I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in return for an honest review.

This is my first Chuck Wendig book and I was very excited to read it. I enjoyed the dual timelines for the most part, but there wasn't much distinction between them so I did have to reread some portions once I realized it was the past POV.

I really liked how dark this was, and how visceral the descriptions were once they ascended the staircase. I did think I had the ending figured out a few times only to be pleasantly surprised. I did think a few political conversations felt very shoehorned and unnatural given the situation they friends found themselves in. That is...if you can even call them friends. The pacing also felt slow because many things were repeated, but given the setting I can understand why. I also hated that all the characters felt so unintelligent even though it was stated how smart some of them were. Overall, I rounded up to 3 from 2.5 stars.

I'm the problem - it's me. I have always wanted to like Wendig. He's hilarious and seems like a great guy. But I can't seem to get into his books despite trying repeatedly.

3.75⭐️
The staircase in the woods had a little bit of a slow start but the middle of this book more than made up for it!
Once it got going I was completely engrossed and could not put it down!
I loved all the video game references, the spooky vibes, the creepy house and the suspense.
It definitely gave me that feeling of needing to check under my bed before I went to sleep 🫣
It was actually a very disturbing reflection on humanity at its core.
I wasn’t completely satisfied with the ending, I REALLY am just a reader who loves closure and it was left a bit too open ended for me but I still really enjoyed it!

1⭐️ Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Worlds for an advanced copy of The Staircase In The Woods.

In the 1990s five friends are on a camping trip when a mysterious staircase appears in the woods. One of them goes up the stairs and never comes back down. Years later the group receives an email from one of them saying that he has cancer and wants to see everyone before he dies. They all travel to see him and he requests another camping trip.

This book was so weird and way too hard to follow. I did not like any of the characters and the plot made no sense. I was not a fan.

Chuck Wendig, a master weaver of nightmares, invites you to descend The Staircase in the Woods, a novel that burrows deep into the marrow of dread and emerges with a story that will haunt your dreams long after you've turned the final, chilling page. This isn't just a book; it's an experience, a descent into the unsettling heart of the unknown.

Wendig crafts a world where the familiar becomes terrifying, where the rustling of leaves and the creak of ancient wood hint at something far more sinister than the natural world. He lures you in with his signature blend of darkly lyrical prose and a creeping sense of unease, then plunges you into a mystery that twists and turns like the gnarled branches of the haunted forest itself.

The Staircase in the Woods is a symphony of shadows, a haunting and unforgettable journey into the heart of fear. Wendig's ability to conjure a palpable atmosphere of dread, combined with his talent for creating characters that are both deeply human and profoundly vulnerable, makes this an absolute must-read for anyone who craves a story that will linger in the darkest corners of their mind. Prepare to be captivated, disturbed, and utterly enthralled.

This was a little slow at the beginning but the more I read the more I wanted to see what would happen. I enjoyed the book overall.

I tend to enjoy this author's storytelling so I was pleased to find myself sucked in from the first chapter. I like his characters who always feel like real people.

Compared to his last several releases, I didn't enjoy this one quite as much as his previous books but it was still a solid read.

If you have enjoyed his previous books or are looking at a place to start with this author, I would certainly recommend this one.

Disclaimer I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

*3.5 Star. A very unique and interesting story in horror/thriller genre. I really the story progression and getting to know this quirky and messy friend ground. I really liked the horror elements in the house and the author was very successful in writing really creepy body horror. The evolving and ever changing horror house was so cool and I liked that it was similar to a labyrinth with unknown elements. A few things I didn’t like was the dialogue style that the characters had, it felt very childish and not what I expected from almost 30 year olds. This didn’t pull me out of the story too much but there were a few odd choices. I also really didn’t love the ending, everything was wrapped up until the last chapter. I wanted another few chapters to really finish off the last loose end. I don’t love ambiguous endings unless they are done well, and this one was just lazy.

Thank you Netgalley and Random House Worlds for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. “The Staircase in the Woods” will be published April 29, 2025.

This was honestly a nail biter of a horror story (pun intended, you will get that after you read about one of the main characters). I thought that it was nicely set up, Wendig did a good job of staying firmly in the past until he jumped forward again to the present, and the explanation behind the staircase was a scary and sad one all put together. I also give 2 thumbs up for the ending. I think we all know how this is going to end, but I liked that we were not shown it. I rather imagine it myself.

“The Staircase in the Woods” follows four former friends, Lore, Owen, Hamish, and Nick. The four of them have pretty much settled in their lives, if you can call it that until one day Lore calls Owen and tells him their friend Nick is dying of cancer. Nick just asks his four friends for one last get together. The four friends meet up eventually and confront the last time they were in the woods and the staircase they found that changed their lives forever.

The book mostly jumps back and forth between Owen and Lore, and then you get a few POVs via Hamish. I think that was smart since you understand that Owen and Lore have a lot of things left unsaid since the night in the woods and the things that came after. All four of the characters are messed up in their own way. I thought Wendig captured the mood of living in a small town and doing whatever you can to get out of it. He also captured the mood of teens being the misfits in the school and growing closer together.

I do think that the book at first feels a bit slow, but that’s really temporary. Once the plot kicks in, things go really fast and get scary. You don’t know how this ends and you worry about what it all means until things get revealed.

I did like the setting of this book. It was very much a puzzle and though there is a bit too much info dump on the staircase and how it came to be, it didn’t bother me at all. I liked learning about it.

The ending was bittersweet, heavy on the bitter.

What would you do if you saw a staircase in the middle of the woods? Would you go up it?
What if years prior, you lost a friend from the same scenario?
Yeah, I think I'd pass. Especially after learning what those stairs lead to . . . a true nightmare.

Horror isn't a genre I read much, which funny enough, is what I wrote in my last review from this author. But The Book of Accidents creeped me out (in a good way), to want me to come back for more. And this one really delivered. While it is pure fiction and unlikely to ever happen, the storyline the author created terrified me. Trapped in a murder house, with no clear way to escape.

In 1998, five friends - Nick, Own, Hamish, Lore and Matty - entered the woods for a camping trip, encounting the mysterious set of stairs. Only four of those friends "escape".
In the present, those four friends return under the guise of a last hurrah for their friend Nick. Once again, the stairs appear, only this time, all 4 go up them, plunging them into a nightmare situation.

Every room in this house has something disturbing about it. Whether it be a direct connection to one of the four, or just a gruesome murder scene, the house slowly messes with their heads. Given each of the four has their weaknesses, it slowly begins to threaten their sanity.
If that wasn't bad enough, there is no clear way to leave, the house almost feels like a maze.

So, why is the house doing this? That part is eventually explained, and I was impressed with the author's creativity in this, and at the same time, admired how these four try to overcome the odds.

Do they all survive? I can't say, but I loved the ending, which had a "WTF does that mean" feeling. Overall, an intense and harrowing read, perfect for any horror fan.

I usually like Chuck Wendig but this one was just not for me. Jumping around and no connection to the characters. I felt the story was just not doing it for me.

4 stars

This review was published in the Charleston Gazette-Mail, Saturday-Sunday, April 19-20, 2025.

THE STAIRCASE IN THE WOODS - Chuck Wendig, April 29, 2025, Del Ray, 400 pages.

“On Friday, June 5th, 1998, five teenagers went into the woods surrounding Highchair Rock in Bucks County, Pennsylvania.

Only four of them came out.”

These five high school friends - Nick, Owen, Hamish, Lauren and Matty - were bound by an oath to protect each other. They go camping in the woods one crazy night and come across a staircase. In the woods. Just like the title says.

There’s no sign of any structure, past or present - just the staircase (and, according to the Internet, where I get all my information, for better or worse, people DO find these staircases from time to time. Really. Truly. I guess maybe that’s where Wendig got his inspiration?)

In what will come as no surprise to anyone who has teenagers or was a teenager, one of them goes up the staircase…and is never seen again.

Twenty years later, the remaining four have had virtually no contact. Lauren (now called “Lo”) is a very successful game designer, Owen is beset by trauma and is barely getting by, Hamish has changed dramatically since high school and is now living a comfortable suburban life, Nick is relatively unchanged and is still obsessed with Matty’s disappearance. And Not ck has found another staircase in the woods.

So he calls the group together again, to see if they can find Matty. Are they willing to go up the stairs? “That was the funny thing about a fear of the dark; you weren’t really afraid of it, but rather what lurked within it.”

After two decades apart, can they trust each other? What are they to each other? Is there any sliver of their oath left, or was that childhood nonsense?

“Friendship is like a house…you move into this place together. You find your own room there, and they find theirs, but there’s all this common space, all these shared spaces. And you each put into it all these things you love, all the things you are…And this friendship, this house, it’s a place of laughter and fun and togetherness, too. But there’s frustration sometimes…all the awful feelings, all that resentment, building up like carbon monoxide. Friendship, like a house, can go bad too.”

All five members of the group were damaged as children, all in different ways; this emerges as the story unfolds. Were the five drawn together? And then drawn to the staircase? There is some evidence that indicates this might be true.

It’s hard to review a book like this without giving away a major conceit. I’m going to err on the side of letting you discover the wonder/horror of the book yourself, but don’t take that to mean there aren’t a wealth of discussion topics within it; it’s just that you’ll want to read the book first, then discuss with a friend or on Goodreads, and you should read it, it’s a nice one.

There are some strong Stephen King vibes (especially IT, with the kids, then the reappearance as adults.). Gamers will enjoy this (I’m not one, though, so you don’t have to know or like anything about games.)

My only hope is that the end is not set up for a sequel. I’m fine with ambiguity and I think it’s fine to leave it that way.

This is a solid thriller from Wendig and if you REALLY needed someone to tell you not to climb a lonely staircase in the woods, this should serve as fair warning.

The Staircase in the Woods takes that image of a mysterious staircase in the woods that lives in stories passed along at campfires and in creepy pastas. What would happen if one climbed one of these staircases? Where would it lead?

This was a hard one for me to review because I was and am really intrigued by the concept. The problem for me was that I couldn’t connect with the characters, which were pretty unlikable and felt shallow. Once we reach the point in the story of what lies beyond the staircase I was more invested but found myself putting the book down again and again. We move between the past and present day for the about the first third of the novel and it threw off the flow taking away any tension. The house was intriguing and full of genuinely creepy imagery. but there is a point in the novel that just lists descriptions of the different rooms, rather than the characters experiencing those rooms, which again took away from the atmosphere and tension for me.

I do think the house as an exploration of the characters’ trauma was interesting and the concept itself is really good. I think people that already enjoy Chuck Wendig’s writing style may find this really enjoyable, it just wasn’t for me.

If you’re a fun of Chuck Wendig’s work and looking for something that’s a bit of It meets creepy pasta with haunted house vibes this might be for you.

Thank you very much to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advance review copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

4.25 ⭐️

First and foremost this book did a great job of creeping me out and overall was spooky. I don’t say that very often because not many books actually creep me out. I thought the story was fantastic. And I think Wendig did a great job with the ending. I kept waiting to see if he was going to ruin the book with a cheesy ending but I don’t think he did. I think the explanation behind it was just ambiguous enough for it not to pull you out of the story, and the very ending (I mean the very very ending) was quite perfect.

Now, for the reasons why this is not getting a five stars: I had a really hard time believing these characters were my age (in their 40s). Granted, after reading the acknowledgments, I have come to realize that the author himself talks like he is still in his late teens early 20s, but all the characters in this book felt very immature. They talked like they were still in high school or early college. They expressed their feelings like they were still children. They dealt with each other like they were still young adults. It was extremely frustrating. About the only mature thing that they did were some of the decisions they made along the way with regards to not making the common “horror story”mistakes that usually get made. And because they were written so immaturely, this was a very uncomfortable mix between an adult and a YA book. Also, we only get the viewpoint of two of the four characters that dominate the story and I kept waiting for there to be a reason why but there wasn’t. That was a little frustrating because I would’ve loved to get into the mind of the other two. I think the ending could’ve still worked out if the author did a couple of chapters in the viewpoint of the other two characters.

Regardless, even with the things that I didn’t care for I couldn’t stop reading. The story was compelling enough, and the chapters were short enough that I felt like this book flew by.

There are a lot of trigger warnings for this book because this book deals with a lot of deep traumas that the characters have so please check for trigger warnings before reading.

I definitely would pick up another book by this author though and I would recommend this.

***Thank you NetGalley, Chuck Wendig, Del Rey for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review. ***

This book... sigh *heart eyes*.

I have been a HUGE fan of Chuck Wendig's for a few years now and there has never been a time where I have opened a book and not fully trusted him to deliver and blow me away. There are very few authors out there who I can point to and say "they are writing books that are entirely original" and Chuck Wendig is one of those gifted few.

I won't bother repeating the synopsis, as that's something that anyone can add to a review, but I want to outline the things that made me fall absolutely in love with this book.

1. The characters:
- Each character in this novel played their part in the overall storyline in a way that both diverged from and brought together the other characters create a believable and relatable ultimate friend group. There were overlapping characteristics about them, as well as histories they shared, but they were each wholly their own and I enjoyed getting to know each of them, flaws and strengths.
- Each of our characters had past traumas that they were dealing with that added so much to their storyline and growth throughout the novel. This book is a twisty turny type of book, but almost everything came back to them facing their internal nightmares and unrequited agonies.
- One of the characters, Owen, reveals early on that he has OCD. His OCD symptoms are very very similar to mine and it was refreshing to see OCD so openly betrayed as more than just "washing hands and alphabetizing."

2. The setting:
- I can't share too much about my thoughts on the setting for this book, but the creativity and innovation that went into creating the world within and around the staircase in the woods was profound. As someone who deeply resonates with what the staircase/house represents, this was an emotional and unsettling read for me in all the best ways.

3. The relevant commentary:
- I have seen a few people on Goodreads give this book a low rating because of one character's "woke rants and ideas." With all due annoyance, it is not the author's fault that they didn't look into him and his beliefs prior to reading this book. Chuck has been VERY open and loud about his left-leaning beliefs for years now. This is not new news that was revealed in this book. Asking an author to not put anything in their books that revolves around something(s) that is central to their morals and values is absolutely asinine and it absolutely had relevance to the story as a whole and the obstacles that Lore, specifically, faced within the "haunted house."

All this considered, I loved this book. I almost wanted to start it all over again from page 1 as soon as I finished reading it. It's smart, creative, disturbing, and wholly original and I will absolutely be thinking about this book for years to come.

A unique and harrowing haunted house story with a unique and terrifying spin.

Disclaimer: I read this as a tandem read with the audiobook and e-book. Thank you to NetGalley and the Penguin Random House audiobook influencer club for the free ARC copies. All opinions are my own. This is my honest and voluntary review.

In this book, we follow a group of "losers" who band together under the umbrella of "the covenant". They're all people that have different things going on their lives that are upsetting and difficult, but stick together under their shared love and friendship. Until one night they unexpectedly fracture and one of the friends disappears at the top of a random staircase in the woods. The fracture continues when the remaining friends are blamed by the community for the disappearance. This shadow follows them into adulthood until they band together once again to find the truth about what happened to their friend once and for all.

The overall feeling of this book is creepy and claustrophobic. You definitely feel the internal struggles of these friends as they live their lives and ultimately reunite. The revelations that come through the book are definitely more of a "slow burn" then an in your face assault. It allows the dread and haunting feel of this book to continuously build throughout the storyline. It was done really well. This book felt like a dread inducing puzzle that I was forced to figure out as I read it. And for my mind, that was absolutely fun and interesting and kept me involved in the story. You don't know who to trust and you don't know what's going on around the characters, but you definitely want to continue this decent into hell.

The audiobook narrators, for the most part, did well. There was a couple of parts at the end of the book where the female narrator's voice for certain characters bordered on ridiculous for me and did remove me from the story a little bit. I did find a male and female narrator's voices to be equal in temple and emotion and lead the air of dread to the novel overall. I never had to adjust my speed between narrators.

I did feel this book gave a nod to a couple of other horror books I have read in the past. Don't mistake with me saying they were similar, because they weren't, but they just had the same vibe and feel. The concept of a "losers club" is not a new thing. (If you know you know.) The concept of a fractured friendship into adulthood reuniting under the band of "forever friends" to overcome the evil in the end is also not new. While, I definitely felt the influence of Stephen King on this novel, it was still extremely unique and fresh.

Where the book lost it for me a little bit was the ending. I am not a fan of being left with an open end, only to have to figure it out for myself. Be aware that this is a very open ended story giving you time and the license to draw your own conclusions. If you're expecting a nice little bow on the end, you're not gonna get that here.

Overall, this was really well done and I did enjoy myself. I felt like the book ramped up the gore and the carnage as the story continued, and at the end honestly made me nauseous a few times. Which I do enjoy a good gorey story so that was fine for me.

⭐️ Adult Horror Fiction
⭐️ Dual Timeline/ Multi POV
🩸 Gore Level: 🧟‍♂️🧟‍♂️🧟‍♂️ descriptive body fluids, death, self
harm and gore
🎤 Narrator: Jay Myers, Amber Benson, Xe Sands
⏰ Audiobook: 13 hours 25 mins
‼️ Triggers: Extensive. SA, murder, child death, Child Abuse, drug use etc. check for full list if needed.

How can a story be both terrifying and cozy? Chuck Wendig achieves that unlikely combination with this Stephen King-esque horror novel about a group of friends who find a mysterious staircase in the woods and lose one of their own when he climbs it and disappears. Years later, the remaining friends reunite and find another staircase in the woods, and that’s when the story gets ultra creepy as they navigate a series of mysterious rooms.
I loved all the small human details stuffed into the narrative, the way each character was developed to be rather hard to like but easy to care about. I think this book could have been quite a bit shorter- it got a little bogged down and repetitive in the middle and the central “thing” that tied the whole ordeal together was a little shaky in execution and premise, but overall I did enjoy being quite creeped out and invested in the fate of the group of friends.

This book wrecked me in the best way.

The Staircase in the Woods isn’t just a story—it’s a sensory overload, a dark meditation, and a sprawling tangle of emotions you’ll feel long after you’ve closed the last page. Chuck Wendig takes a strange and chilling idea—a staircase in the middle of nowhere—and builds a whole universe around it, brick by unsettling brick.

This wasn’t my personal favorite of Wendig’s books in terms of reading enjoyment, but oh wow… it was highly effectual. And for that? A solid, undeniable 5 stars.

The prose is so darkly atmospheric that I felt like I had to come up for air every few chapters. It's eerie. It's raw. And it’s full of moments that feel like they’ve crawled out of your own brain, whispered something existential in your ear, and vanished again.

At the heart of this chilling, thought-provoking tale is a complex character study. Owen, Nick, Lore, and Hamish aren’t just characters—they’re living, breathing contradictions. Their pain, longing, guilt, and memories ripple off the page. Whether it’s the sting of betrayal, the ache of losing a friend, or the slow burn of disillusionment, Wendig gets the messiness of adulthood—and he’s not afraid to let it haunt you.

There are gruesome moments that chilled me to the bone… and still I couldn’t look away.

This quote from Wendig says it all: “Sometimes a story finds an idea, and sometimes it's the reverse—here, the idea needs a story around it, just as a staircase needs a house to hold it.”

And that’s exactly what this is—a story built around a strange, unforgettable idea that becomes a vessel for something so much deeper: fear, friendship, disappointment, betrayal, growing up, and growing apart.

A powerful, eerie journey. And while it may not have been a "favorite," it’s unforgettable—and sometimes, that’s what makes a book truly brilliant.

“Home becomes another name for that place where monsters go to hide and do their terrible work.”

This was a very interesting and eerie concept for a story. Four friends find a staircase in the woods, one friend climbs the staircase and disappears. Years later the friends find another staircase and all climb the stairs to try to see if they can find there friend. They enter this weird haunted house and need to try to survive and escape it. I like a good haunted house story and this book delivered. I liked the conversations the author had about friendships, how they can come and go. There were a lot of good quotes in this book that I highlighted.

I liked this book, I thought the concept was interesting and unique. The friends in the story were all pretty flawed dealing with lot’s of childhood trauma. The house brought all their fears and trauma out and they had to deal with it head on.

The author mentions that staircases in woods is an actual thing and now it has me googling. Have you ever found a staircase in the woods? Would you climb it?

Thank you to Netgalley and DelRay Publishing for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The Staircase in the Woods by Chuck Wendig completely pulled me in. On the surface, it’s a spooky, slow-burn mystery about a staircase that appears in the middle of a forest for no reason. But underneath that, it’s a powerful story about friendship, duty, and the weight of past trauma.

What really stuck with me were the characters. Their friendships felt so real—complicated, messy, and deep. They’re not just trying to survive some weird supernatural event; they’re also trying to hold each other together through it. I loved how their loyalty and care for each other gave the story real emotional weight.

There’s also this strong sense of duty throughout—characters doing the right thing even when it’s hard or terrifying. It added a sense of purpose to all the creepy stuff, making it more than just horror for horror’s sake.

And the trauma? It’s handled with a lot of care. Each character is carrying something heavy, and Wendig doesn’t shy away from showing how that pain shapes them. But he also shows how connection can help people heal, even if they’re still broken.

It’s eerie, emotional, and full of heart. Definitely one of my favorite reads this year.