Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advance copy of The Stranger Upstairs by Lisa Matlin in exchange for my honest review and opinion. The cover alone makes you want to read this book as it's absolutely stunning THEN you read the description and can't wait to dive in. This one is a wild and crazy ride that will now make me question buying a house from this point forward. Great book with lots of mind blowing twists and turns. Just wait for the ending is all I'm going to say.....

Meh... it was good at times and disjointed others, but honestly I already have trouble remembering most of it.

I really flew through this one! There was so many twists and turns to keep my attention. My only note is that the drunk unreliable narrator trope can get kind of old.

A good thriller with no characters to like really...well except you know that one, haha. I loved that the house was its own character too. Interesting past about the house and then the present homeowner...well, she's a mess. A great fun read!

3 stars

This book started out great and I really wanted to like the last few chapters, but I just got so confused what the actual point of the story ended up being. This story has great potential and I will probably pick up another book by this author because the writing was actually good. I just wasn’t a fan of the “wrap up” at the end.

***Thank you NetGalley for an ARC copy in return for an honest review***

I really liked The Stranger Upstairs. Sarah is the perfect extremely not perfect narrator. She's such a mess but captivating. I liked how the relationship between her and her husband played out, the reveal was a bit much but also built to. I hate that she killed the one good person in the book though!

The Stranger Upstairs by Lisa Matlin is a dark and intriguing psychological thriller that hooks you from the very first page. I'm always hesitant on a gothic mystery and I don't Leo when the house is its own character, but this was actually a good read. The story follows Sarah, a lifestyle influencer who buys a notorious murder house, only to uncover eerie secrets that blur the line between reality and madness.

Matlin’s writing excels at creating an oppressive, haunting atmosphere, and the house itself feels like a character, full of menace and mystery. The plot is layered with twists and turns that kept me guessing, and the exploration of Sarah’s unraveling psyche added depth to the story.

While a few plot points felt slightly rushed or unresolved, the overall experience was gripping and left me thinking about it long after finishing.

If you enjoy unsettling, character-driven thrillers with a touch of the supernatural, The Stranger Upstairs is definitely worth a read!

I usually love a haunted house thriller, but I'm not sure I really liked this one. The explanation felt a little bit like "it was all a dream," and the ending was too ambiguous and unclear for my taste. While the shock factor is definitely there, it just wasn't to my taste. I'd give this author another try, though!

I really wanted to like this book, but I struggled to read it. Neither the character nor the plot could truly capture my attention.

A thrill, creepy and chaotic read that kept me reading until the very end. There were some loose ends that I wasn’t a fan of which tied up either too nicely or didn’t make sense to me (i.e carbon monoxide but it was cause the house was evil??).

Also, I liked how the title really made me think someone was behind everything. What a red herring!

I enjoyed the author’s writing style – this was the first of I hope of many more books!

Disappointing and forgettable plot and characters. The was not the page turner I hoped it would be. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy.

Sarah Slade becomes exactly who she wants to be in life. But lately, her new house and her husband are making it more challenging.

This story is primarily told by Sarah Slade, an amazing unreliable narrator. She’s a therapist and is sure to tell the reader how each of the people she talks about is crazy. She’s certain who to trust and who she already knows well enough not to trust. She is confident that she has her business together enough to fool them all.

There’s a deep, dark secret in the past she shares with her husband. She hints at it repeatedly, and is sure to say that by keeping the secret, she’s protecting her husband and their future together. But as all the pieces fall together, the reader can’t be sure if Sarah can even keep her own stories straight.

Sarah’s telling of things was interspersed with newspaper stories reflecting back on the current situations. By foreshadowing what the community would eventually find out, the reader could believe they knew a little bit of where Sarah’s story may go next.

The atmosphere in this thriller was chilling. Between the hateful neighbors, the past they’re running from, and the potentially haunted house, Sarah couldn’t be sure who to trust or where to turn. The book was engaging and earned 4 out of 5 stars. It could be recommended to those who like thrillers, potentially haunted houses, and unreliable narrators.

I thoroughly enjoyed this psychological thriller and am honestly shocked it was a debut. It was utterly unputdownable. I would definitely recommend this one if you love a good twisty thriller! 5 stars

I hated this I’m sorry. Boring characters, flat narrative, dragging pace, and predictable ending. I’m sure the CoHo girls will love this one but I am not a CoHo girl so I hated it.

I've picked this book up so many times over the year getting to parts/dialogue that seemed repetitive, slowing the pace and not providing anything new or surprising. I got 65% before dnf. What I did enjoy about this novel was the absolutely beautiful cover and the cat that I feel had something more to do with what was going on.

The cover, title, and book description let me know this was a book that I wanted to read. It took me a while, but once I got going things went smoothly. It is interesting to see things from an influencers perspective. I think murder houses are interesting, does the house become evil once evil is done inside of it's walls? You never really know what goes on behind closed doors, and we all carry some secrets. Overall, there was a lot going on in this book, but it was interesting.

Quick Summary: A dark heart, murder house thriller

My Review: The Stranger Upstairs by Lisa M. Marlin is a 2023 release. It is listed as a general fiction/mystery/thriller.

About the Book: "A social media influencer with a secret past buys a murder house to renovate, but finds more than she bargained for behind the peeling wallpaper in this gothic psychological debut."

My Final Say: Skewed perspectives, haunting secrets, troubling behavior, and ill-fated illusions are mainstays in this novel. There is so much to the story that it warrants discussion. This book is an any time read, however, it hit differently as a Halloween-esque, spook read. (Yikes!)

Other: This would be an excellent book club read.

Rating: 3.5/5
Recommend: Yes
Audience: A
Status/Level: 🕸💬


Appreciation is extended to the author, to the publisher (Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Bantam), and to NetGalley. Thank you for granting access to a digital copy of this title in exchange for an honest review. The words I have shared are my own and have been offered up voluntarily.

There were two 'mysteries' in this book. What is Sarah hiding? And is the house evil? The first one was kind of annoying. It wasn't really a mystery because Sarah is the narrator and knows what she is hiding. The information about her past is just alluded to throughout the book, and withheld til the end to make it be a big splash. But it wasn't a mystery, except from us, but it easily could have been given to us.

The house and what is going is incredibly creepy. I think the ending was interesting but also, kind of anticlimatic. While the book kept me turning the pages, after it was over, it was a bit of a disappointment.
2.75 rounded up to 3.

This one definitely kept my attention and also kept me guessing until the very end. The ending was not what I thought it would be at all and added a new twist to the world of thrillers.

Creepy mansions, unlikeable characters with secret pasts, and a few twists and turns along the way made for an entertaining read. Perfect for October. 3.5 stars