Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the eGalley to review!

When I saw this book in the Library Reads list and then read its synopsis, I was intrigued. Sadly, I ended up disappointed.

While it's a well-written book in a technical aspect, its story and characters leave much to be desired. The characters are rather bland (though Julia is interesting) and the "horror" aspect wasn't scary nor even creepy. There was only one scene in which I leaned forward in my seat in anticipation. In an attempt to have mind-blowing twists, it became contradictory and ultimately confusing and frustrating. I'm not sure if Friend was trying to lean heavily on people's weird fear of twins for just existing, but I would have liked more of the twin bond as a deep, interpersonal, and profound bond that could ultimately triumph over evil, rather than a MacGuffin for some strange occurrences. It all ultimately ended up going nowhere and the ending was predictable and anticlimactic.

I think this had some great potential, especially since there were scenes that were quite good and could have been better if they had been leveraged differently. For instance, Julia being a psychiatrist and a twin herself was a fascinating aspect that could have been explored more than it was as she worked with her twin nieces. It just sadly felt as though this were a story that Friend was forced to have a "creepy" subplot for but didn't have the heart to put into it. I was struggling to read it to begin with and set it aside to read other books in the meantime. When I picked up the audiobook to help me finish it to write this review, it helped significantly (even though the narrator for Alfie made me cringe often with the child voice). So I would recommend the audiobook if you want to commit to finding out just what is going on.

I would give William Friend's work a chance again though, as like I said, this was technically well written! There is lots of potential here.

Let Him In by William Friend

Published: October 3, 2023
Poisoned Pen Press
Genre: Ghost Thriller
Pages: 240
KKECReads Rating: 4/5
I received a copy of this book for free, and I leave my review voluntarily.

William Friend studied English, French, and Italian at university. He lives in Hertfordshire with his partner. Let Him In is his first novel.

For a debut novel, William Friend is proving to have a beautiful gift. He writes smoothly and can tell a story. He portrayed grief, trauma, and forgiveness reasonably well.

This was more of a slow burn, which, for a horror story, I felt was an unusual choice. The build-up was reminiscent of The Haunting of Hill House. I kept expecting the little things to lead somewhere, much like that show.

The ending was unexpected and a little strange for me. While this is a relatively quick read at 240 pages, sometimes the story moved relatively slow. I did have to read certain chapters over because I felt like I missed something.

The way the story is told is almost like trying to remember the details of a traumatic day. It’s spotty at best and brutally inconsistent. I don’t know if Friend did this intentionally, given a vast portion of the plot, or if that is just my interpretation.

I will read Friend’s next novel, as I did enjoy his writing style. I feel he will only get better with each book he writes.

I was hoping this book would be a creepier when I read the synopsis. I felt like it had a good start however as the story progressed, it dropped off.

Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press as well as the author for this ARC in exchange for my unbiased review.

Author: William Friend
Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press
Publication Date: October 3, 2023
Themes: grief, parent death, imaginary friends, twins, anaphylaxis, psychological horror
Trigger Warnings: grief, death of a mother, daughter/ father relationship, twin relationship
Find other reviews by me at horrorcornerbooks.wordpress,com

So, this book happened. It was neither bad nor great.
This family drama book begins with twin girls and their father reeling from the sudden death of the family matriarch. The girls have begun playing with an imaginary friend that they call Black Mamba”. Imaginary friends are a normal part of childhood. They’re completely harmless, right?

There were a lot of good things happening here. Mr. Friend is a talented writer with a gift for creating a creepy atmosphere. The book maintains a creepy, atmospheric dread throughout which is no easy task for a writer. The grief-themed narrative was raw and infused with an ominous presence in Black Mamba. I really enjoyed reading the twins’ description of the many ways Black Mamba changed shape or the rules he placed on the girls. Very creepy and effective. This book reminded me of the movie “The Babadook” in that the monster is a manifestation of grief as well as the attempt to understand the finality of death.

Unfortunately, the story lacked direction for me. I wanted more to happen. I wanted a more eventful ending. I love a good slow burn but I felt that this book moved too slowly. I also had trouble connecting with the characters. The father is struggling with his grief while trying to manage the grief of his two children as well as learning to be a single parent. I would have expected that to be an emotional situation but I didn’t connect enough for that to be the case.
The ending was unsatisfying and anti-climactic for me.

All in all, while this book wasn’t my favorite, I do look forward to reading more from this author in the future.

I got about halfway through this book before life got in the way and I haven't had time to jump back in but I am thoroughly enjoying what I have read so far! I can't wait to pick it back up and finish it, I need to know what happens! - I will finish this update once I complete the book

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for this ARC in return for an honest review.

Really enjoyed this book it was different from what I would normally read but I love books where you do t know what’s real and not the ending was very good too

I did not end up reading this due to scheduling issues, but it is still a book I have interest in and will be picking up to read as part of my physical media pile.

Alfie has lost his wife and raising two twin daughters on his own. As time passes, his daughters start talking about an imaginary friend. They say they can see him and hear him. When Alfie becomes frightened, he calls on his sister in law, Julia for help. As she is a psychotherapist, she begins to counsel the girls. Who is this imaginary friend and what do they want? The atmosphere is creepy as all get out! I felt the story of the girl's visions were frightening. There were times where the book was repetitive and slow moving. However, Friend's writing is superb for his first novel and he's a talented writer. I will say I think he has a bright future ahead.

I had high hopes for this one. I went in wanting spooky vibes. It started off strong. We have a dad/widower figuring out how to raise his two daughters alone. All the while dealing with the imaginary friend that has come along. I feel like the story dropped off as it progressed. I wanted more creepiness. I really disliked the dad. I wish he could of been more likeable in his povs.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of the book in exchange for a honest review.

A solid work of horror, but it didn't blow me away or particularly scare me. I think the cover ended up being the most interesting part for me,.

I wasn’t too impressed with this one sadly, I had high hopes for it, but I was dragging to the end. The characters were flat.

The cover…..is sooooo CREEPY!! Am I right?

Anyways, just wow - my jaw is still on the floor!! This was an exceptional horror debut that will likely haunt my dreams for a long time to come.

TWINS + ‘IMAGINARY FRIEND’ + OLD HOUSE

yeah…nope- *shudders*





Thank you to William Friend, Poisoned Pen Press, and NetGalley for the eARC.

This was a solid read. The flow was good and the different perspectives provided a fun eye into the mystery. I did feel the ending was slightly unclear/rushed, but considering the rest of the book, I really liked how it left me with more questions than answers. It provoked a second read-through to really connect the dots and I enjoyed it overall.

If you’re looking for something to get your spooky season started this is the book for you! It kept me guessing about what was really going on and packed enough of a punch that I actually gasped a few times while reading. I’m still not 100% sure what happened? I think that’s the point? Either way. This was a good haunting book to welcome in fall and spooky season in general.

I absolutely loved this story, unlike anything that I've read. It's the perfect book for the spooky season. I can't wait to read more books from this author.

Kids are creepy, man. Especially twin kids. Even more especially twin kids with ‘imaginary friends’. No thanks; I’m good over here.

Though in real life I’d run from any children exhibiting the behavior the two children in this book did, give me a book about it and I’m there so fast you won’t even see me coming. Let Him In was a satisfying, well-paced, truly creepy novel. I enjoyed every second of it.

Unsettling and immersive.

This book was deeply disturbing with haunting scenes that drew me in. I don’t read a lot of horror, especially stories this dark featuring kids but Let Him In is the exception. It’s written in such a way I felt as if the adult characters were more at risk than the twin children. Told between alternating perspectives, Friend delivers an eerie observation of how children use their imaginations to deal with grief. The first is Alfie, a recently widowed father looking after twin girls, Cassia and Sylvie, since their mother Pippa was killed in a freak accident. The second perspective is Julia—Pippa’s twin sister—who is a psychiatrist, also nursing unresolved wounds from childhood. Alfie calls Julia to help after the girls mention an imaginary friend, ‘Black Mamba’, who they see lurking in the shadows of their room at night.

I enjoyed the alternating perspectives, but preferred Julia’s since she felt like the more reliable of the two. Both had different creepy experiences in the house including one in which Julia mistakes a shadow man sitting in a chair in the dark for Alfie, only to realize he’s upstairs asleep. The descriptions were immersive and the reveals slow paced. The tension was steady but took a little too long to build for me personally. The end left a lot unanswered but alluded to the entity (or demon) winning, and Alfie being the one locked in the cellar. I would have preferred more clarification but perhaps that was the point.

3/5⭐️⭐️⭐️
For readers who enjoy the haunted house trope, suspense, and a slow burn.

Slightly creepy but intriguing story. I wish it would have been scarier though. I had really high hopes for this but it didn't meet my expectations.

I wanted to like this look. I tried to like this book. It just did not do it for me. I felt like it left so many things unanswered. There were so many things that did peak my interest that are what probably kept me going but then nothing came of them. It was almost a DNF for me. I gave it 1 star because I did read it all the way through hoping for something, needing something, but getting left empty. I was disappointed as I felt like it had the ability to be great and have more to it but just did not finish out but maybe that's what the author was going for. Unanswered questions. If that was the case then he did an amazing job!

This book unfortunately was a struggle to hold my attention. It wasn't as frightening as the description led itself on to be and I was in the mood for a scary story. Thank you again for the opportunity to access the advanced reader's copy of this book.