High school group of kids that end up losing Mattie on a camping trip. Lies are told because the truth was too crazy to believe. Each with a different home life, they finally get together years later to still try to find Mattie, but end up in a nightmare.
I was a bit put off by the politics and crude language

The Staircase in the Woods was my first read by Chuck Wendig, and it immediately pulled me into his signature blend of psychological horror and emotional depth. The story follows a group of estranged friends Owen, Lore, Hamish, and Nick who reunite for a pre-funeral camping trip after learning that Nick is terminally ill. What begins as a bittersweet reunion quickly turns eerie when they stumble upon a mysterious staircase in the middle of the forest, seemingly leading to nowhere. As they climb, the woods around them dissolve into a surreal realm filled with shifting rooms, spectral memories, and unsettling truths that refuse to stay buried.

The plot is driven by both external suspense and internal reckoning. Each character carries emotional baggage: Owen wrestles with OCD and unresolved resentment toward Lore; Lore, a successful but disillusioned game designer, struggles with identity and past regrets; Hamish and Nick bring their own layers of grief and bitterness. Their interactions are raw and often painful, revealing how time and trauma have reshaped their once-close bond. The staircase becomes more than a physical anomaly it’s a metaphorical descent into their shared history, forcing them to confront the ghosts of their youth and the choices that fractured their friendship.

The twist lies not in a single revelation, but in the gradual unraveling of reality itself. As the supernatural elements intensify, the characters realize they’re not just navigating a haunted forest they’re confronting the parts of themselves they’ve long avoided. The conclusion is haunting yet cathartic: not everyone escapes unscathed, but those who do emerge changed, with a deeper understanding of what it means to be known and forgiven. Wendig’s storytelling is immersive and emotionally resonant, making The Staircase in the Woods a compelling introduction to his work—and a reminder that sometimes, the scariest places are the ones we carry inside.

When five teen friends go into the woods, they stumble upon a staircase. Only four friends make it back. Now adults, these friends reunite to solve a two decade old mystery. This reminded me of Stranger Things, Mister Magic & Thirteen Ghosts. The dual timelines plus the creepy & intense atmosphere was everything. I felt like I was on an adventure with this group of friends who were on a mission to find their long lost buddy. The scariest part of this book was the anticipation. I loved it!! The beginning was a tad on the slower side but stick with it & you will be very happy that you did so. 4.5 STARS!

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Chuck Wendig, & Random House Worlds | Del Ray!

The Staircase in the Woods - Chuck Wendig

Five high school friends go on a camping trip and only four return. Everyone has their opinion on what really happened to Matty, but only the four remaining friends truly know about the Staircase in the Woods. Fast forward 20 years, and one of the remaining 4 friends invokes their oath to always protect each other and calls on the remaining 3 to meet him for one last reunion before he passes from terminal cancer. When the estranged friends are all together once again, they are given an opportunity to enter another staircase in the woods and go search for their missing friend. What waits for them on the other side? In an epic labyrinth of rooms from hell, they must fight the urge to separate and go their own ways and team up to find their missing friend and their way out and back to their world.


This book was a ride I did not sign up to be on but find myself wanting to jump back on to experience the parts I missed the first time. I read Chuck Wendig’s earlier book, The Book of Accidents, a few years back and I couldn’t quite find my footing balancing the fantastical elements with the realistic ones. For some reason, that was not the case with The Staircase in the Woods, I found myself immediately immersed in this haunted house/multi dimensional horror story from page one. Without spoiling what lies behind the staircase, I can confidently say the horror was top notch but even more surprising was the character development/study and the dynamic of fixing and healing problematic relationships with self and others. This book gives major Stranger Things vibes with a lot of enjoyable nostalgia for those gen-Xer and older millennials. I really enjoyed this story and might be inclined to give the Book of Accidents a re-read.

Thank you to Random House, Del Rey, and NetGalley for my copy; The Staircase in the Woods is out now and a perfect book to pick up for spooky season!

I dig me some Chuck Wendig and both of these novels are worth your time. The great thing is they are very, very different stories.

Black River Orchard is a community horror, old gods kinda thing. Evil seeps in and makes men and women do awful things. A family drama too! Dig it.

The Staircase In The Woods is more a friend group horror thing. Bad shit, scary shit, horrible, horrible shit happens to a group of friends, and years later they still have to deal with that shit. Some very spooky stuff in this one. Gory goodness too!

Boom. There you have it. Two reviews for the price of one! Go get a copy, if you haven’t already. You won’t be disappointed.

Wow. This was one strange and twisted tale.
The Staircase in the Woods was a highly entertaining, pulse racing read, full of suspense, mystery, horror, friendship, and fantasy.
I really enjoyed it.

Owen, Nick, Hamish, and Lore were all interesting, charismatic, determined, strong, and complex.
At the start, I really disliked Lore. She was so aggressive and disloyal to Owen especially. I came around, though, and nearer to the end, she was one of my favourites.
Owen was my favourite character overall. He really held everyone and everything together. For me, he seemed the voice of reason in the story, not always, but mostly.

Chuck writes in a very addictive way, I couldn't put it down, and I devoured it in one sitting.
This is the first book I've read from him, and I'm definitely interested in reading more.
The Staircase in the Woods was one of the weirdest books I've read for a while, but I couldn't stop reading it, I needed to know what happened.
The only criticism I have is that the ending felt a bit abrupt and unfinished for me. I would have loved more details in that final scenario.

I highly recommend.

4 stars from me.

Thanks to Netgalley, Random House Worlds, Del Rey, and Chuck Wendig for the chance to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I’d like to thank NetGalley, Random House UK, Cornerstone, Del Rey, and Chuck Wendig for allowing me early access to The Staircase in the Woods.

Going in, I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect beyond what the title suggested, but I definitely wasn’t prepared for an introspective, emotionally heavy brand of horror. Before diving in, I want to note that the book contains trigger warnings for sexual assault, self-harm, body dysmorphia, and substance use.

While marketed as horror, the story is less about gore and more about psychological weight. It asks a deceptively simple question: what really makes a house a home? The novel follows a group of friends who drifted apart after stumbling across a mysterious staircase in the woods during a childhood camping trip. Years later, they’re drawn back together when one of them extends an invitation to his own funeral. What follows is a disorienting, deeply unsettling, and at times heartbreaking journey.

This isn’t what I would call a “fun” horror novel, it’s slow, heavy, and often depressing, but it is beautifully written and haunting. The true terror doesn’t come from gruesome scenes (though there are a few disturbing images that will linger in your mind), but from the mundane: isolation, strained relationships, self-worth, parental disappointment, and the quiet ache of unrealized lives.

I’d recommend this to readers who enjoyed House of Leaves, Piranesi, or The Place Where They Buried Your Heart.
4/5

I devoured this book! The characters are excellent and the plotting moves pretty fast for the length. There are hints of Stephen King in the writing and storyline here, and it is one of the few successful embodiments of that writing style I have seen (obviously other than King himself).

The Staircase in the Woods completely blew me away—it was dark, twisted, and utterly addictive from start to finish. I loved how Chuck Wendig blended horror and psychological suspense in a way that felt both unpredictable and deeply immersive. The atmosphere was hauntingly vivid, and the characters were flawed and fascinating, which made every twist hit even harder. I couldn’t put it down, and it left me thinking about it long after I finished—absolutely a five-star read in my eyes.

Didn’t really enjoy this book. Thought it would be a nice change from my normal picks but couldn’t get into it

Chuck Wendig has done it again! This is one of my favorite horror books I've read recently! It was so much fun, with a unique enough plot to keep me fully invested the whole time. I didn't like all the characters all of the time; they got on my nerves, they made choices I didn't agree with, etc. But I kinda think that's the point, and it made me like the book even more.

The plot flowed very naturally, and any questions I had while reading were easily answered pretty quickly. The idea of opening a door to different rooms each time is a trope that I think I may just love, and would love to see more of. This was done so well!

Overall, I can't recommend this book enough. It was truly SOOOO good!

Yup, this got me out of my reading slump. I haven’t felt quite locked in to many books lately, but then along came this freaky, wholesome, tender, spooky, weird book. I was captivated and smiling while highlighting various perfect sentences on my kindle. Basically, one of my favorite tropes, something weird happens, a friend gets separated, the group does everything in their power to save them. It gave me Stephen King IT and Stranger Things (adult version) vibes, iykyk. There was some twists I didn’t see coming and I loved where this one went in the end. I feel like this could be made into a good horror movie.

5 stars for all the weird, crazy vibes! Big thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I’ve enjoyed novels by Wending in the past, but The Staircase in the Woods was highly disappointing. If I hadn’t had this as an advanced review copy, I would have DNFed it.

What disappointed me the most was the premise was so interesting! Who wouldn’t find a secret staircase in the woods and a mysterious haunted house intriguing?

But Wending spends so much time and effort inserting politics in his story that he obliterates any semblance of plot or character development. Everything has to be about a political message. Readers are constantly pummeled with his over-the-top messaging to the point that it feels like an assault on their own ability to think and reason for themselves.

All I felt at the end of this novel was exhaustion and an overwhelming joy to be done reading it. I really hate to talk negatively about a book, and I try to find something good about almost everything I read. I will say that on a prose level, The Staircase in the Woods is well written, but that’s about all I have.

*Thank you to Random House Worlds/Del Rey and NetGalley for the digital arc. All opinions are my own.

The staircase in the woods is one of those old bits of Internet lore that made me immediately want to pick up this title to see how it'd be used.

Unfortunately, I just couldn't get into it despite trying multiple times. The characters don't really sell themselves to me, and I struggled to actually care about their situation, which made the book difficult to finish. Overall, I think it has good foundations, and I might give it another shot if it ever has an audiobook adaptation. It's just a shame that it had all the right points to be something I loved, but didn't hit the mark. I hope it does for others.

That said, I am so incredibly grateful for the publisher and Netgalley for allowing me the chance to read and review this novel!

Not sure if this was for me or not, but definitely catches your interest and had good potential. I’m not sure the horror/gruesome aspect is for me.

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Overall, I liked this book, slow to get going, but after the establishing bits, it really picks up. I am an old school Redditor, and so I have been aware of the staircase in the woods phenomenon for a while. This is a fun take on a modern urban legend.

This was phenomenal. Honestly, Wendig has absolutely outdone himself with this one. It's funny and raw and gross and gritty at parts, but so heartwarming and really explores the intricate and specialised nature of friendship, and how the bonds we form with others can be worn away by trauma and distance and personality. There's so much pain, but also so much hope contained in this book, which is only augmented by the horror, which I feel wasn't so obvious and jumpscare-y, which just makes it so much more suspenseful. It's more like the creaking of the stairs, slow and steady but building up to something terrifying. This one has absolutely climbed to my favourites of this year, but also my favourites in the horror genre generally.

Loved the mixof horror and thriller with hints of fantasy. This was the first book i've read by this author and I loved it. Will check out more by them!

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for a readers copy of this book. My reviews never contain spoilers and are freely provided.
This story centers around a group of friends who find a staircase in the middle of the woods. One climbs it and disappears, never to be seen again. Years later, one of the group invites the remaining friends to join him for a weekend. He wants to reunite and try to find their missing friend. What happens next is a creative take on why such staircases exist. Very imaginative theory, enjoy the ride.

Very reminiscent of Stephen King's It, but this one features a mysterious staircase in the woods. I love this idea because I've seen a staircase or foundation or single wall where there is nothing else around it and I've wondered what was there. I'd never thought about what could still be there. This is a fun romp into the unknown with plenty of creepiness along the way.