Wowee. Flew through that one! I just couldn’t put it down.
Now why I would choose a horror book about an old house as I sit in my 100 year old house .. I can’t say, but I was totally creeped out! Also I don’t usually read horror. I’ve come to realize I can handle it though. It’s much different than a movie, which I’ll pass on.

The story here was intriguing and I loved the way the internet posts and other supplemental information was mixed in. There’s also Morris Code. There’s a few notes in another language (I google translated them). And there’s probably other things I missed! The way it all came together was surprising. The ending was perfect. I’m left with questions and I know I’ll be thinking about this one for a while.

Thank you NetGalley for the advance reader copy .. now I have to check and double check that the door to my basement is LOCKED… so I can hope to get some sleep tonight.

This is the kind of slow-burn that makes literary horror unique. A subtle kind of scare that creeps into your mind and takes root. Multi-faceted characters and good pacing drive this novel home.

When I first started reading "We Used to Live Here" by Marcus Kliewer, I was immediately hooked by the spooky and eerie atmosphere of the first half. It had me on the edge of my seat, anticipating each turn of the page. The suspense had me jumpy, and I couldn't wait to see where the story would take me.

But, as I read more into the second half, my excitement turned to confusion and frustration. Instead of unraveling the mysteries and tying up loose ends, the plot seemed to veer off course, leaving me with more questions than answers. I found myself scratching my head, trying to make sense of the disjointed narrative and unresolved plot points.

As someone who loves a good mystery, I couldn't help but feel let down by the lack of closure in "We Used to Live Here." It's clear that Kliewer has a knack for creating tension and setting a haunting atmosphere, but without a satisfying resolution, the story ultimately falls flat.

This book was a fast read that delivered in scares and tension. Pick this one up if you're looking for an absorbing thrill ride.

This was absolutely chilling and left me with a sense of dread from start to finish. This is billed as a thriller, but make no mistake this has horror written all over it! Read in one sitting, you won't be able to look away once this train leaves the station.

A sense of dread lingers throughout this well-paced pageturner. The events that occur will feel a bit frustrating, and details matter, but by the end we descend into madness and it feels like it all kind of comes together (though a bit rushed). I'm going to predict the ending ends up polarizing.

If you're looking for a unique (haunted house type) story with spooky vibes-- give this baby a shot.

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC.

We Used to Live Here has to be one of the most heart-stopping horror stories I've ever read!

When a couple moves into an old house in remote Oregon looking for a quick flip and big profit they quickly realize they're in over their heads and the price of a profit could be paid in blood. When a family knocks on Eve and Charlies door asking if they could take a quick peek because they used to live there things quickly go wrong.

This book is so atmospheric and unsettling I had to read it with a light on. Not for the faint of heart by any means!

This one was absolutely chilling and beyond creepy. I think it would translate really well on screen someday. This is a book you can easily devour in one sitting and keep you guessing.

This is a truly cinematic reading experience! It looks like it's possibly going to be made into a Netflix series, which would be a great vehicle to tell this story. I feel like this was billed as a thriller, but make no mistake, this is horror. Maybe it starts in thriller territory, but it's a fast ride to some real Stephen King-type gore.

Eve and Charlie fix up houses, and they've found one that they're about to start working on. They've just moved in, when a family of five knocks on the door. The father says he grew up in the house, and wants to show his kids around. Against her better judgment, Eve relents, and one thing after another, it's hours later, and these folks are still here. To safely avoid spoiler territory, I'll just say things get really weird from that point on.

The level of tension is high from the very beginning and really doesn't let up. Each weird event is more and more disturbing and frustrating (in a good way) and there's that horror movie-esque "DON"T GO IN THERE!" vibe throughout the whole book. The ending seemed a little rushed and I wish some of the characters (like the children in the family) had been a little more fleshed out, but overall, this is a really fun read.

This was very atmospheric and well-paced; I read the whole thing in one sitting.

Kliewer has some grating writing tics ("That's a professional." - "What's that?" - "A professional?" - "yeah" is a sequence of question/question/repeat the question/affirmative answer/explanation that occurs very frequently, sometimes multiple times per chapter) and I wish there were more answers to what the hell what was going on and why, but this is an engrossing, fun debut!

“As a young, queer couple who flip houses, Charlie and Eve can’t believe the killer deal they’ve just gotten on an old house in a picturesque neighborhood. As they’re working in the house one day, there’s a knock on the door. A man stands there with his family, claiming to have lived there years before and asking if it would be alright if he showed his kids around. People pleaser to a fault, Eve lets them in.”
It’s not long before strange things start to happen…

It’s rare that I will find a book that gives me a true sense of dread. When I say dread, I mean the visceral feeling of deep discomfort that you can feel in your bones—the feeling you get when you know someone is watching you, but no matter where you look, you can’t find the eyes planted on your back. After finishing this book, I didn’t want to turn my light off.
We Used To Live Here depicts the very essence of what it means to fall into madness. Nothing in this book will make you feel safe. Every character and every piece of dialog will have you questioning what you thought you already knew. Every detail is important and not a single sentence is to be ignored.
I read this book in one sitting. Well, a sitting and a half. I read three chapters before bed one night and realized I had to put it down if I wanted to get any sleep. I picked it up the next day and devoured it. This book had an unputdownable quality that is hard to master, but Kliewer nailed it. There was no point during this whole story that I felt like the narration was dragging or that I was being taken out of the story in any way. This is a book that I will definitely end up rereading just so I can experience all these emotions again.
I was so happy to see that Netflix has picked up the rights to make a movie out of this book. I hope they do it justice because what Marcus Kliewer has created here is genius and deserves the very best.

We Used To Live Here was horrifying in the best way possible, and I recommend it to anyone who likes psychological thrillers and/or horror.

I do t know how this was put into the my feedback shelf. I have not had the opportunity to read or review this title.
A review will come soon

I rated this a 2 but I wish I could give it a 1.5. I hope by some miracle it ends differently in the final version. I actually thought the concept was very cool. I love old houses with weird rooms and nooks and crannies, old sealed off hallways and secret rooms. That part was fun. Aside from a big plot hole I noticed (no spoilers), I still have so many questions and feel extremely let down and frustrated. I feel like I just read half a book without an ending. And not in a fun way but a frustrating way. I guess this was supposed to be ambiguous but there’s just too much we don’t know to even venture a guess. This book just made me mad and I wasted my time.

Engaging and atmospheric. A recommended purchase for collections where spooky thrillers are popular.

I am not a horror person. I’m not into horror movies, I’ve never even attempted a horror book before. (That I remember!)

With that said, I’m not sure that We Used To Live Here is a General Fiction/Mystery & Thriller but it’s not really horror, either! It’s definitely creepy right from the beginning though, that’s for sure!

Eve + Charlie are renovating an old house and at the beginning, it all just seems interesting and charming. Then, Thomas and his family show up. It goes from weird to downright odd and creepy from there.

The book has good pacing, interesting details and just enough creep to keep you reading. This isn’t my genre of book and I would have definitely put it down if I wasn’t so invested in seeing what happened to Eve + Charlie!

advance reader copy provided by NetGalley and Atria but all opinions are my own.

My thanks to #AtriaBooks #NetGalley and #MarcusKliewer for the ARC of #WeUsedtoLiveHere. Rehabbing a rambling old house basically out in the middle of nowhere, Charlie and Eve plan to flip the house, doing most of the work themselves, for a tidy profit. One day, while Charlie is away, Eve opens the door to find an entire family standing there. The father claims they were nearby and he used to live there and wanted to show his kids where he grew up. Against her better judgement, Eve lets them in. Okay, first, let me tell you – the house has an attic full of detritus, a basement, and there is construction going on all over the place – these are all warning signs for an absolute horror story. I found this book to be terrifying (in a good way, of course). Absolutely terrifying. The family comes in, it’s all completely innocent as dad shows them around, this is where I grew up – only Eve gets a creepy vibe from him, then the youngest child, their daughter goes missing, presumably playing hide and seek in the house. There is so much to say, but I risk spoilers. Let me just say, the family doesn’t leave. This book is creepy as hell and I can hardly wait for the Netflix adaptation. This book is most excellent.

What did I just read! 😳 This book was the definition of spooky, eerie, and sinister. On top of that, the concept was something I’ve never read before.

Eve and her partner Charlie flip houses for a living and purchase an old home kind of in the middle of nowhere. Home alone, Eve hears a knock at the door to which she finds a man and his family, where he claims to have lived there years before. Uncertain, Eve let’s them in for fifteen minutes TOPS. As soon as the family enters, strange things continue to happen. Something is wrong with this house or the visiting family… or is it her?

As interesting and creepy as it all was, nothing made sense in the end. I’m all for leaving it open ended to the reader but nothing was explained and I was left with more questions than when I started. I was hoping that all the information scattered throughout would hold more meaning and tie back together better than it did. There was so much potential but I was frankly disappointed.

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for the copy in exchange for my honest review!

Creepy, twisty, bizarre, compelling. Once you start, it's impossible to put down. The ending almost made it feel (to me) open to another book, which I definitely hope so. I recommend it for horror and suspense readers who want something new and fresh that can easily be consumed in a day or two.

**Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.**

From the moment the family appears on Eve's door step asking to get a peek inside of what was once the man's childhood home, I knew this one was going to scare me. Just give us 15 minutes to look around, he asks. My brain is saying - DO NOT LET STRANGERS IN YOUR HOUSE! And, I continued to scream at Eve, co-owner of the home, get them out, get them out, get them out. But her need to be a people pleaser and passive personality will take the reader from the basement to the attic on a gut-wrenching ride.
All the creeks and groans, scary children, untrustworthy neighbors, isolated property, and religious fanatics are meshed together to bring maximum thrills and chills.

Thank you to Atria/Emily Bestler Books for an early e-copy via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

4.5 rounded up to 5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I couldn’t put this one down! Right off the bat I was sucked in, I all but finished it in one sitting. This is the perfect mystery/thriller, I was on edge right from the start (and basically the whole book). We Used to Live Here was such an entertaining book and I can’t wait to see the movie now!