The Stranger Upstairs is, in a word, disturbing. I continued reading, thinking at some point the book HAD to get better. I've got news for y'all----it didn't.

Plot: Sarah Slade is self-help author with a penchant for trouble. That's the only way it could make sense that she roped her husband, Joe, into buying Black Wood House, a home notorious for the murders that occurred there years ago. The house is considered haunted, if not a downright abomination. Let's just say the neighbors have some strong feelings about wishing for the property to be bulldozed instead of renovated. When strange things start happening in the house (surprise, surprise,) Sarah feels like she's starting to go crazy. She's receiving cryptic messages, gets headaches all the time, and swears she's seen one of her neighbors lurking around the house. When everything in her world seems to be spiraling out of control, what will be the breaking point?

Aside from the fact that this book is alarmingly dark, it struggles seriously from a lack of plot. The amateur status of the writing unfortunately really shows. There was something about it that made me want to keep reading to see what the end resolution could possibly be, but I was left disappointed. Don't waste your time on this one. It borrows from the overused "haunted house" trope and is pretty predictable and boring. The shock and awe factor the author was going for didn't work at all for me.

Thank you so much to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Lisa Matlin, and NetGalley for the ARC of The Stranger Upstairs!

The Stranger Upstairs tells the story of Sarah Slade. Though, you probably know her as Sarah Slays - well-known influencer and self-help guru.

The carefully constructed facade Sarah built behind to crumble shortly after purchasing a famous murder house. A husband woke up one morning and brutally murdered his wife in bed with a hammer before attacking their daughter (she escaped and was never heard from again), and then killed himself in the bathroom. The house sat empty until Sarah decided to flip it for the Gram, and turn a nice profit.

The house may have other plans though.

The town might not be so welcoming, as many knew the family/the victims. Are they telling Sarah everything?

And soon, we learn Sarah has quite a few secrets herself.

At first, I thought this was going in the same direction as Just Like Home by Gailey, but I promise the twist is one you won’t see coming! It was un-putdownable, and I enjoyed watching Sarah slowly spiral 👏🏻👏🏻

I was really excited to read this book because Murder House! Who doesn't love that?! The cover is beautiful and really draws you in. Unfortunately, I felt a little unsatisfied at the end of the book and wanting more.

Sarah Slade is a therapist and social media influencer who buys the infamous Black Wood House. She is hoping to renovate the house for resale and wants to document the process for her viewers along the way. She is hoping this will help salvage her marriage with her husband Joe does not want much to do with her or this house.

The infamous Black Wood House is where Bill Campbell bludgeoned his wife Susan and tried to kill his daughter Janet Campbell, before ultimately killing himself. Janet got away and was found running down the street yelling "Don't kill me, Don't kill me, Don't kill me and has not been seen since.

Sarah and her husband know all about the Black Wood House and that is what Sarah thinks is going to make this journey with her viewers so much more exciting. The only problem is that Sarah and her husband have some secrets from their past that they would like to keep under wraps, but the house starts to expose.

The book started out great and was very promising, but the second part of the book got weird. I felt like Sarah became annoying at times and I found myself not being able to invest in the storyline. I had a hard time connecting with any of the characters as well. I will say that I did not expect the twist at the end which helped but overall this book was just average for me.

Thank you Netgalley and Ransom House Publishing-Ballantine for the gifted arc for my review! I also chose this book as my book of the month because the cover is just gorgeous!

Creepy. Twisty. Brilliant. Terrifying. Atmospheric.
The story is not a new one, but the way this one is written is really good! An influencer buys a murder house – what could go wrong, right? Nah, it does not go the way you think at first. It goes… worse. And then some more worse, but not in the ways you thought at first.
Honestly, I can’t believe there are no other books by this author. The writing is so good, I will be keeping an eye out for her next books!

I really enjoyed it! A creepy story of a manor that was left empty for many years, until a blogger, Sarah, buys it to renovate it. And then things go really bad. As the story progresses, we uncover new secrets which adds more intrigue to the story. I wish the story was a bit more tighter: some areas were not fully developed, and it felt a but unfinished. But I would recommend this whole=heartedly for this spooky season.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing for an early access to this thrilling novel!

Thank you Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, NetGalley, and Lisa M. Matlin for gifting me this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

What would you do if the murder house you bought didn’t want you inside?

The Stranger Upstairs centers around a social media influencer with a shady past, Sarah Slade, who just purchased a murder house in hopes of renovating it and selling it, all while documenting her journey on her online blog. She moves into Black Wood House with her husband, Joe, and her cat, Reaper. Sarah and Joe’s already rocky marriage starts taking a turn for the worse as soon as they move in. Strange things begin to occur almost immediately. Sarah begins to find random notes around her house, hearing noises at night, and even her cat starts acting peculiar. If that wasn’t bad enough, her neighbors aren’t giving her the warmest welcome either. It seems as if everyone, including the house, doesn’t want Sarah there. But what are her neighbors hiding? Is someone out to get Sarah, is she going crazy, or is the house actually alive?

I’ll start off by saying that this book was definitely an entertaining read. I kept trying to guess what was going on and building theories in my head the whole time I was reading. I’ll admit, there were a couple of things that felt a bit unbelievable (won’t disclose as this is a spoiler-free review). There are quite a few twists and turns throughout the book and the ending is definitely not one I was expecting. I wasn’t a huge fan of the end, though. The book had such an interesting premise and I feel as though more could have been done with it. Nonetheless, it was an overall good thriller and definitely very psychological.

This was a wild ride and I was totally on board! I would never, ever buy a murder house! Also, Sarah is kind of a bag of dicks and a nightmare rolled into one! This was my 1st book by Lisa M. Matlin but is not going to be my last!

#TheStrangerUpstairs
#NetGalley

3.5 stars

This book was wild. I really enjoyed a lot of this. It was kinda crazy and was mostly entertaining.

Sarah and Joe buy and move into the local murder house. They want to complete some renovations, sell it and make a quick profit. Along the way A LOT of lies and secrets are slowly revealed. Sarah likes to portray herself in a certain light, but it’s not accurate to who she really is.

The house itself plays its own character in this story and things get fairly twisty towards the end. All sorts of scenarios were running through my mind while I was trying to figure out WTF was actually going on. The big reveal was a little bit less exciting than I would have hoped for, but it worked.

If you are looking for something a little bit different that is also dark and creepy then this is for you.

*** I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and this is my honest opinion. ***

This is one of my favorite books I've read this year! It is a very eerie and atmospheric book. It has a really good amount of spooky moments that make this book intriguing and the writing is able to pull you right into the story. This was spectacular! Special Thank You to Lisa M Matlin, Random House Publishing, and NetGalley for allowing me to read a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.

Sarah Slade swears she isn’t afraid of living in a house where a murder occurred. In fact, she posts cheerful blog entries about how well the renovations are going and how happy she is. In reality, her marriage is falling apart, she can’t write her second self-help book, her therapy clients seem to see right through her, and the house seems to be actively fighting being fixed up.

As time passes, Sarah becomes more and more convinced that not only is there something wrong with the house, but with the neighbors too. There’s a past to the house that just may be able to top her own horrible past, and Sarah fears there’s a reckoning coming.

This is a creepy book from the start. Just knowing the murder that has taken place in the house automatically sets this up for scary times. As we learn more about the house, and Sarah’s past, things get even eerier, especially as both Sarah and the house seem to deteriorate simultaneously. This is a good book to pick up for spooky season.

Thank you @netgalley @bantambooksuk for the #gifted advance copy of #TheStrangerUpstairs!

I’ve always been fascinated by stories involving a haunted house, and when you add in the element of a social media influencer buying it, I’m definitely sold!

The Stranger Upstairs was an entertaining and fast-paced thriller that I ended up binging in less than 24 hours. There were so many twists and turns and I never guessed what was coming next. Although I do think the trope involving a FMC being an alcoholic/struggling with their mental health is a little overdone, I still ate this book up.

I also appreciated the fact that a cat plays a role in this story 🥹🫶🏼

The Stranger Upstairs has a great creep factor and will be a perfect read for the Halloween season. Sarah Slade and her husband buy a murder house. The neighbors and the house do not want them there but Sarah wants to remodel the house and sell it for a decent profit. She is going to post the progress on the house on her lifestyle blog. Soon many things start going wrong.

I don't want to give anything away so let me say, I enjoyed this book and would recommend reading The Stranger Upstairs. I found it to be a quick read and it held my attention throughout the book. I did not expect some of the twists at the end. The book will be available September 12, 2023 so perfect timing for the fall reading.

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. #NetGalley #TheStrangerUpstairs #LisaMMatlin

I received an ARC of this book. This story was creepy right from the start. Overall a good suspenseful mystery. Unusual twist on living in a "murder house".

The Stranger Upstairs is a fast-paced, twisty psychological thriller with a hint of the supernatural, featuring Sarah Slade, a marriage therapist with a dark past and large social media following. She and her husband Joe have just bought Black Wood House, the site of a murder/suicide and the disappearance of a child. Sarah's marriage is on very shaky ground from the start, seemingly because Joe never wanted to buy Black Wood House. But Sarah has a plan to renovate the house that had been empty for 40 years and sell it for a nice profit. She's staked all her money on it. So Joe goes grudgingly along.
And the stakes are not just her savings. With her marriage falling apart, her career as a marriage therapist and a social media influencer are threatened as well, if Sarah can't document her happy marriage and their public renovation of the house, she'll lose her clients and her followers.
Very quickly strange things start happening in the house, bad smells, accidents, mysterious notes appearing, footsteps in the attic in the dark of night. There is something almost alive about the house, which feels more sinister with each page. And it seems even her neighbors know more about what is going on than Sarah does.
The twist at the end is well-plotted through the book, and perhaps not entirely unexpected. Matlin also leaves one loose end in a subplot, but otherwise, it is a very satisfying read.

📚 #BOOKREVIEW 📚
The Stranger Upstairs by #LisaMatlin

⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

This is an ARC review and these are my honest thoughts and opinions.Y'all I have to say, this cover sucked me in! This book is about Sarah (MFC) a social media influencer with a secret past. Sarah and her husband Joe decide to move into and renovate the "Murder House" . The "murder house" got its name because a man killed his wife and then himself in the very house, which has sat empty for 40yrs. This story had so many chilling twists and turns it kept me up most of the night (part because I just didn't want to put the book down and part because I was terrified of closing my eyes!) For being Lisa's debut novel, she absolutely hit it out of the park.I will definitely recommend this book to others!
I want to say thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine for my ARC to read and review. As always ,please check the TW!

🚨Debut novel alert🚨

Before I start my review I wanted to say that I got this book through @netgalley and @randomhousepublishing and was surprised/excited cause I didn’t ask for it and it sounded so good! Then what happens next month for @bookofthemonth it’s a pick! So that was a sign that I had to read it ASAP!

Let’s dive in! Murder house is for sale and what’s the first thing that comes to mind? STEER CLEAR….right?! Or so you would think. That’s not what Sarah Slade does. She does the opposite and buys the house to flip it, sell it and let all her followers get a first hand experience through her popular blog.

It’s a win/win for her until strange things start to happen. When Sarah is alone at night that when she starts to hear things in her attic, her cat is acting strange, she becomes ill and she is trying to figure out why this is all happening and why the town is being secretive about the previous murders that happened at her house.

This book is dark and twisted! There are many twists and turns in the book!

Final thought…is Sarah Slade just as unpleasant as her new murder house?

The Stranger Upstairs
🗓️ 09/12/2023
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“A therapist and self-help writer with all the answers, Sarah Slade has just bought a gorgeous Victorian in the community of her dreams. Turns out, you can get a killer deal on a house where someone was murdered. Plus, renovating Black Wood House makes for great blog content and a decent distraction from her failing marriage. Good thing nobody knows that her past is just as filthy as the bloodstain on her bedroom floor.

But the renovations are fast becoming a nightmare. Sarah imagined custom avocado wallpaper, massive profits, and an appreciative husband who wants to share her bed again. Instead, the neighbors hate her guts and her husband still sleeps on the couch. And though the builders attempt to cover up Black Wood’s horrifying past, a series of bizarre accidents, threatening notes, and unexplained footsteps in the attic only confirms for Sarah what the rest of the town already knew: Something is very wrong in that house.

With every passing moment, Sarah’s life spirals further out of control—and with it, her sense of reality. But as she peels back the curling wallpaper and discovers the house’s secrets, she realizes that the deadly legacy of Black Wood House has only just begun.”

Just in time for spooky season, this is the psychological thriller we all need! Lisa Matlins talent shines in her debut novel that leaves you slightly afraid of the dark by setting a realistically eerie tone. I will admit, midway through the book I wondered where this was going as some story lines were slightly messy. Make sure you take the time to read the authors note at the end 🖤 Thank you @netgalley and for this advanced readers copy in exchange for my honest review!

“Most people sweep monsters under the bed. I pull the covers back and and let them crawl in.”

What spooky reads have given you goosebumps??

The Stranger Upstairs follows Sarah Slade, a therapist and influencer who has just moved into a house where a famous murder was committed. Sarah’s plan is to renovate the house, document the process of the renovation on her popular blog, and then sell the house for profit. But of course Sarah’s time in the house doesn’t go according to plan. Sarah starts to find notes written around her house that haven’t been written by either her or her husband. She often hears noises coming from the attic. Her cat always seems to be terrified of everything and nothing. She feels like all the neighbors are hiding something about the house from her. The story follows Sarah as she tries to hold on to her sanity and figure out who’s behind the terrifying things happening in her house.

The main thing I want to say is that I really liked this approach to the classic idea of a haunted house. While reading it I truly couldn’t figure out who or what was behind what was happening in the house. I couldn’t even tell if the explanation would be paranormal or a real person/people. And I think it will be polarizing among readers but I thought that the “villain reveal” (I can’t think of a better term lol) was fantastic. I never would’ve thought of it and I thought it made complete sense. There is a certain point where the author wants the reader to start making the connections for themselves shortly before the reveal happens and I think it was done well. My thought process was basically “oh… OH… OH NO! SARAH GET OUT OF THE HOUSE!!!” all in a span of 30 seconds. There weren’t many twists in this book and I actually appreciated and respected that.

I thought Sarah’s husband was bland and unnecessary. The main story wouldn’t have suffered if he hadn’t been there. Sarah’s personal history and secrets from her past are important parts of the story but I didn’t really care about them. I just wanted to stick to the main plot that was happening in the present. The writing was just fine. Honestly I think the vast majority of it was mediocre and it was the interesting reveal that saved it from being a two star book for me.

Lastly I think The Stranger Upstairs will likely be marketed and described by a lot of readers as a thriller. It has the tone and the structure of a thriller. But I personally think it’s more of a horror. I can’t explain that without spoiling it but I want to tell you that if you go into this expecting a very traditional thriller I think you will be disappointed by the ending.

I think I recommend The Stranger Upstairs but not very highly. It might be worth the read but I don’t think it should be anywhere near the top of your TBR

I was expecting a spooky ghost story, and it didn't quite delivery on that front, but it was creepy at first and I enjoyed the suspension it built with the newspaper articles. It took a bit of a dark turn, I'm not sure how I felt about it, but all in all it felt well written and while I think the character took an abrupt turn that could have been done a bit smoother, I felt all in all it was done well.

Would definitely pick up more books by this author.

Self-help author Sarah Slade is starting over, purchasing the infamous Black Wood House in hopes of renovating and flipping it for a profit. However, the townspeople are unhappy with the purchase, and much rather would have seen the house bulldozed. Each house in the neighborhood is valued over a million Australian dollars, and Black Wood House — the scene of a gruesome massacre — is driving property values down.

As Sarah begins renovations on the house, strange things keep occurring and it’s almost like the house wants her gone. The builders start getting injured in strange ways, and Sarah begins finding notes everywhere, threatening ones that reveal things no one should know.

I tried to fly through this book to find out what was going on but I can’t say I was blown away. Honestly, I felt like parts of this book dragged along, and there were so many plot points that had so much potential that fizzled out before leading to a shocking twist. (I definitely was unpopular with this opinion, so I still recommend giving this book a try!)

Thank you to Netgalley, Ballantine (Random House Publishing Group), and Lisa M. Matlin for providing an ARC of this book for me to read and review. As always, all thoughts and opinions were entirely my own.