Another great read from Lisa Jewell. She has written another good thriller with interesting characters. The book keeps you going by being told from different perspectives. Great read,

Wow! Lisa Jewell has done it again. This book kept me turning the pages late into the night. At first, it's unclear how the 3 parallel stories will come together, but soon it becomes clear. I loved how she went back in time for one of the stories and kept us in the present for the other two. Lots of twists and turns, and this book definitely kept me guessing. I will be recommending this book to my patrons who like mysteries, suspense, and Lisa Jewell's previous books. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book!

The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewel is a well-written thriller that not only contains a mystery but is also loaded with lots of family drama.

Libby Jones, who at age 25 is happy with her simple life, working to sell kitchen remodels, finds herself pulled into discovering her past when she inherits a $7 million dollar home from her biological parents who died in a suicide pact when she was 10 months old. Told from many characters’ perspectives, we learn that the Chelsea house in London has a history that is dark and disturbing. The book continually switches between the past and present, dropping juicy clues right and left, leaving you to figure out what happened to the family that lived there and how and why Libby was left alone in a crib the day her parents died.

This is the second Lisa Jewell book I have read (following Then She Was Gone – which I loved) and I can honestly say The Family Upstairs does not disappoint. After a slow start, the pace picks up and really takes off. The development of the characters is top-notch, to the point of where you can understand their perspectives and experiences and why they made the choices they did. The story line is not predictable and I found myself genuinely surprised at many points throughout the book. I always love a book that I can’t put down and keeps me thinking about long after I’ve finished, and The Family Upstairs did that for me. Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

I'm torn on this one...somewhere around four stars but not really if that makes sense. It's sufficiently creepy, suspenseful, intriguing, and all that.
When Libby turns 25, she discovers that she's now the owner of an abandoned mansion. Along with this newfound knowledge comes the revelation of the true identity of her birth parents. As if that's not enough, she begins to discover the sordid secret of who she truly is.
I liked this book. I really did. But something about the ending didn't satisfy me. Still, I kept coming back to it whenever I had time to read a few pages so that says a lot.

A young women receives her inheritance and discovers her past, her parents, and an assortment of new friends and family. This quirky tale provides a twisting and sometimes agonizing (in a good way) trip to the truth. The current storyline is peppered with vignettes of the past, and it is not until the end that all the pieces of the puzzle are in place to reveal the past and the present. Set in London with scenes in English towns and Europe, the story is descriptive and written in clear language. The reader’s suspense builds as each new event leads to another mystery. For the reader the entertaining story is well-paced and the ending is well timed. Recommended to libraries with fiction collections.

Great premise, but reads really slowly. I had a hard time getting into this, and then a hard time finishing this, though Jewell is one of my go-to favorites for mysteries. I didn’t connect with the characters, which makes it harder to get through the slow spots.

A cross between Flowers in the Attic by VC Andrews and The House of Stairs by Barbara Vine. This covers some dark subject matters but did not feel as sinister as Watching You, which I was absolutely stunned by. I love stories about houses and this house holds some terrible secrets that are just begging to be let out.

4.5 ⭐️

Thank you to netgalley and Atria books for this great ARC

What a story - I couldn’t put it down! I definitely wasn’t expecting so many twists and turns and was definitely kept guessing as to what would happen next! And that last chapter 😱

Take my advice, start this book early in the day as you won't want to put it down. Revolving masterly between the past and the present, The Family Upstairs is built upon the concept of family... the one you're born into, the one you create, and the one thrust upon you. Mainly told from the children's perspective... and in some cases you're not sure whose retelling the take (and believe me, you don't mind),... how the "new" family upstairs impacted and changed their lives is a fantastic tale. Definitely one of my most favorite books of the year so far!

Flowers in the attic in steroids! So good! Twisted and thrilling. Lisa jewell has perfected domestic thrillers. They’re fast paced but also manage to tug on your heart strings.

The Family Upstairs tells the story of a rich family who begins to let others come to live with them - in a cult-like fashion. David quickly begins to enforce strict rules and takes away all material items from members of the household. In a cult-like fashion, he also begins to infiltrate the couple's relationships and take the women as his own. When David and the rich parents are found dead, and a baby is found alive, many questions remain which is the bulk of Lisa Jewell's story, The Family Upstairs.

The beginning of the book was a bit confusing for me. There are a lot of characters to follow and the story changes time periods without any distinction. Once you get a grasp on each of the characters and their place in the family, in addition to the timeline, the plot made more sense and drew me in. I wish Jewell would have spent more time developing the setting and characters more at the beginning. This was done much better in the second half of the book.

Overall, once I got a feel for the characters, I really enjoyed this book. There were some great plot twists and dark characters that kept me on my toes. This is not a happy beach read, but a great twisted mystery. Thank you NetGalley for the arc of Lisa Jewell's The Family Upstairs.

Loved this book! Quick read, fast paced, and had me trying to piece things together the whole time! This had a unique plot that I haven't seen in other books like this (and I've read a lot!!). Reminded me slightly of a Charles Manson style character without the killing but will all of the manipulation. Great book!

I am a huge fan of Lisa Jewell and have always enjoyed her books, this one however was a little different for me. It did not captivate me in the first third of the book like the rest of hers have. I found the beginning confusing, the points of views, and the amount of characters we were introduced to was hard to keep up with.

Once I figured out who was who and what was occurring the story line gripped me a little bit more. I enjoyed it but have enjoyed other Lisa Jewell books better.

In this intense psychological suspense by Lisa Jewell you have three principal characters, Libby, Lucy and Henry. They are each separated by chapters in varying points of view. As you read my introduction to these characters you might be a bit thrown off. Even though they are all principal players, readers will be forced to wait to see how their stories are all blended into one another.

Let's start with Libby Jones. She is a resident of the UK and has been aware of a trust that was created in 1977. The strict rules included things would not be revealed to her until she turned twenty-five. Now she is finally able to discover some facts about her past. At that time, there was a property in Chelsea that she has just inherited. A couple was killed, and two teens were missing. It is at this point that Libby is told that they were her birth parents and that she has two siblings.

Then we have Lucy. Lucy is the mother of two children, Marco, 12, and Stella, 5. Lucy gets an odd text that simply states: "The baby is 25." Lucy and her children are struggling. They are homeless and they go from place-to-place to eat and to try and find places to sleep. Although she struggled to get away from her ex-husband, she still longs to return to London.

Lastly, readers are introduced to Henry Lamb. He talks of his parents and then of a woman named Birdie who visited his house while he was a child. Henry, as it turns out, is part of the trust that Libby is being told about. We briefly learn about his father Harry and other things that happened during Henry's childhood.

The readers are taken on a journey of alternating viewpoints told in both the past and the present which allow for several revelations to be revealed. Quite naturally, everyone is connected and there is a deep exploration into the family drama that affects them all. I want to add to this review that the fact that it is a psychological thriller, and combined with the title, The Family Upstairs, it simply did not gel. When it came to the fact that Henry grew up in a cult-like environment, it became easier to see what actually happened back in 1977 when the deaths occurred and how that affects everyone now, 25 years later.

I always enjoy books by Lisa Jewell, but I must admit to having a bit of a hard time waiting for this book to gain traction. I was especially enticed and fully committed when the house began to be explored. The pieces are jumbled at first but quickly begin to fall into place. I was definitely intrigued and couldn't put this book down until I read it from cover-to-cover. There is some sadness and emotion, especially regarding Lucy and her children, and also for some of the things that Henry experienced as a child.

Many thanks to Atria Books and to NetGalley for this ARC to review in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book has mystery, murder, missing kids, a terrifying cult, and downright bad decisions through each and every glorious page. In other words: MY KIND OF BOOK! I started this read while waiting for my oil change. After finishing the first couple chapters I knew this one would stick with me for awhile. I finished it in 2 days.

Libby is adopted. The only thing she knows about her birth parents are that they are dead after a devastating suicide pact and she is due to inherit their family home on her 25th birthday. The story begins on that exact day. The reader is presented with 3 different story lines. Lucy, a struggling mother who tries her best to provide for her 2 young kids. Henry, the child of a beautiful socialite and a rich father. And of course Libby, a woman in search of where she came from.

I don’t want to spoil too much of this story, but I will say you need to keep your eyes open. When I thought I knew what the mystery was the author flipped it around on me. The ending was written in such a way that I got chills up my spine. I really enjoyed EVERY SINGLE character and the plot was a mashup between the cult leader, Jim Jones mixed with the Branch Davidians.

Add it to you TBR. It’s book birthday is October 29, 2019. Thank you @atria for providing me with an eARC via @netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

From the moment I opened this book, I knew it was going to be one of those never put down, totally enthralled by, ignore the rest of the world while I read kind of books. And it was that and more. This was an unforgettable story written so well and with such intense emotions and strong characters. There were characters to completely love and admire and characters to despise. There were moments that pulled on every heartstring.
This was a pure psychopathic packed story that was completely effed up and so twisted and dark.
In the beginning, it might seem hard to follow the characters and time frames, but it will all make sense. And every detail is important. Once I started and got in the groove of the story, it wasn't as complicated as it first seemed.
This is a 10 star book. I went to bed thinking about it and woke up thinking about it. Cheers to the author!
Thank you #Netgalley, the author and the publisher for my free ARC in exchange for my honest review, I am so thankful to have been able to read this book. And my family is thankful I finished it...so I can give them attention again :-)

This novel did not turn out the way I thought it would. It begins with three dead bodies, four missing teens, a large rambling house, and a baby. Somehow they are tied together and the secrets are kept for 25 years, until Libby Jones inherits the house. and secrets are slowly revealed. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to be an early reader in exchange for my unbiased review.

This book wasn’t amazing to me. The multiple POV was hard to follow at times. The “villain” wasn’t evil enough or charming enough to make me like or hate him. The writing wasn’t amazing but not terrible either. It was just a mediocre book overall

The Family Upstairs is a mesmerising,enthralling domestic drama/thriller about brother and sister Henry and Lucy Lamb and how swiftly their young lived descended into a living nightmare after two strangers moved into the opulent home in Chelsea that the siblings share with their socialite parents. A nightmare that starts with the death of three people and the discovery of a abandoned baby. All this in a once loving home.

The book flies buy and puts you in the center of the story. I’ve read this author before and I love her stories.

Libby Jones knows she was adopted, that her socialite parents had died and she was an infant On her 25th birthday, she inherits the closed up house in a swanky section of London that she was born in. Libby soon finds out that she is "the baby", the only one left alive after what appears to be a suicide pact as part of a cult ritual. Finding out what her family was, and what happened to the occupants of the house leads Libby to an unbelievable journey of who she is and what really happened to her family. #netgalley #familyupstairs #lisajewell