I bumped this book up to the top of my To Be Read list because it was John Marrs. I've enjoyed all of his books that I have read so far, particularly enjoying his latest forays into the world of speculative fiction. Despite that, unfortunately this one just didn't hit the mark for me.

Mia and her partner, Finn are moving into a fixer upper, the perfect place to raise their new baby that is due in the next few months. Mia's relationship with Finn's mum, Debbie, has always been strained but despite that they are all living together while Finn and his Dad work on their new home. During the renovations they make a grisly and traumatic discovery and find that sometimes evil lurks too close for comfort.

The premise was a really good one, and there were numerous twists and turns along the way that kept the reader engaged despite the bleak subject matter . However, for me the characters lacked the depth needed to allow me to engage with the subject matter. There were a lot of themes to contend with including generational trauma, child abuse and murder, postnatal depression and terminal illness and it felt as though the characters experiences only skimmed the surface leaving the situations the characters were facing feeling like plot devices.

Overall this was a quick and engaging read, that did have some surprises along the way but the characters and the storyline just didn't ring true to me.

Mia and Finn have brought a house it’s a bit spooky and needs to be fixed up which they hope will turn into their dream house and Mia finds herself unexpectedly pregnant and while the building renovation is underway Mia finds a message written into the skirting boards I Will Save Them From The Attic but when Mia starts investigating it the couple starts to uncover something truly horrific they make a gruesome discovery that their dream home was once a house of horrors in the wake of their traumatic discovery Mia is haunted by the terrible things she saw and she is desperate to find answers and her obsession starts to pull her further from Finn
I love how this book starts with a quote from Ted Bundy it was a dark twisted mind blowing chilling read that will keep you on the edge of your seat this nail biting suspense is a definite must read
Thank You NetGalley And Amazon Publishing Uk
I just reviewed Keep It in the Family by John Marrs. #KeepItintheFamily #NetGalley

Keep It in the Family by John Marrs is only the third book that I have read from this author, and I can safely say that I will be adding many, many more. This one pulled me in from the start and did not let go, and I was kept guessing until the very end. Brilliant.

Mia and Finn are in the process of converting a derelict house when Mia unexpectedly finds herself pregnant. As the renovations progress, a shocking and chilling discovery is made in the form of a message that has been carved into a skirting board. Upon investigating their attic, a grisly find reveals the couple's future dream home to be a house of horrors. Decades old secrets will be revealed, and Mia wonders just how close the danger lies in the here and now.

John Marrs is an author who can always be relied upon for a wallop of a read, and once again he delivers the goods. Pick this one up, you will not be disappointed.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Amazon Publishing UK for an ARC.

John Marrs is amazing!!!
What a gripping mystery

This was a very disturbing but good read.

Thoroughly enjoyed from start to finish and could not get enough of.

This is a must read for anyone who enjoys a good thriller!!

This story is nuts. And I mean really nuts.
I’ve read many of the author’s books in the past and I knew what to expect in part from him and the way his stories are told and how they make me feel. But this one stepped to a new level and I loved it!
I’m not saying anything but Read It!


Very grateful to the publisher for my review copy

Wow! I love John Marrs and he just keeps proving how masterful of a storyteller he is. This is definitely one of his darker books but didn't stop me from turning the pages. I will say that I figured out one of the twists pretty early on, but there were many more that surprised me and kept me reading late into the night.

Thanks to NetGalley and John Marrs for an advanced copy.

I love John Marrs. He is one of my two favorite authors. I know he has a following with his sci-fi books, but I really love his domestic thrillers. And this one didn’t disappoint. Already ordered my finished copy.

WARNING! This thriller is extremely dark! I LOVED IT !

Mia and her husband Finn have just bought their dream home its a 'doer upper' but once the renovations begin that's when things get creepy !
Loved all the characters and trying to figure out who was the villain.
A chilling menacing read which I devoured in one sitting.
Mr Marrs does it again !

Wow I don't know how John Marrs does it but his books just get better and better. I thought after reading his last book, how can he top this one but he has. From the first chapter you just want to keep reading. There is no 'give it time to get going' as it hits you from the start. This book has a very dark storyline which is what I like about John's books. I enjoyed the way it switches between the characters and you are just waiting for the next twist.
I won't give away much about the story, all I will say is get the book to the top of your reading list.

Thank you netgalley for letting me review this book, as always a pleasure to read and review a John Marrs book

It should be the best time in Mia and Finn’s lives - they have a much wished for baby on the way and they have just collected the keys to a new family home. Life is good …until they start renovating and discover a hidden message in one of the rooms “I will save them from the attic”. This is followed by a deeply disturbing discovery in the attic and before you know it life will never be the same. Now their new home isn’t a dream home, it’s a house of horrors. But what is the horror isn’t confined to the past? What if it’s much closer than they think?

Nevermind the ancient mysteries of the world, the magician’s secrets or this week’s lottery numbers …. Instead I want to know how EXACTLY how John Marrs does it. Just when you think he can’t top his last brilliant book, he knocks it out of the park.

If you read a lot of thrillers, not only do you start to become suspicious of every character you come across, you also don’t shock easily. That is, until Keep It In The Family, which is the creepiest, most chilling book I have read in a long time, if not ever.

Keep It In The Family should be your next read if you love thrillers, unreliable narrators, unhinged characters, despicable motives, nature vs nurture,twists and spine chilling revelations. All that with clever, enthralling storytelling, compulsive page turning, dark humour and a pitch perfect ending. Once again, John Marrs has nailed it.

Thank you to John Marrs, Amazon Publishing and NetGalley for the opportunity to review an advanced copy of the book.

I went into this book blind, because I know if it's a John Marrs book, it's going to be awesome and I don't even need to know what it's about! This book doesn't have the usual shocking twists that a lot of his other books have (though there ARE definitely lots of surprises throughout the book!), but it may be his darkest one yet. The prologue will immediately grip you and you won't want to put this book down! Another fantastic book by John Marrs!

Everyone needs to be reading John Marrs! I’ll open with that. This is my fifth book by him & I can honestly say he NEVER lets me down.

This one starts as a domestic mystery & then quickly turns into a thriller & quite chilling to say the least. The discovery of the bodies in the attic & what comes after, completely held my attention & I just wanted to read the whole book asap. There’s a plethora of twists & secrets revealed along the way. Some I guessed but I truly wasn’t sure of the solution most of the book & the ending was a fantastic one! Marrs has a uniquely talented way of getting into the messed up minds of people while still making them fully realised characters. There’s so many plot twists you won’t be disappointed. It’s definitely worth a read!

An extremely dark and entertaining thriller by one of my favorite authors!

Mia and her husband, Finn, have just bought a house…site unseen (can anyone say red flag?!). It’s derelict and old, but they intend to fix it up and turn it into their dream home. Over the next few months, they slowly but surely make updates, while Mia finds that she’s unexpectedly pregnant. All is fine and dandy until one day when Mia makes a discovery underneath the old wallpaper in one of the upstairs bedrooms…in a child’s handwriting:

I WILL SAVE THEM FROM THE ATTIC.

What they find in the attic is terrifying and downright macabre.

Now that Mia has given birth to a baby boy, she can’t stop thinking about the crimes that have occurred in her home. But her obsession with it could prove to be deadly.

John Marrs is a phenomenal writer. I’ve loved all of his books, and this is no exception. It’s unputdownable, disturbing, tense, and atmospheric…all the things I love in a dark thriller.

One minor irritation is that I figured out a lot of the twists from the get-go. I can’t even hint as to why I was able to figure them out, because I’m sure other readers would too. However, I was pleasantly surprised by some surprises towards the end that I definitely didn’t see coming.

A twisted and deliciously unnerving read that makes me wonder what else goes on in the mind of Marrs.

Thank you to Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Expected Publication Date: 10/18/22.

Review also posted at: https://bonkersforthebooks.wordpress.com

John Marrs has done it again! His books just get better and better! This is darker than his usual books, but was a great read!

Thank you to NetGalley for an early copy of Keep it in the Family.

I read this twisty, spooky thriller in two days. It definitely kept my attention focused on what was going to happen next. While I enjoyed this author’s previous books more, this one will appeal to horror/thriller fans!

WOW! Okay. I was not expecting all of the emotions I felt while reading this book. I was hooked from the very beginning and couldn't put this one down. This one will likely be a 2022 favorite still at the end of this year. The book opens with a quote from Ted Bundy, which should've clued me in to how crazy, twisted and mind-blowing this chilling story was going to be.

Mia and Finn purchase a new house that they plan on having to fix-up quite a bit. What they didn't expect was to find the dark secrets that the house is holding from the past. That's all I'll say about the plot because you just have to read it! Twist after twist, multiple twisted points of view including a mystery narrator, and details so expertly placed that various plot-lines mesh together in a deliciously disturbing way. This book is DARK, twisted, and just what I needed. Marrs, chef's kiss!

What a great book, I could not put it down once I started it, I was nearly checking out my own attic after reading it as it spooked me so much but fantastic read I have to say ..

A dark and twisty story with lots of secrets and while I haven’t gotten around to reading all of John’s books yet, this one has me glued from the start and there were a lot of moments where I had no clue how it was going to finish.. A cleverly written book that deserves more than 5 stars

I have loved all of John Marrs books but this is definitely his best one yet. It’s deliciously dark, fast paced, well written and has a fabulous twist at the end.
I couldn’t put it down once I started reading it.
It’s definitely worthy of 5 stars.

Wow! I have devoured every John Marrs book as soon as it is released and this one was no exception. The prologue alone is devastating! Would it be more twisted than What lies between us? Yes it is. The darkest of subject matter and genuinely disturbing. Many different points of view and many unreliable narrators. Mia and Finn are renovating a new property and it holds the most terrible secrets. Truly something to read in one sitting. Fabulous