Slow clap and standing ovation for Lisa Jewell. Every book she releases I wonder how she will top the last, yet she does. This was a sequel to "The Family Upstairs" which I loved and reviewed back in 2019. This can also be read as a standalone. If you are reading in as a sequel I suggest re-reading the first book to brush up on the events and characters if it's been awhile.



I will try to review this without giving anything away. This follows the lives of The Lamb children all grown up. Both Lucy and Henry have come into money thanks to baby Libby now coming of age and inheriting the fortune. They want to get on with their lives but a shared person from their past causes chaos and disrupts the lives of everyone.



A new character, Rachel, is introduced in alternating chapters and in a past timeline. Her story was very interesting to me and although I did really enjoy her plotline I kept wondering how she fit in with the cult mansion and the Lamb family.



This book is broken into five different parts and really kept me reading. Once again Jewell knows when to throw in some twists and keep the reader on their toes. The characters were relatable in some ways and yet infuriating in others. It was fun to see the setting change to America in this book and as an American I felt that the author did a great job setting all the scenes and getting the right feel for a large American city.



The ending was heartwarming and a bit surprising, seeing as how I have never felt teary-eyed from a Lisa Jewell novel. Then in true fashion the epilogue was a dark twist that left me shaking my head and smiling because, of course! Of course Jewell would end a book like that...



Thanks to Netgalley and Atria books for allowing me an advanced digital copy to read and give my honest review. It was a five star read!



"The Family Remains" is set to be released here in the U.S. tomorrow, August 9, 2022 so preorder now so you are ready to read asap!



Happy Reading!

Solid sequel to the first book ,The Family Upstairs, which I enjoyed. Changing POV was a little difficult to follow at times but did not distract from the story. I think that fans of Ms. Jewell's first book will be pleased.

Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an ARC of The Family Remains!

I read The Family Upstairs when it first came out and when I saw there was a sequel, I was surprised because I thought the first book was a complete story. I was pleasantly surprised by this book. It was a fun read but I really had to suspend disbelief in the last part of the book for parts. It was a fun, physiological read that i will definitely recommend to others.

4.5 Stars

I'm thrilled to say that I loved this book; it's marvelous! I'm a huge fan of Lisa Jewell's, but this is the first of her books that I've rated higher than 4 stars, so yay! Since I wasn't a huge fan of The Family Upstairs, of which this book is the follow-up, I'm overjoyed.

There are several storylines and POVs but they do all tie in together and Jewell does a superb job entwining them to give a better idea of what happened in the house of horrors on Cheyenne Walk in The House Upstairs and after they escaped, as well as giving much-needed closure to these characters' lives.

It's been a year since Libby found her birth mom Lucy Lamb and her uncle Henry, along with her two half-siblings Marco and Stella, and all of them have reconnected and started to build a relationship. Everything seems to be going well: Lucy is living with Henry but has found a house to buy for her and her kids, the first home of their own they've ever had; Libby is engaged; Henry, well is Henry. It seems that Henry and Lucy are doing well, thriving actually, after the traumatic, abusive childhood they experienced and escaped from in the previous book.

But there's always more fall-out from trauma and situations like they experienced. Because when they track down Phin, who along with Libby and Henry grew up in the cultish house of horrors, and make plans to visit him, things quickly go off the rails--Phin disappears, Henry, who is obsessed with Phin goes after him and blocks Lucy from calling/texting, so Lucy has to do what she can to find either Henry or Phin.

In the meantime, decades old human remains have been found and traced back to the house of Cheyenne Walk. The house Libby just inherited and where Lucy, Henry, and Phin grew up. Now they're wanted for questioning in a murder. Another murder has taken place in France and Rachel Rimmer, a new character, tells in flashbacks how she met her husband Michael, who also happens to be Lucy’s ex-husband and Marco’s father.

There's a lot going on in this book, but I promise it's not overdone. The writing is outstanding from start to finish and it's an engrossing read. I will say that I don't think this is a good standalone because you really want to know what happened to Lucy, Phin, Libby, and Henry and even though I had read The Family Upstairs, I still had to go back and refresh my memory while reading this!

This is also a bit of a mixed bag as far as genres go: it's not just a thriller but it's also a bit of family drama, suspense, mystery, and police/crime procedural at different points in the story. I enjoyed that it was different throughout but just be aware that it's not a straight-up thriller!

I definitely recommend The Family Remains and think if you're a fan of Lisa Jewell's books you'll love it! It publishes on August 9, 2022, so make sure and grab a copy!

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC copy in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

-review posted to Goodreads and Twitter on 8/8/22
-review will be posted to Amazon and Barnes & Noble on publication

The Family Remains is a follow up to the book The Family Upstairs. I had not read the first book, so I was a bit concerned going in. I didn’t have a problem following along, but it did take a few chapters to grasp the characters. I can see how reading the first book would have added to the story, and a readers investment in what each of these characters had gone through previously.
This one did keep me interested until the end. I did however feel that a couple of things were improbable-especially with Henry’s character. Did it stop me from reading? Definitely not.

My overall thoughts are that this is an entertaining thriller, and though considered a stand -alone I think it would enhance the story to read The Family Upstairs first. It would definitely give a more in depth look at the characters and their struggles. Doing that would also make the reader more invested at the beginning of this book.. Still an engaging read. You don’t have to read book one, but I personally would recommend doing so before picking this one up.
3.5/5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫


I received an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley for an advance e-reader copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The Family Remains is a sequel to The Family Upstairs, and is meant to tie up the loose ends of what happened to the characters who made it out alive from that previous story. This novel succeeds in doing so, but I disliked most of the characters and was glad when the novel ended. The narrative was choppy and most of the characters fairly one-sided. Not one of my favorites by Lisa Jewell. Three stars.

I really enjoyed the first book The Family Upstairs - I am a sucker for anything that is cultish. But you could tell at the end of book 1 their story was not over....so when The Family Remains was announced I couldn't wait to read it! This book was even better that the first - I do always enjoy Jewell's books! Center around the discovery of human remains found in the river connects to the House in London and a crime that happened over 25 years ago. This book was full of twists and drama! Absolutely loved it and highly recommend

Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this digital ARC

Thank you @atriabooks and @netgalley for my advance copy! I think the neighbors thought I was being murdered with my scream!

What can I say that has not been said yet. We all know @lisajewelluk is a literary genius. So surprise surprise this is the best sequel ever done. It wrapped everything up with such precision that there are not questions/guesses left. Every single character has an ending and I loved that! If you have not read The Family Upstairs then this may be a bit hard to follow but, Lisa does a wonderful job of refreshing your memory throughout the novel.

I don’t want to give anything away for those who haven’t read it yet and are going too. It is fast paced, the characters are perfectly written and keeps you engaged. I read it so fast I did not even notice until it was over.

I have to start by saying that if you haven’t read the first book in this series, The Family Upstairs stop reading this now. You have to read these in order and this one picks up right after the ending of TFU. But if you’re like me and loved the first book and have been waiting impatiently for this one you’re gonna be happy because LJ delivered with another intricate, well crafted and gripping mystery. I really don’t even want to say much about the plot, most of the fun is in discovering it yourself but if you’re a fan of the author this was excellent and if you’re new to LJ this series is such a great place to start.

Good Drama!

3.25 stars

The Family Remainsis a domestic drama/mystery/thriller about found remains and the connection to a notorious crime scene from 30 years ago.

This is the sequel to The Family Upstairs , but you don’t have to read The Family Upstairs (which I barely remember) to enjoy The Family Remains.

There are several POVs and many mysteries to resolve, including the detective trying to solve the case, Rachel; a recently married jewelry designer, Lucy Lamb; who fled London 30 years ago; and her creepy brother, Henry, who, to put it mildly, has some issues. I found the mystery behind the remains intriguing, but the storyline that interested me the most was that of Rachel and her husband, Michael.

Lisa Jewell always writes page-turners, and this book was no exception. Having not loved The Family Upstairs , I went into this book with zero expectations. For this reason, I enjoyed it more than the first book. However, for me, it was lacking in terms of being a suspenseful, tense thriller. The Family Remains is probably a book I won't remember, but it has some fun twists and turns and scores high on the entertainment scale.

There are two things I know:

1. I have 0 recollection of reading The Family Upstairs, and

2. According to Goodreads, I was not a fan (2⭐️).

Having this information, it only made sense for me to ask for the ARC of this sequel. 🙄🙄🙄

The truth is that I'm a Lisa Jewell fan. I've read Then She Was Gone, Invisible Girl, and The Night She Disappeared and really enjoyed them all (4⭐️). So, I was hopeful for a better turnout on this one, but this story is just not for me.

Maybe it's because at 454 characters, I have no idea WHO. ANYONE. IS. Or, it could be the 43 timelines that require me to think and we all know how that goes. I don't know. I just didn't like it.

There were some interesting storylines, but there were others that were just dull. I also found the book to be a little long, and was rushing to get through things at the end.

In looking at GR's reviews, my opinion is certainly the unpopular one and my thoughts are my own.

I will continue to read all of Lisa Jewell's books as with many authors, you like some stories more than others.

Thank you Netgalley and Atria Books for the ARC.

Devoured this exciting sequel to The Family Upstairs! The suspense just keeps building till you know you are not putting the book down any time soon. It's a front row seat into the effects and even perseverances of the childhood trauma endured by the Lamb children. If you liked The Family Upstairs you must read this! I do not think it would have the same effect as a stand-alone novel. While I do think some elements are a bit modern and shocking it does seem to fit in this instance. Jewell had me wanting a trilogy!! Definitely recommend. #netgalley #goodreads #thefamilyremains #lisajewell

4.5 stars / This review will be posted on goodreads.com today.


I was really excited to see a follow up to The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewell. There were so many loose endings in the first novel. It was great to see some of those cleared up in the second. New characters too. But whether you’ve read The Family Upstairs or not, you can enjoy this one.

This novel picks up with a bag of bones being found on the banks of the Thames. After forensics are complete, it turns out the bones are that of a young woman, Birdie Dunlop-Evers. Birdie was reported missing by her family many years prior. Now just her bones have turned up. It is up to DI Samuel Owusu to determine what happened to this woman that she ended up in a river.

One year earlier, Rachel Rimmer answers the phone to find out that her husband Michael has been found dead in his house in Antibes. Rachel does not seem to be shaken by this news in any way.

One year later, we find Henry Lamb living under a pseudonym in London. He is now 42 years old and rather successful. He is also very much in love with Phineas Thomsen, another member of the house of horrors that they grew up in. Phineas is apparently a gamekeeper in Botswana.

Lucy, also living under a pseudonym, and her two children, Marco & Stella, have moved in with Henry, because they were destitute in France. Lucy has found her daughter Libby - by Phineas Thomsen - formerly known as Serenity, who is now an adult. Libby lives in St Albans, and Lucy longs to purchase a house near Libby. Because now that Libby has turned 25, she has inherited the house on Cheyne Walk, which was sold for a princely sum. The money has been divided between Libby, Lucy and Henry.

But then the novel moves backward to when Rachel first met Michael, and tends to jump through timelines as we progress.

It is quite a story of how each of them ended up where they are now, and how all their stories tie together. Rachel and Lucy. Henry and Phin. Libby and her partner Miller. DI Osuwu’s investigation into Birdie’s death. It almost makes me imagine the wall of sticky notes and string running between them. Jewell is kind enough to share a family tree of sorts at the beginning of the novel, so that you can try to keep the pieces straight.

Or rather than keep the pieces straight, just enough this crazy ride through time and space as we figure out what has happened in the thirty plus years since the children escaped the grasp of the con-man David Thomsen at the house on Cheyne Walk. It is only from the mind of a masterful writer such as Jewell that a story like this can make any sense. She delivers each piece of the puzzle perfectly placed. The novel is an incredible tale of survival for these former children.

I honestly can’t recommend this book more than I have. It is incredible, and even though it can be read standalone, reading the first novel will give you far more insight into the horrific conditions that these characters endured during their childhoods at Cheyne Walk.

I love Lisa Jewell, but this one was somewhat hard to follow for me. The characters all ran together and there was really no parallel from the first in the series.

I love Lisa Jewell but this was a bit of a miss for me. To be fair- I didn't realize it was a sequel. I read first book back when it was released, but I didn't remember it at all and although Jewell says that reading "The Family Upstairs" first isn't necessary, I found myself super confused at times. I also found the plot dragged at times and I didn't find the ending as satisfying and thrilling as I normally do when I read Jewell's titles. I would definitely recommend reading "The Family Upstairs" first, as I think if I had remembered more details, it would have made a big difference in my experience reading this novel!

A compelling, ominous and disturbing sequel to the incredibly dark and intense book, The Family Upstairs, that we all wanted but with a plot we did not see coming.

Thank you Netgalley and Atria Books for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

A whole year after the disastrous events that occurred in The Family Upstairs, a bag of bones surfaces on the shore of the Thames. DI Samuel Owusu is assigned the case and begins investigating into the happenings of the bag. It is quickly traced to the cold case that happened at 16 Cheyne Walk, leaving 3 people dead. The hunt for answers begins...

Running from London and the tragedies that took place thirty years ago, Lucy never imagined that she would be coming back to face it head on. As Lucy is set to purchase her house for her and her two teenage children, her brother runs off in a frantic search for the boy from their past to finally get answers; forced to resurface the trauma and tragedy that took place in her once family home alongside the remaining family.

Meanwhile, Rachel Rimmer receives news that her husband, Michael, has been found dead in his home in France. Police need her to come to France to answer inevitable questions about Michael and his past. The questions won't be easy to answer as Rachel so desperately would like to leave the past in the past.

With three stories set in one, you can expect fates to twist, plots to thicken and a whole lot of dark family drama.

If you enjoyed The Family Upstairs and did not find the conclusions you were looking for, read this sequel as a book of answers less than a mystery/thriller. It filled my chest with angst and chilled my bones to the core as the truth came out. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 - Lisa Jewell does it again!

The Family Remains by Lisa Jewell: what the actual F did I just read!? Insert me saying "WTF" multiple times the last 20% of this thriller (and yes, I'm calling this one a thriller)!

How can I fall in love with a character I just met (Rachel Rimmer), cast questionable glances at one that I loved previously (Henry Lamb) and want to crawl into the mind of another (DC Samuel Owusu)? How can a book take me on an incredible WTF ride, then make me happy at the outcome? The answer: Jewell's brilliant writing, of course.

This book brought up so many "nature vs. nurture" thoughts and it made me think about how the environment one is raised in affects their (skewed) view on society. It also made me wonder what exactly goes on inside Jewell's mind to come up with a story of this caliber. I finished this book, read the acknowledgements, wrote down some thoughts, then scoured the internet for more information. This is how I know it's a phenomenal novel: when I want to know the WHY behind it, and know it now. Please.

(I feel compelled to share that Jewell has found some thrillers to fizzle out after the big reveal has been made. This is also something that I have found with some thrillers, and I think maybe this is why her books, but specifically the endings of her books, work SO well for me. I also found out that she did not have this sequel in mind while writing The Family Upstairs, this makes this book even more mind-blowing to me: that she created this second story without forethought. Finally, although I didn't have any loose ends after the ending of The Family Upstairs, apparently many fans did, and Jewell wrote this book in response to that out-crying. It's amazing when an author accommodates the reader in this way. But even more so when the sequel surpasses the original.)

You know when you just *know* something is going to happen, and you feel SO smart that you figured out the twist, but then that twist didn't happen, and the reverse was actually the twist... that was me. There I was, finger pointing, so sure of myself, and my detective skills... only to be dumbfounded. I feel like I want to call this a reverse twist. Of course the real word for it: BRILLIANT!

This book is a standalone sequel to The Family Upstairs. Although I know this book would be amazing without having read the first one, I highly recommend the utter mind blown-ness that happens if you read them both; the small idiosyncrasies that you can pick up on after having the knowledge the first book delivers, is the way to do it. And honestly, reading them back to back was something I'd do over again in a heart beat.

I think it's safe to say that Lisa Jewell is not only an auto-buy author for me, but one of my favourite authors. I can't wait to play some more catch up with her backlist, but to now also, not-so-patiently wait for her next book!

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for the complimentary copy to read and review.

Absolutely phenomenal! Better than the first book! Lisa Jewell has masterfully plotted a story that grips you, pulls you in, and doesn't let go. I loved the Family Upstairs, and this wraps up all the loose ends AND gives you even more story to ponder throughout. This book kept me guessing until the very end and I loved every minute of it.
This story is told from multiple POVs, yet it's done so well that it doesn't get confusing at all. There are time jumps back and forth, yet again, done so well that there is no confusion, only building suspense!
I would HIGHLY recommended this duology to anyone, mystery lover or not. There truly is something universal about the raw emotions in this story. 5/5 star read!

I love love love Lisa Jewell! So much so that when I get her books I don’t read the descriptions! I go in blind knowing she will give me a five plus star thriller! But this time she surprised me!!! The Family Remains is the follow up novel to one of my favs (ok all her books are my fav) The Family Upstairs…. So please hit pause and go read that one if you haven’t before you read The Family Remains!
This book was amazing! I devoured it in a couple days and then hated myself because I read to fast! Must read!!!

In London, Lucy and Henry are siblings who share a horrible childhood. But they are now grown up and recently received trust funds from their deceased parents. When a man from their troubled past resurfaces, the siblings are forced to dissect The Family Remains. Meanwhile, Lucy’s abusive ex is found murdered.

The Family Remains is a sequel to the bestselling The Family Upstairs, which I read three years ago when it originally came out. While marketed as a standalone sequel, this book really isn’t. The complex family relationships were defined in the earlier book and only briefly described here. I would highly recommend reading the books in order (or rereading your notes if you read the first one a while ago).

While there is a bag of human bones found on a beach, The Family Remains is really a character study of one seriously messed up family. I’m not sure it will appeal to mystery or thriller fans. However, if you want additional closure from the rather open-ended conclusion of its preceding book, this book will totally satisfy that need. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4 stars!

Thanks to Atria Books and NetGalley for a digital review copy of the book.