
Member Reviews

I loved that this book was told from the perspective of the little girl. It was a very dark and creepy story, an absolutely unique horror story.

I was invested. The outcome felt inevitable, but that didn't stop me from wanting to read the journey.
I thought the perspective on this one was interesting, though I'm still not sure how old Bela was, perhaps a detail I missed somewhere along the way. Telling the story through the lens of a child gives it a certain glossy quality that I found extremely powerful.
I powered through, as I'm sure many will, and I was with it until the last few lines. I'm not sure I understood the where which is all I can say without saying to much.

This book captures my current internal struggle of feeling both trapped in my house and haunted by myself. I am an anxious person who is sick with the flu, if that makes things clearer. I love all of Josh’s books that I have read and this might be one of my new favorites.

I really, really wanted to like this as the reviews really tout it's spooky nature! But the writing style being from a child, I truly couldn't push through. It was suppose to be from the perspective of an 8 year old but read more like a 4-5 year old and it was just too much for me. Sadly I DNF'd.

It’s been a while since I’ve read anything by Josh Malerman but I’m glad I requested this from @Netgalley. Incidents Around The House is told from the perspective of a young child. I feel that it really works to create a spine-tingling story of terror. I don’t want to go into the plot much because I feel like it’s best to go into this one blind and without anything given away. I will say this much about it though only because it’s noted in the synopsis. This is a story about a girl who’s seeing a woman in her closet who she calls “Other Mommy”. I’m not going to lie I was freaked out a few times while reading this at night especially when something would make a noise at night. I really enjoyed this one but there were a few things I didn’t love near the end. This would make a great movie though. This is a solid horror novel that you should definitely read with your lights on.
𝟯.𝟱 ⭐️
𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗿𝗲: 𝗛𝗼𝗿𝗿𝗼𝗿
𝗣𝘂𝗯 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗲: 𝗝𝘂𝗻𝗲 𝟮𝟰, 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟰
𝗙𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁: 𝗞𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗹𝗲

Josh Malerman never disappoints! This was such a thriller. I had my heart beating so fast. This was actually one that I could not read before bed, if I did I made sure to watch something after, before I slept. This is definitely favorite and I bet will be top 5 this year for sure. Definitely going to recommend!

This was, hands down, the absolute creepiest book I have read. It takes a lot to scare me and I usually just roll my eyes at horror books. But this had my heart RACING. The fact that it was from a child’s point of view was so unique and made it incredibly fast paced. Easily in my top 5 favorite books.

I ended up deciding not to finish this read. I want able to look past the POV being done from a child’s eyes. I wish the best of luck to this author in their future endeavors!

This book is wild! Incidents Around the House scared the crap out of me, I'll be sleeping with the closet door closed from now on. I read Birdbox years ago and it still stands as my all time favorite horror book. I've read many books by Josh Malerman since and haven't found one that I would even compare to Birdbox until now. I've found most of them to be weird, but not really scary. Not the case with Incidents Around the House. I was looking for a good scare and it delivered. I'll remember this book for a long time. This book will be published June 25th, 2024, so check it out. Well done!
Thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Del Rey, and NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Every author has a unique voice that is developed and becomes apparent in their works. Josh Malerman is unlike every author in that if not for his name on the books or some of the references to Goblin, Chaps etc... I would not know it was written by the same person. Every book I’ve read from him has a unique writing style that is unlike his previous works. (I guess he’s unique in that sense haha.) Incidents Around the House is no exception. A truly terrifying and chilling story from beginning to end. A complex and layered story told from a child’s perspective that showcases Josh’s talent in storytelling. There’s scenes in this book that I’m still trying to shake off. Highly recommend this book looking for a good scare.

Genuinely creepy with an interesting POV from a young narrator. Malerman doles out the scares while examining a family disintegrating in real time. Frightening imagery balanced with heartfelt sentiments make this book an engaging page turner.

This was SO good. It was creepy the whole way through and I felt uneasy while reading it. This will probably end up being my favorite book of the year.

Incidents Around the House is nothing short of horrifying. I was shocked and terrified from the first pages of this book. The whole book is told through then perspective of a child and I think Malerman nailed the fear, at fist as a reader you're almost like the parent wondering what is actually real and what's being exaggerated by the child's imagination.
As the book goes on, it just gets worse, and worse. It's so unsettling it gets in the space between your skin cells. I love Malerman's style of writing it's always a unique treat and it's especially so in this book. If you are a fan of being absolutely freaked out, read it. NOW.

Ooo this book!
I’m always looking for books about possession, but let’s be honest there are not a lot of options. The Exorcist still stands as one of my favorite books of all time and I would easily say Incidents Around the House holds a flame to it. I devoured this book.
I literally stayed up late, couldn’t put it down. The atmosphere is absolutely frightening and there were moments I had to look over my shoulder. I recall listening to all the bumps in the night and instantly thinking of this book. It’s scary, it’s creepy, it’s full of surprises. The ending was unexpected and not typical which I adored.
Written from the perspective of a child, Josh Malerman slayed. It’s like Bela is real and I could see a lot of her characteristics and interactions in my own daughters of similar age.
Characters are flawed, perfectly and the interactions between them are organic.
I don’t want to spoil too much about the “entity” so go in blind and let go of every trope you associate with possession/demon books or movies.
Incidents Around the House is a treat for us seeking books about possession and one that will shock and wow you. I expect this book to have a lot of hype and it’s well worth it.

I'll always jump on a new Malerman release as soon as I can. Malerman has a writing voice I can really grab on to, and this was no exception. even if it's different from his previous books. This one is written from the perspective of an eight-year-old girl, a POV Malerman makes very believable in its innocence and curiosity. At times, this book was genuinely frightening and had some of the best literary jumpscares I've yet read. How can you have a jumpscare in a book you read with your eyeballs? I can't tell you how it works, only that Malerman nails it.
The best horror is always about something internal, in my opinion, and Malerman carves away at the heart of what it means to be family in a way that's utterly unsettling.

“You make it sound so frightening, Mommy says.
What?
Innocence.
It is frightening, Lois says.
Because the innocent are targeted first.”
Incidents Around the House is a horror story with heart. It mortified me. I was afraid to go to the bathroom alone. Afraid to keep the lights off. But what surprised me the most was how deep this book was. I didn’t expect to be scared shitless while getting a philosophical lesson on fear and life. This was a fast read, an impactful read, and one that will stay with me for a very long time. I have goosebumps still after finishing it.

I devoured this book in one day. When I saw Josh Malerman had a new book coming out, I was so excited and this book did not disappoint. It was terrifying, thoughtful, and suspenseful. I'm scared to go down into my basement to change the laundry right now.

Incidents Around the House is an amazing and riveting work, and simply one of the greatest horror reading experiences I've had. Malerman is able to embed himself so artfully into the POV of a young girl, yet at the same time, develop characters around her. And you will be scared not only for this young girl, but for yourself. The monsters in my closet, long ago forgotten about, felt relief as I read this novel, for I believe in them again. There's a clear vintage horror influence yet a Cormac McCarthy feel. Genuine scares for those who thought they'd never be scared again. Other Mommy is such a very cool, pretty, and powerful monster who keeps the reader guessing. But as the best horror does, it's not just the monsters but the humans in our life that hurt us just the same.
Five shining stars.

Omg please make this a movie because this book had me TERRIFIED.
I loved this so much. Everything about it. It was creepy and had me staring at my dark closet like 👁️👄👁️
This gave me Guillermo Del Toro’s “Mama” vibes. I totally pictured that entity as Other Mommy.

I have a feeling this is going to be the hot new book of the summer and for good reason! It’s so scary and very easy to follow. The POV from the child was unique & the short chapters kept the story flowing nicely. I’ll be thinking about this one long after reading it.