Jo Nesbo, best known as a Nordic crime writer, puts his talents to use in a horrifying novel of terror. The imagery that he is known for is still there, but the themes and tone are straight up, balls to the wall horror. A must read this fall.

"'The telephone swallowed everything.' Obviously I could hear how crazy it sounded. But what was I supposed to say? The telephone hadn't eaten Tom?"

Richard and his friend Tom search a random name in the phone book to make a prank call. When the line connects, Tom is eaten by the telephone, sucked into the receiver like a bug being eaten by a praying mantis. Once Tom is reported missing and Richard tells authorities what happened, of course, no one believed him. Telephones don't eat people. Right?

This held a unique yet familiar atmosphere: Small town, prepubescent kids, A lurking horror only the youngsters can sense. I loved how Richard grew up and the story tilted. Some excellent twists, definite creep factor, and an unreliable narrator. Pretty decent read.

I could not get myself to finish this, due to the unlikeable nature of the narrator. I found it surprisingly immature and couldn’t get myself to move past 3/4 of the way through the book.

Rating:DNF

This book reminds me of my hero Ray Bradbury. It is full of weird adolescents issues and the creepiest scenarios imaginable. Maybe a little Stephen King's IT too. It is is just so weird and wonderful. It is that creepy kind of beautiful.
This might be the best creepy book I have read all year.
Keep writing Jo Nesbo. I will keep reading.

What the heck was that? Jo Nesbo introduced me to his famous detective Harry Hole in thirteen well-written and satisfying crime novels, so successful that they have been published in fifty languages and sold over fifty million copies around the world. Reading his novels in proper sequence demonstrated Mr. Nesbo's development as a complex and innovating author as he progressed through this series.

So I jumped at the chance to read his newest effort even though he was applying his writing skills to a new genre. Would it be a logically written novel that would capture the minds of his existing audience or would it prove to be a compendium that was more confusing than compelling? Some authors can make this quantum shift but others miss the mark in a stupendous fashion. Ultimately it is each reader who has to make that decision. Here are my observations.

PART ONE:
Our main character is a fourteen year old boy named Richard who loses his parents in a house fire and is moved to a small town to live with a new foster family. He has a hard time fitting in and quickly brands himself as an outcast. Two of his classmates disappear in mysterious manners, in ways that defy logic but point directly back to Richard. It was here that I almost tossed the book away. There was no logic that tied the events together and I wasn't interested in young teens doing strange things.

PART TWO:
Fifteen years later Richard returns to town for his high school class reunion. The main problem is that his recollection of events don't gel with the memories his classmates have. During the celebration that first evening Richcard's mind becomes disoriented and he finds himself pursued and persecuted by his previous "friends". In the fugue state that follows Richard sees his old aquaintances in a new light, one that includes him being captured and killed.

PART THREE:
And finally Richard awakens in an instutionalized setting and the author explains who he is, where he lives, and what he does on a daily basis. At this point I'll leave the rest up to you the reader. The author obviously took on a grand task outside of his comfort zone. Whether he hit or missed the mark ultimately rests with each reader. I personally was disappointed.

Whew -- I had no idea what to expect coming into this one, and boy was I surprised. This was better than I thought it would be, and had several twists and turns that I did not see coming. Horror? Yea, some. Psychological drama? Yes. This was kind of hard to put a label on, and I realize it is quite different from the author's normal genre.

I was pleasantly surprised by this creepy, creepy book.

I received a complimentary copy of the novel from the publisher and Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

From the striking cover to a renowned crime writer turning their eye to horror, I wanted to like this book so much. Unfortunately, from out of the gate the characters are flimsy and the horror elements lacking originality. Some readers may be turned off by the fatphobia and homophobic elements displayed by the main character, and while I understand they do not represent the views of the author necessarily, they also add nothing to the story/character development. Rather they hang in the air awkwardly with the reader searching for some kind of understanding or payoff that is never fully realized.
The story does go to some interesting places and Nesbo isn't afraid to plot-twist the living bejesus out of readers. One of the downsides of this swing-for-the-fences approach is that a certain crime novel turned feature film (which I won't name for spoilers) trod a lot of the same ground and did it more interestingly and with shades of subtlety.
Readers who enjoy unreliable narratives, creepy small towns, and copious plot twists, as well as regular readers of Nesbo, may find themselves enjoying The Night House, but for casual horror fans, it misses the mark.

This was my first Jo Nesbro experience and it did not disappoint! I've had most of his books on my TBR for a very long time and I am actually very happy to have started with The Night House. We follow our main character, Richard, as he moves to a small town after losing both of his parents. Usually this is where I would find sympathy for a character but, Richard makes that very difficult. Richard is the meanest bully around and no one is safe around him, literally.

Unbelievable things are happening to those around Richard and we go on a quest with him as he begins to unravel what's really happening in the small sleepy town he now lives.

I thoroughly enjoyed all of the horror scenes in this book. They really reminded me of the old horror movies that I loved watching growing up, a little silly and out there but creepy nonetheless. Overall, I enjoyed this book and found that even though it was hard to root for our main character, I wanted to know what happened next and felt the ending did a nice job wrapping up this story. I would 100% recommend to a friend looking for something during spooky season as this was a fun, fast, and enjoyable read!

Seeing that this book is by such a lauded author, I had high hopes. However, these characters were annoying and I really did not enjoy most of this book.

Fourteen year old Richard has been sent to live with his aunt and uncle after his parents died in a house fire. Richard has a reputation of being angry and an outcast, so when a boy goes missing, everyone assumes he has something to do with it. He tries to tell them that the boy got sucked into the telephone receiver in the booth by the edge of the woods but no one believed him except Karen. He finds out where the phone number that the kid prank called leads, and it’s to an abandoned house in the Black Mirror wood. There he sees a terrifying face and he starts to hear whispers in his ear.

The Night House is a good book for spooky season! It’s a fast spooky read that reminds me of a scary story you’d tell when you’re camping. There are definitely some oddities in this book but it all comes together at the end. If you feel like you’re a bit confused, keep going, it’ll all make sense. Oh! And the cover is just too good.

Thank you NetGalley and Knopf for the ARC and giving me the chance to read and review it honestly.

An interesting read. I loved the concept, it would make a good scary movie.
There were so many “what just happened” moments. I love that in a book.
Many thanks to Netgalley for the chance to read and review this one.

ARC review - I went into this book having skimmed the synopsis and having zero expectations, and I LOVED it! I read it so quickly, it was an easy read and the story moved fast.

We follow a young teenage boy, Richard, who is sort of an outcast but also a bully. Typically, I don’t like a kids POV and at the beginning I was not a fan of Richard, but the further I got into the story the more I enjoyed his growth. He is unfortunately around two other kids who die unbelievable deaths, and no one believes him. That’s about as far as I can go without any spoilers!

The gore wasn’t too detailed and gruesome, I could’ve handled more, however I still felt like I was captivated enough and could picture everything that was happening.

This was a 4 star read for me! Thank you NetGalley for this ACR, I really enjoyed it’

Thanks netgalley for the chance to read this book early! This was my first jo Nesbit book I’ve read. It was fun and creepy and very unbelievable but that’s what made it fun. There are three parts to the book all make you second guess and question what’s really going on the entire time. After the second part I thought I knew what was happening and then the third part came and made you question yourself again. I read this in one sitting and didn’t entirely like or dislike this one.

This was so creepy, so weird and easy to get lost in! I loved this book. The story within a story worked so well and never took me out of it. Because I didn’t know what was real and what wasn’t, it made me keep reading and I couldn’t slow down. In the end I couldn’t put this down till I was done. It was thrilling and exciting from the beginning and never let up. Jo Nesbo is a great writer and I’m excited to read more. Thank you Jo Nesbo, NetGalley and Knopf for this awesome, creepy and weird book!

THE NIGHT HOUSE/Jo Nesbo
This is a completely different vibe from Nesbo, author of the Harry Hole detective series, which are absolutely superb. Here he changes genre and writes a horror story. It’s dark ,macabre, with lots of terrifying scenes. He divides the book in three sections , and everything comes together in the analytic conclusion. Not a fan of horror stories and honestly read it only because it was Nesbo. I miss Harry Hole.

The Night House - Jo Nesbø

Available: 10/02/23

What a fun read it was following the story of 14-year-old outcast Richard Elauved! Living in the small town of Ballantyne, Richard witnesses his classmate getting sucked into a phone receiver in a telephone booth. As he begins to investigate the mystery, things slowly descend into chaos.

This book takes some trippy turns and twists. Some are predictable, others not. Like Richard, the reader can’t distinguish reality from fiction. The reader follows Richard on the wild ride. I really enjoyed the Inception-like imagery and light horror elements. I only wish the story was a bit more fleshed out. I felt very distant from Richard and all the other characters but, not too much that it hindered my reading experience.

If you enjoyed Goosebumps as a child, you’ll like the vibe of this novel. An excellent addition to your spooky reading.


Thank you @aaknopf for the #gifted e-galley!

A huge shout of appreciation to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for allowing me to read this in advance!

Poor Richard has had a rough life and things are about to get worse. Disappearing classmates, a spooky house, and clueless adults around him who are blind to the mysterious happenings. This story felt like a classic Stephen King novel or an episode of Stranger Things, it feels like a very 80’s inspired horror/thriller. Until…

The story changes…
The author is well known for his Harry Hole series and if you are expecting anything similar to that in this book then you will be disappointed. On the other hand, if you are looking for a wild ride with a bit of gore (content warning) and a touch of ‘what the hell is happening’ this is a clear option.

The characters are interesting and certainly develop as the plot thickens. Who do you trust?
It’s funny because there were times reading this when I envisioned cartoon characters instead of actual people. I put this down to the outlandish events and descriptions that seemed too strange to be anything other than a cartoon…from the twilight zone?

My favorite aspect of this story is how unique and creative it is. I indeed had no idea where it was going for a good majority of it. At the same time, I felt a bit confused sometimes or even annoyed, as if we kept ending up in the same conflict over and over. I do think that the payoff in continuing to the end is worth it. While it isn’t anything groundbreaking it sure was fun!

This book is fine but I was expecting a bit more. I think for me it was the writing. It felt juvenile and was distracting me from the story. But I think it's a "me" thing so if someone else enjoys it, that's great.

Twist after twist after twist! Love it! I have to admit I have never read Jo Nesbø although I have seen one Harry Hole film--not sure why, just never got around to it. But, I am definitely going to be reading more. I know this is a stand alone, but I really enjoy the writing style. I also liked his characters because they seemed real.

This story is incredibly imaginative and I am not sure I've ever read anything quite like it. If you enjoy horror and the supernatural, this book is definitely a must-read.

"the night house" is a pretty typical horror novel. nesbo has the novel split into two sections, with both narratives coming together in the end. for me, this novel was incredibly hard to follow. i never knew what was really going on due to the supreme lack of detail. the second half felt like a punch in the face and the twist is a bit archaic, underwhelming, and offensive to those with mental health issues.

if you're looking for a paranormal, intense horror, this is not for you. if you have a mental illness, like i do, this is not for you. i really expected something different from this book, and i'm disappointed in the way nesbo constructed this text. it feels half baked and juvenile.