O my goodness- I think this is Josh Malerman’s best story yet. I was totally glued to the pages and couldn’t put it down…except for at night because I was too creeped out to read it in the dark! A fantastic, horrifying take on a haunted house/monster story. I loved every second.

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read this as an ARC.

Yeesh! I wasn’t really expecting this level of creep – I should’ve known better. I’m usually not scared by ghosts or hauntings but this one got under my skin. It’s insidious and sinister and completely unlike anything I’ve read before.

Bela lives with her mommy and daddo, usually pretty happily, except for ‘other mommy’ who lives in her closet and used to be nice but now, not so much. “Other mommy’ is always asking if she can go into Bela’s heart. Bela always says no and the more she says no, the more persistant ‘other mommy’ gets.

Because this is told from Bela’s POV, it gives a uniquely terrifying perspective; Bela is limited by age in her understanding of the real world so adding in something unnatural is way outside the realm of understanding and explanation.

This is a story I won’t be forgetting anytime soon and I won’t be saying anything more about the plot. Go in as blind as possible on this one, you won’t regret it.

My thanks to Random House Publishing for this gifted DRC.

Thanks to Del Rey and NetGalley for this advanced reading copy in exchanged for my unbiased review.

I should probably acknowledge upfront that I am a big fan of horror books, movies, haunted houses at Halloween and all sorts of options for a good scare. And I have loved Josh Malerman’s books in the past. So I was looking forward to reading this book.

As I started reading this book, I was slightly taken aback, because the plot concept was so familiar. I mean Neil Gaiman’s [book:Coraline|17061] is only one of the books I can think of with the premise of a young girl who is visited by an evil entity pretending to be her parent.

Granted, the descriptions of the Other Mother were nicely understated enough to allow the reader’s imagination to effectively pump up the horror, and the plot zips along with many really spooky events. But, I still felt a bit let down by Malerman’s use of such an obvious horror trope in what felt like a storyline that I had seen too often before.

But, if it had just been another version of this somewhat stale story, I would not have given it 4 out of 5 stars (high praise for me—only a ver few all-time favorites get 5 stars). But, as the book continued on, I found that the circumstances that underlie Bela’s visitations became clearer, and at the same time they felt more emotionally truthful. By the end of the book, I was left with a completely different sense of horror; horror based mostly upon the pain that we can do to the people that we love.

In service of not spoiling things, I don’t want to say anything more, except that this book has left me feeling some major feelings that are quite different than my usual experience at the end of a horror novel. And for me, that is a very good thing.

I received an ARC of this book from Net Galley in exchange for my honest review.

Josh Malerman has outdone himself!

This story is about Bela, a little girl whose family turmoil often pushes her into the arms of Other Mother, the creature from her closet. Will Bela let Other Mother into her heart, or will she work with her family to rid themselves of this monster once and for all?

Malerman's mention of Goblin, Michigan, and the characters from some of his other works is reminiscent of Stephen King's Castle Rock character cameos.

Malerman has just done for closets what King did for clowns. I read this in one sitting, because I just couldn’t pry myself away. Unrelenting tension and dread, interrupted only by moments of terror.

This book is utterly terrifying in the very best way! Every time I picked it up a feeling of dread crept into me. Having Bela, a young child, narrate the events in the story creates a unique and unsettling experience for the reader. This is definitely my favorite Josh Malerman book and reminds me a bit of “Half theHouse is Haunted” in his short story collection “Spin a Black Yarn. Highly recommend this book for a spine tingling, shivering and unputdownable read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

8 year old Bela has a friend who lives in her closet, whom she calls Other Mommy. Every day Other Mommy asks Bela, "Can I go inside your heart?" Other Mommy wants an answer.

This book was really creepy and very hard to put down. I had to know what crazy thing was going to happen next.

Yup. That did it. I'm sufficiently creeped out. Thanks book, I don't know if I'll be sleeping tonight. Thank you to NetGalley for the early copy.

This book got to me. Got inside me, my brain, my heart. I went in fairly blind and I think that’s the best way to go into this book. It is haunting. It is heart wrenching. It is terrifying to the point of dreading every dark corner, every shadow in the furthest limits of your peripheral vision. The narrator of this book couldn’t have been written any better. I was absolutely mesmerized and captivated. So realistic was this book that I felt I knew the characters, hell, I cared for the characters, but sometimes hated them, but quickly warmed up to them, and so on, and so forth… amazing characterization throughout this one. And the incidents around the house? I won’t soon forget them. Reading them in my brain felt like an incantation to produce a visual of absolutely every detail, as that’s how well written they are. And six little words will forever flash into my brain in moments of peace, because they are burned into my memory from fear and from great waves of sad. I know this would make an excellent film.

Wow! Another home run by Josh Malerman. Incidents Around The House is a creepy and unsettling book that will have you looking over your shoulder and checking your doors, especially those darn closet doors, while you are reading this.

8 year old Bella lives with her mother and father in the perfect home in the perfect middle class neighborhood, in what appears to be the perfect place to bring up a smart, innocent child in the perfect family. But it's it?
Well Mommy and Daddo don't appear to have the perfect marriage that people think they do, and that they show to the world outside while trying to tell themselves it's all good. There are many secrets to be discovered by everyone in the family,and the number one secret is Bela's "imaginary friend" Other Momma.

Other Momma starts off as such a good friend to Bela, being her confidant and making her laugh. But one day Other Momma asks "Can I get inside your heart"? A question that even little Bela understands is one that can't be answered so easily.
What transpires from here on is a terrifying look at the modern family and what goes on behind closed doors while the outside world goes on around them not noticing the cracks that have appeared in their perfect family. And, then, what each person in the family needs to do to keep this family together.

Malerman knows how to keep things moving, keep things seemingly normal, while at the same time,making the hair stand up on the back of your neck, and making you hear things while you are reading that you need to investigate in your own house before you can continue.
This is a short book that keeps you razor focused and leads you on a fun, scary ride! If you think a book can't scare you, or at least make you feel ill at ease, give this a try. It's proper Malerman, extremely well written and yet very easy to read! I really enjoyed this book.

Josh Malerman continues to be my favorite horror author. Everything he writes is absolutely terrifying, I still can’t get the description of other mother hiding in the little girl’s closet (premise of the story) or the last page of the book out of my head. Still within all this tense uncertainty, there is so much heart.

This book had a really strong, scary spooky start that hooked me in immediately. After a while, it just turned into a lot of driving around and life lessons from the parents and other adults in the story. I started to lose interest and then the ending was abrupt after so much ongoing storyline.

Well. This book was amazing. Other Mommy was so creepy. I actually texted a friend who read this a couple of weeks ago that I had to stop reading the book at night cause I would get scared anytime I heard a sound. The point of view from Bela's point of view was so unique and interesting. Reading her inner dialogue about everything happening was so fascinating and at times I would be like awhhh poor sweet girl. I hated the mom but Daddo was a great father. I loved every minute of it and will always be a Malerman fan. Everything he writes is just pure gold. Will be recommending this to all my friends! Thank you for the digital copy!

I started this one and it was hard to get through with the writing style. Definitely a creepy story with a lot of eeriness and tension. The writing style just wasn’t for me but could be for someone else!

Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine, Del Rey for the advanced readers' copy! Below is my honest review.

This is my fourth Josh Malerman novel and I can’t tell you how much I appreciate that no matter what he writes, I know it will be different than other things I’ve read. He certainly wastes no time setting up all of the tropes we know and love and turns it into something refreshing and thought-provoking. Are things left somewhat ambiguous? Yes. Am I left thinking about it a long time after I’m done reading? Definitely.

The horror in the book is not overt but rather reminds me of Shirley Jackson, the slow building kind, the horror that crawls towards you in the dark until it happens upon you so suddenly that you don’t see it coming. There were a lot of subtle moments that genuinely creeped me out; however, Incidents Around the House shines not just in the horror, but also in the complex family dynamics and the the ghosts that secrets leave behind. I appreciated the perspective of Bela, I feel like we rarely get to feel the horror from the child’s perspective and it offered a unique look into a family experiencing not just the horrors of a malevolent entity, but the horrors of growing up and realizing your parents are painfully human too.

My only criticism is that while the beginning and the end were very strong, I felt like the middle third of the book struggled with pacing. We race from one scene to the next at a breakneck speed that feels like it slows down the novel's pace. It felt like a lot was going on but I’m not sure how much purpose there was, which could be exactly the point in context however it had me working a little bit to reach the end. Additionally, there is a large amount of back-and-forth character dialogues and monologues which I could see maybe some people struggling with.

Overall, it's another great story from Josh Malerman, and I’m looking forward to reading more from him.

It’s been a long time since a book has genuinely scared me. The first night I read this, I had to stop about 20% of the way in because I was getting so worked up. Thankfully the scariness went down a bit as the story progressed.

Monsters, human and paranormal. This book did a great job of exploring both. As with Bird Box, this would make an absolutely incredible and horrifying film.

I was worried about the story being told from the child’s perspective but it actually worked out well. The way the dialogue was formatted made the book impossible to put down.

REVIEW POSTING ON OUR WEBSITE MARCH 7.

Incidents Around the House is a bone-chilling novel written by Josh Malerman that will terrify you to the bone. The story follows eight-year-old Bela and her family as they navigate through terrifying encounters with Other Mommy, a malevolent entity that threatens their safety.

The unique point-of-view writing style in Incidents Around the House adds an eerie layer to the story that sets it apart from other horror novels. Seeing the events unfold through Bela's eyes creates a sense of unease and tension that draws readers in from the very first page. The gradual escalation of Other Mommy's presence in her life keeps you guessing and leaves you feeling truly unsettled.

As we follow Bela and her family through a series of horrifying incidents, we witness the cracks forming in their relationships. The dynamics between family members are put to the test as they struggle to protect each other from the sinister force lurking within their lives. Josh Malerman masterfully weaves together themes of love, fear, and sacrifice to create a gripping narrative that will stay with you long after you finish reading.

The suspense builds steadily throughout the book, leading to a heart-pounding climax that will leave you breathless. Every twist and turn in the plot keeps you guessing, making it impossible to put the book down until you reach its chilling conclusion.

Incidents Around the House by Josh Malerman is a haunting and unforgettable tale that will keep you up at night with its spine-tingling suspense. The intricate character development and atmospheric storytelling combine to create a truly immersive reading experience that lingers long after you've finished the last page. Already in-line for one of our books of the year.

This was my first book by Malerman & while it wasn’t my favorite it was pretty good. I loved the dialogue and the narrator being an 8 year old. I loved getting her perspective and inner thoughts on Other Mommy. This book had grit & terror throughout!
The middle was where it started to get repetitive. (Take a shot every time you read the word “piqued”). I thought the aspect of them basically just running away from Other Mommy was kind of silly. The ending was the most disappointing for me & maybe that’s my fault. I just didn’t understand it & was left feeling confused. I wish we got a few more chapters explaining everything more. Overall a good, creepy read & I’ll definitely read more by Malerman. Thank you so much Netgalley for allowing me an ARC of this book!

I want to say that this is one of the creepiest haunted house novels you'll ever read. But it's not really a haunted house. It's a haunted child. And it's not really a ghost...or maybe it actually is? That's the beauty of a Josh Malerman book, you never know if what you've read is real or not.

But, in this one, the "thing" living in the closet of a little girl named Bela is real. She calls it Other Mommy. And it keeps asking her if it can live in her heart.

What makes this book especially dreadful is that it's written in first person through the eyes of Bela. Seeing how this terrifying thing plays out from the perspective of a small child gives it an extra thick layer of the creeps that keep increasing as this thing gets more and more insistent in its demands.

The fact that Bela's real mother has some issues and secrets adds to the sense that her and whatever this thing is are somehow connected. But we'll get there eventually and the author is in no hurry to reveal many things. That's a GOOD thing because the tension is palpable throughout this novel and leaves the reader wide eyed and wondering.

Whatever this thing actually is, getting to the end is a lot of fear filled fun. It's a novel you won't want to put down. And you'll likely feel a bit of fear every time you open a closet after reading this!

I highly recommend it.

This was the scariest book I have ever read. I had to stop reading it before bed. I loved how this book was told from little Bela’s point of view. That definitely added to the fear factor. There is now a whole new meaning to “what goes bump in the night?” (Or during the day).
I cannot wait until this is published on June 26th, so I can buy the physical copy.
This needs to be on everyone’s TBR in October (and in general). Josh Malerman did it again. 4.5⭐️

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group for the advanced digital copy. Incidents Around the House is now in my top 5 favorite horror books ever written.