I found the premise to be quite interesting, which is why I decided to download the boom. However, it did take me a bit to get into the story. The writing was alright. The boyfriend or husband was annoying. I don't get why she would stay with him anyways. I did end up liking the overall story, but I just kind of got bored at points.

I don’t know where to even start with this breathtaking debut from Lisa Matlin! Like an onion, there are so many layers to unpack in this domestic thriller. It’s got a creepy Victorian house, murder, mystery, and secrets out the wazoooooo. And I was hanging on every moment of it! I urge you to read this book and I hope she writes more. Thanks Penguin and Netgalley letting me read it. I don’t want to give anything away, so I will leave it as this- if you love thrillers and mystery, this is your book! #netgalley #thestrangerupstairs

This book was an absolutely wild ride! I was guessing what was going on, right up until the very end! HUGE thank you to Lisa M. Matlin, NetGalley and Penguin Randomhouse Publishing for the advanced reader's copy!

I really enjoyed the spooky elements of this book and found myself even having nightmares if I read it too late at night. Definitely read this during the day or have a buffer before bed if you want to have a peaceful sleep, but that’s exactly what made this book so compelling! The fact that it affected me after I was done reading it is a sign of a good book - it just sticks with you.

I will say I’ve never been a fan of the “drunk” unreliable narrator trope, but I thought it was well done this time around! The FMC was completely unhinged and without giving away spoilers, it totally makes sense why. She was both totally whacked out while also intriguing and having me curious for more.

On a final note, some things felt unfinished at times like Sarah’s relationship with her husband. I wanted more of their story and felt that there wasn’t enough there for me to care about him not being around. I also felt like the ending was a bit abrupt and could’ve used just a little more for a complete conclusion, but ultimately this was a page turner and I really enjoyed this read!

If you love creepy houses, dodgy neighbors, unreliable narrators and family drama then you will absolutely devour this book!

Social media influencer and self-help author/therapist Sarah Slade thinks she's hit upon a great idea--buy a notorious murder house, make renovations while documenting the whole thing and hopefully getting lots of likes and follows along the way, and then sell the restored home for a tidy profit. Right away, things seem a little weird; her husband barely wants to sleep in the house, no one wants to do any work on the place, not only do the neighbors refuse to interact with them, but someone is actively trying to drive them away with threatening notes and dead rats, and even Sarah's cat, Reaper, is acting off. The house, however, is the least of Sarah's problems. The glossy social media facade hides a failing marriage, a past scarred by secrets, and, as it turns out, a host of mental, emotional, and pathological personality issues; Sarah is not the person her clients and employers believe her to be and for all of these reasons and more, she is probably not the best choice for providing anyone any therapy or counseling. As we watch as Sarah becomes ensnared in the house's grip, we wonder if it's the house itself, or Sarah's spiraling mental decline (and if you've read enough haunted house books in the past decade, you may have some other theories.) I loved this stories for its atmosphere and tension, and I loved the bones of the story itself. I even loved the *idea* of Sarah. I am not sure that I loved how the character herself was handled, especially all the wine-drinking. Far be it from me to say how characters suffering with substance abuse issues should be written, but something about Sarah's drinking feels sloppily approached. Then again, alcoholism is kind of a sloppy thing to deal with (my family is full of them, so I feel like I can comment on this somewhat.) And this could just be a me-problem. But I found those portions of the book very uncomfortable to read. Otherwise, The Stranger Upstairs was pretty solid.

It is hard to write a good haunted house novel. It either works or it doesn't. This one worked.
This story had layers and each layer has layers, so you have to actually pay attention.
I wasn't sure if I loved or hated our protagonist. She is clearly damaged but she loves her cat.
I am terrified of kangaroos and they were coming out of the forest to sit in the yard and I was like "nope. I would leave.". Loved that part.

After a month of disappointing reads, I needed a win. And Lisa M. Matlin delivered! I loved this so much! It had so many elements I love: haunted house trope, unlikable characters with secretive back stories, an unreliable narrator, a bad ass pet, and a small town setting with a community trying to push you out. I was invested from the beginning and it was such a fun read trying to piece this mystery together. It was the perfect blend of horror, mystery, and thriller. The final act wrapped up in a very satisfying way and in a way that actually makes sense (always a risk in this genre). I really like Marlin’s writing style, too. It was witty, eerie, and made me laugh out loud a few times. I can’t wait to see what she writes next! This will definitely be a popular release.

I really wanted to love this book--it seemed to have everything I look for in a book. But I couldn't get past the main character...I did not like being inside her head and didn't like her voice from page 1. I feel like this could've been so good but it just missed the mark for me.

compulsively readable, even if it did lean on the “drunken female protagonist” trope more than i would have liked. huge fan of the twist, definitely going to keep my eye out for this author’s future works.

Thank you for the opportunity to review this book!

While there was a lot that I liked about The Stranger Upstairs, especially the idea of an influencer renovating a house for a cash grab, the twists became more unrealistic as the text went on. I didn't love how Sarah's mental health issues were portrayed within the text, and the cast of characters was unrealistic. Similarly, the big reveal was similar to a popular Reddit post of a few years back. Still, I would check out another of Martin's books in the future.

A gothic horror meets a domestic influencer thriller for a good mashup. I was feeling sorry for this poor woman who purchased a murder house to flip for a quick profit until things go wrong and then I felt sorry for the neighbors who have to live by a daily reminder of a murder forty years ago. Will the house allow for its renovation or will it want revenge. Don’t be silly, it’s only a house, right?

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for providing me with an eARC of The Stranger Upstairs in exchange for my honest thoughts!

I really did think I was going to pour praise all over this book at the beginning. Its first act riveted me with its introduction to Sarah Slade, one of the more enthrallingly repugnant protagonists I've followed in a while, and its ability to toe the line between thriller and horror within a gothic atmosphere (the horror truly does amp up its psychological levels as the plot progresses). Unfortunately, the second act is where the book lost me thanks to how tepid and cliched it felt, even though it was admittedly keeping me engaged and reading at a fast pace. Once the third act arrived, my hopes rose momentarily because of the groundwork it was seemingly laying down for the payoff and for some massive twists. But then it headed in a certain direction and deployed a few tropes that left me feeling frustrated. As for how this depicts mental illness, I don't know if it was handled all that nimbly. This is an issue that I'll have to ruminate over, but at this moment, it comes off as stereotypical, particularly in Act 3.

Overall, I'm officially rating The Stranger Upstairs 2.5 out of 5 stars. It's sad that I found it to be underwhelming, but I will say that I'd be open to giving Lisa M. Matlin's work another try in the future. Her writing displayed enough potential here to intrigue me.

Sarah Slade and her husband Joe buy an infamous murder house, Black Wood House, in a upscale town called Beacon to renovate and sell for profit. The thing is Sarah and the people of Beacon and Black Wood Manor (yes, the house) have secrets that end up being deadly. Sarah finds out she isn't the first to buy the house and the previous owner disappeared.
I feel like some of this storyline was disjointed. I still enjoyed the book but I felt like the pace was off. Usually stories like this have the couple move in full of optimism, little things happening here and there and then a big finale. Maybe some readers will enjoy that this didn’t follow that same old technique. I would’ve enjoyed learning more about the original murder. I think some restructuring of the plot and timeline could make the book feel more complete. However, the novel falls a bit short in terms of its storylines, which often feel a bit flimsy and underdeveloped. The eventual "who dunnit" reveal was somewhat disappointing, as it doesn't fully live up to the suspense and anticipation built up throughout the story. While the storylines could have been more robust and the reveal more satisfying, the novel still succeeds in keeping the reader hooked and invested in Sarah's journey.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bantam for this ARC in exchange for a honest review. It’s hard to believe this is Lisa Matlin’s debut book.

Sarah has a secret past and a failing marriage. She and her husband Joe buy a murder mansion to restore and flip. She’s a psychologist and an author…well, she sort of is. She’s carefully crafted a social media presence for her followers to get updates on the renovation and hopefully pick up endorsements since she’s low on cash.

The murder took place 40 years ago and there are still blood stains in the house. This Western Australian town and the neighbors are far from friendly or welcoming. Contractors even hang up on her when she tries to hire them. No one wants to enter that house. The house seems to be undoing repairs they are making and then there’s the issue with Sarah’s angry little cat being spooked. Has someone from their past caught up with them or is the house making them pay the ultimate price for disturbing it?

I had mixed feelings on this one. At a mere 288 pages, I was disappointed in how much repetition there was. I don’t need to connect with or like characters, but they do need to be interesting or admirable in some way. The pill popping drunken “Woman in the Window” has never been my favorite trope, so that may have been a factor in it not working as well for me as it did others. There were some humorous moments and I liked the angry cat.

Thank you to @netgalley for an early digital copy in exchange for an honest review.
Pub date: September 26, 2023
Pages: 288

The Stranger Upstairs was an amazing addition to the thriller genre. I especially loved the haunted house aspect. It kept me guessing for the big reveal. You had to suspend a lot of belief from the main character. Overall, I really enjoyed the twists and turns. Amazing debut novel.

I loved this book. Lots of haunted house novels out there (September House, and that one by Darcey Bell come to mind) and there are loads of books with unlivable narrators, of which this does both quite well. A fun and frothy beach read. Recommended if you want to wake up from a literary fiction coma.

Everyone loves a good story about a house where a murder took place, right? But then again, I'm sure no one would be running to purchase said murder house to renovate for their blog.

WOW. All I can really say right now is HOLY WOWWW. This story completely blew me away. I absolutely loved every single second of this debut authors novel. Truly could not put this one down, and constantly left me guessing what would happen next.

I highly recommend to anyone who enjoys haunted houses/ true crime/ and anything mystery & thriller. This author did a phenomenal job at writing this and I will certainly be on the look out for future books of hers.

Thank you so much NetGalley for allowing me the chance to read this one!

The Stranger Upstairs is the epitome of a thriller!! A full on roller coaster ride in the dark.

Sarah Slade and her husband Joe buy an infamous murder house, Black Wood House, in a upscale town called Beacon to renovate and sell for profit. The thing is Sarah, the people of Beacon and Black Wood Manor (yes, the house) have secrets that end up being deadly. Sarah finds out she isn't the first to buy the house and the previous owner disappeared.

AS Sarah slowly loses her mind trying to solve the mysteries of Black Wood House, we learn Sarah isn't exactly who she appears to be and might just be the one to beat Black House Manor.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House for the ARC for my honest review

#NetGalley #TheStrangerUpstairs #LisaMatlin

I didn’t realize The Stranger Upstairs was a debut when I requested it. Quick summary: it’s really good.
Sarah Slade is a social media influencer. She has written a best selling book and now wants to document her experiences fixing up and then flipping Blackwood House. So it has a tragic past (murder), but that just means more people know about it and she is sure she will make an obscene profit and hopefully get deals with some new sponsors.
OK, so maybe her life isn’t as perfect as she depicts. Her husband, Joe seems to actively dislike her, and her cat Reaper doesn’t seem to like this house, and all the neighbors, well, they just want her gone.
But Sarah has worked hard to create the life she wants and nothing and no one is going to stand in her way. That is until the house seems to have ideas of its own.
As the story progressed, it got creepier and creepier, and I was sure I had it figured out. Author – 1. Me – 0. I guess you can figure out that means that I was wrong. A book that kept me flipping my Kindle pages. I won’t say I really liked Sarah, but wow she was one interesting character. This doesn’t publish until September and to me, it would be a perfect final read of summer 2023. It would also be a great way to gear up for Halloween a.k.a. spooky season.

I loved this dark and twisty book set in Australia. I am always happy to see a true crime element to a plot. This book takes you inside the mind of the main character and her mind is definitely a wild ride. I can’t wait for this authors next book because this one kept me guessing all the way through .

Okay so! This book definitely got me hooked. I wanted to know what the heck was going on so bad! I kind of hated the main character but, I also kinda felt her and her situation. Also this book scared me! It didn’t help that I was cat/house sitting in a quiet house all alone at night but still! This book comes out just in time for the spooky read season! This is a debut novel and I really liked it! I will be looking out for more from this author!!!!