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jkoerten 's review for:
The Stranger Upstairs
by Lisa M. Matlin
“Give me validation. Give me praise. I’m empty. Fill me up.”
Thank you to NetGalley, Bantam, and Lisa Marlin for an eARC of The Stranger Upstairs!
As we enter into the spooky season, my reading taste is turning more towards thrillers and mysteries. This book is the perfect combination of both and kept me on my toes the entire time. Just when. I thought I knew what was happening a twist would get thrown in and I had to re-asses my theory. I love books like this. I read a lot of thrillers, so it takes a lot for a book to keep me on the edge of my seat, but The Stranger Upstairs did.
I enjoyed the characters in this book. I felt very bad for Sarah at the beginning. She seemed like the typical millennial with a nice shiny life on social media, but a much messier one in real life. As we get to know her character more, we begin to see her true self emerge. But things don’t just unravel, everything keeps going and we see her reach rock bottom. We don’t know what it is from. Guilt? Are her neighbors trying to drive her insane? Does she have a mental disorder? So many possibilities are hinted at that it makes Sarah’s character hard to read, hard to like, and hard to hate.
Black Wood house is a creepy character on its own and I honestly wish I could go visit it. I had such a vivid picture of this house in my mind that I felt like I was actually there. Often times there were thoughts and sounds attributed to the house. Are these actual thoughts? Is the house haunted or is this all in Sarah’s mind? It was just another element that kept me on my toes.
I also really liked the pacing of this book. Things start off slow, but build up until everything is falling apart at a frantic pace. Towards the ending I felt like I couldn’t end fast enough. As the plot built, I felt the same sense of crazy energy Sarah must have been feeling while she was questioning herself. This didn’t come on suddenly - it was a slow build like the loss of Sarah’s sanity - so I felt the author did a wonderful job creating these complimentary feelings.
I did feel like there were a few unrealistic elements that took a bit away from the plot. The notes and their explanation were one. Some of them made sense while others left me with questions. Also - Sarah works as a therapist and only one other therapist senses anything wrong in the practice? The ending was also pretty outlandish - especially considering the technology we have now, but it is fun to think that it could happen,
Overall, I really enjoyed this book. If you’re looking for a fast paced thriller that will get you in the mood for fall and spooky season, look no further! 3.5 stars rounded up.
Thank you to NetGalley, Bantam, and Lisa Marlin for an eARC of The Stranger Upstairs!
As we enter into the spooky season, my reading taste is turning more towards thrillers and mysteries. This book is the perfect combination of both and kept me on my toes the entire time. Just when. I thought I knew what was happening a twist would get thrown in and I had to re-asses my theory. I love books like this. I read a lot of thrillers, so it takes a lot for a book to keep me on the edge of my seat, but The Stranger Upstairs did.
I enjoyed the characters in this book. I felt very bad for Sarah at the beginning. She seemed like the typical millennial with a nice shiny life on social media, but a much messier one in real life. As we get to know her character more, we begin to see her true self emerge. But things don’t just unravel, everything keeps going and we see her reach rock bottom. We don’t know what it is from. Guilt? Are her neighbors trying to drive her insane? Does she have a mental disorder? So many possibilities are hinted at that it makes Sarah’s character hard to read, hard to like, and hard to hate.
Black Wood house is a creepy character on its own and I honestly wish I could go visit it. I had such a vivid picture of this house in my mind that I felt like I was actually there. Often times there were thoughts and sounds attributed to the house. Are these actual thoughts? Is the house haunted or is this all in Sarah’s mind? It was just another element that kept me on my toes.
I also really liked the pacing of this book. Things start off slow, but build up until everything is falling apart at a frantic pace. Towards the ending I felt like I couldn’t end fast enough. As the plot built, I felt the same sense of crazy energy Sarah must have been feeling while she was questioning herself. This didn’t come on suddenly - it was a slow build like the loss of Sarah’s sanity - so I felt the author did a wonderful job creating these complimentary feelings.
I did feel like there were a few unrealistic elements that took a bit away from the plot. The notes and their explanation were one. Some of them made sense while others left me with questions. Also - Sarah works as a therapist and only one other therapist senses anything wrong in the practice? The ending was also pretty outlandish - especially considering the technology we have now, but it is fun to think that it could happen,
Overall, I really enjoyed this book. If you’re looking for a fast paced thriller that will get you in the mood for fall and spooky season, look no further! 3.5 stars rounded up.