After the sudden death of her family, Margot finds herself in an orphanage. The Sutton family show up one day and offer to adopt her. But there's a catch, Margot is to be the companion to their catatonic daughter, Agatha. But not all is as it seems in the Sutton house.

I liked the setting of this, the estate in the isolated plot was spooky and could have been utilized better. I wanted to know more about Copeland Hall and the history of the family. The book has some eerie moments, but it was extremely predictable, which definitely brought the enjoyment down for me. I was intrigued at the beginning but the plot dragged a bit in the middle and became very repetitive. I did like Margot as a main character, she was very caring and I liked how she was with Agatha. One of the biggest complaints I had about the book was the romance, it felt extremely forced and unneeded to the overall story line. I think if Barrett hadn't been included it would have been a lot better in the long run.

Overall, it was okay, but a bit too predictable for me.

I really enjoyed the first 50%; in fact, I didn’t want to put it down. Margot was starting to figure some things out, and seemed like she was getting through to Agatha. I liked the tension with Laura, the support from Barrett (though could have done without the immediate romance), and the giant house waiting to be explored.

However, the second half was so frustrating! Margot is a little too passive for me. I get that she started the book with a lot of indifference because of what happened with her family, but if all of a sudden my health was changing—I was waking up groggy and disoriented, losing time, etc.—I would be giving more thought to why.

I don’t want to spoil anything, but Margot missed some very obvious signs and, even when she had more solid proof about things, she was still aloof or purposefully ignorant. She would wave away doubt, not take Agatha seriously, and even when she knew she didn’t want to be there, she was intent on being a “good orphan.” She just focused on less important things and barely did any investigating/exploring (unless a Dream told her to... seriously?)

The ending was also rushed and a little silly (was there paranormal/magic/something else going on? The ghost of Lily helping Margot out? Or something?? Still don’t really get it).

ARGH, it was promising and I did like the setting/characters enough that I finished the book. But it was a bit disappointing in the end.

YA thrillers are quickly becoming my favorite genre to pick up when I’m not sure what I’m in the mood for because they always deliver; The Companion is the perfect example of that. This book was mysterious, face pasted, and kept me on my toes the entire time.

I’ve read a lot of creepy books this year (more than I ever have!), and this one fits right at the top with the creep factor. Margot loses her parents and sister in a tragic car accident and becomes an orphan. But one day, a rich family decides to take her in so she can be a companion to their sick daughter. They live in an enormous house and Margot reluctantly takes on her role. It becomes obvious quite quickly that something more is going on, and Margot has to figure out what it is.

This is definitely a creepy nook that held my attention, but I also felt like nothing much happened for much of the book. I was too invested to give up, but I wish the pace would have been a bit faster. I could see many of the twists long before they were revealed, but it was still enjoyable enough.

Thank you to Netgalley for my eARC, and to Penguin Teen for my ARC of this book I read during Spooktober 2020!

First things first, even though this book is YA I had higher hopes for she "spook" factor, but it would make the perfect book for my friends who more-so enjoy the idea of being spooked more than actually being scared. Now that we got that out of the way, let's unpack this fun and creepy book! I read it for a virtual book club I am apart of, and it was fun hearing the differing opinions on this one.

The scene sets on a newly orphaned Margot, who is living at a government home, awaiting potential adoption or to be aged out of the system. Margot's family recently died in a tragic car accident, and she continuously awakes in night terrors, due to her screams. She considers herself a bit of a lost hope, and assumes she will live out her last two years until 18 in the home. That is, until a wealthy and notable family adopt her! As she meets the family, and drives up to the monstrous mansion, we can't all help but feel it's too good to be true.

Her adopted mother admits they did indeed adopt her under false pretenses of sorts, as they have a daughter, Agatha, around her age who needs a companion. Agatha was a normal teenage girl until recently, until she mysteriously stopped speaking, and conducting herself in a seemingly normal fashion. She now spends her days dormant, medicated, and mute. The family hopes having Margot at home will brighten Agatha's spirits, and also bring Margot comfort as well.

The home, and the family members themselves, seem to have a lot to hide. We can only hope Margot can uncover the secrets, in enough time. "Margot’s bad dreams may have stopped when she came to live with Agatha – but the real nightmare has just begun."

I loved the characters, the house (ALWAYS down for a spooky house with secrets in it's walls), and the mystery behind it all - but still wish it was a tad scarier. Most definitely very enjoyable, and would recommend. 3.5 Stars.

This was such a disappointment for me. I was hooked from the beginning and couldn’t stop reading. Early on I figured out a likely scenario and I was just hoping that I was wrong and I would have a surprise ending. Unfortunately that was not the case. Despite me figuring out the ending I still couldn’t put the book down. While I really enjoyed the aspect that I couldn’t put it down, the book was far too long for a predictable ending. I was really let down when I was done. I wanted more from the ending and the relationships to be explained a little more.

I love me a creepy old house full of rich people with questionable motives and this was no exception! While the plot itself was predictable, I still enjoyed the journey getting to the end and the conclusion was completely satisfying.

My threshold for scary is probably higher than most people so I wasn’t super creeped out by this one but I loved the setting and the characters regardless. I don’t think I really needed a midway romance thrown in though. I didn’t dislike it per se but I just didn’t feel like it was necessary or added anything.

This one absolutely packed a punch for me. A friend recommended it, and I am so glad she did. What a twisted novel.

I've read lots of adult books like this, so I guessed the twist pretty quickly on but that didn't mean I didn't enjoy it! If anything, I think the romance didn't add much, but this is a fast paced thriller that I think teens will gobble up.

I loved this! I thought the writing was really great. The story was so atmospheric and I could picture everything perfectly. I really loved Margot as a main character. I also loved her strange friendship with Agatha. This story had a great amount of spooky vibes. I definitely want to read more from this author!

Katie Alender's THE COMPANION is an exciting, spooky, and ultimately hopeful read. In the story, Margot has lost her whole family in a tragic car accident, she is the sole survivor. After being in a home and a series of unsuccessful placements, an old classmate of her father's takes her in. But it's not all it seems. Margot's job is less of being a teen girl and more of being a companion to the family's oldest daughter, who is unwell. The story has the reader questioning Margot's sanity, the condition of the daughter, and if Margot truly belongs.

After hearing some great buzz for this book, I was very interested to read it, despite it not being my typical genre. White reading, I found it compelling and spooky! I had to read it during the daytime and not at night! At the same time, I found it to be somewhat predictable. About halfway thru, I said aloud what I suspected was going on, and I was proven right. All in all, that didn't dampen my reading experience and this is a book I'd recommend to others.

Margot was the sole survivor of a car accident that killed her family. She has been left an orphan with no one to take her in until one day she receives word that a wealthy family wants to adopt her. Tucked away in a remote country estate, Margot finds that maybe she wasn’t such a lucky orphan after all. The Sutton family want Margot to be the companion to their mysterious, silent daughter, Agatha. Plagued by disturbing nightmares, loss of time, and a house that feels anything like home, Margot finds herself in an unthinkable situation.

Call me crazy, but I’m always going to think being whisked away to any remote location screams red flag! Margot certainly doesn’t trust the motives of the Sutton family for choosing to adopt her. Ultimately she has little choice, but to go along with the move. What she finds is something that was beyond both of our wildest imaginations. I definitely thought that this book was headed in one direction and then took a turn for something else in the best way possible.

Alender has chosen to write THE COMPANION through a series of short chapters told through Margot’s eyes. Margot is written in a way that the reader immediately bonds with her and wants to hope for the best outcome in her adoption, but there is this overall strangeness that can’t be shaken. At various points Margot becomes a bit of an unreliable narrator in a way that doesn’t make the reader outright lose trust in her, but instead it builds your concern for her wellbeing. The secondary characters, largely made up of the Sutton family, are an interesting bunch! It’s tough to know who to trust because through various character traits you simply don’t have the chance or don’t have the interest in knowing more about them.

My favorite part about THE COMPANION is how Alender uses the Sutton estate almost as a character who becomes integral to the plot. The house holds a lot of secrets, but it’s willing to give them up if Margot can learn where to look. I loved exploring the estate and being disturbed by what was found. In addition to being a major plot driver, the house also sets an incredible atmospheric quality to the story. There is isolation and dread caused simply from the estate, which truly makes this story sing.

THE COMPANION may be a YA horror story, but it’s one that works across audiences. There are certainly times when parts are more on the juvenile side, but that comes about from having a sixteen-year-old narrator, as opposed to the overall story. If you’re looking for something to creep you out and make you second guess everything then add THE COMPANION to your TBR!

I thoroughly enjoyed this totally twisted story. Although i did see a lot of it coming, it was still a mind f*ck and it was so much fun? I don’t know if that’s really the right word but i highly recommend!

Wowwww this book was incredibly creepy! I loved the descriptions and atmosphere so, so much. Haunted old mansion, an orphan with nowhere else to go, and a weird family. I love the way the author set up Margot's character, situation, and motivation. She's proactive and sticks up for herself, while also (very understandably) doing her best not to ruin her only choice for a living situation. Her grief at the event that left her orphaned was also poignant, while not overshadowing the mystery aspects of the story. Overall, this was a great, haunting read!

Thank you Penguin Teen via Netgalley for a free advanced electronic copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

This is one of those books that has you really in for a ride.

Is there something supernatural or sinister going on in this house that our main character has been taken into? I most certainly loved that it had a Gothic horror vibe to it.

- creepy, rich house
- daughter who is either faking an illness, possessed, or actually ill
- mother who is either cruel or possessed
- secrets and lies

The reason that I mark it down is I thought the writing was a bit too loose. I understand it is a YA book, I just thought it could be a bit tighter.

Other than that, it's a perfect October read.

The Companion is a contemporary gothic story that is genuinely so unsettling. It follows a teenage girl named Margot, who is left orphaned after her parents and younger sisters die in a car accident, and she is taken in by a wealthy couple, John and Laura Suttons, to be a “companion” to their catatonic daughter Agatha. This book has a lot of the makings of a classic horror story–a gorgeous old mansion called Copeland Hall with macabre history lurking in its walls, super private current inhabitants who are definitely hiding something, and of course, Agatha’s condition which appears to be inexplicable. Don’t expect paranormal activity or jump scares, but you will be asking yourself “what is WRONG with this house and this family?!” throughout.

Unlike many gothic/horror authors, Alender doesn’t lay out everything from the get-go, so instead of figuring out the twists before Margot and simply watching her as she pieces everything together, you’re experiencing everything along with her. The Companion is a chunky book at nearly 500 pages long, but believe me when I say that I could not put it down. I just had to know what happened next, and figure out what was going on with the Sutton family. Everything, from the remoteness of the historic mansion, to the dark history of the family that has occupied it for generations that Margot uncovers, to Laura Sutton’s attempt to get close to Margot despite her unsettling secretiveness, to the mystery surrounding how Agatha ended up in her catatonic condition, was perfectly creepy. With fall and spooky season coming up, The Companion is the perfect book to keep you up at night.

Creeeepy and so fun! The romance was a little unnecessary, but the forbidden rooms, the mansion where everything is just a little bit...off...perfection!

Y’all know I love spooky stuff, and I think this would be a grat option for a spooky YA read, especially if you’re more of a “seasonal reader” type (not me at all) and you’re looking for something spooky but not downright terrifying (and not gorey!) to read for the upcoming spooky season. The Companion follows teenager Margot, who was orphaned after her entire family died abruptly in a tragic car accident. After living at a group home for several months, a wealthy and prestigious family chooses Margot to come live with them as a ward. But when she arrives at their home, she finds out there’s more going on than meets the eye—the family has actually chosen her to be a loyal companion to their teenage daughter, who is mysteriously ill with a condition that makes her nearly catatonic at all times. The longer Margot is at their home, the more she realizes there is something dark lurking beneath the surface, and that this family and the whole situation might not be all it’s cracked up to be.

Also, don’t let the cover or the description/gothic horror vibes fool you—this isn’t a historical fiction or a Victorian era horror. It’s actually a contemporary horror/thriller, just a conveniently isolated horror as the estate Margot moves to is way out in the countryside without Wi-Fi or a cell connection, an aspect which lends itself well to the plot.

This is a good read and I really enjoyed it. I found myself eager to get back to it so I could try to figure out what exactly was happening with this freaky family, and follow the trail of bread crumbs to try to figure out if my guesses were correct. It has a looming countryside estate, a dark mystery that gets stranger and twistier as the book goes on, a cast of shady characters that make you wonder who exactly—if anyone—can be trusted, and even a slightly taboo romance that isn’t too cheesy or forced, and I actually really liked the ending of this one.
I would give this a 4.5/5 or even 4.75 out of 5. There were only slight things that took away from my rating—like some moments that were a little predictable or trope-y—but overall, it was great and you should definitely grab a copy!

The Companion by Katie Alender; G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers, 445 pages ($18.99) Ages 13 and up.

...

Katie Alender, author of the "Bad Girls Don't Die" series, offers a taut psychological thriller in "The Companion," a perfect read for Halloween and for fans of gothic horror.

17-year-old Margot is the only survivor of a terrible accident that killed her parents and two sisters, a trauma that has left her screaming from nightmares every night.

With no relatives or friends to live with, she is placed at Palmer House, a miserable orphanage. Then John and Laura Sutton, a wealthy couple loosely connected to Margot's father, show up to take Margot in as their ward. Copeland Hall, their huge mansion with sprawling, gated grounds, is impressive but isolated, with no TV, Internet or cell service. Only when they arrive does Margot discover she is expected to be a companion to the Suttons' teenage daughter Agatha, who is very ill, unable even to speak, but who still seems hostile to Margot's presence. The house is a maze of locked doors; the only reading material available seems to be dull tomes with puritanical themes.

Alender offers a believable portrait of a girl so bereft she loses her confidence and becomes compliant and eager to please in this compelling page-turner of a thriller complete with action-packed finale.

The Companion is a fantastic YA thriller that slowly builds atmosphere and becomes increasingly disturbing. I don't want to say too much and spoil this one, but it follows a teen girl who was the only survivor of a tragic accident that killed her family. She ends up in the foster care system, but is considered a difficult case because of nightmares that wake her screaming every night. Everything changes when an elite family offers to take her in as a companion for their nearly catatonic daughter, but things are not as they seem and this slowly becomes a dark psychological thriller.

Again, I don't want to say too much here, but I thoroughly enjoyed my time with it and it definitely delivers on the creep factor by the end of the book. I want to talk about some of the larger themes here and offer content warnings (beyond the obvious grief and trauma), but these are spoilery so read at your own risk!

*************SPOILERS AHEAD**************

[ The Companion explores interesting ideas involving double standards of behavior for young women versus young men, and the ways that religious ideas can be co-opted for oppressive and controlling standards. This takes it to extremes, but I think it also demonstrates how toxic a punitive approach can be especially when combined with (probable) mental illness. It also addresses abusive cycles of behavior in families and the ways that privilege and wealth can mask darker things underneath. (hide spoiler)] I loved it! I received an advance copy of this book for review via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Content warnings include: grief, loss of family, PTSD, [ drugging, references to murder, references to animal cruelty, psychological abuse, gaslighting, spying, (hide spoiler)] depictions of vomit, suicidal ideation etc.