The newest Lisa Jewell is dark and twisted! There are no fireworks or giant climax but rather a slow unraveling of a twisted, layered story. The reader sits in suspense throughout as the tension builds. This was a chilling book with a cast of compelling characters. I couldn’t put it down! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 stars. Thank you @atriabooks for the advance reader in exchange for my honest review. ⁣

This is a very interesting story. It has a fascinating plot and the characters are well developed. It is gripping thriller. I was not able to set this book aside until I got to the very end.

This is the first book I have read by Lisa Jewell, and it won’t be the last. I can see why she is introduced in the synopsis as a New York Times bestselling author and master of “bone-chilling suspense”. Just when you think psychological thrillers might be losing momentum because the stories are becoming somewhat similar, an author comes along with an idea so original, that you become completely consumed by the story. This is one of those books.

The story starts out calmly enough, but things start to take some startling twists and turns as the different characters are introduced. I like that it is told using three different points of view because in some places, they don’t exactly match and I really got a good idea of who might not be telling the entire truth as time went on. Everything is somewhat neatly wrapped up in the end. While questions about what went down are answered, the one character is up to something else. The reader is left with an understanding of what may happen next, but will it really? I was satisfied with the ending, and enjoyed that little addition that told me the story isn’t completely over.

The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewell is a very highly recommended un-put-down-able psychological thriller featuring a dysfunctional family.

Libby Jones was adopted as a baby at ten months old, and now, on her twenty-fifth birthday she receives the letter she has been anticipating for years. When she opens the letter she expects it will reveal the identity of her birth parents. She was not expecting to inherit their abandoned mansion on the banks of the Thames in London’s fashionable Chelsea neighborhood, worth millions. She also learns her parents died in a suicide pact with an unidentified man and that she has an older brother and sister who were teenagers at that time and who disappeared. Libby begins to research her background, not realizing that there are other people who also have been waiting for her to turn twenty-five.

The narrative alternates between the point-of-view of three different characters, Libby, Lucy, and Henry. Libby and Lucy's chapters are present day while Henry's tell the back story and document what happened in the house when he was a child. Lucy has two children and is currently struggling to get by in the south of France but wants to find a way to get back to London. Libby has an average, normal life working for a kitchen design company. Lucy has a vagabond lifestyle, homeless when the novel opens. The alternating points-of-view works exceptionally well in The Family Upstairs and I was invested in following all three story lines, waiting for them to converge and create a complete picture of what happened then to now.

The characters are all well-developed and definitely well-defined as distinct individuals. Libby is the grounded point-of-view that most readers are going to identify with as she researches her background and tries to find out what happened to her birth family. Lisa and Henry both present much edgier narratives - Lisa's based on her present day circumstances and Henry's on the encroaching nightmare of their past.

As expected the writing is excellent, both technically and in creating drama in the well-paced plot. Jewell establishes incredible atmospheric tension in this sometimes dark, disturbing story and I was glued to the pages for all three narrative threads. As I was riveted to the pages and the story lines, I thought I had it all figured out; then there was a twist that was so unexpected it took my breath away. The Family Upstairs is truly an un-put-down-able psychological thriller.

Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of Atria Books.

http://www.shetreadssoftly.com/2019/10/the-family-upstairs.html
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3029686181
https://www.librarything.com/work/23187308/book/174850335
https://twitter.com/SheTreadsSoftly/status/1189276780777082882?s=20
Amazon and Barnes&Noble after publication

I can see why some Jewel fans might not be a fan of this one as it’s definitely not her normal style. Personally I loved it!

Told from 3 different POV's, this is a dark, atmospheric, and creepy domestic thriller that really held me captive right from the start. With so many flawed characters delivering unreliable narrative, I have to applaud Jewell for really getting gritty.

This isn't an easy read at times, but it thoroughly kept me entertained and I am still thinking about that ending!

ARC provided by NetGalley

3.5 stars - 4.5 stars for the writing, 2 stars for how I felt about the story by the end of the book

This book wasn't for me. In the beginning, it drew me in and intrigued me, but after a few chapters of Henry's perspective, I began to realize who he was as a person and his evil, although I didn't necessarily figure out his lying and his role in things until almost the end of the book, when everything became confusing and then the end just happened abruptly and I went "What the??" and about threw my Kindle across the room after such an ending. This was a thriller, which is a genre I enjoy, but then the ending was so open-ended and beyond clear-cut (for me personally) that you're left wondering what sort of future Libby really will have now that she's reunited with her mom and uncle and is thinking about going to meet her dad.

On the other hand, the writing itself is well-done. So many vivid details and descriptions, the setting, the narrative, and the movement of the story bouncing around between Lucy, Libby, and Henry, with most of Henry's perspective giving us the history leading up to the present, 25 years later. But then there's the point towards the end where Henry all of a sudden is talking to Serenity/Libby and I had to take a moment because it was so out of context with the rest of the book where he never is talking to her before then but instead to the reader, so that threw me and, of course, with the ending, we know Libby doesn't know details that Henry has told the reader, so why throw that in there at all??

I loved the setting and the stories leading up to the present, mainly Libby and her friends and how she sets about to discover who she is and where she came from and solve the mystery surrounding her birth and adoption, but, again, then it became bizarre and creepy and fell apart for me. I can handle some bizarre and creepy, but with the conflicting points-of-view between Henry and the others who lived through the cult experience and then the ending, it wasn't a story line that I enjoyed. And I think a portion of that is because of so much of the darkness and bad things that occur in the book deal with kids/teens, and that made me uncomfortable.

This is my first book by this author, so I'm not sure of her previous books' writing style, plot development, etc. I would love to give her other books a chance, as several have been on my to-read list, but this one just wasn't my cup of tea and for the first part of the book I felt like it would be and then it just didn't work for me, at all. Other reviewers simply raved about this book, so read more than just my review to decide if a heavy, dark thriller with somewhat of a noir feel, along with rape, murder, abuse, a cult, and homosexual obsession is for you.

Content: Strong language, murder, and rape.

I really enjoyed Lisa Jewell's book "Then She Was Gone", but this one was just not interesting to me. The pace was very slow. I lost interest in almost all the main characters. It was told through multiple points of view and timelines, which I found very confusing at times. The reason I continued to read was due to the fact that I was invested in finding out how it all connected. Though I was able to find out the connections, I wasn't that interested or entertained at the end. Overall, it was all over the place. Too many story-lines, and not enough thrill. Thank you NetGalley, and the publisher for an advanced copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.

I love Lisa Jewell. She is an auto-buy author for me and The Family Upstairs didn't disappoint....until the ending. It wrapped up a bit too nicely for me. It doesn't deter me from recommending this well crafted mystery to others though. I loved all the Gothic creepy feels and alternate timeline. It just kinda fell apart at the end unfortunately.

LOVED this book! If you love stories with dysfunctional families, then this is right up your alley.

What would you do if you inherited an abandoned mansion from your birth parents? Well that’s exactly what happened to Libby Jones after her twenty fifth birthday, but along with the mansion came buried secrets that quickly resurfaced as ghosts from her past returned.

I loved that this story was told from different POVs because it gave a lot of insight into the family dynamic and just how much it changed when strangers essentially bulldozed their way into their home. At times I thought some of the characters had to be crazy to allow some of the things that transpired to happen, but you’d be surprised how easily people can be manipulated. I was shocked to learn the truth by the end of this book, but I really loved how it all came together and I highly recommend it!

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2861256812

This was such a thrill ride! The only negative (one star deduction) for me is that there are a LOT of characters in this book. HOWEVER, once you get past that the book takes on a life of its own and you really fly through.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Atria books for this advanced readers copy. This book is due to release in November 2019.

Thrilling and captivating story.
25 years ago, dead bodies are found but the children are missing. The story is twisted, taking turns you wouldn’t expect as one looks to survive.
As the story unfolds we travel from the past to the present, confusing at times but all ties together nicely at the end.

We all read the tragic stories in the news, but how often do we consider the lives of the survivors that are left to carry on? In this story, the survivor is an infant, who doesn't know anything and who is kept in the dark, by her adoptive parents. Then when the truth comes out, Libby realizes there's more than just a simple tragedy, that they are missing children, who could be her siblings and she has no idea what has happened to them. Part fiction, mystery, and a touch of chicklit, this is a real page-turner that will keep you up late into the night wondering what will happen-if it will be a happy ending at the end, or not. Another book not to miss this fall.

After turning 25 years old, Libby inherits a valuable property and learns who her biological parents were. Libby was unaware of her biological family, but there are a couple of people who have been waiting for her to discover where she came from.

Told using multiple points of view (Libby, Lucy, and Henry) and alternating timelines. Libby and Lucy's stories are present day, while Henry's story takes place in the early to mid-1990s. At first, I found the alternating POVs to be confusing, but I soon got into the flow. The stories do all meet up, and it's not all that surprising how people and events are connected.

A domestic suspense with some crazy people and plenty of drama. Dark, chaotic, and twisted.

I received a free digital copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Twenty-five years ago, three people were found dead in a mansion in London.  They looked like they belonged to a cult and had committed suicide together.  A baby was found in one of the bedrooms.  Now, Libby has inherited the house under mysterious circumstances.  

This is how The Family Upstairs opens.  Why was an abandoned mansion left to Libby?  What happened twenty-five years ago?  Another well-written psychological thriller by Lisa Jewell that will keep you guessing until the twisted ending.

(NetGalley ebook -  I received a complimentary advanced reader copy of this book through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.)

If you're looking for a twisted, sinister, slightly taboo read that will pull you down the rabbit hole then The Family Upstairs is the book you need.

This book traverses the lives of the affluent Lamb family who live in a most respectable house in Chelsea. Then along come some visitors who stay and the whole family dynamic changes and soon their lives are twisted and turned into a fashion that things may never return to as they were before. Now the adults are all dead in an apparent suicide pact, the children are all missing except for the baby. Now the baby is 25 years old and has inherited the fancy house at 16 Cheyne Walk. Now she has the chance to discover who she really is but the secrets hidden were probably hidden for a very good reason and once the truth is uncovered then there's no turning back.

If it wasn't for the sometimes confusion of the jumping around between the two time periods and trying to keep straight who all the characters were this would have been a solid 5 star. As it is this is a definite must read.

**ARC received trough NetGalley. Voluntarily reviewed.**

LOVED this one. Lisa Jewell has done it again. I was stumped until the end, turning pages rapidly, trying to figure out how everything would fall into place. Would highly recommend. A refreshing thriller!

I'm a sucker for a book with an English Gothic mansion, so The Family Upstairs was already an appealing read for me. Throw in some family drama, an apparent cult suicide, and a few missing children, and I was hooked. I couldn't turn the pages fast enough on this one, waiting as more pieces of the puzzle unraveled. It kept me guessing just enough that I was engaged, while also slowly revealing clues. Recommend if you are looking for a quick but spooky read this fall!

The Family Upstairs tells the story of Libby, who inherits a huge mansion on her 25th birthday from a family she never knew. Adopted when she was just a baby, Libby is on the hunt to find out about her family history.
And what a history it is! Told from both historical and present day perspectives, this story starts off a bit confusing but ends up coming together with a perfectly executed Lisa Jewell twist! I couldn't get enough of this wealthy family and their decline into poverty, with some interesting guests along the way.
I don't want to give too much away, but The Family Upstairs is a much read in your thriller collection!

The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewell
I have read most of this authors books and this ranks up at the top with the rest. This book weaves a tale told from various viewpoints of the characters both past and present which made for a very interesting story! Once I started and really got involved with what was going on in the beautiful mansion with the families, it was very hard to put down! Thank you Netgalley and the Publishers for allowing me to read this ARC and give my honest opinion.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for access to this advanced reading copy for Kindle. This is the first book that I have read by Lisa Jewell. It was really compelling! It was disturbing enough that I read the second half of the book in one night - I couldn't sleep because I was so disturbed - so I figured I might as well finish the book. There were some interesting twists and turns along the way. Definitely a page turner!