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3.74 AVERAGE
3.74 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape
Moderate: Sexual violence, Suicide, Violence, Stalking, Murder
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
I really enjoyed this series! I was interested from the beginning to the end, it had the right amount of creepy weirdo-ness (Henry) and trauma. I'm glad the story was drawn out into another book or 2, I think it does a good job at being short and sweet.
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
3.5 stars. I didn’t find this nearly as compelling as The Family Upstairs, but I was excited to pick this up after absolutely loving book 1. There are some new characters and POVs we’re introduced to here, and I thought Lisa Jewell did a great job creating a plot line from a book that hadn’t initially been intended to be written without it feeling that way. I definitely wouldn’t pick this up without having read book one, even though it’s described as a stand-alone novel.
First of all, Henry Lamb is one of the best book characters I’ve come across in a long time. He’s so complex and interesting, making you question so many things—is he good? Is he evil? Is he unhinged? Or is he doing as well as he could be for someone who’s experienced what he’s experienced? I picked up this book basically solely to read more Henry and about more of his obsession with Phin. The second last chapter was worth the read alone.
It was the rest of this book to me that felt slightly lacking. A lot of the detective Samuel’s storyline felt like a rehashing of book one. In a way it was interesting to discover what we had discovered in book one through another person’s eyes, but I felt it all to be a bit too convenient—he just happens to know at any given moment when someone is lying or not? The suspension of disbelief wasn’t kicking in. I also found myself skimming the Lucy, Rachel, and Libby plot lines, wanting to get to Henry’s parts. Last thing that bugged me—a lot of this book was different characters looking for different people and asking about them—why did so many people just willingly give up so much information?? If someone asked me those questions I’d be so suspicious! Again, seems really convenient for the story so many people were so forthcoming with information for no reason.
This is definitely worth a read if you loved The Family Upstairs, but I’d say skippable if it was anything less than 4 stars for you, because it definitely wasn’t a better book.
First of all, Henry Lamb is one of the best book characters I’ve come across in a long time. He’s so complex and interesting, making you question so many things—is he good? Is he evil? Is he unhinged? Or is he doing as well as he could be for someone who’s experienced what he’s experienced? I picked up this book basically solely to read more Henry and about more of his obsession with Phin. The second last chapter was worth the read alone.
It was the rest of this book to me that felt slightly lacking. A lot of the detective Samuel’s storyline felt like a rehashing of book one. In a way it was interesting to discover what we had discovered in book one through another person’s eyes, but I felt it all to be a bit too convenient—he just happens to know at any given moment when someone is lying or not? The suspension of disbelief wasn’t kicking in. I also found myself skimming the Lucy, Rachel, and Libby plot lines, wanting to get to Henry’s parts. Last thing that bugged me—a lot of this book was different characters looking for different people and asking about them—why did so many people just willingly give up so much information?? If someone asked me those questions I’d be so suspicious! Again, seems really convenient for the story so many people were so forthcoming with information for no reason.
This is definitely worth a read if you loved The Family Upstairs, but I’d say skippable if it was anything less than 4 stars for you, because it definitely wasn’t a better book.
dark
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Really good but slow at first with lots of exposition. Didn’t need to read the family upstairs - definitely a standalone
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I really enjoyed this but although you can read this as a standalone, I wish I had reread The Family Upstairs first to remind me of the backstory. Nevertheless, Lisa Jewell is an absolute master at tension and complex family scenarios, so I would definitely recommend.
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Fast paced and addictive. Found myself completely uninterested in Samuel’s chapters and specifically looking forward to Rachel’s. Have to suspend belief at various points but it’s a strong page turner - good book for holiday or the likes.