Lisa Jewell never disappoints. First, I will say that you need to read The Family Upstairs before you read this book.. That should not be a problem because I thought the family upstairs was fantastic! Right from the get go in that book you are thrown into intrigue and mystery and a dark gothic setting.... I'm here for that. There's nothing more that I like than a dark gothic setting. You get a vacant house that has sat empty for many years, never been touched since the owners were found dead. A young lady with a past she cannot remember much about who lives on a fixed income and has now inherited this gigantic creepy house. Plus a whole group of other characters related to death of the Mother and Father. I cant say more or it will spoil he story!
Being that this is like a companion novel, I wont give anything away from either book but if you enjoyed The Family Upstairs pick this up and dive in for another excellent read!

4.5 stars

The Family Remains by Lisa Jewell is a psychological thriller, and apparently the sequel to The Family Upstairs (which was written 3 years before this, although only a year has passed in the book).

First, let me thank NetGalley, the publisher Atria Books and of course the author, for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.


Series Background:    (Warning – May contain spoilers from previous books)
Libby Jones was adopted when she was a baby.  She had been found in a house in London, the bodies of 3 people dead from an apparent suicide pact.  The other children that lived there, vanished into thin air.  When she was 25 she inherited the house in London.  She also discovered that her real name is Serenity Lamb, and she has family.  A year has now passed, and she has sold the Chelsea mansion

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My Synopsis:    (No major reveals, but if concerned, skip to My Opinions)
The skeletal remains of a woman are found on the shore of the River Thames, and DCI Samuel Owusu is determined to find the killer.   He locates where the bones originated, and realizes that they are linked to the strange deaths of 3 people (Martina and Henry Lamb, and David Thomsen), and the missing children (Henry Lamb Jr, Lucy Lamb, and Phin Thomsen) of the house in a Chelsea mansion.

Rachel Gold has been separated from her abusive husband Michael for a while, but he still haunts her life.  He also haunts the life of Lucy Lamb.

Lucy has had a rough life, often living on the streets, but things are about to finally change.  Right now though, she and her children are living with her brother Henry.

Henry, too, is haunted.  He is haunted by his love for a boy named Phin.  When Henry takes off in search of Phin, Lucy and the children follow.


My Opinions:
First, a sequel was a surprise, and the fact that I barely remembered the first book worried me for a bit....until I started reading this.  It could be a stand-alone novel, because everything from the first book (The Family Upstairs), was explained perfectly.  Kudos to the author!

However, I did start remembering things from the first book, that helped me navigate this story a little better, so I do still recommend you read the first (which I may re-read sometime soon).

The first book centered mainly on Libby, who inherited a house and family of which she had known nothing.  This book centered on that family, and it was really good.   The characters are so interesting!   I loved the detective!  It took a bit to figure out how Rachel fit in, but that was a really good addition to the novel.  Henry is still a bit of an enigma.

I think my only complaint was the amount of time between the first book and this one!

Anyway, I highly recommend this book (but really, you will be happier if you read the first book)

I loved The Family Upstairs but I don't think it needed a sequel and this book would be boring if read as a standalone. It rehashes the childhood events of Henry and Lucy without going into too much detail, but through the eyes of a police investigator after bones are found in a river. I still enjoyed the book as it was well written, but the only new info we got was the perspective of Michael's wife Rachel, which was interesting.

Having read The Family Upstairs last year I was so excited to hear there was going to be a sequel.

Lisa Jewell did not disappoint, I have to say I didn't know know how she would top The Family Upstairs but she did and it is brilliant.

Full of twists and turns, moments than make you question your own sanity and a range of emotions that goes from jubilant to horrified this book literally has it all.

If you're looking for a book that will make you hear every bump in the night and squeaky floorboard in a different much more sinister way this is it.

I cant remember the last time I had to remind myself it's just a book but this one did it.

As twisted a story as this one is I have to say it's amazing and will push your mind to the limits considering what you'd do to protect yourself and the people you love weather they deserve it or not.

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for an ARC copy of The Family Remains. I LOVED the quick pace at which this book began. And then with the introduction of the newest character, Rachel, I was hooked! With that being said, the book did drag toward the middle, and the ending was more simplistic that I would have liked. Overall, it was a gripping read and was satisfying to hear what happened to the family after The Family Upstairs ends. * Note: Goodreads describes this book as a “standalone sequel,” but you really have to read the first book to understand all of the nuanced details from book one.

The Family Remains is best read as a sequel - it is promoted as a stand alone and I guess that would work however I really don't think the book would be as satisfying if it was read alone.
This book was an easy to read-interesting-twisty read. I really enjoyed it and would recommend it.
Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for the ARC.

As a sequel to The Family Upstairs, which was a creepy, dense thriller, this one picks up some time later with the children who survived what happened in that house all those years ago. The Family Remains is every bit as creepy, solid and well done!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for this ARC!

I tend to have a love hate relationship with Lisa Jewell. The book started off promising but then started to go downhill a bit. I got confused by what was happening.

DNF at 15%, I didn't realize that it was a sequel and I have not read the first... and I'm lost. I enjoyed the writing style and was intrigued but I would prefer to read 'The Family Upstairs' first. It says it is a sequel/stand alone and I probably would have enjoyed the entirety but I think I would like it even more after I read the first.

Lisa Jewell was one of the first thriller authors to get me back into reading a few years ago and I'm always excited for what she comes up with next. Let me start off this review with a suggestion: This is in fact a sequel to THE FAMILY UPSTAIRS... read that one or reread it before diving into THE FAMILY REMAINS. It was three years since I read the original story and my memory definitely failed me as I began this book. I vaguely remembered the characters but the storyline was very confusing because of how little I could remember. This story felt a touch too long, especially the first half where very little substance was occurring. There were times where the timeline would become confusing and a little questionable on how it would all come together. I am happy to say that the ending gave clarity, it was just a long process to get there. Sadly this one won't go down as one of my favorites by Lisa, but I think if you remain the first book right before picking up this one you'll have a better time with it.

Read this if you like: Multiple POV, short chapters, dysfunctional families

This was one of my most anticipated books of the year. It definitely didn't disappoint!

We start out with the small bones of a dead body found on a shore. DCI Samuel Owusu is called to the scene. When hw sends the evidence for examination, he learns the bones are connected to a cold case that left three people dead on the kitchen floor in a Chelsea mansion thirty years ago.

The kids/teens from the first book are grown now. After fleeing London thirty years ago in the wake of the tragedy, Lucy Lamb is finally coming home. While she settles in with her children and is just about to purchase their first-ever house, her brother takes off to find the boy from their past.

Rachel Rimmer has also received shockiny news that her husband, Michael, has been found dead in the cellar of his house in France. All signs point to an intruder, and the French police need her to come urgently to answer questions about Michael and his past that she very much doesn’t want to answer. Her storyline is what held me the most. I could not look away. Wow.

This is exactly what I expected from this book. Twisty, crazy, all over the place (in a good way). You keep thinking you know everything but you do not. Such creepy vibes in this book. There are a couple characters that just make my skin crawl.

This is being called a standalone sequel. I'm going to have to disagree. It does a good job of reminding you of stuff from the first book but I do believe it's needed to be read to get the full picture. Pick this up on the 9th! Highly recommend this book!

Thank you for NetGalley, the author, and William Morrow for the gifted book! ❤️

An amazing stand-alone/sequel to The Family Upstairs with just enough backstory to refresh your memory.

While I really enjoyed revisiting the characters from The Family Upstairs, I found this sequel to be slow and uneventful. It more fully developed the characters from the first book but the thin plotline barely held my interest to the final, predictable conclusion. I usually love Lisa Jewel's books but this one didn't do it for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for an advanced reader copy.

Thank you Atria Books and NetGalley for the ARC of The Family Remains by Lisa Jewell. I didn't even make the connection that this was a sequel until I started reading. Thankfully, I have read The Family Upstairs but did go back and get a refresher since I read it over 2 years ago. I love how this goes back and explains some of the missing pieces from the first book and ties in Rachel's and Michael's story. Jewell is a master story teller and I read this in less than 24 hours. I had to know what happened! Henry is always going to be a wildcard and the ending leaves it so the story can be continued if she decides she wants to. I would love to see more of this complicated family's story and how they move on with their lives.

Excuse me for this review because I was so excited to read 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐲 𝐑𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬, but, I gotta tell ya, I didn’t think it was ever going to end. Things were wrapped up, all the t’s were crossed and all the i’s were dotted, which I appreciated, but it took forever! Before you go into this one, be forewarned that you need to have a lot of time on your hands.

Happy to include this title in the August instalment of Novel Encounters, my regular column highlighting the month’s most anticipated fiction for the Books section of Zoomer magazine. (see review at link)

i love lisa jewell and this book did not disappoint. it was a really well done sequel, though i admit i didn't love it *as much* as the first, it was just... less impactful, less. still good and still recommend!

Lisa most defiantly had a lot left to say about the now grown occupants of 16 Cheyne walk. One thing I think about this book is considered a stand alone sequel that alone is confusing and I kind of disagree with. While I don’t think it’s necessary to go re read the family upstairs to refresh your memory as the book does contain reminders there is a lot of characterization and backstory that would he missing here if you jumped straight into this book. If I hadn’t k own about the things that happened in that haunted mansion that invaded by parasites who act like cult members, you find yourself left in the dark. This book wasn’t really a mystery it was more so a closure of the characters. It was written perfectly In my opinion I really enjoyed it and after reading it can say I needed that!

I love Lisa Jewell books, but this one didn't "hit" for me. It was an interesting thriller but I found the storylines and character jumping to be a bit confusing and difficult to get into.

I loved this book! I think the advertising is a little misleading in saying it’s a standalone sequel. I wouldn’t known what was going on or have cared about the characters if I hadn’t read the first book. Since I did read the first book, I thought it was a great follow-up.