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A review by justagirlwithabook
The Last House on Needless Street by Catriona Ward
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
5.0
Holy cow, this book. I’ve been left with a lot to process and not in ways that I ever expected.
The blurb for the book simply describes it as a story of a serial killer, a stolen child, death, revenge, and an ordinary house on an ordinary street. It IS a story of all these things but none of it is what it appears.
I received an early review copy of the soon-to-be-published U. S. edition from Netgalley, and what interested me most was the general premise and it being advertised as both horror and mystery/thriller. I didn’t realize what I would get here, and while it ended up being very different than what I expected, it was an incredible read that ultimately left me processing and reflecting even more, not so much on the general plot or characters but on bigger ideas (like trauma, abuse, and survival, especially as it all relates to the brain).
And yes, you will find aspects of this novel to fit firmly within the horror genre. But then to say that this was not a fast-paced “twisty psychological mystery” would also be a lie, because it is that, too. I didn’t see all the subtle twists coming, but when I did, what a revelation.
If you tend to enjoy very twisty psychological thrillers, this will be a good one for you, but only as long as you can handle some tougher situations as well (situations that are more of what we see in horror novels ... not necessarily in the form of gore or scary beings but instead a quiet and uneasy violence all its own).
The blurb for the book simply describes it as a story of a serial killer, a stolen child, death, revenge, and an ordinary house on an ordinary street. It IS a story of all these things but none of it is what it appears.
I received an early review copy of the soon-to-be-published U. S. edition from Netgalley, and what interested me most was the general premise and it being advertised as both horror and mystery/thriller. I didn’t realize what I would get here, and while it ended up being very different than what I expected, it was an incredible read that ultimately left me processing and reflecting even more, not so much on the general plot or characters but on bigger ideas (like trauma, abuse, and survival, especially as it all relates to the brain).
And yes, you will find aspects of this novel to fit firmly within the horror genre. But then to say that this was not a fast-paced “twisty psychological mystery” would also be a lie, because it is that, too. I didn’t see all the subtle twists coming, but when I did, what a revelation.
If you tend to enjoy very twisty psychological thrillers, this will be a good one for you, but only as long as you can handle some tougher situations as well (situations that are more of what we see in horror novels ... not necessarily in the form of gore or scary beings but instead a quiet and uneasy violence all its own).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, Confinement, and Mental illness
Moderate: Child death, Murder, Violence, and Medical trauma
Minor: Animal death, Death, Death of parent, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt