The book has a great premise but just didn't follow through. It started out great but lost me when explaining the kids stories. I think I just expect so much from a haunted house story that it is hard to satisfy me. I would definitely read more from this author though as I enjoyed the writing style.

Not a fan. Just didn't hold my attention so I hmgave up before 80 pages. I couldn't get into the story and I was confused.

I love a good horror book and Inside was an interesting read. It starts like a classic horror story where a group of teenagers wanna explore a haunted house. They are scared but still they wanna prove that it's nothing inside. But unfortunately they are wrong. The house is haunted by a smoky devil that wants to play a little game with them.

If they will live or not I'm not going to tell you, but if you're a big fan of horror books/movies you will find out. The book was a fast read, it has some dark fairytale characters that I didn't understand why they were in the story. But it was a good horror book.

Thank you NetGalley for this eArc in exchange for an honest review.

Here’s a story with a familiar formula...a group of teens decide to explore a haunted house. Though the storyline has been done before it hasn’t been done like this.

The story follows the group as they bravely enter (after being bullied) the house to prove it’s not haunted. The house turns out to be an endless maze of connecting rooms with no escape. As the group searches for a way out they are being chased by a supernatural evil.

The ending drug on a little longer than needed and I’m not crazy about the cover but the nightmare that unfolds kept me flipping page after page.

3 for neutral, as I could not get into this book. I did try on a few occasions, could be my mood, and will update at a later date if able to enjoy.

A tremendous amount of Implacable Horror, literal and metaphorical convolutions, inescapable emotions (grief, shame, rage, terror, guilt), and deeply delineated psychology populates this novel. I'm always in favor of Implacability in Horror: without it, the story is not realistic. Without it, there's no possibility of a "miraculous" twist: a rescue, a recovery, an escape. What I am not in favor of is fatalism, and that is how this story felt: vicarious suffering, over and over, with not little hope, NO hope of Redemption. So what's the point?


My other problem here (I'm not addressing the proofreading need because I read only an ARC and not the finished product--other than to say that "thrusted" is not a viable verb--possibly exists, but thankfully, rarely. Go with "thrust.") is extending the story far beyond the point at which it should have died--err, ended. The entire aftermath, to me, was unnecessary, unhelpful, and pretty much, just an excuse to "relive" it all again. I wish the book at stopped at the last scene in the House, before the "aftermath. " That would have rendered a much tauter plotline.

The description of this book sounded interesting and spooky, but once I started reading it, I just couldn't get into it and didn't finish the book.

The story just felt repetitive. Each room in the house had a scary element and then the kids would get out and experience a new room. This might be a great book for a young adult but it just didn't pull me in.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Parliament House for the opportunity to read this book. If I could rate it 3 and a half stars I absolutely would. I was really into the story of what would happen to these four teens who enter a haunted house. I just felt as though it was missing a little something, though I can’t tell you what. I really hope this book becomes a movie because I kept picturing what scenes would be like.

Inside is a claustrophobic horror novel which ticks all the boxes masterfully. Siciano has done an expert job of keeping this tightly scripted whilst ensuring a deep understanding of her characters.

Inside is an interesting novel that deals with teens and their relationship against a horrifying ghost story that makes some interesting plot twists that are quite hard for the reader to deal with. This sets this book apart from the other fiction dealing with adolescence and the difficult relationships within the team. This is brilliantly done.

The characters are very real and act within their natural form of their personalities. Their decisions fit well within the framework and each character fully fleshed out. Siciano has shown that dealing with a cast of five main characters and ensuring that they have equal time and back story fully explored without lots of narrative tedium. The author shows that she has the talent and knowledge to be able to measure this out expertly.

The plot is harrowing and difficult to digest due to the life threatening scenario the main characters find themselves. This page turner delves into the readers emotional psyche as each of these characters lives are left in peril. It is emotionally charge that keeps the novel flowing. At times working as a slow burn but keeping the plot interesting is a feat within itself. The reader is fully entranced by the plot and fully invested.

Overall, Inside is an excellent novel with great characters, horrifying plot with an emotional centre that makes you feel for the main characters. Siciano ensures that her characters are not annoying but fully developed and three dimensional. Without giving anything away, what happens to these characters is very heart retching and gave me a lot of food for thought. Excellently written this is a definite winner from an author who looks to be a writer to be reckoned with.

I am a huge horror fan, which is why I was excited to read this, I will say it was creepy at some points and had some interesting moments, but I was not a huge fan of the characters, and I was confused about certain moments. I think this would be a good book more for people who are just getting into the horror genre but may disappoint some who are hard core horror fans.

What a creeptastic read! I really enjoyed, especially the end! Wow! Loved the characters, mood, action and the atmosphere of this story. I'll be looking into more of D.M. Siciliano's work.
I give this book a solid 4 out of 5 stars

This was a great story! It had echos of Steven Kings I.T. And all the lovable 80's movies of friendship and adventure. We start off with a group of 5 friends, 4 boys, and a tomboy girl. They all know of the town's famously haunted abandoned house and as they are moving into high school after the summer they want to be known as the kids who weren't afraid of the house. Once inside the one-room house the door in and out disappears and the house comes alive growing in rooms, corridors, and staircases. Also, like the Winchester Mystery House in California. As the group desperately tries to get out or at least figure out what is happening the house morphs itself into rooms from their memories and fears. If that wasn't bad enough they are being hunted by a shadow that wants them to burn from the inside.

With stories like this, you start to wonder if the author can sustain the story, if they can keep coming up with new ideas for each room, etc and thankfully Siciliano kept up the stamina. My only complaint is that one of the boys keeps getting referred to as a bully. Yes, some of his behavior can be described as bullying but I don't think he was up to the standard that the author was implying. I loved the ending, it was very fitting and if you are a fan of 80's friendship movies, horror, and houses like the Winchester Mystery House, you need to read this book. I ended up reading this in two days it was so addictive.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an E-ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

***Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review***
I usually love horror and this one, to me, was so-so. It wasn't spectacular, but it had some decent elements.

I enjoyed this book a lot. I like that the scope of the story covered a lot of years (1674-1991, to be exact). I always prefer my hauntings to be long-term and the stuff of legend.

I also really liked that the whole story had a Stand by Me, or other sort of coming-of-age kids on bikes adventure gone wrong sort of vibe – that always appeals to me. And the addition of Alex’s little sister Heather cemented my love for the group dynamics – she’s a tough little chick, and I like that. And I like the character development. I ended up liking some of these people a lot more than I was expecting to.

I also appreciated the demon-haunting aspect, as it’s a hair more fun than a regular ghost (but don’t worry, there’s ghosts too). Although I do wish that there had been just a hair more to the demon story – like, why was he there in the first place? Was it just a matter of opportunity? Also, for reasons I can’t fully articulate, the demon made me think of the demon from Nightmare Cinema.

I know this guy is technically a “shadow demon,” but he’s also a smoke and fire fella, and therefore, I think it works. This guy.

Anyway, he’s what I pictured every time they mentioned the demon. So yeah, he would smoke out or whatever, but when he re-solidified, totally picturing him.

I also liked the pacing of the story. Once they got inside the house, everything moved at a fairly breakneck speed, but Siciliano was able to keep up with the pace she set. Her style of writing (at least for this, her debut novel) is really accessible – I like that she was able to write like we were hearing the story through her young narrator, without sacrificing the narrative which I feel is a fine line that authors sometimes have trouble toeing – you know, ‘how do I sound like a kid without writing like a kid?’

If you like haunted houses, demonic happenings, or kid-based adventure/horror this just might be the book for you! This is a thrilling debut from a promising new author.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC of this book. While I love a good haunted house story I think that trope has been done to death. (no pun intended) This was a good book and I finished it, just nothing stood out or was spectacular. A good read if you're bored.

I'm sorry to say but I am not able to finish this book. The writing and the word "wicked" are driving me insane.

I hope you are all ready to sit in the corner and rock your way through this review. Inside, looked like the poster for the latest horror movie – this apt title hides the deeper meaning to the story. Huge revelations, relationships pulled so taut that they threaten to snap. This book has you standing on the precipice of hell, the flames threatening to lick at your heels, the heat seducing you within. A house is just bricks and mortar, right? Wrong – the house was built with the devils’ hands, each brick more evil than the last. The house embodies a threatening shadow using your fears to destroy and weaken you. Don’t rely on your Nike’ because you can’t outrun hell.

Reid one of our five protagonists has the bright idea of breaking into a haunted house. He bullies his friends into joining him. The whole town know the house is evil, they don’t know what haunts it or why – they just know its hell personified. The premise of the house emitting an extreme heat – like hells own personal gateway. The awful truth of what lies within had me scared right from the start. The reader doesn’t have time to ponder the what’s before it all goes sideways. The evil and the fear instantly make itself known like being thrown into the eye of the storm.

Not one of the protagonists wants to back out. They want to prove their worth, their courage and Reid uses all the bully-boy tactics in the book. It becomes very clear that they aren’t going to get out of this easily. They are faced with shifting walls and windows and the main exit disappearing. The house becomes a living and breathing entity. Fear and loathing become king. These initial scenes gave me such a palpable sense of dread, the words came to life and threatened to choke the life out of me. The Protagonists have no clue to what lurks in the dark but boy oh boy does the author know! This made me check my shoulder and windows whilst I was reading. My chest felt like it had been pumped full of icy cold dread and I was completely here for it. The story encapsulates teenager’s innocence and stamping all over it.

How long can five friends stay strong for one another? The evil picks apart their psyche, taps into their biggest fears and it plays them off against each other. Its creeping presence hunts the characters one by one and breaks them down so that their mind is broken but also with the intention of breaking their physical form too. Would anyone survive the ordeal? The narrative was explosive. The book, from the very first page was pulse pounding – to the point I thought my skin was going to tear and blood spurting from within. Childhood was forever destroyed but the author also brought to the forefront the dark and deep nature of traumatised upbringings. The storytelling was irresistible to the horror lovers. The author has brought together two frightening narratives spanning the evil within the house and deep nature of childhood. This is a book that runs parallel with the essence of childhood – some don’t make it out alive.

The moment I closed this book it has been haunting me…it reminds so much of Stephen King’s earlier work. It was so gripping; the tension was ratcheted up with a cold dread that had me questioning whether I needed to turn the heating up. If this is a debut…well the author is going to have a very successful career ahead of her.

I picked this up as I liked the premise, but it was a miss for me. The writing felt juvenile and unpracticed, and the characters were flat and without personality. The idea for the novel was fine, but the execution was disappointing

"Inside" was a fast moving horror thriller set almost entirely within a haunted house which five child friends dare each other to enter, even though it has a dodgy reputation. Everything moves very quickly, the kids meet up, enter the house and the door mysteriously disappears and the supernatural element kicks in immediately, without much buildup or suspense. Personally, I would have preferred a slower development of atmosphere. After the door disappears it was unrelenting as they are forced to flee from room to room with creatures, or something, not too far behind. I did find this somewhat repetitive and even though there was alot going on, it lacked true scares. The characters are well defined and bounce off each other well, this is particularly good when the house turns them against each other. This was an ambitious novel and even though it had its faults it held my interest until the end, make sure you hang in for the brutal ending! It's hard to come up with something new with haunted house novels, but "Inside" holds its own.

Started off strong but dragged during the middle. I wish the author gave us some time to get attached to the kids rather then throwing them into the haunted house right away. Overall enjoyed but won’t be recommending to someone.