Once you start reading 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝐷𝑜𝑙𝑙ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑠𝑒 you won’t be able to stop- and well, being a mom this book totally killed me! It broke my momma heart over and over- but guess what? I couldn’t put it down because it was a damn good story and I had to finish out the craziness!

𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝐷𝑜𝑙𝑙ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑠𝑒 is considered a psychological thriller but it definitely felt like I was reading a horror story. 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝐷𝑜𝑙𝑙ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑠𝑒 is compared to 𝑅𝑜𝑜𝑚 but honestly I found it much more disturbing, dark, violent and creepy. It’s one of those stories that is so sick and disturbing but you can not peel your eyes away from it!

SYNOPSIS: “Alfred needs Dolls. Blonde, blue-eyed human dolls that will help him rewrite his past and change his future.

Twins Angel and Bud are used to making do. Their dad is in prison, and mom won't win parenting awards. Bud thrives on neglect, but Angel isn't so strong.

Now they're captives in a place called the Dollhouse, and things have gone from bad to worse. The Dolls are forced to re-stage old photographs, but satisfying Alfred is not easy. He has a twisted sense of humor and a violent temper that explodes when things don't go his way -- and sometimes when they do.“

I did love this book but I finished it feeling relieved, happy the stress was over. Then I just found out the sequel-𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝐻𝑢𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑑: 𝑆𝑖𝑛𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑎𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟 - is coming out December 1, 2021, so looks like I have no choice but to continue on this journey 😵‍💫😍

Book Review:
The Dollhouse by @saraenniswrites

WTF.
That’s it. That’s my review.


Okay I’ll give more that that! 😂 This book was creepy, and had me wanting to cover my eyes like I would with a scary movie, but of course I couldn’t because I had to keep reading! Definitely buckle up for this psychological thriller, out and available for purchase now!

This was the most disturbing book I read this year. I like dark books but there was too much of that in this one. Kidnapping children and holding them just to play twisted games with a psycho is not for me. I also didn't really like this author's writing style. I had to force myself to finish reading this story.

5 star read!

Holy hell, what did I just read? This was incredibly dark, disturbing, and heart-wrenching. A nail-biter that was unpredictable and insane.

Told by multiple viewpoints, you get completely engrossed by each character’s perspective. I never once felt that I was lost or got my stories crisscrossed which made for a very immersive read.

This is not for the faint of heart as there are some sensitive subject matters here.

Book 2 is releasing in December 1st of 2021 and I’m all here for it!

I know a book is good when I actually cry. Well I did at the end of this book. I will not give any spoilers but this is one emotional book. This book does have triggers. There are many aspects of mental health within this book. There will be a second book and I will be reading it.

This is definitely one of the darker and creepier books I’ve read. A tale of such depravity makes it so uncomfortable for the reader. Great list of characters that either I loved and felt empathy towards or that I loved to hate.
Highly recommend.
Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book

This book was the perfect blend of eerie, suspenseful, and heart-racingly paced while also allowing me to enjoy the characters and be immersed in the story. I would absolutely read another book from this author again. The villain was believable and written in such a way that it was both creepy but empathetic.

A typical abduction and keep story with a couple of plot twists. The characters kept you interested even though the story dragged a little. I was on the edge of my seat at the end as the author did a good job of expressing the urgency of the situation. I'm curious to see where the next book takes us.

3.5 stars (rounded up). This is more horror than thriller - as books about children being abducted and tortured tend to be.

It's a well written book. I enjoyed the characters (although there were chapters with smaller characters that I couldn't figure out why they were being included - until is was revealed), and the plot moved along. There are some twists that most may not see coming - I didn't find them that surprising (or unexpected).

"Alfred needs Dolls. Blonde, blue-eyed human dolls that will help him rewrite his past and change his future.

When Peter Baden's daughter Olivia was abducted nearly a year ago, he left his career as a respected journalist to find her. Now he spends his days searching for Olivia, and helping other families of abducted children survive the emotionally and physically exhausting experience of finding a missing child.

Twins Angel and Bud are used to making do. Their dad is in prison, and mom won't win parenting awards. Bud thrives on neglect, but Angel isn't so strong.

Now they're captives in a place called the Dollhouse, and things have gone from bad to worse. The Dolls are forced to re-stage old photographs, but satisfying Alfred is not easy. He has a twisted sense of humor and a violent temper that explodes when things don't go his way -- and sometimes when they do.

Angel knows that if she and the other Dolls are to survive this warped playtime, she can no longer be needy and afraid. She must prove how strong she can be -- fast.

There aren't many photos left ..."

Thanks to NetGalley for the free ARC (given after publication date).

If I could give this more then 5 stars I definitely would. Sara Ennis is a writer that I will be reading as soon as anything new comes out!

This book as been compared to Room and while I see the similarities, I enjoyed this one so much more. This was a wild ride from beginning to end and I could not put it down. The story starts out with 14 year old twins being abducted in broad daylight and being brought to a locked basement the abductor has coined “The Dollhouse”. Once there they realize there is another “doll” already there. Alfred uses his dolls to recreate photos in his album of his life growing up. We also see snippets of what Alfred actually went though that made him in to the crazy person he is today.

I did not see these twists and turns coming and the short chapters made this book fly by. I see there is a second book coming out in December and I cannot wait to get my hands on it!

Thank you to NetGalley and Sara Ennis for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book surprised me in a lot of ways. I had to mull it over before I could write this review. Sara Ennis does a great job with keeping the suspense in this book going until the very end. There were things that I did not see coming and just kept reading with my mouth open.

This one is sort of hard to review without giving away lots of information. Alfred has a fetish to where he wants to recreate pictures from his childhood. Alfred gets one doll as he calls them, but that is not enough to carry out the pictures that he wants to recreate. When he has his accomplice take a brother and sister, they will be the perfect ones to complete the pictures. The way that Alfred houses the dolls and treats them is mind blowing. Not only is he pretty smart with how he transports them, but he also has places in the house that he can hide the dolls and they would never be seen.

The games that Alfred plays with the dolls is pretty intense. He makes it to where what he does ends up being someone else's fault instead of his. You will not believe what he does to them. You will not want to put this book down once you start it. The desire to know what happens with these dolls is so strong while reading that you will finish this book in no time. Such a well written book and the suspense will drive you crazy!

I voluntarily read and reviewed this book on my own and all opinions are mine. Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for an advanced copy of this book. Very well done and written!

Thank you so much for my digital copy!
I will feature the book on my Instagram blog @thrillers_and_unicorns on November 29, and share my review there as soon as I finished reading. I will tag Netgalley, the author, and the publisher in both my posts. As soon as I finished reading, I will post my review on Amazon and Goodreads as well as send it to you via Netgalley.

Best regards,
Sandie

What happens when a bat sh*t crazy killer/kidnapper meets up with very likable kidnapped kids? This story has just that combination. The author goes in depth to the horrible conditions and treatment of the kidnapped kids. Never have I wanted a sadistic insane predator wiped off the face of the earth in a novel. The really sad part is stories like this are actually happening in our world today. Part of the plot twist was very predictable for me based on some pieces of information along the way, so I wasn't surprised. I found myself hoping the kids would not only find a way out but survive the experience mentally and emotionally. I couldn't begin to imagine what being held captive in those conditions would do to most of us. Great story and well written. You may even find yourself crying towards the end.

Its an okay read. The premise was very exciting but didnt dazzle me enough.
Could have been better.
x

x

x

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Better luck next time.

This is quite a dark and sorrowful story that will stay with me long after reading. Twins Angel and Bud are kidnapped and taken to a strange location known as the Dollhouse. They're stripped of their identity and renamed as dolls by a crazed and twisted man. The story also follows another 'dolls'' father who is desperately trying to locate his daughter who had been snatched earlier.
The book wonderfully pieces everything together until the end and that did catch me by surprise. We learn about Edward's story and why he's on such a vendetta towards his dolls. I was excited to read that there will be a follow up book which I am looking forward to reading. This is a harrowing book at times but equally powerful in the strength of our main characters and their need to protect and survive. Wonderfully written.

So I go into most of my books blind and when I saw the title I thought I was going to be reading a story about creepy dolls terrorizing people. Instead I got human dolls being terrorized by a person! Wowzers, what a creepy, sick, dark story.

Angel and her twin brother Bud are abducted and taken to a place their captives only call "The Dollhouse". There they find another abducted girl and are made to reenact family photos with Alfred. Alfred seems to be a mix between Norman Bates and the guy from Saw and I honestly couldn't put this one down because I had to see where it was going. Turns out this is the first book in a series and I'm super interested to see what dark basement Ennis deposits her readers into next!

The Dollhouse by Sara Ennis

TW: Kidnapping, bullying, suicide, child abuse and gruesome murders

The Dollhouse reminded me of Split starring James McAvoy and the true crime case of Ariel Castro. It begins with a kidnapping and proceeds to be told from the points-of-view of one of the "Dolls", the grieving father of a kidnapped child, and flashbacks from the demented and diabolical kidnapper, Alfred.

I'll admit The Dollhouse was hard to read at times and I began to physically cringe at some of the descriptions of abuse but I also felt a sense of urgency that kept me turning the pages. And while I was able to figure out a few twists beforehand, I still waited with bated breath for the plot to unravel its thrilling conclusion.

If you enjoy dark thrillers and do not get squeamish easily, I would highly recommend this book.

Now I just need the sequel ASAP 😫

I received this from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. One creepy thriller. Intense from the start and never lets off the gas. Strong characters and great plot twists. Very well done.

⭐⭐⭐⭐.5/5

• extremely tough subject matter
• dark and disturbing
• really fascinating characters

You will feel sick reading this because the author writes with such vivid detail... you feel like you are right in the middle of the action. My one tiny little qualm is that it seems like the kids would be way more messed up psychologically speaking from the Dollhouse. This was really good and I can't wait for the sequel! 👀

🗣️ Thank you so much to NetGalley and Sara Ennis for the opportunity to read and review this book via e-ARC. All opinions are honest and my own.

Title: The Dollhouse by @saraenniswrites
Genre: Thriller
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Verdict: Sara Ennis’s dollhouse was an austounding read leaving me terrified and intrigued at the same time. I read it in half a day and it stayed in my mind long after with its stellar writing reminding me of Stephen King with a dash of Ken Kesey and a pinch of Karin Slaughter and Tess Gerritstien for good measure.
Sara Ennis’s writing and graphic detail had me peeking through my fingers whilst reading and yet I had conflicted feelings in regards to our villain Alfred, someone with DID. The intermingling storylines and time periods left me with goosebumps as the ‘dolls’ race against time to free themselves from a terrible fate. It’s almost as if Saw and Room had a baby, perfect for fans of the gory and gruesome. I loved how it also focused on bullying with the Physcological effects, the wealth and poverty divide in America and how a child’s background will heavily influence the media coverage. I also liked how the narrative focused on what it was like for the families of the missing children and one fathers hope to be reunited with his daughter - a fabulous vigilante and cat and mouse chase!
Utterly spine tingling and the narrative raises the question; can we change our past and rewrite history ourselves or is it only up to destiny? Sara Ennis is one to watch! My advice? Don’t read this alone in the dark! I absolutely 100% recommended this read! It’s perfect for spooky season.

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