Charlotte Runcie's 'Bring the House Down' is a whip-smart, layered debut that dissects the combustible intersection of art, ego, and public scrutiny in the digital age. Set against the electric atmosphere of the Edinburgh Fringe, the novel pivots around a one-star review that sets off a chain reaction - both onstage and off.

Told through the keen eyes of Sophie, a critic grappling with grief and motherhood while navigating a strained friendship with her flatmate and colleague Alex, the story captures the subtle politics of the arts world. When Alex writes a brutal review of a rising actress's solo show - then sleeps with her the same night - it becomes the first domino in a larger collapse. What follows is a sharp look at the backlash, vitality, and messy moral terrain of performance, criticism, and accountability.

Runcie's voice is confident and cooly observant, blending satire and sincerity with ease. The novel is particularly incisive when exploring how power operates within supposedly liberal, creative spaces. While the central events are provocative, the book doesn't offer simple answers - just a sharp mirror to a world where reputations are made, broken, and rebranded overnight.

Perfect for fans of fiction that critiques the cultural zeitgeist with intelligence and wit. I found myself highlighting passages and laughing out loud, then suddenly quiet, contemplating its quieter questions about complicity and the stories we tell ourselves.

This is a surprisingly fun and enjoyable read, given how serious its themes are. I really enjoyed the festival setting and learning more about the work done by critics. The premise and set-up are intriguing, and the action in the story takes off immediately. I also enjoyed the first-person narration that is so heavily, at least for the first half of the book, so centered on other characters in the novel. Really good!

Bring Down the House was a romp that brought into question “cancel culture” and the acts of people on their personal lives affecting their professional lives. I enjoyed this but it was a bit light on the bigger issues for the main character and I think it could’ve delved in deeper to hit harder.

Bravo! 5stars.
I’m not nor have I ever been in the theater circle, but these characters and this story are so relatable. It’s written so well that you’re immersed in it and you are an audience member watching it all unfold. Alex and Sophie’s reviews shape and break careers as they take us on the ride of self discovery and self destruction.

Life lessons told in such a captivating way: Be nice you never know what someone is going through. Take the negatives and make a positive. Don’t worry about someone else’s opinion of you. Sticks and stones hurt but words do too. Sometimes it’s just a job you’re doing. Forgive and forget. Life isn’t always black and white, there’s a lot of gray. Good friends are hard to find, harder to leave, and impossible to forget.

—“Whether or not you’re famous enough to have a newspaper obit written about you, somewhere, after your death, there will be a summary written of your life, and it will not be written by you. Someone else, whether someone you love or just the person who types up the council death notices, will weigh up the most important things you left behind, the people you knew, the prints you left in the mud. And that summary will exist alongside the summaries of all the other people who died the same day. And it will be read, for a while. And then it will be forgotten.”—

I was able to read this book because I won a giveaway, but I think it was meant to find me. My name starts with S. I lost my mom to pancreatic cancer in my 30s after it just being us for years and my gaping hole of grief years later isn’t filing in.

Alex Lyons, son of famous actress/director Judith Lyons, was the theatre critic for the most prestigious newspaper in Britain. His reviews could make or break a show and he was tired of the nuances between a one star and a five star performance. His solution was to drop the in-between and award most shows a one star review except for the precious few that merited five stars. Of course this made him a tyrant to most actors and productions but he got away with it as he was devilishly funny and boyishly handsome-love him or hate him he stirred up controversy which was good for sales.
He and colleague Sophie, the junior art critic, were sent to Scotland for the Edinburgh Fringe, a yearly festival of the arts where new bohemian work intermingled with the tried and true, and they were put up in the paper's yearly rental flat. Sophie was just coming off her year of maternity leave and was eager to resume her journalism career at the three week festival, as mothering was not helping her creative side. She wondered how she was going to cope with bad boy Alex as her flatmate, but had no idea how weird this was really going to get.
One of Alex's first assignments was a one-woman show by American Hayley Sinclair on the climate emergency. While he expected a performance, what he got was a heartfelt lecture that he felt would be better housed at a university. He wrote a stinging review and gave it one star because he wasn't allowed a no star review, and the copy was sent to the paper to be printed the next morning. After the show he felt hungry and went to a pub for some food, but they had already closed the kitchen. Sitting at the bar was Hayley, fueled up with adrenaline from her performance and they started chatting-of course Alex knew who she was, but didn't let on and they slept together at the flat. As Sophie sat down to read the morning paper with her coffee, she turned to the review, Alex was taking a shower and Hayley emerged from his room. And she saw the review-horrified, she shoved on her clothes and left. Alex figured that he would never see her again so it was over for him, but she left her cell phone and Sophie was tasked with returning it. She figured she could drop it off at that night's performance. But things had changed-instead of repeating the climate talk, Hayley had changed the show to "The Alex Lyons Experience," where she told her story and asked the audience to tell all of their friends and participate in tearing Alex down. At the end of the event, she burned her copy of the review.
No one had seen anything like this before-every night she told her story, and solicited guest speakers from the many women Alex had wronged...it was a three week sellout and tickets were impossible to buy. Even as Alex's career hit the toilet he would not apologize-he admitted being a cad, but would not touch what he considered the integrity of the review itself, which he felt deserved the one star treatment. As Sophie watched Alex's downward spiral, she felt like a referee and saw both sides of the arguments. But what if this gets too personal-will she go down with him?
The novel was based on a real incident that happened to Runcie, except she actually was the rookie writer who wrote a bad review of a (now famous) comedienne who wiped the floor with her for the rest of the festival. By making it a battle of the sexes and letting observer Sophie narrate the action in the first person, we get all angles of the disaster-behavior, feelings, and emotions of both combatants...will make a great discussion book and perhaps a five star play.

4.5 stars, rounded down
Bring the House Down takes a whole new spin on the Me, Too situation and does it brilliantly. Alex, a popular theatre critic, known for his savage reviews, writes a one star review of a one woman show at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Then he goes out for a meal, picks up the actor, has sex with her, all without ever telling her about his review which will show up in the newspaper the next morning. But she doesn’t just accept this. She revamps her show, exposing what he did and it’s a hit. More and more women come out of the woodwork, actors reveal how his reviews have hurt them. The man becomes a pariah.
The story is told from the perspective of Sophie, the “junior culture critic” also in attendance at the festival and sharing a flat with Alex. Through Sophie’s eyes, we are constantly reminded that there are two sides to each story. She raises some interesting points. “It’s not like with a bad review of a book or film, where the creative work is already out there in the world and done with, and the writer or the performer can just shrug it off and go onto the next thing. I can’t imagine what it must be like to get a bad review on the first night of your theatre run, and then have to get up again and keep going, putting yourself out there, knowing that people think you’re crap.”
I loved seeing Hayley, the actor, take matters into her own hands. But even she begins to wonder how everything will play out and what constitutes fairness.
The book lays out a lot of interesting points about creativity, acting and reviewing. It was a book that made me think, especially about to whom a reviewer owes their allegiance. And Alex has a point, no one wants to see a three star review. We are drawn to the dramatic. It would make for an interesting book club selection. Runcie knows whereof she speaks, having been an arts critic and columnist for The Daily Telegraph who frequently attended the Edinburgh Festival. And kudos to her for not taking the predictable way out with the ending.
I was less interested in Sophie’s personal story. She’s the typical working mom and there wasn’t much new there. It was a drag on the main plot.
My thanks to Netgalley and Doubleday for an advance copy of this book.

Sophie and Alex are in Edinburgh for the Festival Fringe, sharing a flat. Alex gives shows either 1 star or 5, and the 5s are elusive. One night he files a one-star review for a one-woman show. That same evening, she meets him at a bar, and, not knowing who he is, goes home with him. When she wakes up in his flat and reads his review, things get interesting.

Hayley revamps her show and calls it The Alex Lyons Experience. It causes an immediate sensation with the help of social media and other women coming forward with their own Alex Lyons experiences, and with bad experiences with men in general. Sophie sees both sides of the story as she makes her way as a new mother apart from her son for the first time, wondering if she actually wants to stay with the father.

This is well written. I like theater and art, but I couldn’t imagine going to that many shows in one month. There is much said about how artists struggle financially, and a one-star review can easily derail if not end a career, so maybe it’s not such a great idea to be so cavalier with ratings.

NetGalley provided an advance copy of this novel, which RELEASES JULY 8, 2025.

This was incredibly brilliant and captivating. Bring The House Down captures so many complex issues and wraps them all into one spectator vortex I couldn’t drag myself out of.

How wrong I was. When I first started reading Bring the House Down, I thought it was going to be a British enemies to lovers rom com with a slightly trenchant tone. After all it was about the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and the one night fling of dashing infamous theater critic Alex Lyons and the fledging actor, Hayley Sinclair. Except it was right after the debut of Hayley’s solo show for which Alex has given an eviscerating career-ending review. And Hayley is not aware of who he is or of the 1 star review. But when she does, she revamps the entire focus of her act, from a meditation on sustainability to the interactive “Alex Lyons Experience,” detailing his misogyny and heartlessness. This quickly becomes an audience interactive referendum on Alex (he has a long long list of me too offenses) but also a calling out for men who have been abusive and manipulative in personal or professional relationships. Hayley gains a star power presence and the show gains a massive following. I was right about the trenchant tone, but this complex novel carries it through a provocative examination of sexual and workplace power imbalances, the ethical responsibilities of a critic to what they are reviewing and the intricacies of art, and the shifting personas of actors and writers and partners and the narratives they craft about themselves. This is quite a bit to consider, and it is packaged in a deceptively entertaining storyline, narrated by Alex’s coworker and temporary roommate, Sophie, an overlooked art and theater reviewer, who is trying to navigate friendship, marriage, her career, grief, and new parenthood. It is impossible not to be taken in by Sophie’s voice: her honesty, wry humor, and painful steadfastness as she witnesses Alex’s descent, Hayley’s rise and the many layers of cringey secrets that are forced onto the stage of The Alex Lyons Experience, now a megahit of the Festival. The ending brought the house down for me. I’m giving this novel 5 shining stars (out of 5).

One of my favorite books I've read this year. I loved the way it investigated how power shifts in relationships both romantic and platonic. It also made me really want to go to Edinburgh Fringe Fest.

I was pumped for this book and it starts off with a bang. A critic gives a one-woman show a bad review and then almost immediately thereafter sleeps with the unknowing actress. Once she learns about his actions, she turns the ugly event into the show itself...to raving success.

Great premise, right? Well sadly, all of that happens in the very beginning of the book, (the first week of the festival) which doesn't leave the book space to go anywhere for the remaining 4 weeks.

Instead, we watch as even more women confirm that Alex, the critic, is not a nice person, and more mentions of the actress, Hayley adapting her show to incorporate info on Alex into it. But neither of these characters seem to really change or grow. They're essentially stuck in the conflict (Alex unrepentant. Hayley righteous.)

Sadly the reader is stuck too, watching all the drama unfold through the eyes of Sophie, a second critic who is sharing a flat with Alex.

Instead of delving into macro insights about this situation, we're stuck with Sophie's micro thoughts. Is she attracted to Alex? Does she really love her husband? Does she enjoy being a critic? Quite frankly I didn't care about the answer to any of those questions. I wanted her to reflect the story back to the reader instead of centering herself within in.

Basically all of the elements were there for an interesting story. I liked the concept, the character, the setting, etc., but I hated the narrative lens. Maybe just not the right book for me.

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for granting me the opportunity to read this in exchange for an honest review.

In Bring the House Down, Charlotte Runcie shows us that revenge is best served…onstage, under a spotlight, with a killer monologue. Critics beware: one bad review and you might become the villain in someone’s one-woman show. Moral of the story? Always clap. Even if it’s awful. Especially if it’s awful.

This novel has a good setup: Three weeks away from home (baby and husband) on a work trip to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival as a critic for an English newspaper, Sophie stays in a flat with her star colleague, Alex. Quickly, scandal erupts as Alex reviews a one-woman show with one star and then sleeps with her that same night, without her knowing who he was or what he thought of her art. Even more quickly, the artist Hayley uses the one-star review to change her act and enact a kind of retribution against Alex for the remainder of the festival, which garners a lot of press and attendance.

In execution, the pacing of this story feels off. So much action takes place in the first week that it feels much longer. And as Sophie tells us what’s happening between Alex and Hayley, we see a vision of her own marriage to Josh and her grief over her mother dying that is still front and center. Meant to be semi-comedic, the humor does not quite land, nor does the drama of losing a parent and possibly a family feel as pressing.

All in all, it’s a quick read and has some good characterization and discussion about the realities of the recent reckoning of men and their once-accepted bad behavior. Is Alex a true villain or just a cad? Did Hayley’s act show her talent or just take highlight and repurpose her humiliation at his hand? And where does Sophie fit in this battle?

Thanks to NetGalley and Doubleday for an advance copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

I originally requested this book so I could read it while on vacation in Edinburgh but I did not get the approval to read it until I arrived home. I then put off reading it for a while- but I shouldn't have. This book is reflective and addicting and Runcie's prose is phenomenal. The story might seem anti-climatic but I like that no one dies in the fire and that, for the most part, there is a happy ending for the narrator. I felt the ending made the whole story feel very real, like someone had a weird work trip during a transitional time and came out the other end just fine.

This book had a fresh take on discussing current topics in such a unique way. Theatre meets cancel culture. I do wish there was a bit more character development and I got a little lost with the subplot but overall a decent read!

It was okay.

Thanks very kindly to the good people at NetGalley for the chance to challenge myself to finish this ARC.

The irony of critiquing a book critiquing the criticism industry…

This was great! I loved the perspective the author chose to convey the events of the story. It was surprising and entertaining while also providing fresh takes on current topics.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Theater as seen from the critic's point of view is something I had not read before so I found it interesting in spite of the fact this is a novel.

Alex is the son of a famous actress, but his form of theater is spent giving mostly 1 star reviews. He and Sophie, a fellow writer for the same newspaper, travel to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe with other reviewers for the festivities. Alex reviews a performance, then meets up with the star afterwards and neglects to mention that he panned her show. The uproar that follows makes up the rest of the book. Sophie tries to be loyal to Alex in these tough times as a fellow employee while not sure of how she feels about him or Josh, the father of her toddler.

Alex is not the most likable character in the story and frankly all of them could use some counseling. It's not a bad story, so I gave it 3 stars, but it's not the kind of book that keeps you up all night needing to know what will happen.

Thank you NetGalley for an advance reader copy. Honest opinions expressed here are my own and are freely given.

A fresh and intriguing set up to address several relevant and challenging topics. Loved the premise of the book and it started off really well. The book has its bursts of interesting and engaging moments but around the middle, however, it felt like a whole lot of nothing was happening. Would have liked it more if the subplots were fewer and more focused. I wouldn’t mind trying more of the author’s work in future.
3.5/5 stars (How ironic!)

Bring the House Down by Charlotte Runcie
A moving and poetic memoir-meets-commentary on the power of music, motherhood, and the female voice. Runcie writes with grace and insight, blending personal reflection with broader cultural themes. Uplifting and resonant.