I was so happy to be able to read this debut novel by Lisa Matlin! I am afraid that I will spoil it for some but let me try my best.

Sarah has a secret past and she is trying to start over when she decides to buy the Black Wood house and renovate it. The house is known as the murder house because a murder-suicide took place there sitting vacant for 40 years! Will Sarah and her husband Joe repair their marriage as they repair this house? Or will it tear them apart when Sarah starts to hear voices coming from the attic?

Such a creepy, captivating thriller that you must read!

Thank you Netgalley, the publisher and author for my ARC!

The Stranger Upstairs by Lisa M Matlin ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A big thank you to @netgalley and @bantambooksuk for the ARC. This one comes out Sept. 12.

This is the perfect spooky read to kick off spooky season. A murder house that might have something sinister in it in a small town with a “no outsider” mentality - count me in.

If you let yourself get caught up in the book and not think too much about the plot holes, it is very enjoyable. The author was able to create a tension that made me feel uneasy, and that uneasiness grew the entire book. There were some plot points and character introductions that made me scratch my head, but I didn’t think too much about them. My mind drew connections to the Amityville Horror movie.

For those of you who selected this as their BOTM, you’re in for a (trick or) treat! For those of you who are animal lovers, the cat is ok.

3.75 stars. Thanks to Penguin Random House for sending me this widget to read. Let me start off by saying I am a scardy cat I don't like to watch scary movies nor read them. I couldn't sleep one night so I started reading this from like 2 am to like 3:30 am and then I couldn't fall asleep because I was so scared. This book was like just a huge trainwreck and I could not look away and I was here for it 👏 .

Matlin has fashioned a creepy, psychological thriller with enough twists and turns to satisfy fans of the genre. The novel is set in Beacon, a perfect Australian town marred only by Black Wood House, a supposedly haunted murder house. Sarah Slade, best-selling self help author and therapist with a drinking problem and a troubled marriage, buys the house to renovate and resell, hoping to get sponsors for her project through her social media. But Sarah and her husband Joe have secrets, and the house seems to be hostile to them, to the renovation. It’s almost as if the house doesn’t want them there.Sarah and Joe are plagued by strange sounds, weird accidents, and, in Sarah’s case, threatening notes. Even worse, Sarah hears noises in the attic when no one else is in the house. Is the house haunted or is Sarah losing her sanity? What are the secrets Sarah and Joe are so anxious to hide?

Matlin makes clever use of social media and news posts interspersed in the story narrated by Sarah, foreshadowing the events to come. Not only is Sarah an unreliable narrator, but she is also an unlikable narrator, her true character revealed as the story develops. Surprise reveals cause vacillation between two premises - Black Wood is truly haunted or Sarah is losing her mind. Or perhaps the house is evil personified. Or there is a perfectly logical explanation for the weird events at Black Wood House. Matlin takes the reader on a bumpy ride, full of surprises and ambiguity - sure to appeal to thriller readers.

#TheStrangerUpstairs #NetGalley

I found this book to be too vague. It was a slow build and I was hoping for a shocking twist. I also found it to be repetitive and hate when authors repeat words multiple times in a row. I’m also not a fan of the “the house is alive” trope. I thought the ending was too unclear. The twist that it was CO poisoning and that Sarah was writing the notes herself wasn’t satisfying to me. But then the author seems to take that back by saying there was no CO leak and including the epilogue. So was it ghosts? Was there someone in the attic? What happened to Joe or Amanda or Janet? I don’t think the author made a final decision on what was going on in this book, so it felt unfinished. 2.5 stars

This one was a bit of a head-scratcher for me. What exactly was the point? The main character is a complete fraud and does all kinds of weird things ... that are explained ... then a bit undone in the end? And the epilogue? Just didn't make much sense, sorry.

This review was also published on Goodreads.

Thank you netgalley for this novel.. I kept seeing so much hype and people reviewing the ARC for this novel and having it as well i had to read it and im so glad i did.. First i want to say how much i LOVE the colors in the cover its so pretty but lets get to the story the main character was a mess but i loved her usually im very picky about books following a house or a haunted house etc but this thriller was so fast paced and had twists and turns and i loved that it took place in australia i love australia so im glad to see this book took place there. This novel follows a woman and her husband moving into a house that had a murder happen years ago and the people in the small town want it gone demolished.. they feel it has alot of bad energy and things happen inside it etc... so the main lead finds herself defending the home and going up against the people who are trying to demolish it after she purchased it.. She feels like she is being watched etc after finding notes inside and hearing noises and such.. shes also on the rocks with her husband so as everythings unfolding the main lead starts spiralling i could not put this down it was such a page turner honestly. Thriller fans read this one im sure you will like it. I look forward to reading more from this author in the future. Great job!

This debut book delivered. The tone of the book from the first page had goosebumps rising on my arms. It is fun when you have a suspected unreliable narrator and are trying to sort her out along with the mystery of the house. A book that makes you question what that noise was in your own house is a win. I look forward to more from this author.

I finished this entire book, and I will not be giving feedback on The Stranger Upstairs. I do not read scary novels very often, and this one could give Stephen King nightmares.

Regardless, I apologize, and I am not the right person to review this book positively. I didn’t like the story, and it’s scary, and I hope to sleep this evening. My apologies.

Absolutely amazing debut novel! I'm immediately adding Lisa M. Matlin to my 'must read' list. I had so many theories and guesses as to what would happen, and I wasn't even close to guessing correctly.

If you’re looking for a creepy and eerie read this fall- pick this up! Set in an abandoned murder house, there were moments that had me seriously spooked while reading. As the main character Sarah, loses control, I didn’t know who or what to believe throughout this twisty psychological thriller. The middle was a bit slower paced but when the story picked up, so much was revealed. I also loved the mix of blog posts and news articles in the book. Overall, this was a great debut novel and I can’t wait to see what Lisa M. Matlin comes up with next!

I was here for this book. A murder house, unreliable narrator, subtle hints to sketchy backstories— all my vibe. I enjoyed the flow of this book and found myself zipping through it.

Sarah Slade (except that isn't her real name) is a social media influencer and therapist with a best selling self help book, but her own life is a mess and her history isn't what she tells people. She and her husband have bought a house in a rich and much-sought-after neighborhood outside of Melbourne, a "murder house" that has sat empty since the murder/suicide and attempted murder of the last owners, 40 years ago. Sarah plans to use the renovations on the house as fodder for her social media accounts and website and to flip the house for a nice profit, but the house doesn't seem to want to be "fixed", the neighbors don't want them there, and Sarah soon seems to be losing her grip on reality. Matlin's first novel is a very well-done gothic suspense. Sarah is the kind of character that is hard to sympathize with, making it hard to really like her, but she grew on me over the course of the book and I loved the twists --I totally had no idea where the story would end up, but thoroughly approve of the end.

Sarah Slade, social media influencer with a past, buys a house with a dark past to renovate with hopes of making a good profit and get a boost with her followers. Black Wood House was the scene of a grisly murder-suicide 40 years ago and Sarah hopes this fixer-upper will save her ratings, her reputation, and her relationship. But does the house want to be fixed? Sarah feels an energy from the house and feels it chose her more than she chose it. When mysterious things start happening, she worries someone is after her, especially when she hears the footsteps upstairs in the attic. Will this house help her or be her downfall? Will her past she is running from come out?

Whew, this was a creepy thriller. At times I questioned why I was reading this after dark. This really was a great debut! I don't feel there were many slow points in this book, it got going and held that momentum throughout. There are a couple of passages from news articles included during the story that help build up what is to come, and I liked that, I felt it gave the reader a little sneak peek of something coming up. The twist wasn't huge, it wasn't the kind that made the reader gasp. Given the past of Sarah Slade, it seemed fitting, but I don't want to reveal too much.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bantam for this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Stranger Upstairs is Lisa Martin’s debut novel and man did it take me for a ride. This is the story of Sarah who buys Black Wood House, a house known for its tragedy. Insistent on renovating it and turning a profit, Sarah and her husband move in. Things don’t go as planned, someone is threatening Sarah, taunting her even but who? As her mental health continues to decline, the book has plenty of likely suspects and as the story unravels so many of them could be at the center of it all. This story get me guessing till the end and I’m still here sitting stunned at how it all played out. If you enjoy a dark twisty thriller then definitely check this out.

3.5 stars! This one was pretty quick and pretty good, I couldn’t put it down, actually. But the ending, it just didn’t do it for me. Worth reading because it’s fast, but I wanted some twisters that didn’t come. The anticipation though - whew! I basically loved to hate the trainwreck that is Sarah but I could NOT look away.

I love a good creepy thriller (especially when I’m not expecting it to be creepy!) with eerie and untrustworthy characters and the author NAILED this one! While reading this one, I kept coming up with different twists and turns the author could possibly do and yet I was still shocked at the end! I do, however, wish it had been a little more eventful at times! I think it was a little dull in some places and could’ve used a little more backstory and/or point’s of view from different characters but other than that, this was a very entertaining and quick read!

Thank you to the publisher for the gifted eARC in exchange for my honest review!

This was a creepy, twisty and turny tale that kept you guessing until the very end. Sarah is an influencer who is determined to make a fortune by renovating a haunted house. She has some secrets from her past that are going to come back to haunt her.

Sarah feels like she’s alone…her husband is not on board with her decisions and isn’t around much, the neighbors and community are not very kind to her and things begin happening at the house. Are they really happening or is it her mind playing tricks on her?

Just when I thought I had it figured out…the story took a new direction. Very intriguing and captivating read.

🫣🤯 OH. MY. WOW.

What a RIDE! I loved every second. Hooked from the start to the end! I enjoyed the news stories mixed with the website updates. The complexities of the main character were so intricately woven. I’m a sucker for a “haunted house story” but the validity of this one made it believable, fun, and extra spooky!!! A new auto buy author for me!

With every passing moment, Sarah’s life spirals further out of control and with it, her sense of reality. Though she desperately clings to the lies she’s crafted to conceal her own secrets, Sarah Slade, as the new owner of the infamous Black Wood House, the scene of a grisly murder-suicide, she’s determined that the fixer-upper will help reach a new audience on her successful lifestyle blog, and distract her from her failing marriage. But as Sarah paints over the house’s horrifying past, she realized that a new façade can’t conceal every secret. Sarah knows there’s only so long she can continue to sleep in the bedroom with the bloodstained floor and suffer the mysterious footsteps she hears from the attic. When menacing notes start appearing everywhere, Sarah becomes convinced that someone or something is out to kill her, her husband, her neighbors, maybe even the house itself. The more she remodels Black Wood House, the angrier it seems to become. Sarah Slade must wonder was it all worth it? Or will this house be her final unraveling? This a very unique and creepy psychological thriller. It is a fast paced read that kept me wondering all the way to the end. I'm looking forward to another book by Lisa Matlin. If you like scary things with your psychological reads then you will love this book.