Home Before Dark meets Haunting of Hill House with slight Prodigal Son vibes

Vera comes back to her childhood home when her mom tells her she’s dying. Their relationship has been strained all their lives. Her relationship with her father was her strongest bond until her dad was arrested for kidnapping and murdering people in their basement. Memories start to flood her mind after being back but all of a sudden she starts hearing noises inside the house. Could it be her dad’s victims? The new guy her mom rented a room too? Or is it something else?

I had high, HIGH hopes for this one. The entire book had me on the edge of my seat trying to figure out what was going on only to completely (in my opinion) fall flat on its face in the end…

It’s a 4⭐️ because only the ending was a let down.

Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for the ARC copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Thank you Netgalley for this audio edition of Just Like Home by Sarah Gailey.

I read almost 70% of this and then had to stop. Listen, if you're one of the ten people who read my reviews, you know that I'm down for just about anything. I love me some murder, bring it on, but I have LIMITS people. This cover is way too pink for such grotesquery. So, that's my review, plan to be creeped out to the very back of your throat. I'm done.

Holy F! This is a masterful horror story! I truly enjoyed the tension leading to the reveal of the actual monster of the story. Which person was it? Sarah Gailey leads you to all of them and then twists the answer to blow your mind.
The narration is great. She creates a voice for each character.
I loved this and listened to this delightfully twisted book.

2.5 stars

CW: gore, murder

I did not enjoy this book. It was fucked up and didn’t really make any sense to me.

It was horror, I guess, but much more gruesome than I was expecting. I’ve read a couple other books by Gailey and they’ve certainly been weird and fucked up, but not in a gorey, murdery way.

So, the story is about Vera, who returns home because her mother is dying. Vera left home for some unknown (at the beginning) reason and her mother seems to hate her. Once she returns home she starts to see things and remember things from her childhood.

Without spoiling it, her father was fucked up and in turn fucked up Vera. And maybe her childhood home is haunted.

I guess there is some resolution in the book, but overall it felt like it ended rather abruptly.

I still want to read a couple of her Gailey’s older books, but don’t know that I’ll try any of their newer stuff, as this book has left a bad taste in my mouth.

Rating: 3.75 leaves out of 5
-Characters: 4/5
-Cover: 3/5
-Story: 3.5/5
-Writing: 4.5/5
Genre: Horror/Mystery/Paranormal
Type: Audiobook
Worth?: Yes

Want to thank Netgalley and publishers for giving me the chance to listen to this book. What a book. If you want a fast pace book with a twist then this is the book for you. There were some things I questioned about, like the house, Vera's friend, and her father. I felt like those were trails that just ended up no where. The story itself was really good but I would have liked it to be a bit longer and to have something more in depth.

The concept was nice and I did enjoy it as a whole. I just thing there were some loose ends she didn't really tie up.

A very unique take on the spooky house genre! The reader flips back and forth between protagonist Vera’s childhood memories and present day experiences- never quite sure how much of the horror is fantastical or true crime in nature. Just a constant state of unease until the pieces start to fall into place. Overall a 3.5, without giving too much away I’m not sure I liked the ending. But I’m rounding up anyway because the characters were all individually so intriguing and I couldn’t put the book down.

This was twisty, spooky gothic goodness! This book had great atmosphere only enhanced by the wonderful narration by Xe Sands, I think her voice was the perfect choice for this book and it enhanced my enjoyment immensely!

This is a slow burn but I was completely along for the ride.

I highly recommend the audiobook with narration by Xe Sands!!


This was my first book by this author and I am curious about her other works!

4 stars

I received this book from the publisher Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for a fair and honest review.

🔊Song Pairing: Home - Daughtry

💭What I thought would happen:

Pink cute cover by an author I’ve been meaning to read, why not pick this up.

📖What actually happens:

Vera is called home by her dying mother. A place she never planned on returning to nor a mother she planned on seeing again. As she enters her childhood home the memories and traumas of the past begin to flood her dreams. What is real and what isn’t?

🗯Thoughts:

Oooh Lordy I did not like this one. It may be my least favourite of the year (thus far). It dragged on, did get exciting for a bit then left me with the most what the fucketh of all fuck faces.

The left turn this ending takes reminds me a bit of House on the Lake. So if you liked that one…maybe this is for you and we will just have to agree that we don’t have similar taste in books. ✌🏻

I never read The Echo Wife so I have no yardstick for measuring this authors work but I am going to choose to be optimistic and read it.

Although this book wasn’t necessarily ‘my thing,’ Gailey did a wonderful job developing the atmosphere of the house. I was thoroughly creeped out while reading it, which is no small thing to accomplish in a horror novel; however, the plot of the novel was certainly lacking.
Lots of the book took place in the past, setting up her childhood and her fathers crimes, but the narrative set in the present was often boring. I also got confused on occasion as to what timeline we were in.
If atmosphere and writing are the most important elements to your reading experience, pick up this book. Otherwise, it’s a 2.5 stars.

How to describe Just Like Home? I told my booksta bestie it's kinda like if ol' Ansel Packer built his family a home, did bad things there, then got busted/went to jail. His daughter is the narrator of this story so we learn a bit about what it's like to be the daughter of a serial killer. She grew up/left home, then came back as her mom was dying in this creepy house with some stranger things going on under her bed, she attempts to deal with her traumatic past, there's an odd tenant looking to be inspired by the house itself and weird notes showing up in her dad's handwriting.

Sounds like a lot right? It both is and isn't. This is a gothic fiction story which includes a supernatural element and is told from the past and present. The familial bond between father, daughter and mother was interesting and layered. Still not entirely sure about my feelings on the ending. Ultimately it was too slow of a burn for me to really like it so I am giving it 3.5 stars. I did like the audiobook narration by Xe Sands and hope to start another book she narrates soon.

Special thanks to @netgalley and @macmillan.audio for the ALC of Just Like Home for review purposes. All opinions are my own.

Just Like Home is an eerie slow burn that descends into horror. While it took me a bit to be drawn into the story, by the end I was absolutely enraptured. Vera is a fascinating character with a dark past, and her return to a house where unspeakable horrors occurred is a visceral one for the reader. I found the ending to be absolutely perfect. This book is made for someone like me, who sees a house as a body and the life within it as a force that animates it. Obsessed!

Unsettlingly creepy is what comes to mind first. I first need to mention the narrator is just simply fantastic.
Years after Vera was forced to leave home she is called back by her dying mother. Back to the house that held such disturbing secrets and only to learn that that was barely the tip of the iceberg.
Just Like Home is easily one of my favorite books of the year. Disturbing yet compelling I just couldn't put it down! I can't count how many gasps I inadvertently let out! Thank you SO MUCH for allowing me to read this!

Just Like Home was my first Sarah Gailey book. The creepy cover drew me in at once! I love the sweet pink juxtaposed with the bloody dripping house. Overall, the book was good, but not spectacular for me. I liked the characters and the plot, just wanted more. I'll definitely try another of her books.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio, NetGalley, and Sarah Gailey for an ALC of Just Like Home in exchange for an honest review. I sat on this review for awhile because I literally thought about this book and my feelings for it for a week! I can't decide how I feel but I can tell you that the author is an absolutely amazing story teller and I look forward to more of their work in the future. The premise of the book started out so strong but confused me towards the end. I have seen many rave reviews for this one so I think that if it sounds interesting to you then you should absolutely pick it up. If I had to rate this one I think I would go with 3-3.5 stars!

I thought I’d try a horror but this book just wasn’t for me at all! Just Like Home by Sarah Gailey is about a woman, Vera, who returns to her childhood home because her mother is dying. While there she encounters some eerie things and deals with the memories of her serial killer father. There were quite a few times that I considered DNFing but I guess I was curious enough to find out the ending. I didn’t care for that end twist at all! Some parts were very gruesome. I listened to the audiobook and the narrator Xe Sands did a fine job.
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Thank you to Macmillan Audio via NetGalley for my ALC!

The slooooooow pacing of this horror novel didn't work for me. In order to enjoy slow-paced horror novels, I usually need to feel a connection with the main characters and I couldn't quite connect with Vera. I also struggled with the author's lack of commitment to either a fully supernatural or a fully natural plot. The "gray area" left something to be desired for me as a reader. As a result, I had to force my way through this one and I didn't enjoy it.

I'm disappointed because I've loved this author's previous books.

This book was creepy. This book was disgusting. This book was horrid. I LOVED IT!

100/5 stars.

This is definitely a new favorite. I already want to reread it. Such a get under your skin story, literally.

This is a truly unique, dark, and eerie mystery/thriller that compelled me to dig deeper into the mystery of Crowder House and the family within. I loved the layers and twists in this story. I'm always interested in spooky stories where the house itself seems to be part of the threat/mystery. This was my first book by Sarah Gailey and I would definitely be interested in reading more by her. I also believe that the narration was very clear and enjoyable.

I found the audiobook to be absolutely engrossing but I can also attest that this might not be the book to listen to as you're falling asleep at night.....
First off, I love Sarah Gailey and most recently read her American Hippo novellas so I went into this new novel with interesting expectations....however, I did not expect the weird moments of body horror within this book. Quite frankly it made me really uncomfortable which is likely a great sign of a well written horror book. Yet still slightly awful for me when it comes to a book/audiobook. I really struggled to decide on a rating...I loved the premise and got most established within the dual timelines as the book went on but it is hard to find the main character likeable when she never admonishes the actions of her (serial killer) father and does not take full responsibility for her own actions against the people she cared about. Don't get me wrong, I do love an unlikeable/unreliable narrator who is morally grey buuuuut this REALLY toed the line for me. At the end of the day it is definitely a four star read and I continue to love Gailey's writing style but I when I think about this book I cannot get over how uncomfortable and creepy this was. If that is your jam then you may truly enjoy this book!!

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Honestly this has got to be one of the weirdest books I’ve ever read. Based on the description I expected a little paranormal and a little mystery. But this was just weird. For me it was too drug out as well. There just wasn’t enough story for ten hours worth of listening.