So, THIS is the book that everyone is talking about. I suppose I will also talk about it.

But...I will follow the lead of my fellow book reviewers and not give any plot details. This is especially important for this book, but I rarely talk about plot anyway.

I think Christopher Golden took the words out of my mouth about this book: "audacious as hell." It really is. As I was reading and uncovering the layers of mystery, I couldn't believe what Ward was pulling off.

I'm actually tempted to take off of work tomorrow, just to think about the nooks and crannies of the plot of this book. Tons of nuance to unpack here.

Oh, there is a cat too.

This is by far the best novel I have read in quite some time. Unreliable narrator is perfect. Kept me guessing until the very end. I definitely will recommend this book in all my circles. I will also keep this author on my radar.

Creepy, sad, dark and utterly enthralling! I could not put this down once I started it. I have no idea how to categorize this book....horror, mystery, love story? Maybe all 3 at once. This was one of those stories you hate to see end. Prepare yourself for quite the ride. Thank you NetGalley for the advanced readers copy for review.

Catriona Ward’s The Last House on Needless Street arrives in 2021 riding a wave of pre-release hype the likes of which I don’t think I’ve seen since Justin Cronin released The Passage ten years ago. It’s the tragic and often heart-wrenching story of a man living with a profound mental illness, and how this illness forces him to navigate his life. This isn’t a spoiler. It’s evident from the opening chapter that something is very very wrong with Ted Bannerman, who lives in a decrepit old house with all of its windows boarded up, on a cul-de-sac bordering a forest and nearby lake. His only companion is a cat named Olivia, who has her own chapters in which she is the first-person viewpoint narrator, suggesting that Olivia is either a very special cat indeed or maybe not a cat at all. Ted also has a daughter, a little girl named Lauren, who shows up at odd times for a visit before she has to “go away.” Are you starting to get the picture yet?

I won’t drop a massive spoiler and say what Ted’s condition is, but it shouldn’t be too hard to figure out unless you yourself have been living in a boarded-up house all your life. It doesn’t help that Ward has a tendency to be very ham-fisted with her symbolism. When Olivia talks about how much she hates the creepy Russian nesting dolls that sit on the mantlepiece, it’s almost like a Symbolism Siren goes off. And for any reader who still might be slow on the uptake, later on in the book Ward actually has her characters straight up tell us, “Gosh, we’re just like those Russian nesting dolls!”

It’s a form of mental illness that is still not well understood, but has been featured so often as a device in horror stories and thrillers that it’s more or less become cliche. To her infinite credit, Catriona Ward has taken seriously her responsibility to do justice to a condition that is suffered by a great many deeply traumatized people and present it in a way that is compassionate and, despite the horrors that unfold in the story, hopeful. Her research took two years, she interviewed people living with the condition, and the back of the book includes a bibliography listing 38 sources. If The Last House succeeds at anything, it’s in Ward’s deep empathy for her subject. This is a book that’s oppressive and disturbing, sometimes nearly overwhelming in its sadness, but one that comes from a place of real humanity and caring.

If good intentions made for great novels, I’d be only too happy to join the chorus of praise. But I’m sorry to say that as a story, The Last House didn’t work for me more than it did. There are too many plot contrivances that ask us to be extremely generous with our willing suspension of disbelief, too many supporting characters who seem like exaggerated and even cartoonish caricatures. Moreover, it becomes evident as you read that Ward does not establish anything at all in her story that she doesn’t plan to completely overturn with an M. Night Shyamalan-style twist. Even her plot twists have plot twists. Once you realize misdirection is the entire goal here, it’s no longer misdirection, it’s just a book believing that it’s smarter than its readers. And some of the big surprises aren’t all that surprising....

COMPLETE REVIEW AT LINK

Sometimes when I love a book, i REALLY REALLY love (and obsess over) a book, and The Last House on Needless Street is one of those books. The ALL CAPs and the double 'really' are absolutely necessary.

The characters. The voice. The Narrative that is embedded so wonderfully, with surprises around every corner. Perhaps because I work as a "bug man" and in the field of mental health, I found this book even more intriguing, but I think it will have universal appeal to horror lovers and thriller lovers alike.

There is complexity here that keeps growing. It's the Russian doll with an infinite number of new gems inside. Each time the story went to a new level, and the reading gains momentum with tension and complexity, I was completely invested and along for the roller coaster ride, and then it would dip into something even more deliciously deep and rich. The author takes a lot of risks, and with those risks will come criticism, but for this reader she pulls it off with spectacular talent.

 As I read, I was reminded of the book Secret Life of Souls by Jack Ketchum, and then I imagined Dallas being alive and reading The Last House on Needless Street and how it seems written exactly for him. Terrible shame he didn't get a chance to read it, but in some ways, the spirit of Ketchum is wrapped up inside Catriona, for she captures some of his writing in both style and substance. Somewhere Ketchum is reading this and, along with True Crime by Samantha Kolesnik, I think the Ketchum spirit is alive and kicking.

The less you know about this book the better. But even if you know there are surprises, you wont guess them all (if you say you did, I call BS). Of course, it's not just the twists and turns of the plot, but the unique voice and the author's vivid and tragic characters. There is such empathy for every one of them, which became ever more clear after reading the afterword.

A chilling masterpiece with so many underlying horrors, that surprisingly I rated it a 5 star. It was so brilliantly written I could not underrate such a talented author. With it being such a dark literary fiction, I did not want to be intrigued so deeply. You do not want to miss it if you are a thriller fan.
A boarded house at the end Of Needless Street is sure to get your attention. Those creepy woods.....

Pay close attention and Capture every detail of the descriptive views into these characters, a girl not allowed outside the house, a house cat's point of view, a secluded man with a loss of memory and they each share a secret. I was wowed by the insight of the characters. At first, I didn't realize what was happening and can't even elaborate without giving it away.

I'm still weighing all the hints and clues along the way and reading it a second time is in the near future. You will not be able to figure this one out. Clever, Catriona Ward and good job!
Thank you, NetGalley and Macmillan-Tor/Forge for this incredible ARC in exchange for my honest review.

As a psychologist, I won’t comment on the psychology of this book. As a reader, I will say that this is a thrilling, twisty ride. What starts out, apparently clear-cut, quickly becomes complex and multilayered. I was impressed by how deftly the author wove these elements together. To say any more could spoil the surprises in store for the reader of this compelling page-turner.

At first, I was very confused by what was happening. By the time I figured everything out, I was very sad. This book was an emotional roller coaster.

I really can’t say much more without giving too much away, but I do recommend this book.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a free copy of this ebook in exchange for an unbiased review.

At first, this was a perplexing read. The narrative seemed super disjointed and when I realized a religious cat was one of the narrators, I was ready to give up. However, because I had read many positive reviews of this book, I persisted. The narrative remained disjointed, but instead of being a source of frustration, the fractured pieces of plot became an interesting puzzle that I needed to solve. Even when the pieces started falling into place for me, I was compelled to continue reading because each chapter seemed to shed new light on situations, making me rethink what I thought I knew. It was very hard to read through some of the more traumatic moments of the plot, but I understand those were necessary to understanding the pain and suffering of the characters in the book. I didn’t know that I’d want to reread the book, necessarily, because experiencing that vicarious pain was intense. However, the plot was really original and satisfying. Also, to my surprise, I grew to really love that cat narrator!

It is 3am. I am trying not to cry. I feel as if I can’t breathe properly. This book is no doubt going to my top favorites.

Ever.

DEEPLY atmospheric and will leave your mind going 100 miles an hour. I absolutely loved it and will likely never forget this book. It was truly amazing....

Despite the fact due to recent events in my own life, I knew what was going in right away.

This book was such a surprise to me in the way that the various points of view come together at the end of the novel. Overall the theme of the novel is about extreme abuse and neglect and how we deal with unimaginable horrors in our youth and as we get older.

This book is written from various view points and goes into how our main character dealt with extreme forms of abuse as they grew up. It was such a creative and horrifying story of severe abuse to read, I found myself not able to put it down! By the end I was feeling so emotionally attached to our main character. Such a well written and original story!

Thank you so much for the arc of this book!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

This is the story of a serial killer. A stolen child. Revenge. Death. And an ordinary house at the end of an ordinary street.

All these things are true. And yet they are all lies...

You think you know what's inside the last house on Needless Street. You think you've read this story before. That's where you're wrong.

In the dark forest at the end of Needless Street, lies something buried. But it's not what you think...


OMG! This is going to be frustrating
because I really can't give a review without spoilers! I will say it was the most impressive book I've read this year hands down. A new modern classic. The writing style echoes Shirley Jackson, but has its own unique voice. It's horror/gothic/thriller and so much more. I only wish I could give it more stars than 5 stars. Can not wait to purchase my own copy

In a decrepit house on a dead end street, behind boarded up windows near a dark wood lives a family.

The man loses time, finding himself standing over and over again in front of his neighbors house, trying not to remember his past. The girl can’t go outside without the man, and rides her pink bicycle up and down, up and down the halls of the house. And the cat watches her lover (a very pretty tabby) out the peephole in the window, hoping one day the tabby will look back.

Meanwhile, Little Girl With Popsicle’s sister has moved next door, convinced she’ll discover the answer to the mysteries behind her sister’s disappearance. And she has her eye on the family.

This book was dark in all the right ways. Little Girl With Popsicle went missing under mysterious circumstances from a nearby lake eleven years ago. The police arrived at Ted’s doorstep to search the house. So the question is, is Ted a perpetrator of a crime, or is he just in the wrong place at the wrong time?

It took a long time for me to figure out which direction this book was heading! I really thought I knew the answer to the mystery (because it felt so obvious)! But, I was pleasantly surprised at the end. This was one of those books that felt like it could ended 50 pages before it did. Luckily, it was a good thing it didn’t. The ending really made this book for me.

I loved the different narrators in this book, especially Olivia the cat. She did feel very cat like to me, all things considered. I especially liked her observations about brouhahas (or dogs).

Altogether a very twisty turney thriller/horror novel. I very much enjoyed it, and would recommend it to anyone who wants to be at least a little surprised at the end of the book (wow, was I surprised about Dee's ending!).

First time I am out of words! Anything I may write about this book will be so worthless! None of the words come out my mouth, letters I click, sentences o try to form or expressions I barely articulate will never be enough to reflect how I feel!

I’m extremely flabbergasted, shocked, startled! And for the first time after I finish a horror- thriller- gothic- psychological thriller-mystery ( the good dances between all those genres) I deeply feel soooo sad! I deeply cared for characters!

If I tell you more, I may give away more about the story! So I’m just shutting my mouth because I don’t want to do anything affecting how you’ll feel about this book and I don’t want to ruin your epic reading experience!

I can only see this book truly exceeded my expectations and it’s extraordinary work!
It’s not only a serial killer story! It’s not only about a cat recites the Bible perfectly! It’s not only about a girl who is adamant to find the killer who hurt her sister! Or is not about a wild child she needs to be trapped in the house to protect herself from the violence of the outside ( or the outer world should be the one to get protected from her)! And it’s not about bulky, introvert, outcast man who wears same clothes, dealing with her wild daughter and sarcastic cat who hates crime thriller shows on TV, trying to blend in but hardly failing.

This book is so much more than these! Just read it and prepare to get shaken to the core! You may start to pick up the pieces in the middle about the big mystery but trust me it’s even bigger and uglier than you may hardly imagine.

I have to say this is so different from the horror books I’ve recently read and it’s one of the unique and original works of the year I highly recommend you to give a shot!

Millions of thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan / Tor-Forge for sharing this incredible digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest opinions.

A dark story of murder and revenge? A supernatural thriller? I mean, it's endorsed by Stephen King, so that's a helluva introduction. And then, not to be shallow, but that cover is fantastic.

'The Last House on Needless Street' has it all...death and madness, humor and sadness, and perhaps even a sprinkling of redemption.

The prose and characterization are top notch. A page turner for sure.

Well worth the time investment.

This psychological horror novel is about a missing girl and the big sister who tries to find her. It’s a book about a whole lot more, too.

PROS:
The feelings of the characters are so deep (even when the feelings are hidden, which only makes sense when you read the story) that they drill through the book and into your head and leave you reeling.

Another thing Ward does so skillfully is write distinctive voices for each character. I could tell immediately whose head we were in without looking at the chapter titles. (Each chapter titles says whose point of view it is). I particularly liked Olivia’s voice. She is aloof and yet grounded at the same time, like a fussy, fastidious feline.

I can tell Ward did a lot of research for this book. The psychological horror aspect felt true-to-life.

I especially liked the sprinkles of clues throughout the book. The ending was unpredictable yet not a surprise because of all the clues. The ending was perfect!

CONS:
You have to read this book with enough patience to think, “That doesn’t make sense, but I’m sure it’ll make sense later.” I found passages like that intriguing, but I’m sure some readers will be frustrated.

OVERALL:
I’m thrilled to have received this book through NetGalley. Five big stars!

Gothic horror with terrifying atmosphere, creepy characters, and unreliable narrators, but where the real horror is abuse and a legacy of trauma. A great modern interpretation of the genre.

When I first started reading, the style seemed a little disjointed and I wasn't sure that I would enjoy it; boy was I mistaken. This was such a gripping novel full of twists and turns. Each narrative perspective was well defined and had their own individual personality - the jumps between characters may not be for everyone but I felt that they were well defined and quite easily distinguished. By the time I reached the midway point of the story there was a twist I hadn't expected, or a piece of information revealed in each chapter that sucked me further in. It's a wonderfully written and surprisingly tragic story that is so much less straightforward than it presents itself to be. I thoroughly enjoyed The Last House on Needless Street and I'll certainly be picking up Catriona Ward's other works.

Dee's sister, Lulu, has been missing for years. Haunted by her disappearance, Dee moves in next to Ted Bannerman, the reclusive drinker she suspects of taking Lulu.

Meanwhile, Ted is concerned with his daughter's behavior issues, and his cat just wants to read the Bible.

The above description tells you enough to get started with this story. But to say it's the tip of the iceberg is an understatement. Spoilers are tough to avoid with this novel.

In The Last House on Needless Street, Catriona Ward has written a gripping tale of gothic horror, where every turn of the page reveals a twist that even the most jaded reader won't be expecting.

I started out wondering what had happened to Lulu, but as the story progressed, I found myself wonering the same about every character.

Highly recommended for horror and thriller fans.

This is perhaps one of the strangest books I've come across. I mean one of the points of view was by a cat!

This book is a very fast read, I sit down on Saturday afternoon and finished it before I went to bed that night. I see this book being very well received among horror fans. The writing was very good, Catriona Ward is a great writer. It had a big twist that I didn't see coming. Overall I wouldn't say this is a bad story, it just wasn't for me.

It's so difficult to describe my thoughts about this book without giving anything away. This is a story about survival and how powerful the mind is.

Many thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and Catriona Ward for the advanced readers' copy in exchange for an honest review.