoped all book that there’d be an opening at the end for a third book and, oh boy, is there an opening! I need the next book really soon, preferably before the next full moon!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the opportunity to read this book.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

After Sel Archer and his friends uncover a conspiracy that turns the whole world upside down, it seems that the residents of Tremorglade are finally free. Adults can Turn at the full moon with no restrictions, no longer locked in cages and left to roam free. But the town’s new found fame is at risk as attacks begin to happen on Howl Night. Rumours of a foul, unkillable beast begin to stir … someone or something is plotting to control the Turned once and for all. 

A blockbuster teen horror series for fans of Skuduggery Pleasant, join Sel and his friends as they navigate a nail-biting horror story, dodging terrifying adults and even more terrifying beasts. Discover the first heart-pumping instalment with the multi award-shortlisted Bite Risk.

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The Day of the Door – Laurel Hightower

This first thing I did after I finished reading this book was preorder a signed copy. The second thing I did was add every other Laurel Hightower book to my TBR pile; up high, so they don’t get crushed by the weight.

I went into this read expecting a rehash of a bunch of movies I’ve seen where a film crew go into a [haunted location] and [bad stuff happens]. I was good with that. They’re enjoyable movies. The jump scares are usually broadcast at least a minute before they happen, the CGI is generally amusing at best, but they’re good, trashy fun. I would’ve been satisfied if this had been the book equivalent of B grade horror.

What I got was so much more.

“There was something there, something in that house that wasn’t … right. Wasn’t natural.”

For the first time in twenty years, the surviving Lasco’s are returning to 2103 Harper Lane. They’re being accompanied by a film crew, because family drama is always better when it’s televised.

“She says she’s going to tell us. All of it.”

Stella’s now adult children are each living in the shadow of the capital T trauma of their childhood, which culminated in the event that transformed their before into after.

Depending on who you believe, Stella is either the cause of this event or its biggest victim.

“However bad you think you had it, it was far, far worse for me.”

This book gets the impacts of trauma right while highlighting that one size does not fit all. There’s no clear consensus about what happened or what it continues to mean for them individually and as family, and the surviving Lasco kids live their adult lives in vastly different ways.

I wasn’t expecting to be so conflicted as I read. If you search a dictionary for narcissism and gaslighting, Stella’s is the face that should be accompanying the descriptions. She’s the kind of woman that you love to hate and, because of this, it’s really difficult to see her as the victim she portrays herself as.

The pain I felt for her children was visceral. I desperately wanted the adult kids to get the validation they deserved. I wanted The Cleaner’s audiences to be left with no doubt about the pain Stella caused her family.

The other part of me was hoping for the paranormal to practically leap off the page at me and that’s what messed with my head. If I got the oozy spooky I signed up for, then what did that say about Stella’s responsibility?

The squirminess of wanting accountability while yearning for the paranormal made this a much more uncomfortable read than I was expecting. I love that it took me there, because apparently I’m a masochist but also because I don’t want easy reads.

I want to be challenged. I want to have to think and feel and question. This book gave me complicated and my squirminess now is about needing someone to talk to about the [bad stuff]. Someone I know needs to read this book very soon.

I practically hoovered this book. I was left feeling so satisfied with how it ended but I still want more. I now need the book where we hang out with Carrie in her other job.

So, what awaits us on the third floor? Something awesome!

Thank you so much to BookSirens and Ghoulish Books for the opportunity to read this book.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

Once there were four Lasco siblings banded together against a world that failed to protect them. But on a hellish night that marked the end of their childhood, eldest brother Shawn died violently after being dragged behind closed doors. Though the official finding was accidental death, Nathan Lasco knows better, and has never forgiven their mother, Stella.

Now two decades later, Stella promises to finally reveal the truth of what happened on The Day of the Door. Accompanied by a paranormal investigative team, the Lasco family comes together one final time, but no one is prepared for the revelations waiting for them on the third floor.

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