I was literally sucked in by the first chapter. This was a wild ride through the human mind. Dreams merging with reality, fact merging with fiction. Should we always trust our memories? Is it better or worse to erase traumatic events of our past? This book will certainly be in my head for awhile.

Perfect horror story for Halloween. Really enjoyed it and this will be a seasonal re-read. Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book

This book was so good! It gave me all the 80s monster vibes right out the gate and the story drew me in immediately.

We follow Richard, a somewhat of an outsider junior high student, as he moves in with his aunt and Uncle after the death of his parents. One afternoon while hanging out with a friend from school, they stumble upon a pay phone and decide to call a random number in the phone book. When the phone seemingly “eats” Richards friend he is stunned and confused, and most importantly- being blamed for the disappearance.

As the story intensifies, once we hit Part 2, I said WHAT? out loud more than once! So many twists and turns and surprises! Part 3 ties everything together and I was very pleased with the ending that I definitely didn’t see coming!

Highly recommend The Night House for a creepy fall read! Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed the part one. It kind of had the R.L. Stine/Christopher Pike vibe that I inhaled in my early teenage years. I liked the nod to nostalgia, however this really went by the wayside in the next two parts. I feel like it just became confusing and convoluted the more I read. The very end of the book seemed to unravel the mystery as I was hoping it would. This book was just ok for me. Thanks for the ARC, NetGalley.

This was a very intriguing and interesting read. The horror behind it is definitely more psychological. I love Nesbø’s writing and this book is another that I really enjoyed. An exploration of the mind and the horrors it can cause us.

I’m disappointed to say this really didn’t work for me.

I enjoyed Part 1 a lot. If it had been a standalone novella, I would have given it 4 stars. It was wacky and fun. It felt like if Roald Dahl had been hired to write the script for Stranger Things. It wasn’t particularly deep and the conflict wasn’t perfectly resolved, but it was definitely fun.

Then Part 2 took a bad twist, and Part 3 another bad turn. If Part 1 was Stranger Things, by the end of the book we’re somehow on Shutter Island, and I don’t have a clue as to why. It all felt unnecessary, and it was certainly the most ineffective use of these common plot twists I’ve seen in a while. I lost the thread of who the narrator was and was confused about the purpose of this book.

This was my first book by Norwegian author Jo Nesbo and boy did it ever start off with a bang!! Twisty, a bit gruesome at times and creepy AF, this horror story was fast paced and great on audio narrated by Michael Crouch. It had me on the edge of my seat wondering where things would head next with a great last line!! Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review!!

Reviewed for NetGalley:

When a phone consumes a child, the story can only get wilder.

Some real leaps of imagination, with a nice twice at the end.

I definitely enjoyed Nesbo's style of writing as well.

Blurring the boundaries between originality and absurdity…..

Book Information

“The Night House” by Jo Nesbo, is a 256-page horror novel scheduled to be published on October 3, 2023. It was translated by Neil Smith. Thank you to Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for providing me with an advance reader copy of this book for review.

Summary

Following the tragic demise of his parents in a house fire, fourteen-year-old Richard Elauved is sent to live with his aunt and uncle in the remote town of Ballantyne. He becomes an outcast and is accused of a classmate's disappearance. Only Karen, another outsider, believes his claim that a mysterious phone booth sucked Tom into a horror movie scenario. Richard investigates, leading him to an eerie house in Mirror Forest and unsettling voices foretelling doom. As more classmates vanish, Richard must clear his name and battle the dark magic gripping Ballantyne.

My Thoughts

"The Night House" by Jo Nesbo is a book that skillfully weaves between reality and the paranormal, delivering a story that is very odd, sometimes absurd, yet anything but predictable. While it has its moments of genuine creepiness, the narrative can be hard to follow in some parts, making it a bit like R.L. Stein without the charm that often accompanies such tales.

One of the standout aspects of the book is its originality. However, it sometimes leans a bit too deep into the bizarre, testing the boundaries of what readers may find acceptable. The writing style, though not necessarily intended for young adults, reads like middle-grade fiction, which may affect its appeal to some readers.

The novel is divided into three parts, with the first part being the strongest in terms of storytelling and engagement. Unfortunately, the second leans heavily into the bizarre, and not necessarily in a favorable way.

Part three didn’t resonate with me. Nesbo makes use of a trope that I just don’t appreciate—others’ opinions may vary. It felt to me like an attempt to salvage a disjointed and implausible narrative, coming across as a shortcut in the writing process rather than a satisfying resolution.

This is a hard book to review. I read it all the way through. There were certainly parts I enjoyed, but also lots of “come on—really?” parts.

Recommendation

"The Night House" offers a blend of the paranormal and reality, with moments of genuine creepiness and originality. However, its unpredictable nature, young adult writing style, and occasional disorientation may leave some readers with mixed feelings about the book. Recommended if you enjoy quick but bizarre reads.

Rating

3 Killer Phone Stars

This was a clever little retro horror read. It definitely starts out that way, a bit like 'Nightmare on Elm Street', where you are thinking, 'is this really happening, or a dream'? We meet Richard, who now lives with his aunt and uncle in Ballantyne, a small town. He lost both his parents in a house fire, and his father was abusive and schizophrenic. He's a bit of a bully in school, to everyone, then one day a phone prank goes wrong and he witnesses his friend Tom, get eaten by the receiver. Shortly thereafter, another friend disappears mysteriously and due to Richard's explanations of what happened, he becomes a prime suspect. Since he's only 14, he gets sent to a rehabilitation home for troubled youth.
This is where the supernatural events continue to occur when he finds out a former resident there might be responsible for both his friends' disappearance. You might be wary to answer a ringing phone at night after reading this one! It reads like a young adult novel, but still has enough interesting elements to entertain older adults as well. Just when you recover from one twist, another one quickly comes on it's heels and you are really taken aback. Nothing is what it seems. I didn't find it scary at all, since all the events are implausible, but very imaginative. For an author who strictly writes crime novels, this is a big change and a refreshing entre into the horror genre.

This is a book in three parts. It started off strong, and then I disliked each part more than the previous.

The premise is very interesting. A haunted payphone swallows up a kid and the only witness (with a troubled past) because the prime suspect. But this book quickly devolves into something I did not quite love. I think it has all the elements of a great story, but some additions of not so great storytelling overshadowed them.

I think if this was a novella with only part one of the story, it could have easily been a 3.5 (maybe higher) rated read for me. The premise is interesting and although we follow the MC and know what happens, the negative reactions that he receives are pretty plausible. You want to root for him because we know the horror, and it makes for an overall likeable MC.

What didn't work for me is that the second and third part seem to try to keep building on the initial part but in a way that overly complicates (and me eventually ruined) the initial part. This book also pretty heavily leans into negative stereotypes of mental illness, in a way that seemed completely unnecessary to the plot of the story.

Disclaimer: I received a gifted print ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Knopf for letting me read THE NIGHT HOUSE early. This book publishes on October 3.

This one started super scary and I got super into it but then it just lost me as it slowly slowed down. I just didn't have the patience to stick with it. There was nothing that made me want to keep reading, so I didn't.

.

Thank you for the ARC from Netgalley.

This is my first book by this author and I started out a bit bored by the ridiculous storyline but parts 2 and 3 made up for it and made more sense. It has a campy young adults vibe. Quick read if you want something ridiculous and unbelievable.

Started off strong with all the spooky vibes, however sadly it started to fizzle out shortly thereafter. The story felt like it meandered without much plot or action happening for a whiiiiiile.

I couldn’t find myself being invested in this unfortunately, or being compelled by the mysterious murder phone.

I love a good spooky season read, and this one was entertaining but not exactly what I was hoping for I’m sorry to say. I just could not connect with the very unlikeable main character. The action never picked up enough to hold my interest sadly. This one was enjoyable but not a favorite.

My thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book.

I received a gifted audiobook copy of THE NIGHT HOUSE by Jo Nesbø - thank you to the author, Knopf and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review!

THE NIGHT HOUSE follows Richard Elauved, a teen who has been sent to live with relatives after the death of his parents in a house fire. He's an unhappy young man, for good reason, and he establishes himself as someone who really doesn't fit in with most of his peers. He is present when his classmate Tom goes missing in a very bizarre way and almost no one believes his story of what happened.

Richard looks into the phone number that Tom had been prank calling and connects it to a creepy house in the Mirror Forest. The house is abandoned, but known to the locals even so. When he sees a face in the window and voices begin to taunt him, he is not sure what is going on.

This author is best known in my mind for writing nordic noir which is a very hit or miss genre for me, so I was excited to hear they had a horror book coming out which was completely different. Unfortunately, I wound up struggling with this one quite a bit. There are many positive reviews for it, so I would definitely suggest looking up other reviews, but I did want to share my concerns.

The book does have some really good creepy moments. The book opens with the very strange and horrific disappearance of Tom and I thought that this was really well done to set the tone for the book. We get a few of these creepy moments throughout as well and I did enjoy that part.

My struggles with the book started pretty quickly after the opening and I think there are quite a few things that could be triggering for others as well. Richard was a difficult character to pull for. He is fatphobic and homophobic and we hear a lot of bullying language from him. While the author isn't necessarily portraying him as being 'good' for these things, it did make it challenging to read since we're stuck in his head throughout. The book as a whole also did not have good mental health rep. This would be hard to describe without spoilers, but I didn't appreciate the way mental health was portrayed.

The twists in the book came a bit out of the blue (possibly would have felt less so if I had read the synopsis ahead of time which promised that Richard is not a reliable narrator). The book ends with a trope which I do not at all enjoy. I won't give spoilers (feel free to ask if you'd like them), but I did not find the ending at all satisfying.

I am really sorry that this book didn't work for me, but I did want to share the triggers and concerns. As I said many others have given positive reviews so it is worth checking them out for different opinions. THE NIGHT HOUSE is out 10/3/23!

When I started reading this book I was instantly transported to my teen years and the horror books I fell in love with in the 90s.

Jo Nesbo has written a truly great horror read with all the aspects I love- young characters who encounter something unexplainable, a small town setting, a return to the scene years later, and creepy nightmarish creatures.

This is a perfect read for the upcoming spooky season.

Okay this was so not what I was expecting!

Richard has come to live with his aunt and uncle after his parents die in a fire. He is a teenager full of anger and he doesn’t care who knows it. Suddenly the “friends” in his new life disappear one by one in the most outrageous ways. The police think he is responsible and don’t believe him when he tries to explain what really happened.

Immediately I disliked Richard because he seemed so nasty and rude. But as the book went on I learned why he was behaving this way and grew to like him.

This is a book that can’t be easily explained and definitely not without giving away what happens. I was pleasantly surprised with how the story unfolded. I’m still not entirely sure I understand every single aspect of it but I enjoyed the ride!

Thank you NetGalley, Jo Nesbo, and Knopf for the opportunity to read The Night House. I have written this review voluntarily.

The main character in this book is extremely problematic to the point where I couldn't even finish the book because I wasn't enjoying it at all.

I understand the value of having unlikable characters in horror novels, but this just felt completely over the top. Fatphobia on page 2 was a bit of a shocker.

DNF on page 5 :(

The 80s horror vibes this one gave off plus the plot twists I didn’t see coming made for a pretty fun read. This is my first time reading something from this author but will definitely be adding more of their books to my TBR. Lots of unsettling imagery that is perfect with spooky season upon us and it made me laugh a few times because of some of the outlandish things happening. Really liked and really recommend! I would like to say that Part 3 threw me off and I didn’t initially like it until I realized it was yet another plot twist.