This is a well-written novel that I'd describe as 'hybrid'. Part-gothic, part-horror, part-ghost story. I love that, because it's a novel that relieves the reader of solid expectations. You think you're reading a 'standard' gothic novel, what with the old creaky house and the mysterious character, Catherine, and then it swerves into the expectations of a slightly different genre. Layered underneath is another kind of ghostly second person address to the reader, and that adds a further sense of the sinister or unsettling. I enjoyed it. Grateful thanks to NetGalley and to Salt Publishing for the ARC.

The protagonist of Zoë Apostolides’s debut novel, The Homecoming, is Ellen, a young ghostwriter sent from London to a remote village in Northumberland to interview Catherine Carey, the elderly owner of the dilapidated Elver House. Although Ellen was raised in the Cumbrian countryside, even that doesn’t prepare her for the wild setting of this stately home—named after the young eels that populate the local river. She arrives at the ruinous house on a dark night and is shocked to find no one at home. However, Miss Carey appears the following morning, and over the next week or so, Ellen attempts—though not without difficulty—to extract memories of Catherine’s upbringing, her father’s tragic death, and a lifetime spent in the dark shadow of the house, which is haunted by its own past and that of its inhabitants.

Zoë Apostolides’s debut is a highly atmospheric tale steeped in Gothic and horror tropes. There are clear echoes of the “haunted house” genre in the suspenseful descriptions of Miss Carey’s mansion and the elderly woman’s tales of the spirits that roam its rooms. The sense of an “outsider” among villagers who know more than they let on evokes strong folk horror vibes. I particularly liked the image of the “elvers”—the eels whose eerie presence brings a sense of dread, while also serving as a metaphor for the voyages of life. Apostolides brings a contemporary feel to a well-established genre by skilfully combining these elements with a portrayal of the predicaments faced by a young woman in today’s world. Miss Carey never married, and this seems to mirror Ellen’s own situation as a woman reluctant to conform to society’s expectations of settling down and having children. The first-person narration alternates with second-person passages addressed to Ellen’s best friend, who, she feels, has drifted away after marriage and motherhood.

There is much to enjoy in this reimagining of the Gothic haunted house genre. However, one key point affected my overall enjoyment of the novel. The central plot premise hinges on a twist à la M. Night Shyamalan, which I saw coming from the early chapters. Now, I don’t purport to be any more perspicacious than the next reader, which leads me to believe that Apostolides intended for us to be one step ahead of the protagonist. If that’s the case, though, I think it may be a misjudgement, as it dulls the element of surprise that might otherwise have had a greater impact—at least in my view.

That said, this is still a debut I would recommend, especially for its atmosphere and for its poignant and insightful character descriptions.

3.5*

https://endsoftheword.blogspot.com/2025/06/the-homecoming-by-zoe-apostolides.html

Slow burning rural mystery
—
Describing this debut novel in any way gives the game away so I’ve tried to say almost nothing in the title. It is so much more than a rural mystery, and punches a little above its weight but the novel doesn’t quite land its final turn.

Ellen, a biography ghostwriter, is dispatched to the middle of nowhere to stay with and interview her latest subject, the elderly Catherine Carey. The place is as far from civilisation as it can be, and the empty woods, the mournful house and the woman herself are at turns welcoming and threatening. As Ellen settles down to do her job, strange events and the even stranger behaviour of her host make her glad that she’s only there for a week. It’s only when Ellen’s returned home that the mystery further unfolds, and her curiosity is whetted all over again.

For the perceptive reader, the core revelation is telegraphed very early on, which might take some of the force out of the rest of the story. Ellen is an engaging lead and her subject Miss Carey is a lovingly crafted and three-dimensional character. I really enjoyed the novel but felt the eerie elements could have been bolstered and the misdirection of the reader pushed to its limits. Overall, an entertaining read from a debut novelist.

Three and a half stars

Thank you so much NetGalley and Salt Publishing for The Homecoming by Zoë Apostolides.
I can not put into words how much I enjoyed this book! I questioned what was really going on the whole time. One of the things I loved was how the setting, the house and the surrounding area, had so much character and I loved it. I can’t wait to see what else comes from this author! This one will be sticking with me.

**Thank you to NetGalley and Salt Publishing for the eARC of this haunting title!**

Full review soon to come for this lovely & spooky debut!

4 stars!

Thank you to Net Galley for the arc copy of this book.

This was a fun and interesting read. A real wonderful gothic ghost tale.

I was drawn to this one because of the cover, honestly, but the story was a wild and fun ride.

Def reccomend this one! I'll be reading this one again when it gets published later this year.

Northumberland is an untapped goldmine of ghost stories, and this one was so well done and so well captured the natural landscapes of my home. Excellent writing and brilliant characters who didn’t fall into the stereotype of the ghost story

Note: I received a free unpublished proof of this book, for a limited time, in exchange for an honest review. All opinions here are my own.

This book was one of the more straightforward ones I’ve read lately, but I don’t think that’s a mark against it. Sure, it’s not going to be awards material, but it’s a great eerie/Gothic read if you enjoy books about creepy houses.

First of all, I appreciated that this book took place in the North East of England, which is, in my humble opinion, a massively-underrated setting for books. There are plenty of eerie corners of the countryside up there, the people are friendly, and the area has its own unique history and culture that are often overlooked in speculative fiction. At the very least, it’s a nice break from yet another story about some secret magical world hidden in some tunnels underneath London.

There were some parts of the story that seemed to drag, in the sense that it took an unrealistically long amount of time for certain things to happen, but I think that’s somewhat typical and easily forgivable for a first novel. I also realize that this book is more atmospheric and slow-paced than some of the more action-filled, complicated books full of political intrigue and weird science fiction concepts that I tend to enjoy.

The main storyline—a young woman going to a creepy house to interview an older woman about her life to write her autobiography—is intriguing, and the characters’ story arcs are satisfying and well-developed. I do not want to spoil anything since it’s only about 250 pages long so I won’t talk too much about all the details. There is definitely a Gothic, foreboding overtone but the horror is not too scary for people who don’t like a lot of violence, blood, or gore. Overall, I recommend it for people who enjoy Gothic historical novels with moderate pacing.

It being labelled as a horror, I was expecting something more chilling. Instead, I found myself reading a sweet story focused on nostalgia, loneliness, and the fears of ageing. I loved the writing style and there were only a few bits that threw me off, like the use of the second person which felt unnecessary. I wasn't invested in the story itself but more in how the characters interacted with each other, to the point that you can figure out the plot twist pretty early on but it doesn't affect the enjoyment of the book.

4*5

Loved every moment of this novel. In the beginning thought it would be different, but it turned out to be much better. Loved how the author was able to mix Ellen's personal story with Catherine's in such a flowy and beautiful way. The "plot twist" at the end shocked me and left me loving the book a lot more.

Thank you to the publisher for allowing me an early read of this debut novel! Apostolides is clearly a talented writer! It’s a pleasure being able to read a debut novel and get a glimpse into an author’s style. This book has many of my favorite things— ghosts, a dilapidated manor, isolation, mystery. For the most part, it was exactly what I hoped for. It was enjoyable!

The Homecoming follows Ellen as she travels to an estate in the countryside of England to interview with elderly Ms Carey in hopes of ghostwriting her memoir. The story starts incredibly strong, with atmosphere so thick you could cut it with a knife. The prose is bright but eerie, and the characters are both withholding and relatable, creating an interesting tension for the reader. I knew I liked both characters, but I could never put my finger on their motivations, which made for some fantastic character development throughout the book.

Aside from the atmosphere, I found the mystery of the house and Ms. Carey's life story a touch underdeveloped, and I almost wish this book were a hundred pages longer than it was. The description was quite decadent in the way that gothic lit often is, and Apostolides captures a sense of place so well. The ending was a touch predictable, and I think there were a few things introduced that were slightly underutilized in the narrative, namely the eels and the ghosts themselves. Otherwise, The Homecoming was a fantastic debut.

Thank you to Salt Publishing and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Being a modern take on a gothic ghost story, The Homecoming has all the ingredients of a very good old fashioned haunted house tale, but also includes a secondary plot about the young ghostwriter Ellen. Both stories interweave beautifully and address themes of loneliness, motherhood, obligations and greed. I found the fact that Ellen's story was set in London very well done as it contrast enormously with the rural, distant and secluded setting of Elver House, and yet the emotions that people feel are very similar.

I must say I particularly liked the modern part of the London life of Ellen as it was very recognizable and it offered some grounding which was very necessary after the gloomy chapters that describe Elver House and its owner Miss Carey. I also very much appreciated the ending, which I thought was very well crafted, for both storylines.

After reading this debut, the author Zoë Apostolides will certainly be an author to watch for any further publishing.

Thank you NetGalley, Salt Publishing, and the author for allowing me to be an early reader. All opinions are my own.

A slow burn but I enjoyed the ending. I went into this book blind and I’m glad I did. The slowly unfolding mystery element kept me turning the pages.

I love spooky, dank old country houses full of secrets, I love well-constructed stories with something to say, and I really love when an author manages to combine the two. I’m especially excited about this book because it’s the first time I’ve been approved for a NetGalley ARC, and I was lucky enough to get a book I enjoyed. Zoë Apostolides’ debut, The Homecoming, is a skin of slow-burn horror mystery spread over the bones of a deeper narrative about how modern society offers women the freedom to be and do anything yet seems to resent it when we’re unwilling to use that freedom to everyone’s benefit but our own.

Ellen is a ghostwriter who has been hired to write the memoirs of Catherine Carey, an elderly woman who lives alone in her family’s remote ancestral estate, Elver House. Ellen quickly runs into snags completing the interview process that she normally uses to collect the details for a memoir; navigating the ups and downs of her subjects’ lives with sensitivity in order to get them to open up is the core of her job, but Catherine is at turns forthcoming about her past and ominously tight-lipped according to her own whims. Ellen’s time in the house is punctuated by events that might be unremarkable or easily explicable in another context, yet set against the backdrop of an unfamiliar and secluded environment, they take on a sinister quality. As she gets to know Catherine and the house, it becomes apparent that something about the whole situation is off, and her task becomes as much about unraveling the mystery of Elver House as it is about preserving Catherine’s story.

Apostolides takes her time, deftly building a tense, eerie atmosphere. The plot bears the hallmarks of horror without descending into cliché: there’s no ambiguity about whether something supernatural is happening or someone is just tilting wildly down the path to madness, and the locals from the nearby village, rather than treating Ellen with hostility as an outsider, are instead friendly and talk freely about local history, ultimately helping Ellen come to terms with the truth of Catherine’s and Elver House’s story. That moment of clarity also could easily have been nothing more than a well-worn trope, but here it’s imbued with meaning and prompts Ellen to empathetic reflection. Anyone who has cared for an aging parent will find a poignant familiarity in Ellen’s attempts to navigate Catherine’s seeming cognitive decline, her uncertainty about how much help she can or should offer a grown person (and a client) with a sometimes tenuous hold on the moment. It’s a rainy-weekend-snuggled-indoors haunted house read that’s inhabited by the ghosts of untapped potential and moribund dreams.

Thank you NetGalley and Salt Publishing for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

I had a suspicion that I would fall in love with this book 😭🫂 A huge thank you Salt Publishing and NetGalley for the advanced copy read of this hauntingly gorgeous book.

I was captivated by the beautiful writing style, the steady pacing of the chapters and the relatable quotes about life's transistions written throughout this Gothic horror masterpiece and that truly made the reading experience deeply memorable, and emotionally felt 🖤

Just waiting to get my hands on a physical copy and excited to read anything Zoë's releases next 👀 What a debut!!! 🙌

This book is a captivating and immersive read from start to finish. The writing is engaging, the pacing well-balanced, and the characters are richly developed with relatable emotions and motivations. The story unfolds in a way that keeps the reader hooked, offering just the right mix of tension, heart, and thought-provoking themes.

This ended up being a book that I enjoyed more than I thought would. It's a ghost story / history tale. I enjoyed the spookiness, and the prose was beautiful. I even loved the cover. I will be buying this one.

I'm kind of conflicted on this. I love a good gothic horror story, but this is kind of not a horror story? It's marketed as such but I would say it's more of a mystery. So I went into this expecting something that ultimately wasn't delivered.

It feels like there's two stories here clashing for dominance. On one hand it's a slow burn gothic ghost story/memoir set in a worn down estate about one woman's long life, and with a nice little mystery attached to it. On the other the gothic vibes fizzle out about half way through and we're left with a underbaked story about women's roles in society--when women were expected to be wives and bear children--and how that left so many women feeling unfulfilled and isolated with their lives and reaching the end of their life with regret.

Apostolides' writing is fantastic and really sets the mood in the house. She's able to write dread very well, and is great at building up tension and having us on the edge of our seat waiting for something to happen. However I had some issues with the pacing of the story and the major twist of the story is quite predictable early on, so I felt myself get a little irritated waiting for the story to get to that point.

I feel like with a bit of cleaning up, this could've been a great gothic ghost story about legacy and the horrors of gender roles for young women before the push of equal rights. But for a debut novel this is a great starting point, so I am excited to see Zoe Apostolides further down the line.

*Thank you to Netgalley and Salt publishing for an arc copy of this book. All opinions expressed are entirely my own*

For a debut novel this book was good! However I would not say this is Horror maybe mystery or suspense but in my opinion not horror.

Short summary, Ghost-writer sent to record the memoirs of an elderly woman living in a remote Northumberland manor. Elver House is dilapidated, its faded beauty falling to ruin.

While reading this book you will constantly feel like something is coming or going to happen and then when the twist happens you may or may not see it coming. I enjoyed it though and it didn't take me long to figure it out!

This book was a slow burn with a gothic writing style and the author's writing is beautiful and made the book much more enjoyable to read.