4.25/5

I was really excited when I heard that Lisa Jewell was coming out with a sequel to The Family Upstairs, especially considering how that book ended. The Family Remains gives us a past viewpoint with Rachel and I really liked having her story since she was only minimally mentioned in the last book. I was very curious about this second wife of Michaels, and I enjoyed where Jewell decided to take her story. It was hard to read at times since Michael is an abusive and vile man, so I hate to use the word "enjoyed" but I found her POV to be the most interesting, and I loved the twist that was thrown in with her as well. The present time viewpoints were similar to The Family Upstairs with the addition of DCI Samuel Owusu and Lucy. I quite liked every single viewpoint and I really loved having the dash of police procedural thrown in.

I thought the audiobook was done very well, and the best part for me was that it was narrated by a full cast. Dominic Thorburn, Bea Holland, Hugh Quarshie, Josh Dylan, Thomas Judd & Eleanor Tomlinson were all enjoyable to listen to and I thought they were each perfect for their characters. I also appreciated the fact that they decided to bring Thorburn and Holland back, and I love when series/sequel narrators are kept consistent for audiobooks. The Family Remains does contain a multitude of spoilers for The Family Upstairs, so unless you're not planning to read that one you will have to read/listen to them in order. On the other hand, if you wanted to just read this one or know if you should do a reread beforehand, I can tell you that Jewell did a great job restating a lot of what happened in The Family Upstairs, and I don’t see a reread of that being necessary except for maybe the last page. I saw a lot of readers had issues with the way The Family Remains ended, but I was fine with it and thought it was a perfectly acceptable end. If Jewell ever wants to continue this family’s story, I will be here for it.

Thank you to the publishers for my advanced listening and reader copies of this book. All opinions and thoughts are my own.

I always enjoy Lisa Jewel’s books and so I was excited to see she was writing a new book, The Family Remains. I’m not sold on The Family Upstairs needing a sequel, but I was willing to give it a shot. I did reread The Family Upstairs and I think that made the experience more rewarding. I thought the first half went by slowly, and then it picked up. A quick read and fairly enjoyable.

Thanks to #NetGalley and the publisher for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

Another wonderful read by Lisa Jewell. As always, Lisa Jewell delivers a beautifully written page-turner with well-rounded characters packed with a healthy dose of intrigue. I felt like I was putting together the pieces of a meticulously drawn puzzle. Thank you, Netgalley for this entertaining read.

I love a good psychological thriller and Lisa Jewells’ The Family Upstairs, filled with dark family secrets, mysterious deaths and disappearances, and a super creepy house, was one of my favorite reads back in 2019.

The Family Remains is a follow up to that book and it’s the twisty sequel I didn’t know I needed in my life!

What I love about Jewell’s writing is how she will start with seemingly unrelated people and events, develop them individually to get you completely invested in each of the storylines, and then gradually weave them together to reveal how they are ultimately connected.

In one thread of this book, we have a detective investigating a bag of bones that was found submerged in the Thames River.

In another, we have a woman who has just learned her husband has been murdered in France. This thread hooked me immediately because as soon as she receives the news by phone in the middle of the night, the wife rolls over and goes back to sleep. Wow! 😅

And lastly, we are reintroduced to the Lamb siblings from the first book. You can tell that they are all still haunted by the events from the first book and I of course was invested in seeing how they’re doing now, but more importantly, I was dying to know how exactly they are connected to the dead guy in France and the bones in the Thames.

The Family Remains is a dark, twisty and intense read that will keep you turning the pages long into the night watching all of the pieces of this deadly puzzle come together. It’s advertised as a standalone thriller but I highly recommend reading The Family Upstairs first. Understanding the traumatic events the Lamb siblings have lived through in the past really informs how they behave in this book.

Lisa Jewell is quickly becoming one of my favorite thriller authors and I can’t wait to read more from her!

So I wasn’t the biggest fan of The Family Upstairs but I loved this one. I actually am unsure how to articulate why I liked it though!

I mean Henry is his own can of worms, he’s the absolute worst and yet has this distant sense of like ability that I found myself reaching for. I actually am not 1000% sure what the whole Rachel story was there for BUT I enjoyed that whole storyline on its own. It felt like a little bonus short story instead of irrelevant to the plot.

I love Lisa Jewell and I’m so glad this one hit right, you definitely don’t need to read the first but I think it’s work giving it a go so you’re a bit situated for this one.

Lisa Jewel’s latest book, The Family Remains, is the story of what came next. The first book was The Family Upstairs and it told the story of four teenagers living in a house full of abuse and cult-like activities. It told how they got out of that house and how they managed to survive. Then they reconnected. This book tells what happens next. How they are all trying to be a family. How it all looks a little off and they have so many issues to overcome. Add in a murder and some bones found in a river, and things get even crazier. Told from several viewpoints and two timeframes, the story will keep you wondering. all in all, it was a satisfying conclusion and I quite enjoyed it! Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers. All opinions are my own.

I always love a good sequel! This is considered a stand-alone sequel, but I still recommend reading the first before this one as it will help you understand the characters better.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

As expected, I totally devoured this novel! Lisa can do absolutely no wrong in my eyes and this novel was the perfection! I was in a bit of a reading funk and these characters brought me right out of it. Every single one of the characters has so much going on and I loved how they all tied together. Another winner from LJ! Thank you Atria and Netgalley for my free review copy.

4 Stars
Although I did not read the first book, I was intrigued and kept wanting to know ALL about this sequel. The writing was strong and I have now become a fan of Lisa Jewell.

Get ready to pay attention and see where all of this goes. You won't be disappointed.

If you haven't ready The family upstairs yet STOP go read that book and then come back! Some say this is a standalone book but I feel you will be pretty confused and won't be able to appreciate the full effect of this story if you don't read book 1 first.

Lisa Jewell's story telling will suck you in and leave you wanting more. Once I started this book, I couldn't put it down. This book is chilling and moving, it shows you just how far we will go to protect those we love.

Henry you complicated, dark & fascinating guy! This character stuck with me the most and I feel like i still have so much to personally work through regarding his character. Such a complex character! One minute I feel for him, I am rooting for him and the next I am shaking my head!

Love Lucy and getting to know her kids better, especially Marco's character development.

Rachel was a great addition to this book. I loved her story in this book. Her character goes through a lot and she comes out of it even stronger. (Warning there is some triggers in her storyline. Scenes of sexual and emotional abuse)

Michael, good riddance!

Welcome back Phin!

I really enjoyed this series but I am hoping it is the last i hear of these two families...!! Everyone is where they should be and moving on with their lives!

Very clever story telling, I feel this book was more of a wrap up for the family upstairs and gave the closure a lot of readers were looking for.

ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

"The Family Remains" is a stand-alone sequel to "The Family Upstairs". I read "The Family Upstairs" in 2020 and read a summary to refresh my memory prior to reading Lisa Jewell's new book. I was captivated from the start and intrigued to find out how everything would be connected in the end.

Lisa Jewell knocked it out of the park with her sequel to The Family Upstairs. This is the sequel that I didn't even realize that I needed!!! What ever happened to those children- Lucy, Henry, Phin and Clemency? You know the ones- those unfortunate children who lived at 16 Cheyne Walk. Now many years later, they are still dealing with the aftermath of their childhood traumas. Lucy and Henry are complicated characters and one can't help but be drawn into their lives. The story opens with the discovery of human bones which indirectly leads DI Samuel Owusu to try to unravel a mystery that ties directly to the Lamb children. Meanwhile, in a parallel story taking place in the not distant past, the reader follows Rachel, a young woman who end up in an abusive marriage. How does the Rachel storyline relate to the Lambs' storyline? This is a well plotted story that will keep you engaged until the end!

Lisa Jewell just never misses. Her best yet, and has left us wanting more, sooner!
Thanks to NetGalley for sending this review copy

The Family Remains by Lisa Jewell #jaylammreviews

If you are a fan of Lisa Jewell, you will love her follow up to The Family Upstairs....dare I say I liked it more!
I felt like this was a very fitting sequel to the Family Upstairs. For the reader, to know what happened to this family was essential. There were definitely some strange turns it took (ex: Henry stalking Phin) but overall I loved the story. 

There were alternating storylines throughout this book. One being Henry and Lucy's current story, and the other being about Rachel, who has unfortunately met and fallen in love with Michael. I felt myself more drawn to Rachel's story but I loved the mix of these two storylines. 

I have come to be a loyal fan of Lisa Jewell and can't see what she comes up with next.

I really loved The Family Upstairs but I didn't really think that it needed a sequel. Sure there were some unanswered questions, but I think it's good sometimes to leave those questions unanswered and let the reader fill in the blanks. Still I was very curious about this sequel, The Family Remains, and what would happen when we jumped back into this (twisted) world.

The Family Remains focuses on several of the characters from the Family Upstairs-- mostly Henry and Lucy-- and also introduces a few new characters. The story jumps around between multiple perspectives and timelines before they all come together at the end. The description says that this is a standalone sequel, which implies that you don't need to read The Family Upstairs. But I think you definitely need to read The Family Upstairs first!

Overall, I thought The Family Remains was just okay and didn't love it nearly as much as the first book. It moved slow and I don't think that all that much really happened in the book. One of the perspectives in the book is a detective trying to figure out what happened in the past, but assuming the reader read The Family Upstairs, they already know a lot of what happened, so it felt redundant. And one of the other perspectives is a new character named Rachel, and I question whether her character was really needed to tell this story?

There were moments in this story that had me engaged and interested to see what would happen next. But after finishing the book, I'm still leaning towards my initial thought before reading that a sequel to this story just was not needed.

I didn’t remember all the details from the first book but there was just enough sprinkled in this one to jog my memory. I got sucked right back in to the family drama. It was nice to see what happened to all the teens from the previous book. Very well written!

Since I love Jewell's novels, I was excited to begin this one! As usual, it's a convoluted awesome plot that alternates in time between 2016, 2018, and 2019 beginning with the discovery of a small skull found buried in the mud. Focussing on The Lamb family (and others), it reveals hidden identities, murder, twisted family dynamics, sex, and con-men. Now who wouldn't love this combination! In typical Jewell fashion, the book keeps you guessing and gasping as truths are revealed and red herrings are thrown about. Of course it's helpful, but not necessary to have read the first in this series; it's been years for me but she "had me at hello" so enjoy!
Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

Okay, I'll be honest and tell you that I got halfway through this book before realizing that it is a followup to her 2019 bestseller, The Family Upstairs. Which I actually think is a good thing because it means it functions as a standalone novel! But obviously, it makes it much better if you know the first book. Luckily for me, I had read it, and after I reminded myself of the synopsis of that one, I continued reading and was absolutely delighted.

Yes, there are a lot of characters, and yes there are a lot of plot twists and turns that take an extra minute to truly absorb, but this is a really compelling companion book to the first one. I highly recommend reading book right in a row, as the actions basically take place both immediately following AND intertwined with the first book.

I was very excited to receive this ARC after reading the first book The Family Upstairs!. This was a terrific intermingling with all the characters settings and timelines. She did a terrific job with expanding upon the characters depth and breath and I can’t wait to find out if there’s going to be a third book tied to the other two. The sequel definitely kept me on the edge of my seat trying to figure out what was going to happen next she is a true artist when it comes to storytelling! Thank you for the opportunity having me read this advanced reader copy and the opportunity to give my opinion on this amazing story!

I loved Lisa Jewel’s The Family Upstairs, however I honestly couldn’t remember enough of the plot /character details to enjoy The Family Remains. I felt lost most of the time, only appreciate the newer subplot.