This was disturbing, in a good way.

The story is told from the perspective of 8-year-old Bela, who is being haunted by an entity she calls Other Mommy. Other Mommy wants Bela to let her go into her heart so that she can be reincarnated, a process that would have Other Mommy taking over Bela’s life and sending Bela to wherever Other Mommy exists.

It took a minute to get comfortable with the format of the narration, which is a little choppy, but once I got into the flow of the story it moved quickly. Telling the story from Bela’s perspective gave us a front row seat experiencing Bela’s fear and confusion, not knowing what to believe or what to do in the face of this sinister presence in her life.

Another theme that was woven throughout the main storyline and that contributed to Bela’s confusion and anxiety was the marital trouble between her parents, Ursula and Russ. Russ was a bit too passive and optimistic considering the situation the family was in, but was otherwise fairly innocuous. Ursula was just unlikable. She made a lot of questionable decisions throughout the book, most of them driven by selfishness and self-interest. Yes, she was traumatized and overwhelmed by everything that was happening with Other Mommy, but her 8-year-old child handled it better than she did. At no point did it ever feel like Bela was her priority.

This story was more creepy than scary for me. We could feel how sinister Other Mommy’s presence was in the beginning of the story, but that kind of got lost in some places when the focus switched to Ursula and Russ and their relationship dysfunction. It would have been nice to get more of that creepiness and fear that we get from the Other Mommy early on in the story throughout the whole book.

I also spent a good amount of time thinking about potential endings and how Malerman would resolve everything for Bela. Although it wasn’t the ending I was hoping for I don’t think he could have ended it any differently. This one kept me engaged and entertained and it left me wanting more of Bela and Other Mommy. I would have loved to see what happens next in their story.

Thanks NetGally and Random House Publishing/Ballentine/Del Rey for the advanced copy.

This was a decent book, the writing style was a little weird to me and I feel like the thoughts this small child were having was a bit unrealistic. I did enjoy the book though and couldn't wait to read it all to see what happened. Over all I enjoyed the book.

Incidents Around the House was my 4th book by Josh Malerman. All of them have left me thinking about them long after they have ended. Incidents around the house was primarily told from the perspective of a very young girl who is being haunted, while also dealing with her parent's extremely troubled marriage. About half of the book I would give 5 stars just for the PERFECTLY creepy atmosphere. The character of the mother brought the score down to a 3 star occasionally as she was just awful in my opinion. I loved Dado and the grandmother and some of the secondary characters. Basically, this book was nearly a one sitting read for me, so I have to settle on 4 stars, but I also need to find a spoiler somewhere that can explain what the heck was really going on in the book as I feel there is a lot of metaphor happening that I might need to ponder on to figure it all out. Either way, definitely gonna recommend all around.

As a big Bird Box lover and fan, I wasn't quite sure if Josh Malerman would ever create a book that could top that one for me.. until this book came out. Holy smokes.. what an absolute nightmare this was, but in the best way! This book TERRIFIED me, and sometimes when reading books, that doesn't do the job for me. While reading about Other Mommy, I could not help but over analyze every little noise in my house, and listen out for noises in my closet or shadows in the corner of my bedroom. I was so immersed in this book and the terror that Bela's family was going through, that I could not stop reading and over thinking everything! This one was phenomenally scary and I highly recommend!

It took me way too long to read this book after being given an advanced copy by NetGalley due to a leak in my house causing my kitchen floor to collapse and months of chaos. I can say with so much certainty this is NOT the book to read if you live in an older house that is giving you grief. I couldn't have chosen a spookier book for this chapter of my life, but my life being a mess also really heightened the fear in this one because I could relate to the sounds of the house creaking at night, the bumps in the dark you tell yourself is settling... did I mention I'm also a mother, so add the times your children are speaking to someone you can't see and you tell yourself it is just their imagination over and over and really hope it's true.
I won't ruin this book. I refuse to ever ruin a Malerman book because you need to go on the ride and half the fun is the fact that you find yourself desperate for the answers chapter after chapter. The tension really is part of the reason I love Malerman and this book did NOT let me down. Bela, an adorable eight year old, is a main character you can root for and believe in. So many books have kids you are annoyed with or ones who are written way too grown up for their age, but Bela was handled well. Bela's family is filled with interesting characters and they were my only issue with this book... I wanted more of their thoughts and motives and feelings. It's not like the family were paper people just shoved into the novel without being fleshed out, but I found I cared about knowing them and it was a unique feeling for most of my horror reads.
My honest opinion: Read this book. If you can read it in the evening hours in an older house or one with creaks and bumps and sounds you can't fully explain, all the better. I know the summary sounds like this is just a remake of Coraline, but don't let that shape your opinion or your feelings because this really isn't that. (I love Coraline, but I also love this and for completely different reasons.) If you've read anything else by Malerman, you'll know you should read this... but I would also suggest this to fans of early King, fans of Nick Cutter, or really any fan who loves the real anxiety that comes from falling into a world built for horror.

Oof. Ooooooof. This is a spectacular book. Haven’t read a horror tale as intense and affecting since Adam Nevill’s The Ritual. Loved it. Also hated it so much, but in the very best way!

thank you to netgalley, the publisher, and to josh malerman for the advanced reader copy of "incidents around the house". as someone who works with children, i have come to learn that kids say all kinds of stuff. crazy things, silly things, nonsensical things, creepy things.... and on top of that, they conjure up a plethora of stories, imaginary friends, and the like that us adults cannot visibly see. what i LOOOOOVED about "incidents around the house" is that malerman decided to make it through the child's perspective, eight year old bela. it honestly made the atmosphere and everything happening around bela so much more frightening, because as a child, you don't have as much wisdom to make sense of what's happening around you, and adults may not always take you seriously, chalking it up to an overactive imagination.

I started reading this in the middle of the night and this is one of those "do as I say and not as I do" moments. So yeah, don't read this in the night unless you want to be suspicious of every shadow, the clothes pile on your chair, or the dark abyss of your closet for the rest of the night. As I've mentioned in other reviews, it takes a lot to scare me in a book, but Josh Malerman knows how to write horror, and I read this in less than a day. The story was told from 8 year old Bela's POV and I found this to be unique and well-done. The idea of, and descriptions of "Other Mommy" were absolutely terrifying. Go into this one blind, and enjoy the scare. I loved it and hope it comes to the big screen one day!

Thank you to the publisher for providing an ARC via NetGalley.

I love love loved this book!!!! Horror is one of my favorites and this didn’t disappoint. I could not put it down. Be prepared for some seriously scary and disturbing scenes! It moves at a fast pace that keeps the story going and I loved that. Definitely on the edge the entire time. The Other Mother was terrifying and I could picture it/her so clearly. I think telling the story from Bela’s perspective was clever and made it scarier. Her parents were very unlikable, especially the mom. I even loved the ending,though by then I wasn’t surprised. Still well done. . I wish I could erase my memory of reading this and read it again for the first time!! Solid 5 star read for me! Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Publishing for the eARC!

This was gifted by the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

I started reading Josh Malerman very recently, I loved his previous release which made me curious to check this one out! I was not quite prepared for this book. To be fair, it was my fault. This book hinges on our main character who is a small child, she begins talking about other mother, and soon another dad. The question is, is this innocent, or is there more going on?

This was 100% my fault for not reading the synopsis and just jumping in. I do not like reading horror about possession style stories, especially in little kids. So I don't feel comfortable giving this a rating, as it is not my usual genre or the type of book I would normally go for.

Josh Malerman is going to be responsible for my therapy bills this month because I COULD NOT SLEEP after reading this book. WTF, JOSH?!

Creepy kids doing creepy shit is always going to be a 10x scarier than any other horror trope and I can't really explain why other than... why would they lie about what they see and what's happening to them? So yeah, Bela is creepy and this whole premise is both sad and scary af.

Highly recommend to my fellow horror readers!!

When I read the summary of this book, it sounded terrifying! I am a mood reader, and this one is perfect for when I'm in a creepy-book mood.

I appreciate the publisher and NetGalley for giving me an ARC.

To eight-year-old Bela, her family is her world. There’s Mommy, Daddo, and Grandma Ruth. But there is also Other Mommy, a malevolent entity who asks her every day: “Can I go inside your heart?” When horrifying incidents around the house signal that Other Mommy is growing tired of asking Bela the same question, over and over . . . Bela understands that unless she says yes, soon her family must pay. Other Mommy is getting restless, stronger, bolder. Only the bonds of family can keep Bela safe but other incidents show cracks in her parents' marriage. The safety Bela relies on is on the brink of unraveling. But Other Mommy needs an answer. Incidents Around the House is a chilling, wholly unique tale of true horror told by the child Bela. A story about a family as haunted as their home.

I have been a fan of Josh Malerman since Bird Box. This book adds to his arsenal of creepy and scary books. I enjoyed this book so, so much, but especially that it is told by Bela.

Thanks to NetGalley and Del Ray for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Relentlessly atmospheric, experimental with obvious flaws, Incidents Around the House is unapologetically written for the devoted horror fans; immediate point of reference comes to mind is the 2022 horror film Skinamarink, which utilizes a similar overarching tropes: intentionally obscure narrative through a child's POV. While the novel successfully delivers on scares, tension, and a sense of dread, I can also see it being criticized for being overly vague, lacking a traditional narrative arc, and an inconclusive ending — some of which I actually consider to be the story's strength, while others might be areas where the novel should've gone through a few more rounds of refinement.

One of my favorite Josh Malerman stories is A House at the Bottom of a Lake, and this feels like a continuation of that writing style — where the horror element can be interpreted both literally and metaphorically. With the concept of innocence and parenthood being repeatedly brought up, it is easy to make correlation between these subject matters and the supernatural presence (the writing even encourages it at times). But then there will be outlier scenes where they can only be read as one way rather than open for analysis... The lack of consistency is where I bump into some frustrations with Incidents Around the House's narrative — I wish the author's intent is made a little more clear.

Still, I commend Josh Malerman for pushing the boundary and writing outside the box, as Incidents Around the House contains some of the more original, grotesque imagery, and genuinely chilling sequences (people you are talking to is not who you think they are never cease to scare me). Yes, while this novel (at least my experience with it) has trouble deciding whether to be metaphorical or literal, and would potentially work better as a novella, it is already one of the more memorable reads of this year!

This is my first Josh Malerman book. I did not find this book utterly terrifying but more so, creepy. I also did want to finish it quickly so it was resolved. A creepy child and demon of sorts and a family trying to find a solution to their haunting. An engaging and intense read. I will be reading more of Malerman! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher/author for their ARC in exchange for my review. If you are looking for a spine tingling, creepy read, this one is for you…but keep the light on

Other mommy has to be one of the creepiest things I've ever read. This book scared the heck out of me. I was reading and alone in the dark on my Kindle and had to get up and turn the light on. Every sound had me questioning if other mommy was slinking towards me in the dark. I can't say enough good things about this book! In the name of review fairness though I'm going 4.5 stars only because the ending felt rushed to me after so much build up. Solid horror story.

I really liked this book which is told from the point of view of a little girl named Bela, who lives with her mommy, daddo and the other mommy, an entity haunting Bela who wants to carnation in Bela (reincarnate). The story was so atmospheric and at times actually scary. Great book.

THANK YOU so much, NetGalley, Josh Malerman, and Random House - Del Rey Books for a chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Josh Malerman's "Incidents Around the House" is an absolute gem for fans of horror and suspense. The book drips with atmospheric dread, creating a creepy vibe that seeped into my bones from the very first page. Malerman masterfully builds tension, making every turn of the page an exercise in delicious fear.

I loved how the adults in the book were depicted as being more childlike than the actual child in the story. This inversion of roles added a layer of unease and complexity to the narrative, making the adults' actions and reactions even more creep-tastic! Brilliant!

Another aspect that rocked my world was the narrative being from a child's point of view. The grammar and writing structure were creatively aligned with this concept, capturing the innocence and curiosity of childhood while contrasting it with the terrifying events unfolding around the young Bela.

The description of "Other Mommy" as the entity trying to possess young Bela was also incredibly designed. Her exaggerated features and creepy repetition of "Can I come into your heart?" were painted with such detail that I could picture her grotesque form perfectly. Malerman's talent for creating monstrous yet believable characters is fully displayed here.

I highly recommend "Incidents Around the House" for anyone who loves a good possession story and enjoys reading late into the night, preferably while hiding under the covers. Josh Malerman will keep you on edge with this one and make you question every shadow in your room, or in my case, make your husband come turn on a night light for you! LOL! Enjoy!

Oh. My. God.
Incidents Around The House is one of the creepiest books I’ve ever read! It’s the first book I’ve read from a child’s perspective and that certainly added to the freaky factor.

I don’t want to spoil anything but the things that happen and resolution attempts are just bonkers! You really never know what’s going to pop up on the next page.

That ending? Absolutely not what I anticipated!

I love that Josh Malerman writes his books based in Michigan mainly because I am a Michigander myself. He weaves in Goblin within Incidents Around The House.

Incidents Around The House Is a good book. It was not one of my favorites and the mother really really bugs me. For those that love his writing I imagine you will love this as well.

Thank you #Netgalley for the chance to read the EArc of #IncidentsAroundTheHouse by #JoshMalerman in return for a fair and honest review.