Take my advice, start this book early in the day as you won't want to put it down. Revolving masterly between the past and the present, The Family Upstairs is built upon the concept of family... the one you're born into, the one you create, and the one thrust upon you. Mainly told from the children's perspective... and in some cases you're not sure whose retelling the take (and believe me, you don't mind),... how the "new" family upstairs impacted and changed their lives is a fantastic tale. Definitely one of my most favorite books of the year so far!

Flowers in the attic in steroids! So good! Twisted and thrilling. Lisa jewell has perfected domestic thrillers. They’re fast paced but also manage to tug on your heart strings.

The Family Upstairs tells the story of a rich family who begins to let others come to live with them - in a cult-like fashion. David quickly begins to enforce strict rules and takes away all material items from members of the household. In a cult-like fashion, he also begins to infiltrate the couple's relationships and take the women as his own. When David and the rich parents are found dead, and a baby is found alive, many questions remain which is the bulk of Lisa Jewell's story, The Family Upstairs.

The beginning of the book was a bit confusing for me. There are a lot of characters to follow and the story changes time periods without any distinction. Once you get a grasp on each of the characters and their place in the family, in addition to the timeline, the plot made more sense and drew me in. I wish Jewell would have spent more time developing the setting and characters more at the beginning. This was done much better in the second half of the book.

Overall, once I got a feel for the characters, I really enjoyed this book. There were some great plot twists and dark characters that kept me on my toes. This is not a happy beach read, but a great twisted mystery. Thank you NetGalley for the arc of Lisa Jewell's The Family Upstairs.

Loved this book! Quick read, fast paced, and had me trying to piece things together the whole time! This had a unique plot that I haven't seen in other books like this (and I've read a lot!!). Reminded me slightly of a Charles Manson style character without the killing but will all of the manipulation. Great book!

I am a huge fan of Lisa Jewell and have always enjoyed her books, this one however was a little different for me. It did not captivate me in the first third of the book like the rest of hers have. I found the beginning confusing, the points of views, and the amount of characters we were introduced to was hard to keep up with.

Once I figured out who was who and what was occurring the story line gripped me a little bit more. I enjoyed it but have enjoyed other Lisa Jewell books better.

In this intense psychological suspense by Lisa Jewell you have three principal characters, Libby, Lucy and Henry. They are each separated by chapters in varying points of view. As you read my introduction to these characters you might be a bit thrown off. Even though they are all principal players, readers will be forced to wait to see how their stories are all blended into one another.

Let's start with Libby Jones. She is a resident of the UK and has been aware of a trust that was created in 1977. The strict rules included things would not be revealed to her until she turned twenty-five. Now she is finally able to discover some facts about her past. At that time, there was a property in Chelsea that she has just inherited. A couple was killed, and two teens were missing. It is at this point that Libby is told that they were her birth parents and that she has two siblings.

Then we have Lucy. Lucy is the mother of two children, Marco, 12, and Stella, 5. Lucy gets an odd text that simply states: "The baby is 25." Lucy and her children are struggling. They are homeless and they go from place-to-place to eat and to try and find places to sleep. Although she struggled to get away from her ex-husband, she still longs to return to London.

Lastly, readers are introduced to Henry Lamb. He talks of his parents and then of a woman named Birdie who visited his house while he was a child. Henry, as it turns out, is part of the trust that Libby is being told about. We briefly learn about his father Harry and other things that happened during Henry's childhood.

The readers are taken on a journey of alternating viewpoints told in both the past and the present which allow for several revelations to be revealed. Quite naturally, everyone is connected and there is a deep exploration into the family drama that affects them all. I want to add to this review that the fact that it is a psychological thriller, and combined with the title, The Family Upstairs, it simply did not gel. When it came to the fact that Henry grew up in a cult-like environment, it became easier to see what actually happened back in 1977 when the deaths occurred and how that affects everyone now, 25 years later.

I always enjoy books by Lisa Jewell, but I must admit to having a bit of a hard time waiting for this book to gain traction. I was especially enticed and fully committed when the house began to be explored. The pieces are jumbled at first but quickly begin to fall into place. I was definitely intrigued and couldn't put this book down until I read it from cover-to-cover. There is some sadness and emotion, especially regarding Lucy and her children, and also for some of the things that Henry experienced as a child.

Many thanks to Atria Books and to NetGalley for this ARC to review in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book has mystery, murder, missing kids, a terrifying cult, and downright bad decisions through each and every glorious page. In other words: MY KIND OF BOOK! I started this read while waiting for my oil change. After finishing the first couple chapters I knew this one would stick with me for awhile. I finished it in 2 days.

Libby is adopted. The only thing she knows about her birth parents are that they are dead after a devastating suicide pact and she is due to inherit their family home on her 25th birthday. The story begins on that exact day. The reader is presented with 3 different story lines. Lucy, a struggling mother who tries her best to provide for her 2 young kids. Henry, the child of a beautiful socialite and a rich father. And of course Libby, a woman in search of where she came from.

I don’t want to spoil too much of this story, but I will say you need to keep your eyes open. When I thought I knew what the mystery was the author flipped it around on me. The ending was written in such a way that I got chills up my spine. I really enjoyed EVERY SINGLE character and the plot was a mashup between the cult leader, Jim Jones mixed with the Branch Davidians.

Add it to you TBR. It’s book birthday is October 29, 2019. Thank you @atria for providing me with an eARC via @netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

From the moment I opened this book, I knew it was going to be one of those never put down, totally enthralled by, ignore the rest of the world while I read kind of books. And it was that and more. This was an unforgettable story written so well and with such intense emotions and strong characters. There were characters to completely love and admire and characters to despise. There were moments that pulled on every heartstring.
This was a pure psychopathic packed story that was completely effed up and so twisted and dark.
In the beginning, it might seem hard to follow the characters and time frames, but it will all make sense. And every detail is important. Once I started and got in the groove of the story, it wasn't as complicated as it first seemed.
This is a 10 star book. I went to bed thinking about it and woke up thinking about it. Cheers to the author!
Thank you #Netgalley, the author and the publisher for my free ARC in exchange for my honest review, I am so thankful to have been able to read this book. And my family is thankful I finished it...so I can give them attention again :-)

This novel did not turn out the way I thought it would. It begins with three dead bodies, four missing teens, a large rambling house, and a baby. Somehow they are tied together and the secrets are kept for 25 years, until Libby Jones inherits the house. and secrets are slowly revealed. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to be an early reader in exchange for my unbiased review.

This book wasn’t amazing to me. The multiple POV was hard to follow at times. The “villain” wasn’t evil enough or charming enough to make me like or hate him. The writing wasn’t amazing but not terrible either. It was just a mediocre book overall

The Family Upstairs is a mesmerising,enthralling domestic drama/thriller about brother and sister Henry and Lucy Lamb and how swiftly their young lived descended into a living nightmare after two strangers moved into the opulent home in Chelsea that the siblings share with their socialite parents. A nightmare that starts with the death of three people and the discovery of a abandoned baby. All this in a once loving home.

The book flies buy and puts you in the center of the story. I’ve read this author before and I love her stories.

Libby Jones knows she was adopted, that her socialite parents had died and she was an infant On her 25th birthday, she inherits the closed up house in a swanky section of London that she was born in. Libby soon finds out that she is "the baby", the only one left alive after what appears to be a suicide pact as part of a cult ritual. Finding out what her family was, and what happened to the occupants of the house leads Libby to an unbelievable journey of who she is and what really happened to her family. #netgalley #familyupstairs #lisajewell

Lisa Jewell weaves another creepy suspenseful tale in this book. A cult leader moves into the eccentric family's home and succeeds in taking over their lives with dire consequences. When a murder/suicide occurs, the reader is lead on an intriguing journey to find the truth!

My sincere thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for providing me with an electronic ARC in return for an honest review.

Lisa Jewell does it again. She inspires your interest from the first page and then you have to know the twisted tale of this intertwined family. There are many surprises and you will not want to put this book down until you know all the answers.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ecopy for my Kindle.
If you, like me, do not read books or like to read books about child neglect or abuse, then don't read this one. A very disturbing book to read involving multiple time lines and several families/people living together in one house as a cult
I've read several of her books, but this one wasn't not a good one for me.

I'm really liking this author. She really knows how to craft a good story. I really can't say much about this book without giving too much away. Suffice to say some really crazy things happen in a mansion in London. Great characters, some creepiness and a strong desire to find out what happened keep the pages flowing. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy.

I was quite excited to read this book because I love Lisa Jewell. Perhaps I should start by saying that I began this book with a certain expectation for a fast-paced read. That was a mistake. However, by no means does that take anything away from this book. In fact, it speaks to this author’s talent and ability to write novels that are both fast-paced and thrilling, along with novels that are a slow-burn and chilling. There is a lot going on in this novel, and it takes you through a whirlwind of situations. The level of realism and character development is so good that you become engrossed in the story and truly detest certain characters. I highly recommend this read.

Shortly after Libby Jones’s twenty fifth birthday, she receives a letter from a solicitor about the trust established by her birth parents before their death. Libby is shocked to learn that she has inherited a mansion in Chelsea and that she has san older brother and sister who haven’t been seen or heard from since their parent’s bodies were found in the home. Libby feels compelled to learn more about the strange things going on in the home prior to the deaths and hopes to solve the mystery of her siblings whereabouts along the way.

Lisa Jewel has a talent for creating complex family dramas that draw the reader in from the first page, making it difficult to accomplish anything else while reading one of her books. The Family Upstairs has become my favorite Lisa Jewell book and I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys a well executed story with twists and turns to keep you engaged until the very end.

An interesting peek into how a family can get sucked into the whirlwind of a charismatic person’s control and the devastation it causes.

Not at all what I was expecting!!

This story takes a few different turns and seem to be running off the rails with every time jump. There are several different narrators as they all have something to contribute.

I don’t feel as if I can properly review this story without giving away crucial plot points.

I will say the writing was excellent and you could picture everything that was going on, right down to what the characters look like. I am a fan of Lisa Jewell’s writing style and think she should be given a fair try.