Actual rating: 3.5 stars

This is a really hard book for me to rate. It was well written and the way the plot was executed was definitely original. However, considering the dark and disturbing content of this book I felt the tone didn't match this at all. It was almost light, even comical at times. At least that's how it sounded to me via audiobook. In general, this is not the kind of story I enjoy which is more of a personal preference thing. That being said, I think this book will work well for most readers and I happen to be an outlier. If this one is on your TBR I recommend giving a try. It was definitely a unique read.

**Audiobook received from publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I gave up reading this as an ebook. It just didn't click for me. That's when I saw it was available in audiobook format.
Really interesting concept and very different from anything else I've ever seen. The narration is top notch! Still, it is an odd book, not for everyone.

My thanks to Macmillan Audio for a review copy via NetGalley of the unabridged audiobook edition of ‘The Last House on Needless Street’ by Catriona Ward in exchange for an honest review. The audiobook is narrated by Christopher Ragland and has a running time of 11 hours, 30 minutes at 1x speed.

What an extraordinary novel! Definitely one that I was very pleased that I read without prior knowledge of its plot. All I knew in advance was that there was a great deal of buzz about it and that a cat named Olivia was featured in some chapters. Feline-based perspectives are always fun (one of my favourite childhood novels is ‘Thomasina’ by Paul Gallico).

A Russian nesting doll also makes the occasional appearance and that actually is quite a good metaphor for this multi-layered, genre-bending novel that blends elements of literary fiction, horror, suspense, and the Gothic.

With respect to the audiobook edition, although Christopher Ragland is the only listed narrator there is also an uncredited female voice. Ragland is an actor with a considerable number of audiobook titles to his CV. His voice was very compelling and he drew me quickly into the narrative. An excellent reading/performance.

Having both the book and audiobook allowed for a rich, immersive experience. The audiobook ends with the last chapter of the novel but the print edition has an Afterword that Catriona Ward describes as “one long spoiler.” I appreciated the background information that she provided in it as this gave me a wider perspective on the novel.

This is a book that will undoubtedly remain with me and one that I want to reread, hopefully in the context of a reading group given that its themes, structure, and characters would provide much scope for discussion.

Overall, ‘The Last House on Needless Street’ was unlike anything that I have read before.

Very highly recommended.

Amendment: Catriona Ward contacted me on Twitter after reading my review and advised that all voice work on the audiobook was by Christopher Ragland. That he could alter the timbre of his voice to this degree is very impressive. Well done.

First, fantastic narrator choice- really brought the story to life, Indus green with reviews that call this novel “disturbing” only because nothing felt gratuitous or included for shock value- it was clear everything was carefully and deliberately plotted. I’d say it’s more accurate to describe the message as disturbing- how memory can be subjective and not align with another person’s memories of the same event, how timelines can overlap or change in your memory and the impact that had on your perception. Loved this book and it was quality prose in a genre often too concerned with trying to use outlandish twists to throw the reader off. Highly recommend!

If you like your fiction Gothic, this novel is for you. With its multiple, questionably reliable narrators, it may confound you at first. Give it a minute. All will be revealed by the chef's kiss of a twist at the end. And take note: the audio version is impeccably read by Chistopher Ragland, who performs all of the characters' voices. All of them!! Even the cat ...

[Thanks to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for an opportunity to listen to an ARC of this book in exchange for my opinion.]

First, I have to be honest and say that I was just not able to continue reading this book, but not due to any fault of the the story or the writing. I must explain, I was unable to continue reading when I realized I was reading a horror story. I did not realize that literary dark fiction could possibly indicate that a story is considered horror. So I will take the blame as it was my mistake to request a horror story that I thought was going to be more literary fiction with a bit of a dark edge.

That being said, after reading up to the middle of chapter three I stopped reading. Not finishing a book is not a common occurrence for me. And again, I stopped reading only because I finally realized I was reading horror.

However, I will say to horror fans, I can say the I found the writing style and the story-telling in The Last House on Needless Street to be quite good and for that alone I will be sure to post a rating here on NetGalley.

Thank you to Netgalley for a preview copy of this book. How does one even begin? I'm a speechless Julia Child after eating a french meal with tons of butter! I went into to book not knowing hardly anything about it, except that it was supposed to be a fabulous, well-written story. And indeed it is both of those things. But it is much more, so much more than that! There were times when I wanted to stop listening to this book. It was just too much to take in at once. But like every amazing story, you have to keep on. You have to know what is going to happen next. I HIGHLY recommend that every reader goes into this book knowing next to nothing about it---it will blow you away. You will have to be comfortable with being uncomfortable...and not understanding why things are happening during the first 1/3 of the book. Once the cards are laid on the table, they can never be picked up. You can never go back to not knowing. I cannot wait to read more from this author. Ward has an amazing imagination and will undoubtedly become a bestselling writer.

Here's the thing.

Did I DNF this book the second the POV of the cat kicked in? Yes.

Does that have anything to do with what might be the quality of the book, the narrator or my suggesting the book to others if it is something they might like? Absolutely not.

I have personal reasons that I did not feel comfortable continuing with it. However, that is completely on me and not at all a reflection of the book.

First of all, I want to thank NetGalley and Tor Nightfire for the audio ARC!

I think the less you know the better for this one so my review will be brief. I had no expectations for this, which worked perfectly for me. I think if I were to describe this book, I would say its more along the psychological rather than true horror. There is horror but it is more "real-life" terrible kind of stuff rather than chill bump scary.

This book had me constantly guessing because I just could not wrap my head around anything. And I think a lot of people might take fault with how this book unfolds. There isn't one giant reveal, but rather a lot of reveals. I personally enjoyed how this played out and it left me wanting to reread it to catch the details again this time knowing how it ends (aka I am for sure buying a physical copy).

The multiple POVs added a lot of layers to this story, every narrator felt unreliable in their own way and it left you as a reader what you could even believe. The audio production for all the POVs was a lot of fun too!

I was really impressed by this audiobook and can't wait to reread it!!

Ted Bannerman is a strange man, living a lonely life, with his cat Olivia and sometimes with his daughter Lauren. His windows are boarded up, as he was once the suspect in the disappearance of 6-year-old Girl with Popsicle, and even though he had an alibi, people were still suspicious. Ted sometimes loses time and an is often confused by things that happen around him.

Dee is the grown sister of Lulu, the missing little girl. Though 11 years have passed, Lulu has never been found and no suspect has ever been arrested. But Dee definitely believes Ted is the key to finding her sister, so she moves into the house next door to him to try to uncover the mystery.

You might think this is a standard missing child book, but this story is so much more. It unfolds slowly, alternating POVs from Ted, Dee, and Olivia (yes the cat!) and as it goes, there is clearly something very dark and strange going on. Ted reveals more and more of his childhood experiences and his early life with his mother as we go on. This book will leave you thinking about it long after you've finished reading or listening,.

Christopher Ragland was the narrator and I really enjoyed listening to him. The pacing was good and the minor inflections between characters was flawless.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for providing me with this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

Almost, but not quite, 4 stars

This was a very weird story full of seriously damaged characters. I almost didn’t get through the first chapter because of some very vivid descriptions of violence/death toward animals (birds, in this case). A few more (again, intense) descriptions of violence and abuse toward both animals and people were scattered throughout the rest of the story; scenes like that don’t always disturb me as much as they do for some people, but something about these ones got to me, so maybe that in itself is a sign of good writing. There were also quite a few strong religious references (on the part of a non-human character) that initially seemed odd and out of place but were later revealed to be coping mechanisms for the character’s trauma. Additionally, this story was one where the reveals were sort of spiralled throughout the second half of the text; some parts I anticipated right away, and others I didn’t see coming. At the same time, though, I was expecting suspense to be built up and maintained more skillfully than I thought it was. Although I almost called it quits on this one, I’m glad I didn’t as I felt it got significantly better into the last two thirds/half of the story.

Thank you to NetGalley and Catriona Ward for this Audio-ARC in exchange for my honest review and feedback.

I received this ARC as an audio book. It took me a long time to get in to. I would start listening and think to myself this is a weird book. It had multiple POVs including a cat. Stay with me though because I kept going. I would pick it up and put it down several times and almost DNF'd. But I didn't and I am so glad I didn't. I did not see any of this coming. I really thought I had it all figured out. Nope! I had no clue. I agree with the other reviews this is a weird one but boy hang on because it will blow your mind!

This book is truly WOW. The twists and turns will take your breath away, and you will not see anything coming. It's been a while since a book truly kept me on my toes like this one did. The audiobook version was fantastic, but it also lead me to pausing for breaks more because it brought the story to life which at times was a little bit overwhelming/disturbing. Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for a copy of this book for an honest review.

Wow. Where do I begin with this one. This book was odd for lack of a better word but it kept me wanting to listen and so engaged! I kept thinking I knew what was going on and by the end I was completely wrong!! The WTF factor in this book is pretty large! Once you do figure out what is going on is where you get the wow because it comes out of nowhere! This book is definitely dark and creepy and at times sad. You hear from the different characters and the narrator did an amazing job drawing you in to each one. I don’t want to say too much about the plot or characters because it’s best to just go in blind.

It took me while to get into this story, I'm not sure if it was the writing style or the narration, but this book was slow to pull me in. I didn't know anything about the plot going in and that kept things very mysterious, especially considering how unusual the story is.

Overall I ended up enjoying this weird and twisted tale. The cat chapters even grew on me after a while. The Last House on Needless Street is a great spooky dark book for fall. It keeps you guessing as to what's happening with the unreliable narration and unconventional storytelling.

This is one of those books that I believe readers will either love or hate. To be honest, I almost put it down because the imagery from the descriptions were so vivid. That being said, I am glad I followed through to completion of the story. The main character reminds me of another couple of characters, but I can't share those because it would be a spoiler for sure. I will say that it is such an intriguing story, albeit a difficult one to listen to. Audiobooks really help bring the characters and the story to life, and it just makes it that much more real. I would recommend this book to some, and would caution others who may not wish to go to such dark places. This would be a great book for a book club! I wish I had someone to discuss it with right now! I'm glad I had the opportunity to read and share my thoughts!

This book will mess with your head! It's a genre-bending suspense/thriller/horror mystery mashup that will keep you guessing to the end and long after you close the book. Very creative, completely unpredictable, I can say with confidence that I've never read anything quite like this before. There were probably 3 times that I thought I had things figured out only to realize I had it all wrong. There are multiple POVs including Ted, a strange man who does strange things, his daughter Lauren, who is not allowed to leave the house, not after what happened last time, Ted's cat, Olivia, who enjoys reading the Bible, and Dee, a young woman obsessed with finding her little sister, who has been missing for years. The story jumps between different timelines. I don't want to say much more and give anything away. This story is creepy at times, horrifying at others, while at the same time hauntingly sad. I recommend the book and I suggest going into it fairly blind, not knowing what to expect, so that you can best enjoy the different twists and reveals.

This was a dual read for me - I alternated between reading and listening - the audiobook was narrated by Christopher Ragland. He did a great job switching between the different POVs and giving them each a unique voice. I would definitely listen to him again. Thank you to Tor Nightfire for the e-ARC and Macmillian Audio for the a-ARC.

This book takes you on a slow dark journey as we unravel the truth. The story is strange at times, uncomfortable and scary at others. There were moments in which I asked myself WTF? But in the end it was all worth it.

Definitely a story I recommend!

THE LAST HOUSE ON NEEDLESS STREET is a dark and twisty tale that deftly stitches together many character’s POVs starting with Ted, his daughter, and his cat. We hear their own tales of Little Girl with Popsicle, the Teds, the Green Boys, and so much more. It has been called a masterpiece, and rightly so. It’s a sad and terrifying story that feels more like a spell. Saying more—even a little—would be an injustice to the reader. Go into this one as if you were exploring the creepy, haunted house at the end of the street where everyone fears to tread. Where the owner could come home at any minute and catch you. 

This is a horror and a thriller with a slow creep. It does have its heartwarming moments but be warned. This novel niggles and gnaws at the corners of your brains, and purrs along at just the right clip until you are feeling nice and comfortable with your darkest fears. That’s when you’ll find that knife in your belly. Buckle up, pilgrims, because Ward is in full control and, believe me, you’ll want someone as skilled and crafty behind the wheel on this inimitable and harrowing ride down Needless Street.

Ted’s story is disturbing on so many levels, but the writer makes it worth it. It is my introduction to Catriona Ward’s writing. This book is a triumph. I cannot wait to see this one brought to the big screen. Andy Serkis will certainly have his hands full with the adaptation. Now, I must away, to find her other novels. 

The audiobook I listened to, narrated by Christopher Ragland, was provided to me courtesy of the publisher, Macmillan Audio, #NetGalley, and the author in exchange for my review. I am thrilled to have been able to get a sneak peek.

🪵I honestly had no idea what I was getting myself into when I started this book. I listened to the audiobook and there were some very creepy moments. The premise behind this book was so interesting and different to anything else I’ve read.

🪵I have heard so many great things about this book that I was super excited to read it. Unfortunately, I just found it meh.

🪵I really enjoyed the twisty moments this author gave us, and I also really enjoyed the idea behind it all.

🪵However, I found this story so confusing. I had to go back so many times because I got so lost with the structure. It’s told by different perspectives and different time lines.... it just confused me.

🪵I honestly just think this book wasn’t for me. If you absolutely love mystery/thrillers with weird vibes and confusing moments then this may be for you.

🪵I don’t really get the hype, maybe I just overhyped for myself. I think I might just reread it (physically this time) and see if my thoughts change. I really wanted to love this one...

🪵Thank you @netgalley and @macmillan.audio for allowing me to read this book early!

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