Look, I really enjoyed the story. It reminded me of Monster House, Thunderbolts*... and also Stranger Things in some aspects. So yeah, it was pretty good.

But... some conversations/social commentaries felt a little bit on the nose, like the author felt the need to put that on the story and spell it all out so everyone could understand without giving them time to reflect on the themes.

So maybe more show and less tell next time.

The Staircase in the Woods is a difficult book to categorize, but who needs labels anyway?

A group of kids in high school form a bond...a covenant, actually. They all vow to protect each other, they fight bullies together and are there for one another. Until one night when they discover a staircase in the woods. Their friend Matt enters it....and is never seen again. They become pariahs in their school and in their neighborhood. Almost all of them leave their hometown but one. Fast forward twenty years, when they gather again and search out the staircase for a second time. Will they climb it this time? Will they discover what happened to Matt? You'll have to read this to find out!

I've been a fan of Chuck Wendig's for years now and this book was no exception. I had trouble connecting with a few of the characters at first, but as the narrative progressed my feelings towards all of them changed.

It's difficult to talk about this tale without any spoilers, but the last half of it is where the story really lived, in my opinion. That's where we got down to the nitty-gritty with each character and their motivations. A lot of surprises were sprung as we got down to the history of these youths and what happened to them back in high school after Matt's disappearance. It was sad but extremely realistic, and it brought each character's heart out to be examined in the light of day and some of the time, those hearts were not pretty.

I think most narratives of this type lose ground, (and my interest), when it comes to the explanation of the big bad-whether it be a haunted house, a dark wood, or the discovery of ancient, eldritch, evil. I think Wendig hit a home run with this one. It was a mostly believable and terrifying explanation and to that I say WOO HOO!

I accidentally got behind on reading my review copy, so I actually purchased the audiobook. This way, I could review this in a more timely manner. I'm glad I did! Narrated by Jay Myers, Amber Benson and Xe Sands-these narrators did a great job.

Overall, this was an intriguing and engaging book that has me still thinking about these characters a week after I've finished the story. Kudos to Chuck Wendig on yet another winner!

*ARC from publisher, audiobook purchased from Audible

Chuck Wendig does it again. The Staircase in the Woods is a compelling take on the urban legend about random staircases that can be found in the woods for seemingly no reason, and that are dangerous, somehow related to disappearances.

I really enjoyed the twists and turns of this. I'm an avid reader and have read so much horror that the plotlines and reveals of many books and movies are too easy for me to guess, which makes it all that much sweeter when a book isn't just well written and enjoyable, but is able to surprise me as well. This is definitely one of those books. The characters were interesting, and I enjoyed learning more about each one as their back stories were slowly revealed.

My one criticism, seemingly a recurring one, unfortunately, is that he doesn't really do the research around mental illness that would keep him from making very small mistakes that won't matter to most, but definitely get under my skin, and I'm sure others who have dealt with similar disorders as the characters could be bothered as well. One example would be the use of Trazadone in the book. This isn't really an anti-anxiety med, it's most commonly used for sleep. While neither myself nor my partner were able to take it, it gives us both headaches (a common side effect with it), many of our family members have in the past, or are currently, taking it. So the idea of a character taking it for anxiety in the middle of the day throws me out of my suspension of disbelief. Overall though, that's a very minor complaint.

Another thing I love however, is the lore he's added to these staircases. There's an entire history that explains why they exist, and why people go missing when they appear, and there are rules to the way they act, and to the existence on the other side of the door. I felt like he provided solid reasoning for their existence and the reasons why they trap and consume the people who find them and go through the door waiting at the top.

Really, I'm just very pleased with this book, and the way it shows that we never know what even our closest friends are really going through, and how forming real connections with each other can save us. Thank you to the publisher for inviting me to read this book as well!

20 years ago, five friends went into the woods for a camping trip, and only four of them made it out. Matty Shiffman disappeared that day when a staircase appeared in the woods and was never seen again. Now, the group is brought back together in an attempt to find their friend, or at least, try to find clues of what happened to him.

This story tested the strengths, bonds, trials, and tribulations of friendships. It delves into each character's POV and also shows you how those relationships impacted this circle of friends. What each of them experienced as kids and adults during their reunion trip will make you feel uneasy, scared, and confused, but also wonder. This isn't your group of friends like those in Central Perk. These ones have endured trauma, abuse, self doubts and flagellations. They are far from perfect, but it makes you connect with them in one way or another.

I've first read Chuck Wendig last year (Black River Orchard) and found his writing style to be very imaginative. The description of the "monsters" is very vivid, and in this story, the staircase is a whole entity in itself. This had me gripped to the pages and well worth the 4 stars rating.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for this E-ARC.

I found a thread on Reddit a couple years ago that talked about people finding staircases in the words and the strange things that happened to them after. All of those threads really creeped me out. I wanted this book to be just as creepy. And while it was creepy, it just wasn’t as creepy as it could’ve been. But then again I guess it can’t be because then it wouldn’t have been a good book!

I enjoyed this read. It was good but I kind of feel like it fell just a little flat for me. It had such great potential and it just wasn’t as terrifying as I wanted it to be.

This was a random, interesting premise with much promise. But after wading through a third of the book’s backstory with unlikeable characters I was struggling. Once they were off and into the adventure, it got better, but I was hoping for more of a payoff rather than minor resolution and a cliffhanger.

Thanks to Del Ray and NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

The Staircase in the Woods is a difficult book to review. I liked the writing, but for the most part, I didn’t ever get true horror vibes. I think I wanted more. Thank you Del Rey and NetGalley for the eARC.

Now, THIS is a haunted house! The staircase is only the beginning of the horrors that this group of friends will face.

I'll be honest, it took me several chapters to start to fall in love with this story, but once I fell, there was no saving me. I have never read anything by Chuck Wendig, but when I read the synopsis, I knew I had to read this book. It ended up being so much more than I originally believed. Not only is it full of things out of your worst nightmares, but it also brings to light some very difficult topics such as SA, identity, and generational and emotional trauma. With the dual timelines, you are able to witness the things in their past that molded them into the adults they become.

I would recommend this book to everyone I meet! That being said, if you are not familiar with horror, there are some very disturbing themes and imagery in this book. You have been warned, so please, go read it now!

Thank you to Random House Worlds and NetGalley for providing me with this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this book, but I think it was a little different than I expected, and I believe that is due to the marketing of it being a thriller. I felt like it was Stranger Things, but add a lot of sad history, trauma, emotions...
Overall I liked the story and the premise. I would recommend going in with no expectations and that will help a lot.

I know this one has been receiving mixed reviews, but I really enjoyed it. It’s definitely a slow-burn, so you have to be patient, but it kept my attention straight through to the end. As the group travelled through the house I felt more and more anxious at what came next. The characters weren’t always likeable, but they were believable. Overall I thought it was well-done and would definitely recommend it.

I loved the combination of a haunted house with a video game. The mysterious staircase in the woods that vanishes - intriguing! Wendig did a great job developing specific personalities to all of the main characters. All of the flawed characters brought insight into the situation. Lore and Owen were obviously our "main" characters, but each of the 5 friends was developed and complex. Though I didn't get any real scares from the story, it was definitely disturbing! Be aware that there are plenty of triggers in this book.

I really liked how the novel crafted this psychological maze, forcing the characters to push through layers of repressed trauma toward revelation. I’m forever team HoL, but this was a great contender of its own!(4.5★)

Popular culture has always been a reflection of the hopes and concerns of the general public at a particular moment in time, with horror in particular being well suited to handle the latter. What it says about us then that there has been a recent spate of titles focusing on the very nature of fear itself is up for you to decide, but it’s been an interesting time for the genre. We can now add prolific author Chuck Wendig to the list of those tackling the topic with his highly engaging latest.

In the late 90’s in Bucks County, PA, a group of five teenage best friends went camping in the woods near their homes. While there, they stumbled upon a strange staircase among the trees, with no evidence of a structure nearby to explain its existence. Matty went up the stairs and disappeared, never to be heard from again, and leaving the others to endure the hatred and accusations of a town that couldn’t believe they had nothing to do with his demise.

Decades later and having scattered to the wind, the now-very-distant friends are called back together when one in their group reaches out, asking for one final reunion since he has been diagnosed with terminal cancer. Despite barely speaking to one another anymore, they reconvene for another camping trip, where they once again discover a staircase. This time though, they all go up, hoping they can find their long-lost friend or at least some answers. What they find however is far stranger and more dangerous than they could have imagined.

The malevolent force they encounter feeds off of their pain and uses their fear to get the group increasingly agitated and hostile towards one another. It’s an effective metaphor for the ways that modern society and especially social media is doing the same to all of us on a daily basis, with increasingly disastrous results. As each of the group is forced to face the darkest parts of their pasts and psyches, many of us will recognize similar feelings that we’ve battled ourselves, helping to ground the otherwise fantastic proceedings and engendering a good deal of sympathy for the characters.

More eerie and foreboding than outright scary, the events of the story still linger with the reader. Wendig is a gifted writer, whose elegantly simple prose glides by while he slips in a host of modern social critiques. The Staircase in the Woods is an involving, deeply interesting examination of the weaponization of fear, but it’s also a touching tribute to the power of friendship. I don’t know if kindness and care can really solve all our current ills, but I’d like to think so. This book, despite being unafraid to go to some very dark places, serves as a strong argument that they could.

Where to begin? First off, I think “This Place Hates You” would have been a much better title.

I think a lot of the first 30-40% could have been omitted. It would have been better, in my opinion to have the events of the 90s be condensed to a prologue instead of having the first several chapters bounce back and forth.

I found the characters unlikeable and completely unrelatable.

I did love the majority of the events that occurred after they go up the staircase though. I found the concept fascinating but it eventually did become somewhat redundant.

The ending was disappointing. Anticlimactic for sure.

Overall though, I found this entertaining and worth a read.

I jumped at the opportunity to read this book when offered by NetGalley. I hate to report back that I was majorly let down. This book is labeled as horror/thriller, in my opinion it had neither of those characteristics. This book discussed a lot of childhood trauma and the pain/suffering that goes along with that.
It was really hard for me to get through this book. There was a lot of unnecessary dialogue that made the book feel like it was never ending. The multiple political statements that were made throughout the book contributed to that. I have nothing against the statements that were being made, but it served zero purpose to the actual storyline.
As the story was wrapping up, I thought that I would get all of my questions answered, but sadly I didn’t. The ending was so rushed, I found myself going back and rereading because I thought I missed something.
Overall, it was a let down for me. Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Worlds for the eARC.

Ever since I read Wayward I have been the biggest Chuck Wendig fan! This book was an exceptional read. So gory and creepy and I loved every minute of it. I like the pacing of this one more than Black River Orchard. The story reminded me of (and don’t come at me) a better version of IT. A lot more scary moments with the group facing their fears. I really enjoyed the ending and felt it was satisfying to the story. I am loving Chuck’s writing these days and excited to see what he comes up with next!

More proof that Chuck Wendig can do no wrong. This is a slow-burn, of a novel, about a group of friends coming back together after years apart to discover what happen when they were kids. This has a bit of everything - insane liminal spaces, testing the limits of friendship and childhood pacts, supernatural elements. Highly, highly suggest.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the free digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Wendig hits it out of the park again. This is the third book I’ve read by Chuck Wendig, and Black River Orchard remains my favorite of 2024. Whenever I pick up a Wendig novel, I know I won’t be able to put it down—and this one was no exception. I’m a sucker for the childhood-friends trope, and this story delivers, weaving together dual timelines to gradually reveal each character and the dynamics between them.

At around 400 pages, it's relatively concise by Wendig’s standards. The narrative is steeped in nostalgia, exploring the bonds we form in youth, along with themes of guilt, grief, trauma, and the difficulty of moving on. His eerie twist on the “staircase in the woods” legend is both chilling and thoroughly entertaining.

I read through this book very quickly. The story was super creepy, exactly what I was looking for at the time. The characters felt real and were written in a way that made them relatable. The author wove in and out if the past and present seamlessly which enhanced the plot. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone. I can't wait for the next new book from Chuck Wendig.

Thank you to Netgalley and DelRey Books for this e-arc!

The premise of this book is what really drew me in. One friend goes missing after climbing up a mysterious staircase in the woods (Red Flag #1), then the staircase disappears and comes back 20 years later? Intriguing.

This book while it does have a lot of chapters, does read very quickly and kept my interest. The only thing I wish there was more of is the investigation after Matty went missing.