Review by _mallrat_ - Incidents Around the House

_mallrat_ 's review for:

Incidents Around the House by Josh Malerman

4.0

dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Incidents Around the House is a story that is well worth a thorough read to understand it. A thing to keep in mind as you read is that the adults are not understanding the conflict on purpose as part of the book's message. This is a story about how a child is considered the least in a tumultuous family dynamic, either out of convenience or ignorance.

The toxicity of the parents is being seen and is internalized by the child, which leads to the creation of a horrific monster in this story that threatens to consume them.

I enjoyed the unique takes on the various character tropes in ghost stories, and I especially loved the (non)descriptions of the book's monster, Other Mommy. One issue I take with the story is that the protagonist, Bela, is written as way younger than her actual age. Her age could've been edited to something younger without it impacting the book.

The ending is vague and has led to a multitude of interpretations. The interpretation that I personally believe is

that the last page going back to when Bela and Other Mommy meet before the events of the book is more symbolic than literal. There are two specific lines of dialogue from the parents that I feel have a lot of significance. The father, going to his daughter's bedside while intoxicated, explains the importance of not letting people's toxicity get inside you. The specific wording he uses is to "not let anybody in", which is repeated later in the context of Bela not letting Other Mommy in. The mother has a breakdown in the car at the end of the book, where she wonders out loud if Other Mommy has some kind of connection to herself and if she let some kind of evil into the world that the family is receiving back. This ties in well to the scene where the father says that the negativity that people put out in the world comes back to them. This gives the interpretation that not only is Other Mommy a manifestation of how Bela is processing her home life, but the struggle to not let it consume her to end the cycle of abuse. I feel that the story repeating itself is Bela growing up and taking her traumatic childhood out on her child, who will then be forced to process it themselves or have this cycle repeat itself.

Overall, a profound story about emotional neglect and an absolutely terrifying supernatural monster!

Content Warnings