Thank you NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the ARC by William Friend!

I look forward to digging into this work and getting incredibly creeped out! It has been added to my shelf! I can already think of a few library patrons who would pull this off the shelf as soon as it comes in.

Let Him In by William Friend.

Please note that this feedback is for an advanced copy of the story and may not represent the final product.

Something may be wrong with the children. You don't know what it is or how to fix it. It's a parent's worst nightmare. Are the characters, all suffering from the aftermath of an unexpected loss, reliable narrators? Is what transpires over the course of the story real or imagined? You'll need to it to find out.

TLDR; A decent book that starts strong, contains a number of intriguing themes that aren't explored to satisfaction and which includes a few elements that hold it back, but it does manage to wrap things up.

Of the book reviews I've written to date, this has been the most challenging. It's not easy or fun providing feedback that can be construed as negative. Well, that isn't wholly true. It can be fun to lambast, say, an old so-bad-it's-good movie. It's not fun when a promising project falls prey to problems. Most of this story is good. However, a few elements knock it down several notches. Overall, this story is fine. However, it could've been so much more.

An abstract interlude representing the story:

Let's say that when reading a story, the author builds a blue raft, you climb aboard and it begins floating along an engineered river. This is not unlike a lazy river at a comfortable resort, but this one may include rapids, unexpected storms and sharks.

During the course of this story, the rafts encounters several objects hidden under the water. These experiences don't knock you off the platform, but may shift you to a new position. You may see swirling eddies in the water, but don't know what's causing them.

Why is the raft red? Wasn't it blue?

By the time you're halfway through this adventure, the sky may have changed color and the scenery, illuminated by lighting, may include elements you don't care for. You're still along for the ride. Where is the author going to take you? Are the ropes tying the logs that make up the raft beginning to unravel? Will you be delivered safely?

The river begins twisting and turning. On occasion it spins. You're not sure in what direction you're heading and you may feel a bit dizzy. Towards the end of the ride, a whirlpool suddenly appears, sucking the raft underwater.

Everything goes black. You don't know which direction is up. You can't breath. You're being pulled in a variety of directions. You begin to panic. And then the maelstrom of cacophonous disorder ends almost as abruptly as it began.

You're on the green raft again, floating lazily on serene water. Your clothes are dry and pressed. Did you just imagine that? What just happened? The raft continues to float downstream towards a sunset. How Rockwellian. Wait. As your drift toward the disembarking point, you realize that everything seem a bit off. Wasn't the raft red... or was it blue? Green? Why is the sky that color? Are the people waiting for you at the pier your friends? Something in their smiles is disquieting. Oh, it's probably just your imagination.

On returning to solid land:

The opening 20% of the book captured me. I found the story intriguing, wanted to know more and was excited to see where it led me.

However, over the course of the book, things are written that seem at odds with what was relayed earlier. Subtle things. A line here. A line there. This isn't new information, a twist, turn or reveal. It's not an unreliable narrator, source or perspective. It's different.

I wish I'd taken notes so that I could list what I'm referring to. This happened a few times and, while subtle, it's impact was felt like a record skipping. While these weren't the type of skips that required one to get up and reset the needle, they threw me out of the groove and it took time to get back into it... but an off feeling remained.

These skips could've become an interesting element of the story, but they weren't addressed. A part of me wants to read the book a second time to fully uncover these seemingly unintentional ghosts that haunt me, but this isn't my job. A few edits and/or additions could exorcise these apparitions or loan them definition. Either way would be fine. Building upon them may be more interesting and, if done well, would add another unsettling aspect to the experience.

I remained invested in the book up to the 50-60% mark. Elements were introduced to the story that came across as a bit hazy. Several of these elements were never wrapped up, which may be what the author intended. Sometimes ambiguity can be a positive. In this instance, it left me feeling unsatisfied.

Towards it's close, the story took a dramatic turn. While aspects of it had been steadily escalating, it didn't seem to be near this point in the race yet. The yarn didn't appear to know how it wanted to unspool, at times leading in one direction and then another. The story then decided to take an abrupt and confusing short-cut. We're suddenly in clear skies and only a few yards from the finish line... and then the story is over. Wait, what? Weren't we only two-thirds of the way through the race? Was something left out?

[And what's with all these metaphors?]

I wanted the book to work. It started so strong. It has such interesting elements. It was wrapped up in the end, but I found the prime catalyst confusing and rushed. It seemed like there were missing pieces to the puzzle leading up the what happened that were never revealed.

What happens wasn't wholly unexpected. It's something I predicted towards the beginning of the book. It just doesn't seem earned in that the escalation over the course of the book doesn't lead to where the book ended up. At least, not all of the dots are connected. Is the final picture going to be a giraffe or the Eiffel Tower? It's as if a few chapters or key passages were left out. The signposts don't direct the reader to this point.

While the story didn't stick the landing after an abrupt turning point towards the end of the book, it managed a graceful recovery of sorts. The story ends with an all-too-brief passage that felt like a Cliff's Notes epilogue of sorts. However, it concludes on a much appreciated disquieting note that I wish were more present throughout the story, not unlike recurring themes in a good movie soundtrack. Every time a moment like this occurred during the story, it was welcome.

All this typed, the author is talented and writes well. I look forward to seeing what the they produce next.

Overall rating: 2.5 stars. This work is closer to a 3 than a 2.


***


Additional notes (which cover some of what's above in a different manner):

* INCLUDES SPOILERS *

The story contains a number of interesting themes, including whether what's happening is real or imagined, as well as the potential of exploring how multiple perspectives interpret what's happening, which includes a shared loss. These perspectives include those of young twins, a child psychologist (also a twin) who secretly pines for a widow, a grieving widow (who was married to the psychologist's twin sister, who died abruptly in a manner that may not be what it seems), and two grandmothers (both with unusual beliefs, one of whom also experienced a loss that may be related to what's transpiring in the story).

I wish all of these themes were explored in greater depth. There's a lot to mine here. Perhaps too much. The story may have been better served had the possibilities been pared.

These perspectives could shift and play with the reader's understanding of the story and subvert the reader's expectations. All of the perspectives are intriguing. Unfortunately, the story only scratches the surface of some of these possibilities. I wish the author picked one or two perspectives (contradicting ones would've added some nice tension) and hopped into the respective rabbit holes.

One of the interesting elements of the story is the "is it or isn't it" trope. Is what's happening real or imagined? Unfortunately, early in the story, it seems to lean in the direction that what's happening is supernatural, but continues to play with the notion that it could go either way. Late in the story, in an abrupt, brief and confusing passage, it's made clear that what's happening is, in fact and fiction, supernatural.

What happened is unclear. There's an entity. It replaces a character. What is the entity? What's it's motivation? Is it one of the characters referred to during the story (the father who committed suicide, the son who drowned, the son who unexpectedly died, someone or something else) and what is the significance of, if any, the baby at the end of the story? What were the beliefs of the cult that the grandmothers were involved in? What was their intent? I've so many questions. I'm fine with ambiguity and even appreciate it when used well, but feel the reader needed more clarity on a number of story elements. They didn't need to be defined, just slightly more in focus. Some of the provided information resulted in a loss of focus (but not always in a positive way).

Thank you Netgalley and the publishers for giving me an ARC to review!

2 stars!

I love the cover of this!! Stunning!

The premise was also soooo good I was really hoping to get an arc as it really caught my interest.

Sadly the story for me fell a little flat. I wanted the book to be more of one thing than having a mix. If the book was more horror and focused more on that, or if it stuck to being a thriller and just that it would have worked but at some points it felt like it was dragging a little too.

Obviously wasn't a top read for me but might be for someone else!

I have mixed feelings about this book. Very spooky, but ultimately felt a little flat.

The beginning of this book felt cheesy, like it was trying a bit too hard. But once it got into the actual spooky depth of the book, I was hooked! I couldn’t wait to see what would happen next and it was so unsettling.

The ending felt a bit rushed and jumbled. I have unanswered questions and felt more time should have been put into the explanation of the events.

Overall, worth the read for the whole middle part of the book!

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in return for an honest review!

Alfie lost his wife, Pippa, nine months before the beginning of Let Him In, the debut novel by William Friend. Their twins, Cassia and Sylvia, start waking Alfie up as they claim to have seen a man in their room in the middle of he night. This occurs nightly, then seems to settle down until Alfie realizes his daughters have an imaginary friend who they call Black Mamba. The girls start to misbehave, blaming Black Mamba, and Alfie asks Julia, Pippa’s twin and a psychiatrist, to help out. Is Black Mamba imaginary, or could he be real?

I so much wanted to like this book. I’m drawn to the horror tropes of houses with bad histories, and imaginary friends who may be real. For me, the book just didn’t come together. I didn’t experience any sense of fright, much less dread, and just couldn’t get into the story. While I usually don’t mind books with multiple points of view, this style of writing just didn’t work for me in Let Him In. On the plus side, the main characters were fairly well developed.

My thanks to Netgalley and to Poisoned Pen Press, for giving me the opportunity of reading and reviewing Let Him In.

I’m having conflicted feelings about this book. I was initially drawn in by that cover, then the synopsis had me hooked. And I did enjoy the book, for the most part, but it felt a little bit unfinished. I’m still not sure what exactly happened in the end, and there were some plot points during the story that could have been expanded on more. There were several characters mentioned whose deaths occurred before the start of where this book picks up, and they each seemed significant to the plot, however I felt they could have been touched on a little more. There were also some religious elements that were not fully explored, in my opinion.
I did like the characters; The tension between Alfie and Julia felt believable as they both grieved the death of Pippa in their own ways, and the twins and their friend were well written, creepy children.
Overall, it was a quick read with enjoyable characters, it just could have used a few more pages to expand on some of the story lines.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of Let Him In in exchange for my honest review.

I had a tough time getting in to this book. It was unsettling, which is what you would expect - but not in a good way. The writing style is definitely not for me sadly. Thank you so much for allowing me to read.

This was really good and had me hooked! There’s just something about creepy kids in these kind of books that get me hooked

✨I’ve never had such a difficult time rating/reviewing a book 🤔

It’s not often I question my book choices. It takes a lot - as I feel I find a way to enjoy any/all my reads - for me to NOT like a book ❌

That’s not to say I didn’t enjoy Let Him In. I did. But only when I felt I ✨understood✨ what it was about (this is the biggest problem I expect readers to have).

It’s a peculiar one. I want to say labeling it “horror/fiction” doesn’t seem.. fitting, perhaps? I don’t know - I’m no editor/publisher/marketing exec 🤷‍♀️. But I was EXPECTING something different & I fear readers may think the same (as is proof by the DM’s I’ve received & by the reviews I perused on GR).

My point is I’m not sure it’s being marketed correctly 🤨

With that, see below for my spoiler-free snapshot review of…

LET HIM IN | William Friend | @poisonedpenpress

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️(?) / 5

“A recently widowed father is struggling to raise his family alone, when one night he’s awoken to his daughters at the foot of his bed, claiming there's a shadowy figure in their bedroom…”

👻 as mentioned, it was difficult to give any kind of rating because I don’t feel the back cover correctly portrays the plot. I’m still toggling between a 3.5 & 4 star rating. This book is good - it’s simply not my style & not WHY I picked it, hence my struggle.

👻 In my mind, Let Him In is NOT 👏 A 👏 GHOST 👏 STORY. It’s not even particularly scary. Sure, bits & pieces were maybe unsettling but that’s not the point of it. For me, Let Him In is about a family dynamic that’s hanging by a thread, having been shaken, broken, reeling, deep in the throes of grief. It’s about a parents disconnect from their child, a child’s desire for affection, a families search for answers & the root of it all: how humans cope.

👻 loved Friend’s patience, the delicate parsing of his characters psyche

👻 by the end I found the story to be brief + refreshing. I appreciated it once I felt I understood it - which isn’t a spooky bedtime story. However, I’m afraid it’ll attract negative reviews because it’s misunderstood.

👻 reminiscent of The Babadook

& my good-to-knows:
🔪 mild sexual depictions
🔪 mild violence involving children
🔪 covers death & grieving extensively

3.5 stars, this was spooky and unsettling (as all horror involving kids is) but this one just slightly mossed the mark for me.

Nine months after his wife's passing, Alfie is awoken in the middle of the night by his twin daughters " daddy's there's a man in our room" and things only escalate from there. The man becomes an imaginary friend that doesn't want Alfie to hear or see him and becomes enraged when Alfie demands that he leaves. This reminded me of paranormal activity and I really enjoyed the back story of hart house and the beliefs of the grandparents. Thank you Netgalley, Poisoned Pen Press and William Friend for letting me read this copy

In his first literary venture, William Friend has crafted a taut thriller that takes the reader on a journey of harmless play, seemingly brought on by a coping mechanism, to bone chilling horror as the effects of Black Mamba begin to take a toll on the family.

Fans of horror are certain to find many elements that are familiar to them but Friend’s use of those tropes still instill fear within the reader. Suffice to say, this reviewer found himself checking his closet and under the bed before turning out the lights, only to wake up in a cold sweat or two.

Let Him In is a fantastic debut novel, that is certain to frighten even the most hardened reader.

I did not enjoy this book. It had good potential though. I thought it was too much all over the place with the story. Or too much tossed in together in a short amount of time.

I've always found the concept of imaginary friends to be creepy and after reading this book I feel it tenfold. While there were things that left me feeling a little confused I did find this to be wonderfully creepy!

Let Him In was a puzzling book affair. One that would leave a reader in an unsettling twist. A dark drama encompassing a family of different generations. A father/husband looses his wife and is left to pick up the pieces of himself and continue to raise his twin girls. When the girls say they have seen the same shadowed figure in their room one night the story begins.

The story is told from the view point of two characters: Alfie (the Father) and Julia (the sister in law). Both characters are drug into this mystery centered around the twins. Who or what is the man in the shadows, the snake with glistening eyes, who is Black Mamba?

The author describes the grief of the MC so well that you cannot help but offer empathy for the father and the situation he was left in. I appreciated the true to life character development of both Alfie and Julia. Whilst trying to help the girls with this strange phenomena, both are dealing with the loss of loved ones, and still trying to remain objective. Reaching into their sociological tool belts so to say in order to put the girls welfare first. An admirable family first gift within the story.

So many elements of this story that you have to follow and piece together. A house with a woeful past, and a seemingly imagined entity that the girls share. Is it just an imaginary friend? If it is why are the twins acting out in curious ways, violent even? Why are there strange occurrences within the house? Why the shared spooky visions? Who exactly is involved? What is it that the odd mother in law isn't sharing? Why is Black Mamba going through a series of metamorphic changes? Real or imagined?

Questions, questions, questions are what you are left with in this supernatural thriller. Breadcrumbs as clues stringing you along causing you to turn the page a little faster.

If you like the imaginary friend trope in your horror reads this story will amp up the suspense.

Alfie is a widower and father to his twin girls living in Hart House. When his girls wake him one night saying "Daddy, there's a man in our room" everything begins to get creepy.

The imaginary friend begins to fill the girls lives, insisting on a place setting at dinner and taking them from their beds for adventures at night. Alfie enlists his sister in law Julia to get to the bottom of the enigma that is Black Mamba.

I enjoyed this book but I don't know whether it was a horror story, a ghost story or a piece on how our minds will conjure anything to protect us from the thoughts we don't want.

This was a thrilling spooky book about family secrets and what happens when the dead don’t want to stay dead. Alfie is trying to heal himself and his two twin daughters after losing his wife in a semi-freaky accident but, when the twins start playing with an ‘imaginary friend’, Alfie becomes concerned and seeks help via Pippa’s therapist twin sister, Julia. Old family secrets become exposed and the dark side of the twins’ imaginary friend, Black Mamba, creeps into the already rocky family relationship. Black Mamba is here to stay, whether they like it or not.

I really enjoyed the build up of this novel. It was very creepy and got progressively creepier, which is always a delight. I really loved the plot but I did feel like there were key items that weren’t explored enough; the basis of the ‘imaginary friend’ was tied to a dark family secret but you didn’t really find out about the entirety of the secret until the very end, there were only small mentions of it throughout. I also think I am in the majority when I say I am annoyed that Alfie and Julia get together (SPOILER). It just doesn’t seem very fitting for the novel, especially if the imaginary friend is who you think they are.

Overall, I thought this was a pretty good book that had a lot of spooky elements I really enjoyed. Thank you Netgalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the advanced readers' copy in exchange for an honest review.

Honestly, I was very excited to pick up this book and read it because of the cover, title and description. It gave me a paranormal version of “Let Me In” movie vibes which pushed me to request to review this novel. However, after reading this book, I feel very letdown and uncaring about what I read.

It’s like, the whole story was about Pippa, religion and Pippa’s family. That’s really it. When it came to any spooky or paranormal pieces in the story, they felt like forced add-ons. There’s not even a pitch of fear factor in those pieces.

I don’t know if it’s because the grief and depression aura took over like, 90% of the book, or the author was trying to go a different route to explain their version of what fear can look like, but it didn’t work for me. I just couldn’t pick up any intended fear vibes from this novel.

And I felt the sudden relationship with Julia & Alfred was the cherry on top I needed to become even more disappointed in this book. However, I don’t believe in DNF books so I kept reading until the end honestly.

I can vouch that the author has good writing skills, knows how to write identical twins, very knowledgeable in Christian religion and can explain different sets of griefs and depression. So I will give the author credit for that.

But, this might be my first and last book I read from this author. Now this can change if the author writes up a story where majority of it can be super thrilling, I wouldn’t mind supporting since that’s the type of books I love reading.

I sincerely thank NetGalley, Poisoned Pen Press and William Friend for allowing me to read and review the novel, Let Him In. Again, thank you very much for allowing me to read it.

Loved this book... it would be great source material for a limited series or thriller film. Why? The novel opens with a recently widowed father attempting to raise his twin daughters when they report that they have seen a man in their room. Immediately the setting is set for investigation: Is he real? Why is he here? Is there more history behind why he has started interacting with the girls? Through alternating view, the reader begins to learn more about this complicated family as the girls grow close to the man in their room. Would recommend to readers who have time to finish a book in one sitting or love a spooky thriller.


Thank you NetGalley for this ARC.

Overall, I enjoyed this book, it does a great job of building suspense and sucking you into the story right away. I immediately wanted to keep reading and find out more. There was a great creepy feel and the suspense kept me wanting to know more. I loved the twin psyche aspect the story explored and have always found it to be a great addition to a horror story when it’s not overly done. The story did lag a bit in the middle for me but the beginning does such a great job of keeping you invested and establishing a spooky atmosphere early on that I didn’t mind pushing through to see this story’s ending.