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goose's review
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
3.75
Some parts were really good, I think Gailey excels at writing the actual prose of a story. They find some of the funkiest ways of phrasing things like you've never heard before but it gets right to the core of it. Love that. The plot fell a tad flat for me, I kind of wish it committed to something different. It could've gone either all spooky or all grounded in reality, but it tried to awkwardly straddle both, in my opinion. I hope Gailey does more all spooky someday.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Emotional abuse, Murder, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Death of parent, and Physical abuse
Minor: Vomit
renyoi's review
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Brilliant atmospheric, suspenseful storytelling that builds up to its truly horrifying moments in intensely effective ways. The protagonist, an unreliable narrator in the subtlest sense , turns out to be the most horrifying character in the book, which was entirely unexpected for me. My only wish is that the “true crime” aspect had been more present in the book; as it is, we are told it is a constant presence in the Crowder family’s life but never shown it apart from weirdo James Duvall, who comes across more as a basket case than as a representation of society.
Aside from that, though, this work is a thrilling, grisly, appalling turn on the “haunted house” and “serial killer” genres of horror.
Aside from that, though, this work is a thrilling, grisly, appalling turn on the “haunted house” and “serial killer” genres of horror.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Abandonment, Gore, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Blood, Death of parent, Grief, Child abuse, Mental illness, Body horror, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Terminal illness, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Medical content, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Toxic relationship, and Vomit
junowo's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
A rare 5 star read—Just Like Home was a book that actually left my heart racing. The writing is phenomenal, and the story takes a form I never expected from a book like this.
My one and only criticism is that the book isn’t particularly damning to the failures of the true crime community in a way that descriptions led me to believe. I struggle to tell if it would’ve fit into the book at all, though.
This was a great read around Halloween, playing well with both true crime style horror and supernatural horror.
My one and only criticism is that the book isn’t particularly damning to the failures of the true crime community in a way that descriptions led me to believe. I struggle to tell if it would’ve fit into the book at all, though.
This was a great read around Halloween, playing well with both true crime style horror and supernatural horror.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Mental illness, Blood, Gore, Medical content, Self harm, Terminal illness, Death of parent, Murder, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Confinement, Body horror, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Torture, Death, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Panic attacks/disorders, and Vomit
eliya's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
fuck me, man. this was tough. i read this book just in time for a book club to discuss it, and i didn’t cry until the acknowledgements.
sarah gailey’s writing is so incredibly intimate, a lot of reading this felt like guilt dripping down my back mixed with the cold nakedness of being alone with the words.
sarah gailey’s writing is so incredibly intimate, a lot of reading this felt like guilt dripping down my back mixed with the cold nakedness of being alone with the words.
pg. 320:
“We didn’t ask to be born, did we? We did t ask to have to soak up their sings and their expectations. All we ever did was love them, and all they ever did was hurt us.”
…”He loved us, though,” … “more than anything.”
“Oh, he loved us both as best as he could,” … “He tried to build us strong and steady and whole. But he didn’t keep us safe. He didn’t know how to shelter us from all the hurt that was waiting, because he thought that hurt was the shape of love.”
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Toxic friendship, Cursing, Death of parent, Toxic relationship, Body horror, Murder, Torture, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Physical abuse, Terminal illness, Violence, and Child abuse
Minor: Vomit
authorash's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
What an absolute masterful, twisted story this is. It took me awhile to read because I was annotating but then I gave that up. I read the rest in one sitting.
Never would I have ever expected that ending.
I am disturbed and in awe at the same time.
You want a good Spooky read? This is it.
I can’t give much away, but I do say that this is amazing work done by the author. The way that she wrote the dynamic between Daphne (mom) and Vera (FMC) was stunning but also hard to read because it had a lot of gaslighting and emotional abuse. But it was very well done.
I like how the other character, James Duvall was just not right and never sat right with me. He was an interesting mix into the story.
Overall this is a very good read and I would put it up there on my top reads of the year.
Never would I have ever expected that ending.
I am disturbed and in awe at the same time.
You want a good Spooky read? This is it.
I can’t give much away, but I do say that this is amazing work done by the author. The way that she wrote the dynamic between Daphne (mom) and Vera (FMC) was stunning but also hard to read because it had a lot of gaslighting and emotional abuse. But it was very well done.
I like how the other character, James Duvall was just not right and never sat right with me. He was an interesting mix into the story.
Overall this is a very good read and I would put it up there on my top reads of the year.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Death of parent, Violence, Child abuse, Blood, Panic attacks/disorders, Murder, Kidnapping, Gaslighting, and Death
zoesmiley's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Blood, Death, and Gore
offtheraels's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-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
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse
Moderate: Body horror, Mental illness, Murder, Terminal illness, Grief, Panic attacks/disorders, and Violence
Minor: Death of parent
cateyeschloe's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This book is like a chilling, horrific nightmare come to life. And I mean that in the best way possible.
The writing is outstanding, and the author does a fantastic job of communicating what visceral dread, fear, and terror feel like in an all-too-real way.
I also have to applaud Gailey (they/them) for the absolutely WRECKING descriptions of body horror they include in this book - both in general and especially in the nightmares.
Just Like Home is absolutely the best book I’ve read when seeking tension and edge-of-your-seat mystery.
Before reading, I was wary of the somewhat tropey “woman who had troubled childhood returns to her childhood home and drama unfolds” plot device, but this book took that idea and bolted with it in directions I never saw coming.
Gailey’s writing style is fluid, deep, and beautiful. Over and over again, they call back to passing comments, ideas, or thoughts from the first hundred pages of the novel, and those touches explode with new meaning and metaphor in a stunning way.
At one point after our MC, Vera, injures herself, Vera’s mother is intentionally too harsh in the way that she cares for Vera’s wounds - causing unnecessary additional pain - and yet she is still simultaneously showing care for Vera - a rarity in and of itself and something that is treasured. This statement follows:
The writing is outstanding, and the author does a fantastic job of communicating what visceral dread, fear, and terror feel like in an all-too-real way.
I also have to applaud Gailey (they/them) for the absolutely WRECKING descriptions of body horror they include in this book - both in general and especially in the nightmares.
Just Like Home is absolutely the best book I’ve read when seeking tension and edge-of-your-seat mystery.
Before reading, I was wary of the somewhat tropey “woman who had troubled childhood returns to her childhood home and drama unfolds” plot device, but this book took that idea and bolted with it in directions I never saw coming.
Gailey’s writing style is fluid, deep, and beautiful. Over and over again, they call back to passing comments, ideas, or thoughts from the first hundred pages of the novel, and those touches explode with new meaning and metaphor in a stunning way.
At one point after our MC, Vera, injures herself, Vera’s mother is intentionally too harsh in the way that she cares for Vera’s wounds - causing unnecessary additional pain - and yet she is still simultaneously showing care for Vera - a rarity in and of itself and something that is treasured. This statement follows:
“Maybe, Vera thinks, this is just what love is like.”
The concepts of love and family and what it means to be “good” and what it truly means to love are a constant throughout the story.
Nearing the end, this novel feels truly unhinged and I started to wonder if I could depend on Vera to be a reliable narrator given what I was reading. Nothing is held back and Gailey does a phenomenal job of leaning into the disturbing, the unsettling, and the concepts of what reality can look like.
If I could give this book more than five stars, I would.
I absolutely will be adding this book to my personal collection and genuinely can’t wait to read it again.
This book absolutely comes with trigger warnings, so feel free to check those out if you’d like the heads up!
“She needed them to be two different creatures.
“The mother and the monster.”
Wow. Just wow.
I had to put the book down for a few moments when I got to this line.
If you’ve ever lived with someone, especially a parent, who you felt held a semblance of a monster, then you can relate to this quote.
Gailey did an immaculate job of summarizing the gut-wrenching need for your parent to not truly be the monster that terrifies you, that haunts you.
“It was wearing Daphne, and it was Daphne, and Vera couldn’t think how to delineate the two of them in her mind.”
“It had always been inside Daphne and this was why Daphne had never ever felt like a mother was supposed to feel.”
God, this part is heartbreaking. Vera has a desperate need to make real the idea that, if she cannot separate mother and monster, then it must be the monster’s fault for why her mother abused her, why her mother hated her, why she was always met with vitriol and disdain. It was the monster’s fault, right? Beyond her mother’s control. She would have chosen to act differently if she hadn’t been plagued by this secondary force.
Which makes it all the more heartbreaking to realize that The Creature wearing Daphne was never the monster at all.
To realize that The Creature was trying to soften and silence Daphne’s violence and hate.
To realize that Daphne was a monster all on her own.
I’ll end with what I feel is one of the most impactful quotes from the book, at least for me.
“He didn’t know how to shelter us from all the hurt that was waiting, because he thought that hurt was the shape of love.”
This is such a brutally accurate look into what it’s like living with abuse. If being hurt by your loved ones is all you’ve ever known, then it’s very easy to believe that’s what love looks like and that’s how it’s expressed.
It takes a lot to realize that maybe there’s another way.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Murder, Terminal illness, Torture, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Grief, Domestic abuse, Body horror, Child abuse, Gore, Violence, and Death
Moderate: Death of parent and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Confinement, Kidnapping, and Vomit
shoffschwelle's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Not my usual wheelhouse as I'm not a horror fan, but it kept to more thriller characteristics and a surprising amount of focus on her relationship with her dying mother and remembering her father who has passed. I've been hearing about Sarah Gailey for a while and she delivered, even in a genre I normally shy away from, showing her skill as a writer. Definitely picking up others of her books.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Violence, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Death, Gore, Grief, and Murder
Minor: Physical abuse and Torture
Had a hard time ranking the level of all of these. Book description explains that she's coming back to her traumatic childhood home, the home of her now dead serial killer father and the complicated relationship she has with him and her mother. Most descriptions are pretty minor to moderate considering the genre, but it's pervasive. Certain sections ramp up with more detail though. I'm not a fan of horror, gore, body horror, etc. but I could handle this. The emotional relationships and abuse might be even worse in some areas, especially if you have past experience.cjblates's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Death, Grief, Toxic relationship, Panic attacks/disorders, Body horror, Blood, Murder, Gore, Torture, Injury/Injury detail, and Kidnapping