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inkedupmargins 's review for:
The Stranger Upstairs
by Lisa M. Matlin
Quick Synopsis:
The Stranger Upstairs gives off immediate horror-read vibes. The quick synopsis is Sarah Slade, a therapist, and Instagram influencer, buys a murder house to renovate and use as the substance for her upcoming book. Sarah’s life holds many secrets, including her past and crumbling marriage. As she begins to redesign the home, the home seems to fight back. The storyline details her decaying life’s plans inside her newly bought decaying home.
Characters:
The Stranger Upstairs’ MC, Sarah Slade, essentially introduces herself as a shopaholic and alcoholic. She also admits to recently purchasing the murder house, seemingly to get more engagement on her social media platform. Sufficed to say, the beginning of the story screamed unreliable narrator, and I was hooked.
Storyline/Pacing:
As the story continued, I struggled with how much I detested Sarah Slade’s narration. She oozed sociopathic tendencies, and for some reason, that slowed the pacing for me a bit. That said, the momentum speeds up about 40% into the story when Matlin begins interrupting each chapter with news stories foreshadowing upcoming events.
Author:
This was a well-written debut novel. I appreciated Lisa M Matlin’s candidness in her afterword, and I will look for more reads from her.
Overall:
In general, this was a good mystery/thriller read, perfect for the approaching Halloween season. I’d suggest this one to people who like creepy paranormal or atmospheric thrillers.
⭐️⭐️⭐️ stars
Disclosure:
Thank you to Netgalley and Kathleen Quinlan at Random House Publishing Group for the digital review copy. All opinions are my own.
The Stranger Upstairs gives off immediate horror-read vibes. The quick synopsis is Sarah Slade, a therapist, and Instagram influencer, buys a murder house to renovate and use as the substance for her upcoming book. Sarah’s life holds many secrets, including her past and crumbling marriage. As she begins to redesign the home, the home seems to fight back. The storyline details her decaying life’s plans inside her newly bought decaying home.
Characters:
The Stranger Upstairs’ MC, Sarah Slade, essentially introduces herself as a shopaholic and alcoholic. She also admits to recently purchasing the murder house, seemingly to get more engagement on her social media platform. Sufficed to say, the beginning of the story screamed unreliable narrator, and I was hooked.
Storyline/Pacing:
As the story continued, I struggled with how much I detested Sarah Slade’s narration. She oozed sociopathic tendencies, and for some reason, that slowed the pacing for me a bit. That said, the momentum speeds up about 40% into the story when Matlin begins interrupting each chapter with news stories foreshadowing upcoming events.
Author:
This was a well-written debut novel. I appreciated Lisa M Matlin’s candidness in her afterword, and I will look for more reads from her.
Overall:
In general, this was a good mystery/thriller read, perfect for the approaching Halloween season. I’d suggest this one to people who like creepy paranormal or atmospheric thrillers.
⭐️⭐️⭐️ stars
Disclosure:
Thank you to Netgalley and Kathleen Quinlan at Random House Publishing Group for the digital review copy. All opinions are my own.