Proof that sometimes less is more, packs a punch for 224 pages for sure!! For Horror definitely didn’t give me keep the light on vibes.

Enjoyed this quick read and am slightly wondering at the end exactly what just happened to me BUT it definitely kept my interest, wanted to know what would happen and enjoyed the characters.

That COVER!!! It’s exceptional and found the story to match the cover well. My first by this author and definitely plan to check out other works!!

Thanks to Netgalley for my electronic advanced reader copy in exchange for my review. All opinions are my own.

Wow, this was a great story! Suspenseful, twisty in a good way, and richly developed details that come together in great ways. I was very drawn into the story, thought the pacing and details were excellent, and loved how the story wove in and out and back into itself (that will make sense if you read it).

Great for fans of themes found in Stand By Me, the recent Catriona Ward book Looking Glass Sound, and for deftly told, fast paced, horror stories (with some story in a story themes).

This book really jumps in at the beginning and keeps moving until the end. I liked that there wasn't a ton of build up to the action and really just went for it. To be honest, at first I really didn't like the character of Richard. I just thought he was so mean and got really tired of him being mean to his some of his classmates. But, I think you do end up actually caring about him as the story goes on, which I feel is really needed.

I liked that the book was split into three parts and that we weren't stuck with him as a child. I didn't realize how young the characters were going to be at the beginning and was kinda thrown off, but that got better as I kept reading.

I think it's really great if you go into it not knowing much. There are a lot of twists and turns and it will keep you on your toes until the end.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher, Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for providing a copy of the book.

Jo Nesbo has found international fame with his Harry Hole thriller series. (I have thought about trying them more than once but my twelve-year-old brain cannot get passed the name “Harry Hole”. Immature, I know.) The Night House is billed as a stand alone horror novel, and I was interested without reading anything about it. The cover of a bloody phone dangling in front of a creepy old gothic house. This was enough for me.

The story starts with Richard Elauved hanging out with his friend Tom. They are just goofing around, being boys, when they find a telephone booth. Richard dares Tom to make a prank call. While Tom is on the phone, he literally gets sucked into the telephone. Tom’s disappearance and the unbelievable story that Richard tells about his demise, mixed with the fact that Richard is adopted and not from the town, makes it hard for anyone to believe Richard. The adventure of Richard trying to prove his innocence mixed with a large amount of strange and gruesome things happening to Richard’s friends, makes for a horror story that really is captivating.

Then this story folds in half.

Then this story folds in half again.

The Night House is very good. There are some elements that are a well worn when it comes to horror tropes, but I feel like Jo Nesbo uses them with an innocence and sincerity, like someone who does not read horror or watch 100 horror movies a year. The tone of this story, which grows weirder and weirder as it goes along, does not waver. Richard is a character that feels trustworthy, even when everyone around him shows him evidence that he is wrong. Jo Nesbo has written a character that starts as a bully and a jerk, but he is someone that you are cheering for. You want him to succeed in his situation because you cannot help but like him. I do not know if Nesbo has more of these types of characters in his writing, but I am certain that it is now time to find out. I look forward to diving into the Harry Hole stories based on the strength of his writing in The Night House.

I received this as an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed the opening of this book and thought it was the perfect way to settle into spooky season reading. However in the end I did not love that the antagonist of the story ended up being a trope that we have seen way too many times in this kind of novel. The book read very quickly but at the same time it left a lot to be desired as far as character and story development for me. I think this might be the right book for some people but ultimately it fell flat for me.

This was my first Jo Nesbo story so I really didn't know what to expect. Are all of his books this cuckoo for cocoa puffs (I mean that as a compliment)??

I'm going to keep this short because I do think this is one of the ones you have to go into a bit blind. So I will say this: if you're looking for a really wild, weird, gory, creepy, unique book for spooky season... one that makes you feel like you're 11 again, reading a Goosebumps book WAY past your bedtime... and you enjoy an ending that makes you rethink ALL of the pages you've just read... then guys, I've got a recommendation for you!

Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for this eArc!

I’ll admit that I haven’t read all of Jo Nesbo’s books. In fact I’ve only read a few from of his Harry Hole series so I don’t know if he’s ever written another book quite like The Night House before, but it was one heck of a mind trip. I’ll keep this vague to avoid some rather large spoilers, but if you’ve the books blurb than you can already tell you’re in for a wild ride as the book starts off with a kid getting eaten by a telephone! But as I said, that’s just the start of Richard Elauved’s adventure…and yes it does indeed get stranger. You might be thinking, how can I take a story like this seriously? Well…honestly you just do. Start reading and you’ll find yourself getting lost in the adventure, completely accepting the insanity of it all. The crazy thing is just when you think everything is over (and Nesbo certainly could have ended things a certain way and I’d have been completely content), but then he completely flips everything. I honestly said ‘no way!’ out loud while I was reading it. And then a short time later he flips things again. The expression ‘a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma’ was made for just such a story. I’d like to thank Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor, Knopf and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review The Night House.

https://www.amazon.com/review/R2S0A5JX1M8GF2/ref=pe_1098610_137716200_cm_rv_eml_rv0_rv

Release October 3.

THE NIGHT HOUSE is an amazingly complex fantasy/Horror/Psychological Thriller. I read it in one sitting and still am not sure which aspect to think is "fact" (in the context of the story). Jo Nesbo is quite a prolific author and I've enjoyed several of his novels, yet I've never read one like this.

Part One is contemporary Fantasy/Fairy Tale/Horror, and terrifying it is! Part Two spins Part One on its head, riffs on the nature of Perception and Consciousness, then ramps up the Horror meter and delivers par excellence. Then Part Three strolls in to convince readers (and Unreliable Narrator) "all this was just a Dream!" [Was it?]

No matter what, THE NIGHT HOUSE is a novel I'm going to spend a lot of my nighttime wakeful hours pondering. Thanks for that, Mr. Nesbo!

When my expectations are high, I am bound to be disappointed. Not everyone can carry the weight of expectations. This book tried to. It just slightly missed. I wasn’t as scared as I wanted to be. But am I jaded? Maybe I am. There were children involved, so I cannot be mad at their bad decisions. Only that I didn’t get the scare I expected. There was an obvioud presence throughout. I wish I could have had what I walked in wanting. Sometimes we don’t get thart but are still happy. Here, I was ok.

The night house is nesbos first foray into the horror genre and it is a solid outing. The story starts with a telephone eating a young boy and the twists keep coming from there. There are parts where you wonder what the hell you are reading but nesbo always keeps it grounded in reality. A fun, fast-paced palette cleanser for the Halloween season! I still prefer nesbos harry hole crime novels, but this is a solid outing into a slightly different genre.

This is the first horror book by this author and I must say that it was really good. The book was about a loop of some sort and boy I was just as confused as the protagonist. I cannot say to much because then there would be spoilers and I do not write spoilers. I was definitely spooked while reading this novel. I feel though I never got the answer about who exactly Imu Jonassen was.

I won’t be using a payphone anytime soon.

This book has everything: hungry telephones, magicadas, high school reunions, hamburgers, librarians

What a ride! The beginning of this book has a 90’s Goosebumps feel to the point that I think this technically could be suitable for a younger audience. However, I honestly don’t see this as a downside, and the storyline kept me intrigued to the very end. The twists and unreliable narrator reminded me a lot of Catriona Ward’s writing (specifically Looking Glass Sound).

There were definitely parts where I wasn’t sure where this book was going, but I’m glad I stuck with it. Trust the process with this one!

This book is out now! Thank you NetGalley, Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for the digital ARC. All opinions are my own.

Check TW’s before reading.

Jo Nesbo's The Night House is weird, but, while strange and mystifying, it's also completely and totally fabulous. There will be some readers that just won't get it, that will think it's fragmented and disjointed, but I loved Richard's story, every weird minute of it. He's the ultimate unreliable narrator, and The Night House is the perfect keep=you-up-at-night guessing at what might happen next spooky tale!

I’m a little torn on this one. On one hand I loved all the horror and the gore. It starts out super strong. Within the first few pages a boy is sucked up by a telephone while making a prank call.

I loved the twists. You think you’re reading one thing when a twist pops up and you have rethink your entire life. 😂 No, but really, going from one part to another really had me shocked. I didn't see that coming. The way it was laid out was done really well.

The ending was super lackluster for me. I didn’t hate it, but I was disappointed at the route it took.

Still, a great read for Halloween season. Also if you’ve read the Harry Hole series by Jo Nesbo, this is nothing like that.

When another classmate disappears, Richard must find a way to prove his innocence—and preserve his sanity—as he grapples with the dark magic that is possessing Ballantyne and pursuing his destruction.

Then again, Richard may not be the most reliable narrator of his own story . . .
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Rating- ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
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My thoughts: this one came out two days ago and I just loved it !! Run don’t walk to pick this up. Special thank you to @netgalley for the advanced copy! It reminded me of IT and the chalk man in all the best ways. Totally creepy and addicting to read. And man what an ending! If you’re in a reading rut I highly recommend This one to pull you out! I don’t want to give too much away but read this book asap 😍
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QOTD- do you enjoy a book with an unreliable narrator? For me it can be hit or miss!
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#bookreview #bookworm #bookstagram #booklover #booksofinstagram #booksofig #bibliophile #booknerd #bookobsessed #bookaddict #bookaesthetic #bookish #readersgonnaread #readmorebooks #horrorbooks #h

This was my first time reading Jo Nesbo despite the author being on my radar for a while now and it certainly will not be my last.

The Night House is a classic, old school horror novel in the vein of Dean Koontz and Stephen King. It is atmospheric and the time and setting are vague enough that it could take place at any time in the last half of the 20th century to the early 21st century and in myriad number of locations throughout the western world. This is far from a slow burn and the pacing is fast, the reader being thrust right into the horror from the very beginning. The shocking twist at the end made this even more delightful of a read because as someone who prides themselves on being able to figure out situations in books relatively quickly, completely took me by surprise, but it made complete sense at the same time. There was a perfect balance of both psychological and physical horror to satisfy fans of both genres.

Definitely recommended for fans of Catriona Ward and Josh Malerman or those who grew up reading R.L. Stine and Christopher Pike and are chasing that same high all these years later.

Thank you to NetGalley, Jo Nesbo, and Knopf for an advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Netgalley for ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I am a fan of a good horror story, and I have not read a book by Jo Nesbo in a minute. The story starts off right away. The creepy scale is there. It then slows, and it lost me. I finished the book but actually didn’t care for it by the end.

Ok, so I enjoy the few of Nesbo's Harry Hole novels that I've read despite the character name. The name cracks me up. Call me immature, but I'm ok with that. The Night House was a disappointing fun read.

As I started reading, I'm thinking this is a pretty good YA horror novel. A boy gets sucked into a telephone booth and our unreliable main character Richard is the prime suspect on the disappearance and nobody believes his story. He either drowned or Richard killed him. After a quick Google search, I found out this wasn't meant to be a YA novel and it was meant to be an adult horror novel.

The Night House is a simple quick read set into 3 sections, but not well written or at least not as well written as the Harry Hole Series. Characters aren't fully formed and feel like cartoon characters. The twist isn't much of a twist. Overall I enjoyed it and thought it was fun read but wouldn't go out and buy it. I'd probably recommend it to a parent if their teenager wants to delve into the horror genre, but then again there are better recommendations that I would make (early Stephen King or any Shirley Jackson.

this one was not my favorite. I think the horror aspects were very cool, but at times it was tough to follow. I think the casual fatphobia in this really turned me off. Did we need to call a character Fatso? Overall this one reminded me of Shutter Island + I think the twist was interesting, I just think it wasn't for me.

It’s spooky season, so of course I wanted to dive right in to ALL the spooky books. I had high hopes for this one, but I really struggled to get into it. The story felt a little disconnected at times. With it being such a short read the ending also felt a bit rushed and was unsatisfying.