Libby has been a budget watcher her whole life. She shops at T.J. Maxx and celebrates a small raise at work by buying one eye shadow from a department store instead of her usual drugstore. Then she turns 25 and receives a letter saying she's just inherited from her birth parents a mansion on the finest street in the Chelsea area of London.

Meanwhile, Lucy receives a text saying, "The baby is 25," and urgently seeks a way to travel with her two kids and dog from France to England. The problem: she's currently homeless, has no passports or money and is hiding from the law.

Libby's and Lucy's present-day chapters alternate with accounts that take place in the past, told from the point of view of a boy named Henry. He lived with his family in the above-mentioned Chelsea mansion until his mother took in temporary boarders--and they never left. Not only that, the interlopers invited friends over and soon the strangers had taken command, imprisoning Henry's family in their own home--until one night when police arrived to find multiple dead bodies and a crying baby.

The way Lisa Jewell brings these plotlines together in The Family Upstairs continues to solidify her reputation as a master weaver of stories. She takes a hard-to-believe situation--wickedness seeping into and taking over a seemingly normal household--and makes it plausible. The story twists in unpredictable, disturbing ways, and shows how hard it is to repel evil when it has invaded one's home. --Elyse Dinh-McCrillis, blogger at Pop Culture Nerd

3.5 stars.

There is a few things that are keeping my mind off everything that's going on in the world lately.

But I binged watched that little tasty nugget, dusted off the popcorn from my boobs and picked up this book.

And I got swept up into this little tasty nugget of crazy too!

It features a total dysfunctional family with some extra little goodies.


It did kinda ramble on at times but I'm calling it a good time. I'm not giving any secrets away because you gotta see some things for yourself. You supposed to be in quarantine anyways.

Booksource: Netgalley in exchange for review.

Twenty-five years ago, police enter the mansion at 16 Cheyne Walk to find three dead adults and one healthy baby girl. All signs point to a group suicide. Neighbors report older children lived there, but the police find no one else.

Now that baby is 25 and is set to inherit the mansion in which she was found.

As she returns to the now delapidated house, she hopes to find out the truth of what really happened there so many years ago.

What follows is a dark and twisty roller coaster that takes you through multiple viewpoints towards an unsettling ending.

I could not put this book down! It pulled me in quickly and while there were a few things I guessed, I was surprised a few times throughout the book.

If you like dark, gothic, almost claustrophobic stories, you'll like this book. Jewell did not disappoint.

Thank you to NetGalley, Lisa Jewell, and the publishers for this advanced ebook in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to Atria Books for providing me with a copy of Lisa Jewell’s latest novel, The Family Upstairs, in exchange for an honest review.

Libby Jones is living an ordinary life in London: she has a small flat, is looking for love, and works as a high-end kitchen designer. Everything is life as normal, until a bombshell is dropped on Libby twenty-fifth birthday. She is contacted by a solicitor, who informs her that her birth parents, whom she knows nothing about, set her up with a trust fund. The contents of the trust is a multi-million pound home in the posh Chelsea neighborhood. This home has been locked up for decades, ever since Libby’s parents were discovered dead with a third mystery man. Libby’s older brother and sister were never found, yet Libby was discovered in the mansion with the bodies, safe in her crib.

In trying to understand what happened to her biological family, Libby falls down a rabbit hole, eventually leading her to a news article written by Miller Roe. Miller spent years trying to uncover the truth and his obsession with the case cost him his marriage. His curiosity is rekindled when Libby contacts him and he agrees to work with her. The plot thickens when they realized that someone has been breaking into the Chelsea mansion.

The Family Upstairs is told from three alternating perspectives: Libby, Henry (Libby’s older brother), and Lucy, a single-mom who is desperately trying to make a life for her kids, while working as a street performer in France. In Henry’s narrative, we learn of life in the Chelsea house prior to Libby’s birth and how their parents transitioned from rich socialites to recluses who died next to a strange man, with most of their possessions missing.

As this is a mystery, I don’t want to give away any of the plot twists. The Family Upstairs is addictive and if I didn’t have other responsibilities, I easily would have read it in a single day, but as it was, it stretched into two. I’ve read several of Jewell’s books and she is brilliant at crafting quick-paced mysteries with unexpected twists. She writes characters that I care about and puts them in dangerous situations. I was especially worried for Lucy, who needs the help of her abusive ex-husband and is forced to be alone with him in his house. It is a tense situation!

I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the mansion. The Chelsea mansion is just as big of a character, as any of the humans in the story. Not only was it the site of multiple deaths, unsolved deaths, but it has sat abandoned for twenty-five years, leaving it dusty and in disrepair. Most of the belongings are long-gone, but Libby discovers small objects that remain, like bottles or old food. She also finds a boy’s name, Phin, carved into cabinets and drawers. The house creaks and moans when it moves. It’s is the quintessential haunted-house and a place that feels uncomfortable every time Libby enters it. Jewell teases out the truth of the house and the conclusion is shocking.

Go read The Family Upstairs. I finished it last night and I have already texted many friends to recommend it. Especially as we are all stuck indoors due to Coronavirus, this is a much needed escapist read. Jewell is a fabulous writer and I recommend all of her books.

What a wonderfully strange and twisted story! So many peoples lives involved and ruined all because of one mans sick and twisted mind! Lisa Jewell knows how to write a creepy story, thank you Lisa!

Another wonderful read from this amazing author. This was a tense slow burn domestic drama that kept me on the edge from the very first page. I love these stories that keep you off balance a little unsettled never sure of what’s going to happen next.

3.5 stars - As with all of her books, I couldn't wait to find out what happened next! Jewell has crafted a unique story detailing the history behind an old house, and the family that inhabits it. I found the characters intriguing, although the way the "others" came to live there was a bit bizarre. My husband enjoyed it as well, and read it before me!

Wow ! Lisa Jewell does it again. She has easily become my go-to author for suspensful books, where she keeps you going right up until the end- her last sentences ARE EVERYTHING.

This book was okay. I did enjoy it but thought it could be more exciting.

The book is about a family who has everything and another family moves in. Then things start to change and go very strange. I liked the way the authour ties up the story at the end. All of the loose ends are tied up.

There are certain authors that you'll pick up and read no matter what. Lisa Jewell is one of these authors for me. The Family Upstairs is one of her best. This is one of those one-sitting books that sucks you in at the beginning. Gothic, creepy, disturbing, twists and turns are good words to describe this book. Highly recommend if psychological thrillers are your jam. Thank you to NetGalley for an electronic copy of this book for review.

I did really enjoy this book but I felt it was difficult to get into. It had a slow, slightly confusing build but once I was in it I really enjoyed it.

A creepy look at how a family was overtaken and then destroyed by a twisted leader, and the children who survived are still haunted decades later. A little darker than the other Lisa Jewell novels that I have read, but a great read nonetheless.

Thanks to NetGalley for this e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

A young woman finds herself receiving a huge house in an inheritance from her deceased parents after she turns 25. She was discovered in the house as a baby after what seems like her parents and an unknown man are found dead. Possible suicide pact? She eventually tracks down what really happened.

I enjoyed this domestic thriller more than I thought I would. It wasn't as predictable as most domestic thrillers and I enjoyed the different chapters showing their perspectives of what happened.

It was entertaining and I actually enjoyed how it ended. This story gave me Flowers in the Attic vibes and I loved that.

3.5/5

I received an advanced copy of this book from the author, Altria Books and NetGalley.com. Thanks to all for the opportunity to read and review this book. The opinions in this review are my own.

Lisa Jewell is a master storyteller and The Family Upstairs is meant to be devoured by the reader. The story grabs you from the very first page. Turn off your phone and clear your calendar because when you start this book you are not going to want to stop reading until it's finished.

5 out of 5 stars. Excellent read!

The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewell

3.5 stars

Libby Jones has finally found out who her parents are and it was a shock to know that she is the baby who was left behind in a mansion. A mansion that housed three dead bodies and was reported as being a cult. Along with two missing children who were never heard from again. The question is who left Libby behind and where did the children go? This was a nice thriller. It wasn’t my favorite and I will probably forget it in a few years, but I enjoyed the moment of reading it. The plot was redeemable enough the inconsistencies I had with the storyline and the reveals. I personally hated the reveals and plot twists Jewell provided. I was in this story for the creepy house that slowly branched into a cult that was ruled by a con artist. That was the storyline I ate up. Everything else was irrelevant and not gripping enough. Jewell is a decent enough thriller writer that I would check out something by her in the future.


Whimsical Writing Scale: 3.5

Libby was a horrible heroine without any real substance. I thought she was the most cardboard thriller heroine I have ever come across. No memory of her past, no real hope for anything but to belong, mystery shrouding her upbringing, and family drama. PUH-LEASE. Libby was a snoozefest.
I did love following our other unnamed heroine. Her storyline was wild and when chapter 28 happened I wanted to inwardly turn away while cheering for her victory over her abuser. What a twist, but also way to not address the fact that(view spoiler) because it’s easier to just sweep it all under the rug and that explanation was way too convenient.
Henry was a mess to follow. It was like following Joe from You. You know he is evil and it’s obvious from the beginning that he is evil. Jewell tries to make him not seem creepy after she clearly mentions early on that he is a psychopath, but that’s a writer’s issue on her part.


Character Scale: 3

The Villain- This is where I get a little fuzzy. Honestly, there were so many “twists” that this story kind of lost it’s flair for me and I wasn’t fulfilled. I did like the reveals of how things went down, but the baby drama was just too much. I was invested in the cult murders and that part definitely delivered.


Villain Scale: 4

Overall, I suggest checking this one out if you are a thriller fan and have to read everything in the genre. However, if you aren’t huge into the genre then maybe consider picking something else up.


Plotastic Scale: 3.75

Cover Thoughts: Not horrible, but I’m not really a fan.

Thank you, Netgalley & Atria Books, for providing me with a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

I've read several books by Lisa Jewell and have liked them all. This books was another great one and I've already recommended it to a few of my friends.

This book was hard to get into. Although I have read many by the same author, this book was different.
I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley.
All opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed this book. I couldn't stop reading to find out what happened. The book is divided into 3 point of views. 2 in current time and 1 in the past. It did take me a little bit to catch on and to understand the different stories and how they connected together. It was a good story to definitely check out.

I know I am a little behind in reading this one so I decided while on vacation I was finally going to get moving on it and I'm sure glad I did. The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewell was pretty darn good. It was a fast read that kept my complete focus. I wasn't sure how I felt about it in the beginning, nor did I have any idea where it was going most of the time but I enjoyed it enough to want to figure it out. I thought Jewell did a fabulous job at writing from 3 perspectives in a seamless manner and bringing them all together perfectly in the end. I wouldn't call this a thriller because it never gave me the "creeps" but it sure was a mystery that had new and unseen developments every few chapters. This is my second Lisa Jewell read and I am definitely a fan! Happy Reading (:

I think that if I were to pick a favorite genre it would be family dramas - I’m not entirely sure that counts as a genre... maybe that’s more of a trope? Either way, I don’t think I’ve read a novel that I feel more perfectly fits “family drama” than The Family Upstairs. This book started out a slow burn. I picked it up probably three or four times before I really truly got into it. After the first... probably 1/3? Of the book it really picks up steam. You start to get to know the characters, and you start to see exactly how crazy the titular family really is. I loved it, and flew through the ending. This book is absolutely worth waiting out that getting to know you period with all of the characters.