Another absolutely cracking read from Lisa who is fast becoming one of my favourite authors. Her books never disappoint and this one was no exception. It had me hooked from start to finish with some wonderful twists and turns. I certainly didn't know what to expect and the ending was fantastic. Highly recommend this book.

A rather complicated psychological thriller with the narrative being told by three separate people - all coming together at the end.

Ms Jewell is a fine writer with vivid descriptions of people and places: using metaphors such as night being as 'dark as damsons' and the sky 'detergent blue'.

The story centres around 25 year old Libby who has inherited a large house in Chelsea that was the scene of a possible set of murders. She knows she has a brother and sister, but these were apparently not written in to the trust document that gave Libby sole ownership. There are other lovely, and other sinister characters, but no spoilers from me.

Not only was it a complex book, Ms Jewell has a fixation with characters whose Christian names begin with the letter"L". A bit like herself?

Thanks to Net Galley and Cornerstone for the chance to read and review.

Loved this book, couldn't put it down! My first introduction to this author and I loved it. Psychological thriller that is fantastically written.

Well what can I say about this book apart from, you won't want to put it down.

Libby has always known she was adopted but not the circumstances. On her 25 th birthday she inherits a house in Chelsea. When she goes to see it she finds out it has been empty for years and has fallen into disrepair.
A mystery begins as to why she has been left the house and who were her birth parents.

We find out the story of a fashionable house with rich parents who had two children, a boy and a girl. A life full of parties and plenty until the arrival of a man and a woman who come to stay in an upstairs room. This is where it all begins.

I can't say much more for fear of spoiling it.
Lisa Jewell is at her best in this book,mystery,suspense and all human emotions rolled into one. Don't miss it!
Review will be on my blog on publication day.

Oh my goodness this is the creepiest of Lisa Jewell's novels yet. I felt like parts of it were verging on horror they were getting to me so much. I highly recommend that you read this book but I would avoid doing so before bed otherwise you'll be dreaming about just who could be above you!

I loved this book and I have no idea how Lisa Jewell manages to come up with the plot twist that she does but this is in intricately woven plot with events and people that you will never see coming, It takes place so close to home as well, everything that these characters go through could totally happen to you and so that it why it gets under your skin so quickly and so deeply.

Speaking of characters, there are so many intriguing ones in this novel. I loved spending time with Libby who is the young innocent in the whole saga. She doesn't really know what she's getting herself into at the start of the novel and I feel like she still really doesn't grasp the massively big picture by the time we get to the end of the novel. The answers to the questions posed in the blurb get answered slowly and surely throughout the novel but you're never really sure if the answers you've been given should be trusted because we have a whole host of unreliable characters and narrators here.

I really don't want to say much more apart from the fact that I feel she eases us into this plot gently and then you're pushed under and you won't want to surface again until you reach the end. I read this book in two sittings totally gripped and I loved every moment of it. There are a couple of points that are definitely not for those of you who might be a little squeamish and there are care warnings for sexual violence but on the whole I really do recommend this book to everyone else-you're in for a wild ride!

Libby has always known that she was adopted as a baby, but when she reaches her 25th birthday, she inherits not only a large house in Chelsea, but the mystery of how her parents died. Were they part of a cult or were they murdered?

This was an interesting, if slightly creepy, story, with the plot moving from Libby’s discoveries about the house and her family, to a first person telling of the events three decades earlier. Gradually the details become clearer and the secrets of the dwelling are revealed. The characters are well fleshed out, the settings are real and the plot is quite original.

I’m not usually a big fan of dark dramas, however I found myself compelled to keep reading, as I wanted to discover more and see how the story would end. Definitely recommended and will look out for other Lisa Jewell novels.

GOSH
What an absolutely brilliantly written book

How the plot unfolds with the turn of each h page is just skilful and captivating
It is dark, twisty, sinister, unpredictable and unputdownable

Highly recommended

Thank you netgalley, Lisa Jewell and Random House, Cornerstone for allowing me to read and review this book.

In the beautiful mansion in the posh neighborhood of Chelsea, a baby lies in her cot, happy and asleep. Meanwhile, downstairs, the bodies of three adults lie in the kitchen, poisoned. The teenager children of the house have gone missing, never to be found.

And the Chelsea mansion has kept its secret well for two and a half decades.

But now it's time to stir the past. Because the baby is an adult. And it's time to know what happened to her family.

The Family Upstairs is an intriguing story of mysteries, family secrets, betrayals, and survival. Lisa Jewell manages to create a dark, atmospheric story with multi-layered characters. Everyone has a strange past, and everyone has a secret that, if revealed, their lives will change forever. And, as much as they don't wish for that to happen, not even twenty years of silence are enough. It's time for the truth to be revealed. And, although it looks straight-forward enough, the twists and turns create a bumpy, unpredictable road.

Great narrative, intelligent characters, realistic tragedies: these are the components Lisa Jewell has used very effectively, creating a successful, attention-gripping story that the reader won't be able to put down. This is definitely a recommended read, especially for the fans of psychological thrillers.

would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this frightening novel

wow a chilling read...a well to do family with money to burn suddenly take in strangers, but when some others turn up for a few days things begin to change and not for the better....

a young woman inherits a house on her 25th birthday and then suddenly things are never the same again...is she really the baby found 25 years ago in an empty house with 3 people who killed themselves... a cult killing

but how has she survived those days where they lay dead and she was fed and changed... a chilling tale unfolds

I've long been a fan of Lisa Jewell's writing, so was looking forward to reading this latest one. It certainly didn't disappoint. 25 years ago, 3 people were found dead in a London house, apparently a suicide pact. In an upstairs bedroom is a baby, clean and fed, but no one else. Neighbours said that there were other children living at the house, but they seem to have disappeared off the face of the earth. This is the story of what happened leading up to those events, and what has happened since. I don't want to give away the plot, which is intriguing and will keep you on the edge of your seat. Thanks to NetGalley for a preview copy.
Copied to Goodreads.

I received my ecopy from Netgalley, thank you.

I have long been a fan of Lisa Jewell and The Family Upstairs definitely didn't disappoint. This is a family drama, with the emphasis on drama, a great plot and engaging characters.

As I progress towards the end of a particularly enjoyable novel I usually hope that the ending is not too conveniently, and usually disappointingly, pulled together just for the sake of neatness. However, as the conclusion was drawing nigh, in this instance I felt so invested with the characters that I was desperate to know what the outcome for each of them was. Lisa Jewell actually concluded the story with great finesse, it was perfect.

To my mind the only downside to this story was that I was sometimes confused by the narrative but that is probably more to do with me than the author.

Excellent. Dark and twisted, I thoroughly enjoyed this family drama - the characters were really well described and the split narrative worked perfectly.

I have read and enjoyed this author’s novels before and liked them more than this one. I found it hard and slow to get into and only really began to enjoy it over halfway through but then a few twists and turns to keep me interested until the end. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to review it.

The Family Upstairs was quite simply a brilliant piece of writing. It feels dark and sinister whilst intriguing and entertaining. From the first page I was immersed in the plot and couldn’t stop turning the page.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House UK, Cornerstone and the author for the chance to review.

This is the first book I have read by this author, but it won't be the last, I thoroughly enjoyed it. The story is told year's apart and weaves perfectly to the present. I will be recommending this book.

A domestic noir/ psychological thriller. From page one I was hooked. A dysfunctional family from hell but SO much more. A powerful dramatic story which begs to be read. A tale of wealth,abandoned babies, jealousy and love but SO much more. Some thing happened in a house in Chelsea and this is the story of that event and the aftermath. I loved the main characters, their back stories, infact I LOVED everything about this book. This author is one of my favourites and yes she has done it again. Another five star read and so Highly Recommended.
I would like to thank the author, Random House UK and Netgalley for the ARC in return for giving an honest review.

I have read Lisa Jewell novels before and this one was totally different to her usual style. Quite a psychological thriller that I felt was a bit disjointed to start. I read the book really quickly but did not really engage with the plot. Enjoyable nevertheless.

It’s Lisa’s 25th birthday. Nothing unusual about that you may say. But she has just inherited a mansion 16 Cheyne Walk in Chelsea. Lisa was adopted as a child. First, she thought it was a joke. But she agrees to see the mansion. Once beautiful, but now lies empty and abandoned and in disrepair.
In the past Harry Lamb and his sister Lucy live in 16 Cheyne walks. In the life of luxury with lots of treats and attending private schools. When one day two strangers visit the house for a visit, but they never leave. The strangers seem to take over the house and the people in it. The neighbours think that the house has turned into a place for a cult the beautiful furniture etc are sold off to charity. When one day, the police are called because they can hear a crying baby. The baby is well cared for but, when the go into the kitchen, they find 3 decomposing bodies.
Thank you, Random House UK Cornerstone, and NetGalley for a copy of The Family Upstairs. I have read a few Lisa Jewels book. I did enjoy this but, this is not one of my favourites. This book has a good original plot, but the only character I liked was Libby. I liked her side of the story but, the story involving the rest of her family I didn’t care much about. It also didn’t grip me like her last book did. 3.5 stars from me.

A page turner, well written and engrossing. It's the first Lisa Jewell book I read and won't surely be the last.
I appreciated the gripping plot, full of twists and turns, the well written cast of characters, and the general atmosphere full of secrets and enthralling.
I look forward to reading other books by this author.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

This isn't the first time I've read a book by Lisa Jewell and and it certainly won't be the last. This one had me hooked right from the start and kept me gripped right to the end

I love the characters, they were so engaging and beautifully crafted.

The novel explores elements of family dynamics, expectations and the generations. One could also say culture, taking a literal sense of the word.

The character of Lucy is central to the story. Her voyage of discovery about her birth prior to adoption, takes the reader through a gripping psychological thriller.

Plenty of red herrings along the way. At times I was reminded of the writings of Arthur Ransome.

This is the first novel to which I have awarded 5 stars so far this year.

I give my thanks to NetGalley and and Random House (Century) for a copy of this book in exchange for this review.