Reviews

Beneath the Stairs by Jennifer Fawcett

Only show reviews with written explanations

alipal's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated

3.5

I really enjoyed the story that the author was trying to tell. Her writing really made me feel like I got to experience the haunted house. However, at the end it felt like there were some things that she missed revisiting and it felt rushed and cloudy at the end.

thebookstackattack's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

andy5185's review against another edition

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4.0

I was sucked in from the first page. An octagonal shaped house in the woods that may or may not be haunted? A young woman’s coming to terms with the trauma and guilt from her childhood? Are the secrets buried in the basement haunting her and ruining her life? I anxiously sped through pages to find the answers to these questions and unlock the mystery of the house and her past. Tense and kept me guessing, I enjoyed this.

emperorcupcake's review against another edition

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4.0

The Octagon House is ICONIC, imagine coming across that spooky sucker in the woods! I'd go in. I love a good multiple timeline haunted house story, and the atmosphere is immaculate.

booksintheirnaturalhabitat's review against another edition

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3.0

Beneath the Stairs mainly follows the story of Clare, who has returned to her hometown after her childhood friend allegedly tried to commit suicide. Their friend group visited a house in the woods as kids and Clare knew Abby was never the same after that. There’s something about that house the Clare has to unravel if it doesn’t unravel her first.

Full disclosure, I read about one horror book a year. They give me nightmares and I’m not afraid to admit it. This story has creepy moments, like in Blair Witch you know the basement is bad news. Why are people still insisting about going into them?!

While Beneath the Stairs explores childhood traumas and numerous bad situations, it sometimes got lost. The story skipped timelines and points of view often and, while you have a full picture of multiple families who encountered the house by the end, getting there can be confusing.

If you still insist upon going in the basement even though all the books and movies have warned you otherwise, this is a book for you!

Thank you @atriabooks for sending me an advanced readers copy. The review expresses my own personal opinions.

heartstrings's review against another edition

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mysterious reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This book felt like it wanted to be a horror thriller. And on that front it failed spectacularly. But the writing overall was engrossing and the character work was nicely done. The romantic subplot was also lovely and kept me attention up until the end.