The People Upstairs
My thanks to #NetGalley for this ebook in exchange for an honest review. The People Upstairs, by Lisa Jewell is as creepy as promised. I have never read Lisa Jewell before, so I had no idea what I was in for . . . what a ride. Lots of secrets and a dysfunctional family . . . and a cult. What more can you ask for? Oh, yeah, throw in money, murder, and some mystery and twist it up with some really creepy people, and you have an instant hit. This book has it all. A big yes from me.

Just a side note, I was slightly put off by the voices/times changing with no transition. I would have liked a little indicator, a chapter title, name or some indication of where I was. I was always a little disconcerted the first few sentences of a new chapter. Maybe that was intentional . . . keep me unnerved a little more? Hmm . . .

This is the first book I have read by Lisa Jewell and I loved it! This is a suspenseful read that kept me reading from the moment I started until I could finish it. I loved the way the story was told, shifting in time and characters. The baby has turned 25 and everyone is impacted. Shifting from characters truly makes this a more powerful and suspenseful read. Libby, Lucy and Henry are the narrators and each have pieces of the puzzle as to what happened in this house in the past. The mystery is one that is woven within the past and the present and I think Jewell does a wonderful job weaving all the pieces together. I will be checking out more from this author! Thank you netgalley for this arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

I love Lisa Jewell. As I read her books I find each one creepier than the last and I'm a bit obsessed. This, the newest novel in her arsenal, starts with Libby's 25th birthday when she inherits a multi-million dollar home. It ends (no spoilers, I promise) when the pieces to this crazy story fall into place to explain the 25-year mystery.

Libby knows that she was adopted at 10 months old. She does not know the truth about what happened to her family. When she inherits a mansion worth millions, she starts to investigate her strange past. She is shocked to find that the story that she was told is not what happened to her family.

25+ years ago Henry, his sister, and parents are living in a mansion and leading a very privileged life of private schools and fancy clothing. When he is 12 years old, things change as his parents change his school, and stop spending money. It is difficult to spend $ you no longer have. Suddenly, people come to the house to stay and life is turned upside down. David moves into the house with his wife and kids with no plans to leave. He is charismatic and alluring to everyone except Henry.

The story moves between past and present until the two stories come together and you finally understand what happened in the house all those years ago. I really enjoyed this book. Thank you to NetGalley for my copy. My thoughts are my own.

When you are sent a copy of Lisa Jewell’s newest book then you drop everything and read it immediately which is exactly what I did. This book takes you down a story of family drama and secrets that will rock you to your core. The beginning was a little confusing because it is told from different characters but once I was understanding what was being told, I couldn’t put this book down. The story completely swallowed me and I was so intrigued by the secrets this family held all from different perspectives that I had to keep going.

Jewell's latest book is super creepy and completely addictive. Easily the most entertaining "cult book" I've read this year.

Jewell's three narrators give different perspectives of the story, and all have "baggage" and are potentially unreliable narrators, which adds to the suspense in the story.

Overall, a fun and quick read.

I love everything I've read by Lisa Jewell, so it was no surprise that I enjoyed The Family Upstairs! Like her other book, the chapters switch between perspectives, which keeps it interesting.

There were lots of twists and turns, and I was happy that it wasn't a very predictable story. There were a few times when I felt my heart stop. There were a few times when my mind wandered though, so it didn't keep me as hooked as her other novels. Either way, definitely recommend, you won't want to put it down!

*Thank you to Netgalley and Atria Books for the ARC, for which I have given an honest and unbiased review*

This book has everything I love: shifting viewpoints, family issues, incredibly drawn characters, and a (quasi?) cult. I count the killer ending just as a bonus--this book would have gotten a 5 rating from me even without it. If you enjoy contemporary gothic domestic intrigue, don't even bother downloading a sample from Amazon. Go ahead and just buy the book outright.

Lisa Jewell is a marvel. Her books are sick and twisted in the best way, and entertaining as hell. I couldn’t stop turning the pages, and as always, loved every minute. This would make an excellent film, and everyone should read this in the fall. Bravo!

When Libby’s 25th birthday comes around, she is so excited to find out more about her genetic parents and origin. She is in for a surprise. It’s funny because her world is so typical and normal. Girl in her mid-twenties working hard at a entry level type job to make a life and of course, obsessed with finding Mr. Right.
Well, once she finds out that she was a baby who was abandoned in a murder house, it shakes her world up just a little. And the difference between the world she was born into and the life she is living at 25 are polar opposites. In some ways, it’s like she is Cousin Marilyn in The Munsters.
This one felt different to me from other Lisa Jewell books I’ve read. Not in a bad way at all, it just had something extra that added a level of mysteriousness. It reminded me a lot of The Rules of Magic by Alice Hoffman or The Death of Mrs. Westaway by Ruth Ware. The stories are of course very different, but there was a similar tone to the books.
I don’t want to give too much away, because this is one of those books where the enjoyment is in peeling back the layers one at a time, discovering more and more about the family and the strange things that happened behind closed doors in their house.
The Family Upstairs was dark, brooding, shocking at times and a hell of a read. Although a departure from Jewell’s normal themes, this one does not disappoint and I find myself hoping it’s a new direction for the future. Because all her books are amazing, this one was just a little extra.
Special thanks to Netgalley and Atria Books for an e-galley in exchange for my honest review.

Lisa Jewel does it again! Wealth, secrets, a dysfunctional family - it’s all there and then some. The story is told from a couple of perspectives, but it kept me guessing until the very end. This is the second book I’ve read by Lisa Jewel and I am a true fan.

I received a free copy from NetGalley. Told from a couple points of view and from both the past and the present, the lives of a unique family all tie together in their story of secrets after the 25th birthday of Libby. While some things were easy to figure out early on, others kept you guessing until the end.

Love, love love, this book. I think it is the best Lisa Jewell novel yet. A wealthy family lives in a beautiful home. One day, the parents, and a mysterious third man, are found dead in the home. A suicide note begs the finders to take care of the baby upstairs. But what happened to the other teenagers who lived in the home? Who was the strange third man?

The baby is now 25 years old, and receives a trust in which she receives this huge house. But her inheritance only creates more questions.

Thus begins a crazy story about a dysfunctional family, a quasi-cult, and many mysteries. The novel kept me guessing up until the very last page. This is not one to miss.

Lisa Jewell does it again! Thank you, NetGallaey for the opportunity. This is a true page turner and it's twisty and unpredictable. Lis Jewell has become one of my favorite suspense authors.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of The Family Upstairs from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Lisa Jewel is quickly becoming my favorite author! She is a master at slowly revealing unthinkable plot twists, and this novel is another example! I loved the whole book and felt that this author does not insult the intelligence of the reader by spelling everything out. All of the clues are there, they just need to be noticed! (I refuse to provide spoilers, so I will just say that "the baby" learns many of her own life's secrets after she turns 25 and inherits the equivalent of a mansion.). Fantastic read--I read it all in one sitting!

Thank you to NetGalley and Lisa Jewel for the ARC.

Lisa Jewell at her absolute finest! This has everything I want in a thriller, and more. I could not put it down.

I devoured this book in one sitting- so fascinating!!

If you have read any of Lisa Jewell's other books you may find this one a bit different. It is more of a journey into disturbing family dynamics and susceptibility of vulnerable people than a suspense.

There is a touch of a mystery to it as Libby Jones comes into her inheritance at age 25. Raised by an adoptive parent she knows nothing about her birth family the Lambs. But when she inherits their enormous run down home she is determined to know more about her history.

But does she want that knowledge?

The book jumps from past to present and is told from the perspective of multiple characters. Henry and Lucy Lamb as children tell the tale of squatters who take over the family and the home to the detriment of the family unit. It is heartbreaking and horrifying and you jump onto the ride with the characters as their lives are irrevocably changed and Libby appears into their lives.

The characters have depth and are believable. You may like them or you may dislike them but they are well written enough for you to form that opinion. The jumps across time and characters may not be enjoyable for some readers and it does drag some in the beginning. However Jewell knows how to craft her stories to pick up steam and drag you hurtling to the station.

If you expect a traditional thriller you may not like this one as much, it does run as dark but in a different way.

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review!

It’s hard to articulate how much I loved this. Lisa Jewell is a genius and this book is just her latest masterpiece. I loved everything about it - the unique and gothic story, the fun settings, all of the characters - I even loved reading about the characters I hated. I was planning to read this over the course of a week, but read it in one day. My ONLY critique is very minor: when Libby meets up with “Phin” and he introduces his cat as “Dick” it’s a dead giveaway that he’s actually Henry. This could have been a huge shock had it not been for that detail. However, I will still incessantly recommend this book!

I know this sounds weird, but I enjoy reading books about cults. There's just something so fascinating about what compels ordinary people to toss aside their lives and follow a cult leader blindly, often to dire extremes.

There are three stories interwoven in The Family Upstairs. The first is 25 year-old Libby, who inherits a house from her birth parents. She was adopted as a baby, and knows nothing about her birth family, but she soon learns that terrible events led to her adoption.

The second is Lucy, a single mother of two desperately trying to get back to Britain from France. She and her family are destitute, living on the street, but somehow she needs to find the means to get passports and travel back to her home country. But why is Lucy so frantic to get back?

The last narrative is Henry, two decades in the past, who documents what happens to his parents and sister when strangers begin moving into, and slowly taking over, their Chelsea mansion. It's Henry's story that delivers shocking scene after shocking scene, unraveling years of madness.

This book was so crazy! I found myself staying up late at night, just because I needed to find out how it ended! And I often have a problem with Jewell's endings, but this one was very satisfying!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC.

I really liked this book. The story was well thought out and imaginative. I loved the mystery and suspense throughout. I love that the book was told from multiple viewpoints that came at the story from different sides. I was kept guessing which I love. I liked the creepy mansion and the cult references. This was truly different from other books that I have read. Lisa Jewell is truly an original and a pioneer in her field. Her work is always superb and dynamic. Thanks for the ARC, Net Galley.

I am totally becoming a fan of Lisa Jewell. This is my third book by her this year. I find her books entertaining, intriguing and page turning. This book was so exception. It had me questioning and thinking all the way until he end. I really liked how the story was told from three different perspectives. Two were set in present day and one in the past. This book is a great quick read!