Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for this ARC. What a fun and thrilling debut from Lisa! I loved how twisty and twisted this book was! I simply could not put it down and I wanted more even when it was over.

The ending? Chefs kiss. I need more Black Wood house!

The Stranger Upstairs by Lisa M. Matlin is a great debut thriller novel!

Sarah, an influencer with secrets in her past, and her husband Joe buy Black Wood House. Black Wood House is known as the murder house because its pervious owner was murdered in her sleep. Sarah and Joe are determined to renovate the house and turn a profit until things start going wrong.

The story reminded me of the The Watcher and is a perfect haunted story for a chilly fall night. The Stranger Upstairs kept me turning the pages to find out what happened.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bantam, Random House for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

Wow!! I could not put this book down! This book had such great suspense, mystery and few creepy parts that ade me not want to read at night!

This book kept me guessing until the very end and wondering what was really happening inside the Black Wood House!

An excellent book! I'm definitely a Lisa Matlin fan! Dare I say, one of the best books Ive read all year. Thank you Pegiun Random House for the ARC.

Boasting quite an intriguing premise, I was excited to delve right between the pages of “The Stranger Upstairs.” Though it’s not the super creepy thriller I had hoped it would be, it is a well-crafted mystery that slowly unfolds to a multitude of revelations. And while this book did fall short of my initial expectations, I still found it to be a quick, enjoyable read that had me guessing right up until the very end.

As I read, I discovered there was more going on in this story than the description implied. What at first seemed like a haunted house story took off and intensified into a creepy, deep, borderline horror, wild ride of a novel. I found it unique and intriguing. And it kept me guessing! Is it the house? The neighbors? Or maybe Sarah herself? Her secret past? Her dysfunctional relationship with her husband? In some ways, this story reminded me of Rock Paper Scissors. I believe fans of Alice Feeney will really enjoy Lisa M. Matlin. I appreciated that the book was not graphic but rather played with my mind and scared me in a very entertaining way.

P.S.: Love the cover! (will post more reviews upon publication).

All opinions expressed are my own opinion with many thanks to Penquin Random House and Lisa M. Maitlin for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book.

This was a thriller for the ages! Kept me on the edge of my seat. I love a book that keeps me turning the pages!

I really liked this! Its everything you can want in a thriller/mystery - just a few main characters to keep track of, super creepy and keeps you guessing, and of course no one can be trusted.
Sometimes books like this can get confusing but I felt like this was so nicely laid out and written, super straight forward and I enjoyed it a lot. The ending was a bit of a let down.. like it just felt like a lame excuse even though it was executed well. Nevertheless, did NOT see it coming!
Felt bad for Emily but I did see it coming, and my favorite part was probably what happens to Joe lol.
Definitely recommend this one, its really quick too I read it in a day.

What a creepy fun time! This was compulsively readable and I loved the haunted house atmosphere - it felt like Riley Sager meets Shari Lapena and I really enjoyed it! I think the twist will be polarizing, but the best ones always are 😎 I’d recommend to anyone looking for a quick spooky read this fall, and I can’t wait to check out more by this author in the future! Thanks Netgalley for the eARC!

This book instantly hooked me in. A murder house being flipped for a blog. Sounds spooky, and it was! Things started happening and Sarah thought instantly that the house was against the flip and didn’t want any changes. Then slowly she started drinking more, finding random notes around her house, and found out about the previous owner who went missing. Sarah believes the town is out to get her for buying the house to fix instead of taring it down. Then she thinks the house is after her. I wasn’t sure if she had a mental illness or if she was possessed. The ending gave a huge twist that I did not predict. I thought I was on to it, but boy was I wrong. I love books that surprise me and this one was it! Good mix of spooky and keeping me guessing through the end.

THE STRANGER UPSTAIRS is a mesmerizing and often terrifying Gothic thriller about Sarah Slade, therapist, author, and part-time social media blogger as well as the proud new owner of the infamous Black Wood House. The house was an incredible bargain since no one has expressed an interest in it after a grizzly murder/suicide took place there 40 years ago. What a way to revitalize her blog as she documents her efforts to restore the old monstrosity. Maybe this new project will even help her reinvigorate her failing marriage. But Sarah has dark secrets and so does the old house. Unraveling them both may be a dangerous undertaking.

Sarah Slade moves to the exclusive community of Beacon and into its most infamous house, hoping to make a huge profit and make an even bigger name for herself. Already a bit of an influencer after the publication of her self-help book, the psychologist decided to purchase Black Wood House, a “murder house” - where 30 years before a murder-suicide took place, rocking the community and condemning the house to ruin. Sarah is determined her and her estranged husband can flip the house and make a profit, but what they don’t count are the obstacles that pop up at every turn. From their own personal demons, to the shadows lurking in every corner of Black Wood, to the extremely hostile neighbors- it seems like everything and everyone is against them. And it may just kill them.

Wow! This was one amazing story that just kept spiraling as it went on. It’s “current day” articles revealing that something major has gone down at Black Wood House, interspersed between chapters telling Sarah’s story. So we know something big is coming, and we just watch as Sarah just breaks apart as things go wrong and she learns more about the house and Beacon’s residents. It’s creepy to the max.

And the ending is just incredible. I’m not giving anything away but wowwwww. The author did a great job creating a scenario and just punching you in the face with it. But it was based in reality. I loved it.

The characters were also very well drawn. I felt for Sarah, even though she was deeply, deeply troubled. Her internal struggles were very real and well drawn as she tried to understand what was going on throughout the book. She was also fighting A LOT of demons.

Overall, this was a great thriller. Full of surprises and with a great ending. Pick this one up for sure.

This book will really threw me for a loop. This story follows Sarah Slade. She’s an influencer and author of a best selling novel, and she decided to buy a house with a murderous history from an affluent neighborhood to flip and resell. Her and her husband Joe expect to make a killing on this venture, but things do not go as plan. Sarah and Joe are full of secrets, and things quickly start to go wrong.

For a debut, this was written in such a fun and engaging way. This was dark and twisted and the ending was far from what I expected! I really liked this unique take on a haunted house story and I definitely recommend it.

The quick & dirty:
✨ This was ominous and spooky
✨ EXTREMELY unlikeable main character, but you’ll want to know what’s going on too much to care
✨ Total Turn of the Key meets Simone St. James vibes
✨ Paranormal (maybe? 😉)
✨ Mental health struggles
✨ Atmospheric with a slow burn mystery, but definitely horror as well
✨ Mixed media throughout makes this an entertaining read!


My only complaint was that the ending was a bit jumbled, I’m not sure what the true ending is, but I guess it’s up to interpretation?

Lastly, I also really appreciated the authors note regarding her mental health struggles 🫶🏻

Overall, my rating is closer to a 3.5 ⭐️, but I rounded up.

This publishes on 9/12/23. Thank you NetGalley and Random House - Ballantine, Bantam for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

If you like creepy and eerie, then this book is for you.
Sarah Slade, a therapist and her husband, Joe Cosgrove, have bought “the murder house” in the hope of rehabbing it and selling it for a hefty profit. With twists and turns of mystery, murder and strange happenings on almost every page, the author, Lisa Matlin, draws you in to experience scenes of heart thumping evil in this her debut book. Thank you Netgalley and Bantam Publishing for an early copy. The comments and this review is my honest opinion.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Bantam for the free e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

If you like #SimoneStJames, then this is the perfect pick for you! This is an atmospheric, slow burn mystery with a dash of horror and plenty of twisty suspense!

The story starts with a seemingly benign couple who buy an infamous "murder house" with the hope of renovating and flipping it. Sarah Slade is a social media influencer, a therapist, an author working on book #2 and a wife trying to heal her marriage. So, lets throw in renovating a house where a husband and wife violently killed each other! Why do the neighbors seem to hate her? Why is her husband always missing? As Sarah starts to lose time, her husband, and her career, is she really losing her mind or is the house truly haunted?

I loved this atmospheric, haunted house story. There are so many possibilities as to what's really going on in this well paced story that you will keep guessing until the very end!

Highly recommend!

Main Characters:
-- Sarah Slade – bestselling self-help author, therapist, recently purchased Black Wood House in the upscale Australian town of Beacon, where a wife was killed by her husband in a murder/suicide 40 years prior; plans to renovate it with her husband and sell it for a profit
== Joe Cosgrove – Sarah’s husband of three years, works as a bartender, tries to stay out of the spotlight

Sarah and Joe bought Black Wood (the murder house) with the intent of renovating and selling it for a profit. Seriously…who wants to live in a house where someone was murdered, and the blood stain is still on the floor? Also, throughout the book, the author offers tidbits of information indicating that Sarah and Joe are not really who they say they are. We hear about Sarah’s sister Lizzy, and there are references to “something” happening to her prior to the present day. These are the things that hooked me and made the book a decent read.

Sarah doesn’t garner any empathy from me though, even though she is a classic unreliable narrator (see spoilers below). Sarah Slade is a judgmental, arrogant, and narcissistic phony. She is completely unlikeable, and I had a really hard time feeling bad for her situation with the house that will be a money pit, her failing marriage, and her questionable career.

***SPOILERS*** SPOILERS***SPOILERS***

At the end of Part One, we find out that Sarah isn’t Sarah. Sarah is Lizzy, who stole her sister Sarah’s boyfriend, AND stole Sarah’s identity after Sarah “committed suicide” (in quotes because the suicide is also questionable). Five years prior to the beginning of the book, Sarah and Joe left their hometown, ostracized over what they did to the real Sarah. Oh…and Joe’s name isn’t Joe either.

As Sarah lives in the murder house of Black Wood, her grasp on reality becomes increasingly tenuous. She (and her cat) hear noises in the attic, and she can’t tell if they’re real or her imagination. Someone keeps leaving notes for her inside the house. She misses day after day of work without even realizing it. Interspersed between the chapters, we are provided with future-dated news articles about unidentified bodies being found on the property. Did someone else kill Sarah and Joe, or are Sarah and Joe murderers?

At some point, Sarah discovers that someone named Amanda, who she resembles, lived in the house for a few weeks before she and Joe purchased it but after the murder 40 years before. Her mental state, however, makes her wonder if it’s true or not. She really completely loses her grip on reality.

I made a lot of notes on what could have been happening. Is Sarah really Jane, the child who escaped the house 40 years before? (This would have made a great plot element.) Does Sarah have a secret life and she posed as Amanda several weeks before she and Joe moved into the house? Is Emily, one of the other therapists in her office, really Jane? There are so many possibilities, which is why I gave this 3 stars instead of less.

BUT…what ruined it for me was the reason Sarah was losing her mind. It was not, we assume, a haunted house with spirits that didn’t want to be disturbed. No one was hiding in the attic or sneaking into the house to leave notes for Sarah or poisoning her cat. There were telltale signs in the attic of a carbon monoxide leak, which was slowly poisoning Sarah the whole time.

So she was an innocent victim? Not really because she did “steal” her sister’s identity. She did decide to leave Black Wood and take on Emily’s identity. She did let her estranged husband be accused of her disappearance and murder. Sarah IS a bad person. I would have liked it better if Joe had been the one to go crazy and actually killed Sarah because of the house, repeating the pattern from 40 years before.

AND THEN…in the Epilogue, a new family moves into the run-down house, and there are no signs of a carbon monoxide leak. “You’d swear the house was doing it on purpose. You’d swear the house wanted to be left alone. Undisturbed.” I didn’t like this as a “twist,” where we think it’s the house, then we’re told it’s a carbon monoxide leak, and then oops…it’s the house. Gotcha!

I felt like this could have been really great if the author had settled on one idea and just followed through with it.

Such a great debut novel! I’m new to this genre of psychological thriller/creepy/horror/ghosts and amloving it! I couldn’t put this down, even at night when it was dark and quiet.
Sarah is an influencer in Australia. She and her husband Joe buy Black Wood house, planning to document their renovations on social media, but it’s also where multiple murders took place 40 years ago. The house has stood abandoned since then, or has it been empty?
The murder house creeped me out from the beginning. Contractors wouldn’t take the job, peeling wallpaper, lights that don’t work, noisy birds outside, post it notes with messages appearing out of nowhere, neighbors who don’t want Sarah in their neighborhood……..
I thought I had it figured out, but no I didn’t! The twists and turns towards the end of the story were brilliant.
At the end of the book , prior to the acknowledgements, the author, Lisa Marlin, shares her personal mental health journey.These words were such a brave addition to a debut novel!

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Shocking twist!! Really enjoyed this book!! The story follows Sarah , a therapist , who moves into a house where a murder has occurred many years prior. Things start happening soon after she moves in. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher and author for the chance to read this arc in exchange for my honest review!

Sarah purchases a Victorian with an ugly interior and an even uglier past. Her hope is that restoring the house, exploring its gruesome past for public consumption and working on her marriage will turn her life around. Unfortunately, she’s underestimated the amount of work her marriage and the house need and the fact that the past is never truly over, never really the past. A fantastic read for the spooky season

3.5 overall!

I love a haunted house theme so I was definitely excited for this book! I was hooked from the start and honestly didn’t want to put it down. The short chapters definitely helped and made it a quick read. The author did a great job with leaving you hanging after each chapter and needing to continue to find out what happens at the end. The creepy factor was good and this would be a good read for spooky season. I loved how mental health was a key component to the storyline and it gave me The Watcher vibes, which I enjoyed.

I did feel like it got very repetitive at times which made it drag just a bit for me. I also felt like there were storylines that didn’t get more attention and gave a open ended feel to it. I also still don’t know how I feel about the ending too.

Overall, I liked this book and think it’ll be a good spooky season read. It was definitely a quick, fun read!

I'm always searching for new authors and finding this debut novel by an Australian author piqued my interest even more. Based on this promising book, I will add Matlin to my list of authors to follow.

Sarah Slade is a therapist and best-selling self-help author whose own marriage is in shambles. When she and her husband buy a run-down Victorian house where a gruesome murder occurred 40 years ago, Sarah hopes to restore it and flip it for a profit. She doesn't count on the hostile neighbors who want the house demolished, not restored, and the creepy feeling the house emanates. When odd things begin happening both to her and the contractors working on her house, she begins to wonder if the stories about the house are true: is it haunted?

I found the story a bit uneven at times, but overall this was a satisfying read. Although Sarah increasingly is captivated, if not captured by the house, her personality begins to change--or maybe it's revealing her true self. In any event, she becomes an increasingly unlikeable character whose decisions become poorer as events spiral out of her control. I think this is a good, atmospheric novel and I look forward to more from Matlin.

Thank you NetGalley and Bantam publishers for an advance copy of this book n exchange for an honest review. These opinions are my own. The publication date is September 12, 2023.