What a thrilling ride that was! I was immediately sold with “murder house” but slowly imploding marriage and secrets/lies drew me in even further. I also love an unreliable narrator. I easily saw this entire story play out in front of me like an updated version of the Amityville Horror. It progressed at a great pace and kept my interest the entire time. I knew from pretty early on how the story would play out but that didn’t make it any less fun to read.

Review will be left on goodreads, Amazon and Insta under the grimreadersbookcult

"I keep dreaming about the forest. I dream I’m running in the cold darkness as the trees reach down and try to snatch me up into their hungry mouths. I run and run. And all I can think is, I’ve got to find a way out. I’ve got to get home. I’ve got to get home.

Then the realization hits me like a fist to the jaw. And I finally stop running.

I don’t have a home. I’ve never had a home. There’s nowhere to run. And there’s nowhere to go.

I stand in the darkness, lost in the deepest part of the forest, and it doesn’t even matter, does it? I’ve always been lost."

Sarah Slade is a social media influencer, who has just moved with her husband into a murder house. This house was the site of a murder suicide between a husband and wife and has been vacant site. But because of the deaths, it's incredibly cheap. So she decides to blog while renovating the house.

But almost instantly after arriving at Black Wood house things start going wrong. Someone is leaving notes in their home, notes that are threatening Sarah with knowledge that she so desperately wants to hide.

This was a great horror thriller.

Thank you netgalley and Random House Ballantine for giving me an advanced review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This one had a really good twist at the end. This kept me on my toes and I finished within 2 days! I will definitely watch out for more books from this author!

The Stranger Upstairs is an exhilarating and captivating literary piece that promises a thrilling reading experience. This fast-paced and engaging novel is bound to leave readers breathless, eagerly turning each page in anticipation.

Thanks to Netgalley and Random House Ballantine - Bantam for the early copy of this novel. Below you'll find my honest review.

I'm majorly impressed. You guys, this is a DEBUT novel, and it reads like a seasoned pro wrote it. Seriously... it's got the right pacing, the right character depth, the right amount of horror and reality, the right plotting, the right balance of darkness and hope, the right point of views and perspectives. I can't help but be jealous, as an aspiring writer myself, of what Lisa Matlin has created here. I also can't wait to be able to say I was a fan from before day one, and follow her works for years to come, because trust me, she's going to be one to watch.

This novel was almost impossible to put down. I read it late into the night, finishing it and then being unable to sleep afterwards. It has the perfect chapter endings for that "just one more chapter" compulsion that leads to one or two sitting reads, and it definitely, absolutely paid off in droves for the time I invested into it.

I also loved how real she was in her acknowledgements at the end. It really inspired me to keep pushing on with my writing.

Highly recommended for fans of horror, thriller, haunted house, neighbor drama, relationship issue, secrets and lies revealed slowly kind of books. Heck, I recommend this for everyone who loves a good story. Pick this one up and you won't be disappointed.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for this ARC. What a fun and thrilling debut from Lisa! I loved how twisty and twisted this book was! I simply could not put it down and I wanted more even when it was over.

The ending? Chefs kiss. I need more Black Wood house!

The Stranger Upstairs by Lisa M. Matlin is a great debut thriller novel!

Sarah, an influencer with secrets in her past, and her husband Joe buy Black Wood House. Black Wood House is known as the murder house because its pervious owner was murdered in her sleep. Sarah and Joe are determined to renovate the house and turn a profit until things start going wrong.

The story reminded me of the The Watcher and is a perfect haunted story for a chilly fall night. The Stranger Upstairs kept me turning the pages to find out what happened.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bantam, Random House for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

Wow!! I could not put this book down! This book had such great suspense, mystery and few creepy parts that ade me not want to read at night!

This book kept me guessing until the very end and wondering what was really happening inside the Black Wood House!

An excellent book! I'm definitely a Lisa Matlin fan! Dare I say, one of the best books Ive read all year. Thank you Pegiun Random House for the ARC.

Boasting quite an intriguing premise, I was excited to delve right between the pages of “The Stranger Upstairs.” Though it’s not the super creepy thriller I had hoped it would be, it is a well-crafted mystery that slowly unfolds to a multitude of revelations. And while this book did fall short of my initial expectations, I still found it to be a quick, enjoyable read that had me guessing right up until the very end.

As I read, I discovered there was more going on in this story than the description implied. What at first seemed like a haunted house story took off and intensified into a creepy, deep, borderline horror, wild ride of a novel. I found it unique and intriguing. And it kept me guessing! Is it the house? The neighbors? Or maybe Sarah herself? Her secret past? Her dysfunctional relationship with her husband? In some ways, this story reminded me of Rock Paper Scissors. I believe fans of Alice Feeney will really enjoy Lisa M. Matlin. I appreciated that the book was not graphic but rather played with my mind and scared me in a very entertaining way.

P.S.: Love the cover! (will post more reviews upon publication).

All opinions expressed are my own opinion with many thanks to Penquin Random House and Lisa M. Maitlin for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book.

This was a thriller for the ages! Kept me on the edge of my seat. I love a book that keeps me turning the pages!

I really liked this! Its everything you can want in a thriller/mystery - just a few main characters to keep track of, super creepy and keeps you guessing, and of course no one can be trusted.
Sometimes books like this can get confusing but I felt like this was so nicely laid out and written, super straight forward and I enjoyed it a lot. The ending was a bit of a let down.. like it just felt like a lame excuse even though it was executed well. Nevertheless, did NOT see it coming!
Felt bad for Emily but I did see it coming, and my favorite part was probably what happens to Joe lol.
Definitely recommend this one, its really quick too I read it in a day.

What a creepy fun time! This was compulsively readable and I loved the haunted house atmosphere - it felt like Riley Sager meets Shari Lapena and I really enjoyed it! I think the twist will be polarizing, but the best ones always are 😎 I’d recommend to anyone looking for a quick spooky read this fall, and I can’t wait to check out more by this author in the future! Thanks Netgalley for the eARC!

This book instantly hooked me in. A murder house being flipped for a blog. Sounds spooky, and it was! Things started happening and Sarah thought instantly that the house was against the flip and didn’t want any changes. Then slowly she started drinking more, finding random notes around her house, and found out about the previous owner who went missing. Sarah believes the town is out to get her for buying the house to fix instead of taring it down. Then she thinks the house is after her. I wasn’t sure if she had a mental illness or if she was possessed. The ending gave a huge twist that I did not predict. I thought I was on to it, but boy was I wrong. I love books that surprise me and this one was it! Good mix of spooky and keeping me guessing through the end.

THE STRANGER UPSTAIRS is a mesmerizing and often terrifying Gothic thriller about Sarah Slade, therapist, author, and part-time social media blogger as well as the proud new owner of the infamous Black Wood House. The house was an incredible bargain since no one has expressed an interest in it after a grizzly murder/suicide took place there 40 years ago. What a way to revitalize her blog as she documents her efforts to restore the old monstrosity. Maybe this new project will even help her reinvigorate her failing marriage. But Sarah has dark secrets and so does the old house. Unraveling them both may be a dangerous undertaking.

Sarah Slade moves to the exclusive community of Beacon and into its most infamous house, hoping to make a huge profit and make an even bigger name for herself. Already a bit of an influencer after the publication of her self-help book, the psychologist decided to purchase Black Wood House, a “murder house” - where 30 years before a murder-suicide took place, rocking the community and condemning the house to ruin. Sarah is determined her and her estranged husband can flip the house and make a profit, but what they don’t count are the obstacles that pop up at every turn. From their own personal demons, to the shadows lurking in every corner of Black Wood, to the extremely hostile neighbors- it seems like everything and everyone is against them. And it may just kill them.

Wow! This was one amazing story that just kept spiraling as it went on. It’s “current day” articles revealing that something major has gone down at Black Wood House, interspersed between chapters telling Sarah’s story. So we know something big is coming, and we just watch as Sarah just breaks apart as things go wrong and she learns more about the house and Beacon’s residents. It’s creepy to the max.

And the ending is just incredible. I’m not giving anything away but wowwwww. The author did a great job creating a scenario and just punching you in the face with it. But it was based in reality. I loved it.

The characters were also very well drawn. I felt for Sarah, even though she was deeply, deeply troubled. Her internal struggles were very real and well drawn as she tried to understand what was going on throughout the book. She was also fighting A LOT of demons.

Overall, this was a great thriller. Full of surprises and with a great ending. Pick this one up for sure.

This book will really threw me for a loop. This story follows Sarah Slade. She’s an influencer and author of a best selling novel, and she decided to buy a house with a murderous history from an affluent neighborhood to flip and resell. Her and her husband Joe expect to make a killing on this venture, but things do not go as plan. Sarah and Joe are full of secrets, and things quickly start to go wrong.

For a debut, this was written in such a fun and engaging way. This was dark and twisted and the ending was far from what I expected! I really liked this unique take on a haunted house story and I definitely recommend it.

The quick & dirty:
✨ This was ominous and spooky
✨ EXTREMELY unlikeable main character, but you’ll want to know what’s going on too much to care
✨ Total Turn of the Key meets Simone St. James vibes
✨ Paranormal (maybe? 😉)
✨ Mental health struggles
✨ Atmospheric with a slow burn mystery, but definitely horror as well
✨ Mixed media throughout makes this an entertaining read!


My only complaint was that the ending was a bit jumbled, I’m not sure what the true ending is, but I guess it’s up to interpretation?

Lastly, I also really appreciated the authors note regarding her mental health struggles 🫶🏻

Overall, my rating is closer to a 3.5 ⭐️, but I rounded up.

This publishes on 9/12/23. Thank you NetGalley and Random House - Ballantine, Bantam for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

If you like creepy and eerie, then this book is for you.
Sarah Slade, a therapist and her husband, Joe Cosgrove, have bought “the murder house” in the hope of rehabbing it and selling it for a hefty profit. With twists and turns of mystery, murder and strange happenings on almost every page, the author, Lisa Matlin, draws you in to experience scenes of heart thumping evil in this her debut book. Thank you Netgalley and Bantam Publishing for an early copy. The comments and this review is my honest opinion.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Bantam for the free e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

If you like #SimoneStJames, then this is the perfect pick for you! This is an atmospheric, slow burn mystery with a dash of horror and plenty of twisty suspense!

The story starts with a seemingly benign couple who buy an infamous "murder house" with the hope of renovating and flipping it. Sarah Slade is a social media influencer, a therapist, an author working on book #2 and a wife trying to heal her marriage. So, lets throw in renovating a house where a husband and wife violently killed each other! Why do the neighbors seem to hate her? Why is her husband always missing? As Sarah starts to lose time, her husband, and her career, is she really losing her mind or is the house truly haunted?

I loved this atmospheric, haunted house story. There are so many possibilities as to what's really going on in this well paced story that you will keep guessing until the very end!

Highly recommend!

Main Characters:
-- Sarah Slade – bestselling self-help author, therapist, recently purchased Black Wood House in the upscale Australian town of Beacon, where a wife was killed by her husband in a murder/suicide 40 years prior; plans to renovate it with her husband and sell it for a profit
== Joe Cosgrove – Sarah’s husband of three years, works as a bartender, tries to stay out of the spotlight

Sarah and Joe bought Black Wood (the murder house) with the intent of renovating and selling it for a profit. Seriously…who wants to live in a house where someone was murdered, and the blood stain is still on the floor? Also, throughout the book, the author offers tidbits of information indicating that Sarah and Joe are not really who they say they are. We hear about Sarah’s sister Lizzy, and there are references to “something” happening to her prior to the present day. These are the things that hooked me and made the book a decent read.

Sarah doesn’t garner any empathy from me though, even though she is a classic unreliable narrator (see spoilers below). Sarah Slade is a judgmental, arrogant, and narcissistic phony. She is completely unlikeable, and I had a really hard time feeling bad for her situation with the house that will be a money pit, her failing marriage, and her questionable career.

***SPOILERS*** SPOILERS***SPOILERS***

At the end of Part One, we find out that Sarah isn’t Sarah. Sarah is Lizzy, who stole her sister Sarah’s boyfriend, AND stole Sarah’s identity after Sarah “committed suicide” (in quotes because the suicide is also questionable). Five years prior to the beginning of the book, Sarah and Joe left their hometown, ostracized over what they did to the real Sarah. Oh…and Joe’s name isn’t Joe either.

As Sarah lives in the murder house of Black Wood, her grasp on reality becomes increasingly tenuous. She (and her cat) hear noises in the attic, and she can’t tell if they’re real or her imagination. Someone keeps leaving notes for her inside the house. She misses day after day of work without even realizing it. Interspersed between the chapters, we are provided with future-dated news articles about unidentified bodies being found on the property. Did someone else kill Sarah and Joe, or are Sarah and Joe murderers?

At some point, Sarah discovers that someone named Amanda, who she resembles, lived in the house for a few weeks before she and Joe purchased it but after the murder 40 years before. Her mental state, however, makes her wonder if it’s true or not. She really completely loses her grip on reality.

I made a lot of notes on what could have been happening. Is Sarah really Jane, the child who escaped the house 40 years before? (This would have made a great plot element.) Does Sarah have a secret life and she posed as Amanda several weeks before she and Joe moved into the house? Is Emily, one of the other therapists in her office, really Jane? There are so many possibilities, which is why I gave this 3 stars instead of less.

BUT…what ruined it for me was the reason Sarah was losing her mind. It was not, we assume, a haunted house with spirits that didn’t want to be disturbed. No one was hiding in the attic or sneaking into the house to leave notes for Sarah or poisoning her cat. There were telltale signs in the attic of a carbon monoxide leak, which was slowly poisoning Sarah the whole time.

So she was an innocent victim? Not really because she did “steal” her sister’s identity. She did decide to leave Black Wood and take on Emily’s identity. She did let her estranged husband be accused of her disappearance and murder. Sarah IS a bad person. I would have liked it better if Joe had been the one to go crazy and actually killed Sarah because of the house, repeating the pattern from 40 years before.

AND THEN…in the Epilogue, a new family moves into the run-down house, and there are no signs of a carbon monoxide leak. “You’d swear the house was doing it on purpose. You’d swear the house wanted to be left alone. Undisturbed.” I didn’t like this as a “twist,” where we think it’s the house, then we’re told it’s a carbon monoxide leak, and then oops…it’s the house. Gotcha!

I felt like this could have been really great if the author had settled on one idea and just followed through with it.