Josh dialed the creep factor up as far as it can go. What would you do if you were a kid and a creepy woman who comes out of your closet kept asking to “go into your heart”? Would you say yes?

Josh Malerman never fails to serve his readers unique stories, which is why I get really excited with each book he cranks out.

Incidents Around the House is no exception. I love the idea of a child POV. You don't see that too often. This one was a bit of a mixed bag, though. I thought the child came off a bit redundant on phrases, and while that makes sense (it's a kid!) It didn't translate that well. The creep factor was certainly there, though I was hoping for more of an ending. Regaurdless, I love Josh's books, and I think this will be a big hit for the horror community!

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for this opportunity!

Incidents Around the House by Josh Malerman is one of the freakiest books I have ever read in my life. I found myself forgetting to breathe as I read it and often realized I was literally crying because it freaked me out so badly. I will give a very, very brief summary. It is written from the POV of a child about a thing in her closet that's been paying her visits. It wants to be "let inside" her heart. Soon, she begins seeing it in other parts of the home. And then, it is not confined to the walls of the family's house...and eventually...other people can see it too. It's a book
that reminded me what it was like to be a child, and honestly, I felt being a child was very difficult. The overwhelming thing I recall from ages 3-10 is 100% “what the fuck is even happening right now?” And never knowing what’s next or, worse, what’s expected of me. And that’s freaky. I felt that way every second of my little life, and that made for a nervous, anxious childhood. To be fair, that’s how I feel as an adult, but now I’ve had nearly 50 years of experience acclimating to it. Reading this child's story took me back to that unsettling place of vast uncertainty; sitting with the echoing reverberations of that anxiety through the lens of a monster/haunted house/demon story/possession story, rendered those feelings doubly alarming. I didn't actually parse in the end what was happening/what had happened, and that's fine. That's perfect, actually. I feel like those alarming feelings of WTFery as a story is amping up are so infrequently sustained throughout the course of a book and all the way through the end-- and Malerman has executed it masterfully. Isn't it funny, though, how those things we fear so dreadfully, eventually become those fascinations that delight us? As a child, I hated never knowing exactly what was going on, and yet, as an adult, that's the hallmark of some of the most excellent stories for me.

I won’t lie: I literally wept from fear while reading this book! There was something about the innocence of Bela’s perspective coupled with the rising tension in the novel that made the danger feel so close and immediate. I was reading it while rocking my baby in the nursery, and I felt like Other Mommy was looking over my shoulder! I could totally envision a movie in the style of Hardcore Henry, where the entire movie is viewed through Bela’s eyes directly.

I love Malerman, but this one was a little rough for me. It’s written from the perspective of a child and while the horror endured is far from childlike, it was still rough for me to get through language-wise. Still a quality read though if you don’t have those same issues.

I'm a great fan of Josh Malerman, so when I started reading and saw the phrase "Other Mommy", I was concerned it was going to be some kind of Coraline-esque copycat novel (not that there'd be anything wrong with that). But other than the similarity in the names of Other Mommy and Other Mother, this is definitely its own novel. I don't usually like kids in peril type books (too anxiety inducing!), but this one worked.
Incidents Around the House is a novel told from an 8 year old girl, Bela's, point of view. She is quite mature for her age, has a great relationship with her parents, attends grown-up soirees that they throw at her home, and is being haunted by a malevolent entity, she calls Other Mommy.
Other Mommy wants Bela to let her into her heart so she can be in "carnation". Bela keeps this secret to herseilf until Other Mommy is viewed by others and then with the help of her parents, grandmother, and other characters, they battle this evil being. Bela has to face some grown up truths as the adults in her life work to get rid of Other Mommy.
I will refrain from giving away any more plot details (other than to prepare yourself for the ending. Gulp!), but rest assured, the creepiness and horror factor on this was a solid 8 for me. I had an image in my mind of Other Mommy but would have loved a frontpiece or endpiece illustration of his vision of her just for fun.
Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this title.

While some parts genuinely creeped me out, I don’t love child narrators, which took a lot of the enjoyment away from me.

I have read other books by Josh Malerman and this book was so great!!!!! I love his writing style, it really pulls you in. I also loved how the story was told in Bela’s perspective . It was scary, chilling, haunting, and parts definitely made me jump!!! I highly recommend it! I read it all at once start to finish! Coming in June 2024!!!!!

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group Ballentine for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

#NetGalley #IncidentsAroundTheHouse

4.5 stars. I have been a Josh Malerman fan for years (Birdbox is still one of my #1 horror reads) so I was ecstatic to get the Netgalley ARC copy of Incidents Around the House. I can warn you now: prepare to be SCARED.

I read a lot of horror. Most of it is quietly unsettling, maybe a little gross. I am often scared for the character but rarely feel scared myself. Malerman always manages to challenge that feeling. There were several points during Incidents Around the House where I had to set the book down because I was getting too scared. Then I would go find my husband and tell him what was happening so that he could be terrified with me. He was so happy when I finished the book so I would stop scaring him! :)

In Incidents Around the House, a young girl named Bela has an imaginary friend named "Other Mommy". Other Mommy starts out in her closet but keeps getting a bit closer and soon is following Bela outside of the house. And now other people are seeing her. Maybe Other Mommy is not so imaginary at all. As Bela's family tries to determine the best course of action, Other Mommy keeps asking Bela, "Can I go inside your heart?" Will Bela let Other Mommy in to keep her family safe?

I think my heart-rate increased to 3 times its regular speed the whole time that I read this one. Just read it.

Incidents Around the House is a terrifying tale that seamlessly blends psychological horror with family drama. Set against the backdrop of everyday family life, Malerman has crafted a modern classic. As the story progresses, you are drawn into a world where fear lurks around every corner and in every closet. This is the kind of horror that isn't just about what goes bump in the night; it's about the darkness that resides in all of us. It is rare that a book creeps me out, but this one did the job and also left me an emotional wreck! I finished it in one sitting. This book will leave you questioning—what is home? I wish I could give more than 5 stars.

I’m really a big fan of Malerman’s writing style. This haunting story being told from the POV of a young girl really amped up the tension and suspense. This was such an atmospheric read that left me genuinely creeped out at times. I found myself glancing around the corners of my home for “Other Mommy” when reading this in the middle of the night. I think the pacing and characters are fantastic, the the book as a whole is immersive. I can’t say I really loved the ending, but it’s somewhat mixed feelings. On one hand I think it’s very emotional, on the other it felt really dissatisfying - which could also be completely intentional.

Thank you to NetGalley and Del Ray for the ARC. Opinions are my own and freely given.

I wasn’t a huge fan of the stylistic choices of this novel, and I also found myself to not enjoy the child’s POV as much as I thought I would. Though I thought it would make the novel scarier coming from a little girl’s perspective, I just found it to be a bit childish and it didn’t really resonate with me. I know a lot of other reviews really enjoyed this, so my not enjoying it is more that I didn’t connect with it rather than it not being a good book! Thank you NetGalley and Random House for the arc!

This book surprised me in the best way. Josh Mallerman is a hit or miss author for me, so I went in with pretty low expectations, but they were hit out of the water. The slow build of unease to fear felt very realistic as our main character slowly is able to convince those around her that “Other Mommy” is real, and is ready to fight for the ability to enter her heart. I found myself cringing and stopping reading due to dread and the scary scenes that I find so hard to pull off in a book. One of my favorite horror stories of all time is Mallerman’s House at the Bottom of the Lake, so maybe I need to focus on his novellas rather than his novels, and I’ll definitely be picking more up in the future.

Wow. I’m kind of struggling for words to describe how this book made me feel. Is this Josh Malerman’s masterpiece?!

I took my time with this one. I didn’t want it to end. The feeling I got from the first few chapters is indescribable. I was hooked. I don’t want to spoil anything, but what I WILL say is that I thought this book was going to be one thing but the meaning behind it all and what Josh was hinting at all along, was something completely different.

He was weaving together something entirely different from what I was expecting and the way he pieced it all together is just magnificent.

This story is so eerie and chilling and unsettling. Two different times I literally gasped out loud and covered my mouth with my hand. So many parts gave me chills and made the hairs on my arms stand straight up. Josh is truly a master of writing to get under your skin without you really even realizing until it’s right there.

A superb novel by one of horrors greatest writers.

I've read a few Josh Malerman books now, and I must say that they are consistently haunting and thought-provoking. Like the other two I've read (A House at the Bottom of a Lake and Goblin), Incidents Around the House is more of a psychological horror.

It's written in the POV of a young girl named Bela, who is haunted by “Other Mommy.” The book follows what happens when her parents begin to realize that she is being haunted and what they decide to do about it.

I rarely read a book where I don't have a sense of what is going to happen next (after a while, you have an instinct for storytelling—shout out to my childhood and adult hobby of just... reading books). But near the end, I honestly found myself wondering what would happen.

If you like horror or Malerman, pick this one up!

I received a digital ARC from NetGalley, and thank them for the opportunity to read this one ahead of release!

WOW! Incidents Around the House is the scariest horror novel I’ve read in a long time. Told from the perspective of 8-year-old Bela, who lives with her parents in a home as she is haunted by an entity she calls Other Mommy, Malerman employs a simple, yet incredibly effective, style of prose (it is told from an 8-year-old’s POV) where “less is more” and it makes it scarier. We see everything as Bela sees it. This novel is an achievement and destined to become a modern classic.

Thank you to Del Rey, Penguin Random House, and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 rounded up.

This is a very unique horror novel. It's told from the POV of a young girl who is visited by an entity she refers to as 'Other Mommy'. I thought that the way that this story is told was very effective, the writing style created a very creepy atmosphere, and the short chapters kept the story moving even when the plot itself became a bit repetitive.

The characters felt a bit flat, but we're seeing them through the lens of a child, so it didn't bother me. I wish that the actual haunting had been explained a little bit more. I liked the ending and I didn't see it coming but I definitely still had some questions. Overall, a very enjoyable and heart-pounding horror story and a pretty quick read.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

Incidents Around the House is like Poltergeist meets Coraline. This was such a fast paced read. I don’t get creeped out often, especially by books, but the last 40% was really unsettling for me. The book being told by Bela’s POV was brilliant because obviously children perceive things so differently from adults. Plus I loved Bela realizing how her parents were dealing with Other Mommy and the events taking place. It just adds another level of creepiness to the story. And short chapters 👏. Now the ending… I LOVED!

Malerman’s writing style does take me a little bit to get used to. The lack of quotations takes me some time to get over but it didn’t detract from my feelings on the book. I didn’t enjoy seeing the name Daddo constantly but again it didn’t change my feelings. But wow are the parents unlikable.

But I would definitely recommend and enjoyed reading.

This book started out so strong, but fizzled in the middle and ending. There were a lot of creepy moments and the POV from the child really worked for me. I was really engaged in it until about the half way point, when everything kind of went off the rails.

The biggest culprit of that downturn were the characters. Not only were all of them unlikeable, but some of the situations and their responses to them were absolutely ridiculous. It became almost comical at some points, which detracted from the dread and horror that made parts of the story so great. The characters’ final, grand attempt to stop the haunting made me literally roll my eyes.

The second issue was the ending. The ending itself was anticlimactic. It just felt like all that work to get through the book and there wasn’t any real payoff. I finished the book and just felt like it was pointless. There’s no doubt the author can create very unique stories that are well written and atmospheric. As a huge lover of the horror genre, I felt that this was a legitimate horror novel and I loved that. But the second half of the book just killed it for me.

Five stars for the first part, but the second part was SO disappointing.

i really liked the pov being told from bela. i wasnt a fan of the ending, but this book was a quick and interesting read