The Dollhouse is creepy, graphic, and unsettling. Remiscent of Room and Dear Child, this book will have you rooting for Olivia, Angel, and Bud as they plan their escape from the "Dollhouse." Sara Ennis writes with a descriptive and emotional tone. I like the different perspectives throughout the novel and was genuinely surprised by the plot twist.

If you like your thrillers very dark and twisty, you will want to check this one out. The story is told from several different POVs. Alfred has had a difficult upbringing and is trying to heal the wounds of the past. To do this, he needs dolls, lots of blonde haired, blue eyed dolls, to help him play act the past and rewrite his history. Young teen siblings Angel and Bud have been abducted, ensnared in Alfred's web. He will put them in his Dollhouse and play with them, at least until he gets bored and wants a new toy. They scramble to learn the rules of the game that will allow them to survive. In the meantime, Peter Baden is a famous journalist whose daughter Olivia was abducted a year prior. He's been monitoring any abductions involving kids the same ages for connections, and he thinks he's found one. Can he track down Olivia before her time runs out.

I loved this book, I couldn't put it down. It was everything I love in a thriller. Super dark, disturbing, horrifying at times. Great characters, twists I didn't see coming. The pacing was good too - things kept moving forward with lots of action and short chapters. I'd say this book has one foot firmly on each side the thriller and horror genres and I'm here for it. You won't be able to stop flipping the pages. I'm excited that I already have the sequel and I can't wait to get started to see what comes next.

Thank you to @netgalley and @saraenniswrites for providing me with this ebook in exchange for my honest opinion.

I enjoyed this book a lot more than I expected to based on reviews I read. While it was definitely fucked up, it was well written. I loved the short chapters and I most definitely did not expect the plot twist or ending! There were some weird jumps in timeline though that didn't really add up at some points!

This dark and twisted novel was a story of sadness and survival, hurt and heros, deep pain and perseverance. Olivia, Bud and Angel have been abducted from their families and the book mainly focuses on their captivity all while the desperate search for them continues. The effects of their abductions is far reaching and ripples out to all aspects of their lives. I found this book quite difficult to read at times due to some of the graphic nature. I had a very similar reaction after reading Room by Emma Donovan.

This was an amazing book. If you havmt read it make sure you do, the twists were great. I cant wait to read the second part to it.

“Be good and have fun!” The Dollhouse by Sara Ennis

And I’m back finally. Had a bit of stuff going on but so glad to be back. And I’m starting off again with this book.

4 stars. I kept seeing this book around (with good reviews) so I just had to request an arc of it. And I enjoyed this a lot!

The blurb is chilling: “Alfred needs dolls. Blonde, blue-eyed, human dolls that will help him rewrite his past and change his future.” 3 children (well, teenagers really, early teens) are now living in his dollhouse, forced by Alfred to re-enact old photographs. Which isn’t easy. And with each photo, Alfred gets more and more unhinged. And the children just found out that there aren’t much photographs left.

This was good. A little hard to read because of the abuse (physical) towards the kids. And Alfred is nuts. I was so glad when the authorities finally finally got to the kids, though I guess someone had to die in the dollhouse. That one hurt. I didn’t believe it at first and had to reread the scene again. Sad sigh.

This book is dark and rather disturbing (needs trigger warnings) and has a sequel, which is great as things really aren’t settled yet for Angel. I do want things to be better for her. I do hope Olivia and her father will still be around in the next book though.

Thank you so much to Sara Ennis and NetGalley for this arc.

This book kept me glued.to the pages, I just couldn't put it down. Twins, Bud and Angel are abducted and kept in a basement the abductors called the dollhouse. There was another teenager there also. The kids went through such horrible torture physically and mentally. I think the author did a great job bringing all the characters to life. The writing is good and the level of suspense just keeps escalating. If you like this genre this is one you don't want to miss.

The premise of The Dollhouse sounded really good, and the cover caught my attention. I really wanted to like it, but it was just okay. Some things didn't quite seem believable, and some things just didn't add up. There were several errors pertaining to the timeline and locations that distracted from the reading experience because I kept going back to previous chapters to check what I had read. Errors are expected in an uncorrected proof, but I feel that these errors should've been caught and fixed in early edits. The twist was hinted at, but the final reveal was still executed well.

Overall, it was an okay book that I would've rated higher if the plot was a little smoother. I will recommend the book to others if it goes through more thorough edits. I was not prepared for some of the content so my recommendations will come with several warnings.

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

This book was hands down SO good! I read it rather fast it was written so well I loved all the characters and the descriptions of everything through the book all the rooms and photo shoots made it so good! I’d for sure recommend this and I also ordered and read the sequel. The dollhouse is five stars to me the sequel maybe a 3.5 just because it was so short but still good!

What a pleasant surprise! I love when I find something good that I haven’t seen around too much! The Dollhouse was dark (VERY dark) and twisty in such a riveting way. I felt something for all the characters and the storyline was well thought through. Although there was suspense, the action stayed riveting enough that the story didn’t feel overly drawn out and there were no cheap tricks used to propel the story. The foreshadowing was fantastic and the twists caught me out of nowhere.

I was riveted by the story of Angel and Bud’s kidnapping and the motives behind it. The high action scenes had my heart absolutely racing. I would have liked a little more resolution at the end for some characters and maybe a chapter or two shorter in the middle, but overall I would recommend this read in a heartbeat.

Go into this aware that the storyline is violent and traumatizing with some pretty horrific acts towards children. Definitely a must read if you’re a big Karin Slaughter fan as this had a similar vibe to her books though I enjoyed having some younger characters!

Thank you to Netgalley and Sara Ennis for this copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book was a solid read. Peter's daugher is abducted and he spends all his time looking for her and helping other families with abducted children. This book is told from a few different perspectives, but my favorite was that of the children. Their personalities really shone through and made the slower parts worth getting through.

There were a few twists that I really enjoyed. The ending came together really well. I enjoyed the pacing of the last 30% of the book the most as it was really suspenseful and had me on the edge of my seat. It was a solid 3 star read.

Thank you Netgalley for my advanced e-reader copy!

I was very intrigued when I read the description for me. There need to be strong trigger warnings for abuse (physical, sexual, child specific), kidnapping, and torture. While this book was at times graphic, that didn’t really bother me. I found myself unable to buy into the story somehow. The characters felt flat to me and I felt like the book would have benefited from much more editing. I found myself picking other books up instead of finishing this one despite the compelling story line. I hope the author’s next book will be better, but I’m not sure how I feel about there being a sequel to this book. I also believe the twist could have been done in a different way for a little more authenticity. I found lots of pieces to be unbelievable (like Angel’s trips to the store. Overall I think I was disappointed, but there was potential and I would likely try another one by this author if the opportunity presented itself.

This book gave me chills! I finished this book in one day because i couldn't put it down. I had to know how it all ended. I was not disappointed.

The premise of this book immediately grabbed my attention. Twins, Bud and Angel, are kidnapped by a well dressed woman and held as playthings (dolls) for the sinister Alfred, who uses them to recreate some of his past memories. They are not the first dolls in the Dollhouse, nor will they be the last.

At turns both brutal and tender, this is not a story for the feint of heart. Trigger warnings abound (especially for child abuse and bullying), and while the plot always held my attention, something in the writing and character development felt lacking.

I wouldn't call this an easy read, but it was pacey and intriguing. If you liked kidnapped narratives like Room and The Last thing to Burn (although not as successfully executed), you may want to check out The Dollhouse.

When Shine Evanston leaves her 14 year-old blonde-haired blue-eyed twins, Angel and Bud, alone for a long weekend, she has no idea Angel is being watched. Angel and Bud are used to being left alone, but the watcher takes advantage of a moment when Angel is distracted and attempts to abduct her. Suddenly Bud shows up but he fails to rescue Angel. Instead, the kidnapper takes both teens.

When they wake up they discover they are in a place called “The Dollhouse”. They meet another “doll”, Olivia, who has lived alone in the dollhouse for a year. They are dressed, fed, and forced to pose for pictures. The pictures are to help their captor rewrite his childhood traumas. When the captives do anything displeasing, they are severely punished. They soon realize their time is running out and they must risk a daring escape!

Meanwhile, Olivia’s father has all but given up hope as he keeps searching for his daughter. He reaches out to the twins’ devastated mother, as well as the parents of other abducted children who have never been found.

𝑴𝒚 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒔: I was not able to put this book down! This emotional read sent chills down my spine! I was seriously concerned for each of the teenagers as they endured unbelievable hardships. I also tuned in to the devastation of the parents. The author did a great job building the climax to a shuddering conclusion. I can’t wait to read the sequel to this story!

My thanks to NetGalley for my digital copy. My thoughts are my own.

This book blew my mind! Absolutely crazy, Good but crazy! Can’t wait to read the 2nd one! I am not sure how someone comes up with the story lines that they do but this book pushed the limits with some of the things that was done. If your looking for something disturbing yet mindblowing this would be the book for you!

This book was disturbing in all of the best ways. Creepy, but compelling and definitely a read to see through to the end.

This book is definitely a psychological thriller but also could be classified as horror. It was one of those books that I couldn't read without taking a break every so often. But then I would be so curious about what was going to happen next, that I would pick it back up after 10 minutes. I hesitate to say I enjoyed this book because it does describe horrible things done to innocents. I will say that it definitely held my attention and kept me reading to the end. And had elements of surprise that I could never have foreseen.

What a creepy and scary book. Took me sometime to figure out the plot of the story. It’s not one book for a light hearted read and the writing style and way of writing gave such good vibes. This is one of those books that will suit specific readers and perfect for a mystery lover.

I wasn’t sure what to expect based on the premise of this book but it just didn’t work for me. I thought it was creepy and weird and some parts made me feel uncomfortable. I didn’t like the writing style and thought the book was insanely to long!! It definitely could have wrapped up quicker. Maybe this author’s next one will be better.

Creepy Alfred collects “dolls”. He dresses them up and manipulates them into posing in re-staged photos. Alfred is very weird and has a hair trigger temper especially when things don’t go according to plan. Jennifer balances out Alfred. She is nice to the “doll” and provides them with food, clothing etc. Just don’t make her angry.

Twins Angel and Bud are Alfred’s newest dolls and are desperately trying to hold it together. They form a friendship with Alfred’s first “doll” and struggle to figure out an escape plan.

Simultaneously, Peter Baden’s daughter disappeared almost a year ago. He quit his job as a journalist and has devoted all his time on trying to find her as well as helping parents of other missing children. Will he be able to find his daughter?

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.