My second book from this author (the first being the deeply, deliciously horrifying Black River Orchard), and after another captivating tale, I am looking forward to reading more.

The horror works here on multiple levels. There's the obvious narrative one: five friends go into the woods, but four come out after one disappears up an impossible staircase to nowhere. Twenty years later, they find another staircase and up they climb, only to find themselves in a house of horrors. Each room reveals echoes of pain, sadness, grief--all the worst that humans can inflict on one another. Underlying that is the horror that stems from all the ways the core group friends have let each other down--will healing these hurts be key to leaving this prison?

I had no idea what to expect when I read the description for this book, which sounded much more whimsical than this book turned out to be. This is definitely a horror novel, through and through, and I loved the conceit. So inventive in how it presents tropes we're all familiar with (ghosts, of a sort; haunted homes; etc.).

Definitely pick this up if you're a fan of haunted house horror and/or stories about the power of friendship to combat the ugliness of the world.

I was very excited to read this book after seeing such positive reviews, but I’m afraid my review will be an outlier. I think the issue is me just not being the right audience. There were many elements I just couldn’t relate to which made it difficult to connect. I do see others really enjoying it though.

My thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

What’s scarier than a haunted house? A haunted home. A place that should be a refuge, safety and comfort, but instead is an all-consuming testament to your deepest fears and insidious traumas. Wendig does a great job at excavating what that home might look like in this painful character study, with metaphoric and metaphysical hauntings doing the same work as the psyche just louder.

The characters are the heart of this story, a group of five misfits that we see through the POVs of two of them, with occasional flashbacks as well. Wendig can’t help but pay homage to King’s Loser’s Club, but these five are all unique and complete and painfully real. We learn about who and how they were as teenagers, the different types of broken homes that stitched them all together, and how one traumatic event eclipsed the overall trauma of their childhoods to separate them, to lead them down the paths of maybe their darkest timelines to the adults we meet them as in the present. The connection and evolution from childhood to adult is really well done, but even more so is how realized the characters feel. None of perfect, not in their villainy nor their victimhood, not in their apathy or their friendship. They are all ruins left to rot under dark skies but trying to find the spare lumber to rebuild themselves, desperate and incomplete but in different ways. Of course, when talking about childhood trauma there are some clichés or expected histories, but none feel trite or contrived. We see this group lose themselves, and go through hell to try and find themselves again.

The world-building is fun, and morbid. The real world of our characters is broken and divided present, not shying to comment on the current political climate. But the place they find themselves about a third of the way into the book, the place their quest takes them, is one where Wendig lets himself indulge in all sorts of dark and twisted ideas, set pieces sometimes elaborate and harrowing in details and sometimes just mentioned in passing, a constantly shifting madhouse of perspective and distortion, and it is a lot of fun. It works as the perfect environment for our characters’ drama to play out, inviting and all-encompassing with just the right amount of detail and shadow to feel both known and menacing. The writing itself is compelling, moving between two characters at a fast clip, balancing internal monologues with description and desperate dialogue. The writing isn’t particularly poetic but our characters are doing a lot of inner work and the writing is willing to be philosophical or melodramatic or terrified as appropriate. The plot slows down a little around the 2/3 mark, with a section where it seems like the momentum has stalled a little, but the writing keeps you engaged and captivated anyway. Mostly the pacing is efficient, not wasting any time in the beginning to get our characters right into the heart of the story’s action, bringing them together and separating them only to bring them together in good order, letting us learn more about them throughout. There is a bit of a slowdown around 2/3 of the way through, but that is in part because Wendig doesn’t want to give the characters any easy epiphanies or deux ex machina moments, and the result is it takes time for them to learn what they need to learn to move forward. The character work and world-building, along with crisp and emotional writing, make sure that there is always something to keep you interested, regardless, and the story soon finds its footing again for a memorable and nonstop final act.

Wendig isn’t subtle about the themes or ideas he wants to explore, here. He says in his afterward (and this isn’t spoiling anything about the story,) “We are creatures of extraordinary depth, a deep cavern with infinite strata, and we have seen things and felt things and experienced things—we’re reckoning with a wealth of love and trauma and pain and wonder, and storytelling, at its best, represents that reckoning on the page." Like any good story about a haunting, this story is about the people that live through it, through the hauntings of their lives and their pains and their celebrations and their friendships. It is about facing what haunts us, staring it in the face, and making friends with it.

I want to thank the author, the publisher Del Ray, and NetGalley, who provided a complimentary eARC for review. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I love Wendig’s writing. Even though this book is around 400 pages, I read it pretty quickly. The story was very immersive and engaging.

At its core, this is a story about friendship, specifically the kind of deep, close bonds you form when you’re young, and how those connections can fade over time. The friend group in this story comes together in high school, standing up for one another and forming a kind of covenant. They vow to always look out for each other. But everything changes one night when they head into the woods and discover a staircase that leads to nowhere. One of their friends, Matty, climbs it and disappears without a trace.

I thought this was a well-written and highly imaginative story. I loved following the friends as they explored the rooms of this house, each one eerie, tense, and unsettling.

The dynamics within the friend group were really compelling. They were so close as teens, but Matty’s disappearance fractured everything, and they eventually drifted apart. That felt very real, because that’s life. People change, friendships fade, and sometimes things just fall apart.

My only complaint is that, since much of the story takes place inside the house, things started to feel a little repetitive. The friends move from room to room, and it all started to blur together after a while.

The ending is one of those open-ended ones where the reader is left to imagine what happens next. Normally, I’m not a fan of that kind of ending, but here, it really worked. It felt fitting for the story, and I actually liked how it wrapped up.

I definitely recommend this book to horror and fantasy lovers. I look forward to reading more from Wendig!

4.5⭐️

I liked the premise of this book, but it just felt like it went on and on. I found that I never really liked any of the characters. It's a very interesting concept though so I kept reading.

This book I can confidently say is unlike anything I’ve ever read, and unlike anything i read after. The authors mind was so imaginative! Terrifying and I never knew what kind of room was going to happen next!! So good!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my e-ARC of The Staircase in the Woods!

𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐈𝐅 𝐘𝐎𝐔
🏠 believe houses absorb energy
🏃‍♀️ always run from your problems
👫🏼 would do anything for a friend
👻 love to read horror stories

• 𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐈𝐓’𝐒 𝐀𝐁𝐎𝐔𝐓

Five high school friends are bonded by an oath to protect one another no matter what.

Then, on a camping trip in the middle of the forest, they find something extraordinary: a mysterious staircase to nowhere.

One friend walks up—and never comes back down. Then the staircase disappears.

Twenty years later, the staircase has reappeared. Now the group returns to find the lost boy—and what lies beyond the staircase in the woods. . . .

• 𝐌𝐘 𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐒

Just wow! What an incredible story with an amazing plot and interesting characters to boot! This had all the elements I love in a story - horror, paranormal, character driven plot development, and mystery! The character development was flawless, and entirely necessary, in my opinion, to further the plot. Each of these characters are broken and flawed in their own way which leads to the house crushing their spirits to further its evil agenda. I loved Lore’s mind and how she was able to figure out so many things about the house and how to bypass it like a computer program. I never knew where the story was going to lead us, which is the hallmark for a great novel! The rooms changing and swirling around was a lot of fun. This would make for a very cool movie. Even being 400 pages, I flew through this book. The ending left on a bit of a cliffhanger, so I would love to see a sequel!

I’m a big Chuck Wendig fan and always enjoy his mix of horror, science fiction, and mystery. Needless to say, I had huge expectations for The Staircase in the Woods.

Reunited after years of being apart, four childhood friends reunite as adults only to discover they’ve been brought back together to relive a shared trauma that torn their friendships apart. While the trope of ‘friends returning to the scene of trauma’ isn’t exactly new, Wendig makes it entirely his own by interweaving plenty of horror-esque elements and fantasy.

I’m a big fan of multiple POVs and love when all our main characters not only have a ‘present’ but also flashbacks, especially as the flashbacks are what give us the story that led to the trauma.

While this was a creepy and entertaining read, I did find that it could have been cut down a bit. The repetitive nature of some parts (even though told through different viewpoints) made it feel longer than it needed to be. I also have a hard time occasionally with such open-ended fantasy aspects, I needed just a few more answers around how ‘this’ could even happen so something to think about. Otherwise, Wendig is always a good choice if you want an atmospheric, descriptive, and creepy read.



The Staircase in the Woods comes out April 29, 2025. Huge thank you to Del Rey Books for my advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion. If you liked this review, please let me know either by commenting below or by visiting my:
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This is the 5th book that I've read by this author Sorry to say, this is my least favorite of the ones I read. I found it to be repetitive and there were some sections I enjoyed and some that were less interesting.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the digital ARC.

I really enjoyed this book. It goes in a direction that I really didn't expect, but if you're a fan of Chuck Wendig that really shouldn't surprise you. The first half of the book is so engaging and interesting, and was hard to put down. I will say the second half was a little too drawn out and meandering, and it could have been about 100 pages shorter. But overall, I really enjoyed it and highly recommend it, especially if you have read some of his other novels and liked them - you're going to like this.

I liked the premise of the story but I felt like something was missing. I didn’t quite have time to bond with the characters before we were supposed to be emotionally tied to the events in the house. All of this revolving around their lost friend Matty, who we don’t really get an answer on what happened. I usually don’t mind an open ended conclusion but unfortunately this one just didn’t work for me!

Thank you NetGalley and Del Ray for the arc!

ok, so, I didn't love this book. In fact, I found it hard to finish.

Bad points:
- During one of the earlier chapters (11% of the way through) it suddenly turned from caring about a dying friend to arguing over politics, trans rights, and various spectrums which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it was in your face, unexpected, and a little bit OTT.

- I really didn't like the use of the word 'unalived'. Sorry, but it's not a real word - it's a TikTok word, one that people use to try and stop themselves getting reported or banned when talking about certain topics. It's not needed in a horror book.

- The book was very repetitive; sort of the same thing happening over and over, but only slightly different each time...

Good points:
- There was a lot of background information and lore about the characters. We get to learn a bout who they are and why they behave the way they do.

- The beginning of the book draws you in and makes you want to find out more! I found myself sitting here going 'Ooh what? how? when?' and kept reading as I just NEEDED to know!

- The chapters were nice and short, they are easy to read in nice short bursts if your a busy individual who always has something going on, or just need a quick read before bed!

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC! #TheStaircaseintheWoods #NetGalley

I will generally read anything by Chuck Wendig. This book was a wonderfully crafted folding of character and concept, with mystery and thrilling elements baked in.

The premise of Staircase in the Woods is fairly simple: five friends encounter a mysterious set of stairs in the woods, only for four to return. It changes their lives, though not as much as you might think given they were already a set of outcasts in dysfunctional families. Several decades later, they come together again and face off with a fresh set of stairs, this time finding out what lies at the top step. The reader is led through a story of their various traumas in a house that feels like a choose your own adventure game.

I actually originally was excited to read this because I was under the false impression that this novel was written by the author of the Reddit stories. However, as I engaged with Staircase and the characters, I found it left much to be desired, in particular Lore. Lore felt like every single trope of a nonbinary individual or a lone woman in a group of outcasts. Lore was the “slut”, Lore stole their friend’s game ideas, Lore used acid unlike the rest of them used good ‘ole pot, Lore refused to just be Lauren—Lore had to be “wacky and unique” and why, oh why can’t Lore just be good girl Lauren again! It was quickly tiring, especially when Lore had to become the trope of an aggressive liberal screaming at their poor friend, the Trump voter, who also coincidentally was written as the most sympathetic and successful character. It causes me to question if the author had further personal motivations he wished to get across in these characters. Given the accusations associated of theft of the writing ideas involved with this novel, is this meant to be a response to individuals who have cried out about how Wendig was not the original source of the staircase appearing in the woods short stories?

Furthermore, regarding the discussions surrounding personal traumas, Wendig’s engagement was clumsy at best, damaging at worst. He would quickly mention topics such as eating disorders and self harm, even suicide or child molestation, but never gave follow up. It was clear his characters were still in the throes of these issues, but once they briefly mentioned the trauma to their friends, apparently they were cured of all that had been previously wrong! They no longer had any trauma and they no longer had to carry it because now the goodness of friendship and ignoring it again could take hold, not meds as one character previously mentioned taking or therapy or any other option would be necessary. For a house formed from trauma and how one succumbed to it, it was strange that their path forward was marked by doing the very same things that actually brought them there.

Overall, I found the chapters easily digestible in size, the plot and timeline jumping easy to follow, but enjoyable due to the stereotyped characters and the lack of nuance in the trauma storyline. I can’t in good conscience recommend this to patrons not only because I feel the stereotypes are damaging, but also because the traumatic elements of child molestation, eating disorders, suicide, and self harm deserve more discussion than what is encountered in Wendig’s writing. Trauma shouldn’t serve as just a plot device and needs to be handled with more than a few sentences before being dismissed, never to affect the character again. I also wish for my patrons to see accurate representations of themselves in all of their identities and there just isn’t a way for that to be accomplished in a reading of Staircase.

Regarding minor editorial details: I read the book as an epub on my phone and found some issues regarding text running from one page onto another, as well as a need from further editor review to correct grammar and spelling. A quick review could correct these issues and make the epub better prepared for its release.

I’m not really sure what I just read, but *The Staircase in the Woods* was definitely not for me. The concept had potential, but the execution left me confused and disconnected. Just didn’t click.

Thank you to NetGalley and Del Rey for the ARC.

The plot felt familiar and new at the same time, which I liked. Overall I’d say it was above average but it felt like it was up and down a lot, in quality and plot. The writing was good overall but too often used a five-dollar word when a fifty-cent word would do. The plot was really intense at times and a bit goofy at times, so I didn’t stay fully engaged but was never tempted to quit either. Worth a read if you like horror and don’t have too many triggers… it covers a lot since it hits on pretty much every childhood trauma possible.

I received an advanced reader copy of this book from NetGalley.

I should preface this by saying the premise of this book was so intriguing, I'm a horror nerd, and I had really high hopes. If half stars were allowed, I'd give it a 2.5/5.

Ultimately, this book presented itself to me as a 'The Haunting of Hill House' (Netflix version) crossed with King's IT (book version). A very intriguing concept -- focusing on how trauma is deeply personalized, can infect everything around you, and imprints itself on your skin (and in your home), and can result in you inflicting that trauma in a sad cycle.

There were glimmers of good here, I just think the story could have been shorter/tightened up to prove the same point. The book shone when talking about personal trauma surrounding the five central characters -- including the probably polarizing political elements, because it added to the cultural rancor (and to Lore's background). While elements definitely did not work for me -- at all -- the story was thought-provoking and lends itself well to the horror genre.

*SPOILERS*
Personally, I don't think the book lived up to the premise -- largely because the friendship at its core felt shallow. It was a lot of talking with no showing. As a reader, I didn't really care of the group stayed together or broke apart. The climactic elements -- the journey the characters undertake -- is repetitive and loses a lot of its fear factor simply because it feels like a goofy haunted house with no real point or end, copy paste repeat ad nauseum. Much of the horror elements at here felt hollow and caustic for the sake of being caustic and so lost its effectiveness to really punch you in the guts. There were so many loose threads at play there (you could apparently leave the house? the friendship is meaningless then its everything then its meaningless again? why go up spooky random stairs in the first place let alone again?) This is further hammered home (ha) by the characters still having relatively stunted growth at the end of the story.
*END SPOILERS*

A creepy and terrifying tale that grips you completely and holds onto you. Chuck Wendig is a masterful author who packs eerie elements with intriguing characters that will stay with you

Twenty years ago, five friends entered the woods on a camping trip, however only four friends walked back out. What happened to the fifth friend?

This book is a fast paced read, which was really fun. The concepts and themes were also really fascinating- the mystery of the staircase, the idea of the video game experiences, and the unveiling of secrets of a group of friends who thought they were close. However, something was just missing. Here are just some of my thoughts:

-The dual timeline didn't work for me. I would have rather met the characters when they were younger and had the story progress linearly. Then we would have right away had more context for why they behave the way they do as adults. As it's written, I didn't really like any of the characters, which makes it difficult to feel for them when everything starts falling apart. I honestly thought they were in their twenties, and realizing they were in their thirties really threw me off.

-The anecdotes of their friendship as teenagers were wonderful and sweet, and I liked seeing the jagged way they tried to came back together as adults.

-Like I mentioned earlier, I enjoyed the video game references and analogies, but it was a bit heavy handed at times.

-There were actually a bunch of things that were a bit heavy handed. It seemed like the author really wanted you to understand what he was saying about trauma and how it messes you up, so there was barely any subtext. One character seems to have this perfect life on paper, and instead of giving us clues that things aren't as good as they seem, he just has this one point of view chapter where he exposits everything going wrong in his life.

-I'm not big into gore and blood, so those parts were appropriately disgusting....though the nail biting was a bit much for me. The creepiness and variety of different rooms was great, and the insidious creeping of the evil was well done.

-I'm not sure how I feel about the ending. I think I wish it was different? I don't think it was as impactful as the author wanted it to be. Yeah, I think I wanted more sacrifice from the characters, the ending doesn't quite feel earned in some way.

Overall, a nice weekend read and interesting enough that I'll pick up more books from this author.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book.

A staircase appears in the woods. One friend climbs it and vanishes. Thirty years later, it returns—and the survivors are ready to follow.

This is small town horror meets grief horror meets a reluctant reunion story, with a clever twist of game design thrown in. Dual timelines and multiple POVs build real emotional weight, and the RPG-style structure will delight nerdy readers (I say this lovingly).

There’s a lot of trauma packed in here—sometimes to a fault—and the messaging gets a bit heavy-handed. Still, it’s a smart, character-driven horror story with a twisty haunted house feel.

Final verdict: For fans of Stephen King, Hendrix’s Horrorstor, and Kraus’s The Ghost That Ate Us. Scary and sad, with a good dose of 90s nostalgia for all the elder millennials.