Absolutly amazing! The details in this books, takes you and makes you part of the story. It feels like you are watching a movie. This could be a movie....
Thanks J.D., an defnitly must read for any thriller readers.

J D Barker perfectly captured the quiet picturesque coastal town while giving an unsettling tale of friendship and malevolence.

Something I Keep Upstairs followed a 17-year-old Billy Hasler and his friend David Spivey who spent their summer on a remote island and inherited a mysterious house that became a chilling site of an ancient evil adventure.

I appreciated how Barker delved into the themes of friendship, sacrifice, and the darkness lurking beyond human understanding. I also loved how Barker set up the unsettling atmosphere with vivid descriptions. The daunting ambiance was set in the sleepy coastal town of New Castle, New Hampshire and almost acted as another character within the story. The sinuous landscape was more than a backdrop, it enhanced the eerie dread that pervaded each chapter. Even more, this tale felt like a carefree summer adventure on an inherited island house with friends before it quickly morphed into something much more sinister.

Aside from enjoying the haunting landscape, I had a challenging time connecting with the characters. The characters lacked development, but luckily, the narrative made up for it. I’m not sure if the disconnect was due the underdevelopment of the characters, their lackluster personalities, or a combination of the two; or perhaps it wasn’t either of these factors. Fortunately, even though I had didn’t connect with the characters as I would have liked, that didn’t take away from me enjoying this ominous tale.

Overall, the steady pace, themes, and unsettling landscape made for an entertainingly creepy young adult mystery thriller. If you enjoy young adult slow build tension filled mystery-thrillers, you may find this intriguing read.

Thanks to Net Galley and RB Books for the audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

Audiobook Review: Something I Keep Upstairs by J.D. Barker
Narrated by Michael Crouch

I received this audiobook from NetGalley, and I truly appreciate the opportunity to discover and read new authors and share my thoughts.

This was my first book by J.D. Barker, and it was quite an experience. The audiobook is lengthy, clocking in at nearly 16 hours, and while some parts felt like they could have been trimmed, the story maintained a gripping atmosphere throughout. Just when I thought I had things figured out, a twist emerged that I did not see coming, which made the journey worthwhile.

The narration by Michael Crouch was excellent. His youthful voice brought authenticity to the teenage protagonist, Billy Hasler. I recognized his voice from previous audiobooks, and upon checking, I confirmed he has narrated other notable titles. His performance added depth to the characters and enhanced the overall listening experience.

The story follows seventeen-year-old Billy Hasler, who, along with his best friend David Spivey, spends the summer on a secluded island in New Castle, New Hampshire. What begins as a carefree adventure quickly turns into a chilling ordeal as they uncover the island's dark past and awaken an ancient evil. The narrative explores themes of friendship, sacrifice, and the unknown, making it a haunting and thought-provoking read.

Overall, Something I Keep Upstairs is a compelling psychological thriller that kept me engaged. Despite its length, the story's twists and atmospheric setting made it a memorable listen. I'm glad I had the chance to experience J.D. Barker's work and look forward to exploring more of his novels.

Thank you again to NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to and review this audiobook!

The narrators were just Ok.

The storyline was really confusing, I was really into it at the beginning but it lost me somewhere in the middle with the back and forth with the past and present, dead people, zombies, and such. I wasn’t into it towards the end but I had to finish it.

The ending left me like “huh” what did I just listen too… not my favorite read and not in my top 5.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance listener version of this book.

I was hoping for more of a suspenseful thriller, whereas this should definitely be marketed as a horror book. I will absolutely recommend it for my advanced 14 year old students, who can handle the themes and mature topics--horror is a genre that they crave.

Listening to the book may be negatively impacting my review, as the chapters did not have any sort of indication of who was narrating what, which made it hard for me to follow. The reader's voice and intonation also didn't change enough from chapter to chapter in order to better facilitate my following of the *twisty* plot line.

I also feel like the story loses track of itself and goes off on a few different side-quests. Overall, it was a decent read, and I'd bet my horror-loving students would enjoy it. Just didn't hit the mark for me, a middle aged woman.

This was a great read. Kept me interested the entire time. I finished this in two days. I liked the author note at the end, I thought that was funny.

Great audiobook. I was locked in! The narration was wonderful. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this audiobook.

This book was very long and it seemed long there were times I got confused at the characters cause they were present and past. The narrationwere good. it had a lot of people in there that didn’t make it and that was a little frustrating. I wish there were more survivors.

WHAT DID I JUST READ 👀👀👀

But ok for real, that was a unique, twisty concept of a haunted house, and I am here for it! It was creepy, it was twisted, and kept me guessing till the end. This would actually make one heck of a creepy movie too! Loved the story of friendships, love and sacrifice. Nothing was what it seemed and I didn’t want to stop reading to see what came next! My only complaint was it was a tad long, but the destination was worth the journey! The narration by Michael Crouch was fantastic as well.

Thank you NetGalley and RB Media for my ALC in exchange for my honest feedback!

This is the first I've read from Barker and I really enjoyed it! I felt it was well written and he nailed it on the character regression.

Surely nothing good can happen when a teen inherits an island all to himself. There are no adults or responsibilities - a perfect summer get-away for him and his friends. But there is an odd set of rules that have been laid out in the inheritance and post-it notes all over the house, reiterating the rules. What are the consequences of breaking these rules? Well, that remains to be seen...
Billy and his friends start to dig into the history of the house and unearth more than they bargained for.

This was a great supernatural story with spooky scenes that left me yearning for an explanation. It was eerie and confusing at parts, but I felt it wrapped up nicely in the end. As I mentioned, I really enjoyed this and thought Barker's writing was above par and comparable to other great authors, such as King!

Thank you to NetGalley and Recorded Books for the advanced audio copy of this book. Publishing May 13th!

Was this my favorite JD Barker book? No. But it was good. The story was entertaining without being too far fetched (for a supernatural book). I like how all the little things came together in the end. And how things that happened in the beginning came back at the end (like the dream). I love when books do that.
The audio was great. Narrator was great. No comments on those.

The narrator, Michael Crouch, did a fantastic job bringing this book to life. I really liked the premise and the setting. The story is based around a creepy house on an island off the coast of New Hampshire. I was immediately drawn in! As the book progressed, I had a harder time connecting with the characters. I didn’t really like any of them. I did like how the book ended. It wasn’t quite what I expected. Overall, this is a good book for those who like a good mystery and following the lives of teenagers in a haunted house story. I will definitely be checking out another J.D. Barker book in the future. Thank you NetGalley and RBMedia for providing me with an ALC in exchange for an honest review.

Something I Keep Upstairs had some good ideas and creepy moments, but it felt way too long and kind of all over the place. The shifting perspectives got confusing, and I found myself zoning out more than once. There are definitely flashes of something great here, but it gets a bit lost in the chaos. Worth checking out if you’re into moody, slow-burn horror—just go in with some patience.

I was excited for this one—the premise had all the makings of a gripping haunted house thriller. A creepy island, an ancient evil, and a summer of no rules? Count me in. But instead of an eerie, immersive horror, I got a tangled mess of plotlines that never quite came together.

The story constantly shifts direction, introducing twists that feel random rather than earned. Just when I thought I was getting a handle on things, another subplot would pop up, making it hard to keep track of who was who and what was actually happening. Some of these side stories were interesting on their own, but the way they were layered made everything feel muddled and disjointed.

The audiobook didn’t help. I kept losing focus, distracted by the lack of flow. By the end, I wasn’t even sure I fully understood what had happened—and not in a fun, *mind-blown* kind of way.

A haunted house story should leave you unsettled, but for the right reasons. This one just left me frustrated.

3.5
The peace and calm of small town of New Castle, New Hampshire is about to be shaken. After seventeen-year-old David Spivey inherits a home on a remote island from his estranged grandmother, his group of teenage friends decided it is the perfect place to spend the rest of their summer before heading to college in the fall. David's best friend Billy retells the events of the summer and the ancient evil they awoke on Wood Island. The summer of fun quickly changed to one of darkness and sacrifice where things aren't as they seem.

This one took me a little bit to get into it, but as the story unfolds, it kept me listening. The story is narrated by Billy as he watches his best friend change while living on the island. I can't go into too much of the storyline without spoilers, but my only complaint with this one was it seemed to go on forever and at 492 pages, it is a longer one. There is a while in the middle where I felt like there wasn't much progress being made in the story, but it did give some history and backstory during that time. After finishing the book, there was an author's note that made me like the story more and gave background into the author's wanting to tell this story. Something I Keep Upstairs is a young adult horror, mystery, ghost thriller. Thank you to NetGalley and RBmedia for the audiobook for review.

This book was a SLOG. Idk about all the great reviews, it was a messy, slow mishmash of haunted island and like murder mystery? I don't even really know, I listened to the audio and sort of zoned out towards the end b/c I was so bored. It reads like a YA book, but also a not great one. Regrets.

This was my first book by J.D Barker and I’ll likely check out his others. I listened to it on audio and loved the narrator. The story revolves around a creepy house on a secluded Island and a group of friends, one of them whom inherits the island from his estranged grandmother. Things are not exactly what they seem and start to get strange very quickly. There were some elements of the story I didn’t vibe with and I thought were not fully developed like the witchcraft part - there should of been more backstory or maybe just left that part out. The second they mentioned “Emerson must be fed” I HAD to know who or what the heck he was. Overall I rated it 3 stars and thought it was pretty good. Recommended if you like mystery books with creepy houses, teenagers and sacrifices. Publishing later this month

Thank you RBMedia and NetGalley for the audio ARC in exchange for my review.

When Billy’s friend Spivey inherits a home on an island, it comes with a set of odd rules they are required to follow. Spiveys parents are not allowed on the island, anyone on the island at sundown must stay until sunrise, and Emerson MUST be fed. I love a creepy haunting story and this one didn’t disappoint; an ancient evil haunted house that demands a sacrifice for the promise of everlasting health and wealth. It took me a little bit to get into but about halfway through I was pretty sucked in.
The narration was also great, engaging, and well done.

Something I Keep Upstairs by J.D. Baker
Went in blind and was surprised by how heavily paranormal this one leaned—definitely not my usual genre. The story got a little convoluted in the middle and I found myself a bit frustrated with the side stories at times, but it still held my interest. It was eerie, intriguing, and offered some solid entertainment value. If you’re into ghosts and shadowy secrets, this might be your thing.

⭐️⭐️⭐️½ — 3.5 stars 14+ for mild language, moderate creepy/haunting themes, and mature writing style.

That's to Netflix Galley and J.D. Baker for the ARC.

I hadn't read JD Barker before, but definitely would again. This was a wild story - I liked it, but must admit I found it a bit convoluted in the final revelations. Things progressed with a deliciously slow and complex build throughout most of the story, in a way I found delightfully engaging - particularly given the narration, which I thought suited the story perfectly. I must admit a predilection for author-read audiobooks - who better to know the pacing and tone of a story than the author, after all? - and Barker definitely kept my attention throughout the book. It's a dark and twisty tale full of back-stabbing and vengeance, and moved at a solid pace throughout most of the story. The ending felt a bit rushed, given the lead-in, but on the whole I found it thoroughly enjoyable and will definitely look for more from the author - especially if he reads them himself!