A younger sister thrusts herself back into the haunted house of her past in this slow burn YA horror novel. Sophia’s sister, Layla, rose to fame after filming young Sophia’s “fake” encounters with a ghost called V. Then, years later, Layla disappears. Offered a chance to go back to the house that started it all in a “sequel” to the first movie, Sophia agrees though without the permission of her parents. At the house, old memories are cast in new, older light. How did her sister fake everything so well as a teenager? And why do the memories seem so different now Sophia isn’t a twelve year old enraptured by her older sister’s every move? As the supposedly artificial horror of the sequel spirals out of control, Sophia is left with more questions than ever. But to rescue her sister, she’ll persist the gaps in her memory and the impossible feats of the new director’s humanly vision, While repetitive at times, this creeping horror novel is a current take on a haunted house and cult films with their darkly obsessed fans.

When Ghosts Call Us Home was a lyrical, sometimes confusing, but always atmospheric story of Sophia Galich's journey back into the house, and the amateur horror movie, that made her older sister Layla famous.

I thought the author did a great job of exploring Sophia's trauma and grief around her older sister's disappearance and the memories of the movie she stared in as a child that later became a cult classic. I also enjoyed her relationship with Arthur and the strangeness of The Path as they both traveled it together. My biggest critique comes during the early chapters of the book, which felt a little info-dumpy, but I'm glad I stuck with it because I quickly became sucked into the rest of the story.

This book was absolutely phenomenal. Katya de Becerra did an amazing job slowly revealing the secrets this book held. She also did an amazing job highlighting the grief that effected so many character’s stories and actions. Grief is so powerful and de Becerra did an outstanding job showing that in this book.

A quick, fun read that brings back the best of the past few years in horror. Part haunted house story, part art film mystery, it hits a lot of great notes for any horror fan.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC!

Strong start! I really liked the internet/movie tie in that started the story, that was an interesting premise, but when she got to the house it started to lag slightly. Sophia felt slightly one dimensional, and much younger than her 18 years, especially with her relationship to Arthur. A quick, fun read!