I have thoroughly enjoyed all of Vincent Ralph's books that I have read and this one is no different. They are fast reads that really hook the reader. They have many twists and turns and are just a delight to read. This book is perfect for the upcoming spooky reading season and one I'd recommend!

Thank you NetGalley for this arc!

I was very intrigued by this book, especially when I read it was a mix of RL Stine, and it didn’t disappoint!

Loved this one! Great and fun read. Highly recommend.
Many thanks to the publisher, Netgalley, and the author for my ARC.

So this book started off really interesting the first half but afterwards I was so annoyed of Nate. I got super bored and it didn’t peek my interest, I forced myself to finish it but this is not something I’d pick up again. This is really disappointing considering I really enjoyed his last two books but I don’t know this was not it for me.

“R L Stine meets Urban Legend” say less…

“One House Left” has all the makings for the perfect YA horror, if you’re looking for a break from your usual reads with enough urban legends to pique your interest, and enough creepy components to give you the chills this is for you.

The plot follows a dysfunctional family who are always on the move due to some ominous secret they are harbouring that is causing them to just act super weird and suspect.

When the new kid miraculously makes fast friends with a group at school they immediately open up about all the urban legends and ghost stories surrounding the town. When these stories begin to merge with the ones that Nate’s family are trying to outrun will him and his family be able to escape this time.

This was a fun read I would recommend if you are looking for an adventurous paranormal thriller.

Thank you to st martins press, Wednesday books, Vincent Ralph and Netgalley for the EARC!

Publish date: august 27th 2024

First, thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital ARC of this book. When I saw that it was available, I immediately downloaded the book because I have read two of Ralph’s books in the past and enjoyed them.

Ralph’s newest book is definitely meant for an audience who appreciates paranormal thrillers, as the story discusses urban legends with horror aspects. I learned that this might not be the genre for me, but I did enjoy Ralph’s writing, especially in the second half of the book.

The first half of the book was a little slow paced. I also struggled to really feel the connections between the characters, specifically Nate and Max. However, once I reached the halfway point of the book, I could not put it down! The plot twist definitely got me!

Overall, I would recommend this book to an audience who enjoys the theme of urban legends and paranormal thrillers. It was a short, fun YA read that leaves you thinking at the very end.

Thank you greatly to NetGalley, Entangled Publishing, and St. Martin's Press for this amazing book.

I fell I love with Max, Tyler, and Seb. Thet are amazing characters.

The book is really creepy and truly terrifying. I found myself questioning what was truly going on at every twist and turn. The haunted house vibe was so terrifyingly creepy I slept with the lights on jumping at ever creak and bump in the night.

A great paranormal thriller for all ages.

Recommend.

I was completely captivated by "One House Left" until the very last page. This book had all the perfect ingredients for a horror novel: a dysfunctional family, chaotic home life, constant moving, and some mysterious secret that we aren't privy to just yet. As the new kid at school, you don't bother trying to fit in because you're always new to the area, but then a trio of friends welcomes you and invites you to eat lunch and hang out with them. This group happens to love urban legends. They love urban legends so much that they test them out to see what happens. Seems like the perfect group for the new mysterious kid to join.
This plays out so eerily. You wonder what will happen next. Will the family pack up and move again? Why is the family so on edge with each other? Is this urban legend group for real? What is really going on here? I asked myself all sorts of questions. I had no idea what would happen. The author did a great job keeping me in suspense. Even the last page had me wanting more. This is a great entry in the thriller genre.

Thanks to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for an e-arc in exchange for an unbiased review.

This was one scary, creepy adventure of looking at Urban Legends. Max., Tyler and Seb had tried before and nothing ever happened when they tried the face in the glass. Then Nate joins the group and the legends become reality time and time again. The keep pushing for a bigger adrenaline rush until they decide to go to Murder row and face the Hiding Boy.

Nate is trying to protect his family and keep them safe.

Yikes, the ending that surprised me. This was like a goosebumps gone wrong.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC. The pacing and storytelling were strong in this book but the dialogue could be confusing at time s and hard to keep track of who said what.

This was a trudge thru kind of read and it was a very slow pace with 57 chapters. That said, being the new kid is never easy and moving around alot means you know the drill as far as new schools are concerned. What if you believe in Urban Legends? What if you made a few friends who did too? This story delves into consequences with good detail and a flair for the dramatic. So many asimilies! All in all, you won't lose any sleep, I wouldn't rate this high on the fear factor. But, it was slightly entertaining.

This was FANTASTIC! I stumbled upon Vincent Ralph a few months ago in Barnes and Noble and quickly became an instant fan. One House Left was the perfect combination of urban legends meets R.L. Stien. It brought me back to my Goosebump days and I wasn't mad about it! The mystery and creepiness of the urban legend was amazing! Ralph's newest book just solidified why he's an auto buy author for me!

Title: One House Left by Vincent Ralph
Genre: YA (Middle Grade) Thriller
Pub Date: August 27, 2024

“𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐲 𝐨𝐫 𝐧𝐨𝐭. 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐨. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐇𝐢𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐁𝐨𝐲 𝐢𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮.”

🏡 Family on the Run
✨️ "Unaliving" Curse
🏡 Urban Legends
✨️ Slow Burn Mystery

My Review:
If you love middle grade thrillers with Fear Street/Goosebumps vibes, One House Left will be right up your alley!

I am not the target audience for this book (I'm almost 27 therefore well out of middle/high school) so take my review with a grain of salt! I prefer reading about characters closer to my age, but I believe if I'd read this in 8th grade I truly would've loved it! The pacing is a little slow (it doesn't really start making sense/picking up until the last 25%) but the writing style is solid!

⭐️ 3.5/5

Thank you so much, @NetGalley and @WednesdayBooks and St. Martin's Press, for the digital review copy ❣️

I had trouble getting into this book. For a little over the first half I really had no idea what was happening, but not in a good, mind-bending way; I simply didn’t understand the story. The premise - a missing boy putting a curse on his street for not saving his family - was excellent. I feel this book has so much promise, and maybe fleshing the details and characters out a bit more would help. Things sort of wrapped up by the end, but I was really left feeling blah about the whole book.

Thank you for the opportunity to read in advance!

This horror/paranormal mystery was good, but not great. It had a lot of unanswered questions throughout the book, which made it hard to follow until the last third. The characters felt superficial and underdeveloped. Nate came from a broken house, but I didn't understand why he wouldn't befriend the other three teenagers who seemed to want to include him or why he pursued Max, when I didn't really see a relationship there. There were no surprising twists, but I did think the ending fit with the plot of the book. The writing style of the book was very unique, which made me continue reading despite the slow pace.

I couldn’t get into the story just as I thought. Not disappointed but need more depth, I think. I can't remember when was the last time when I read a book in which the whole plot was 100% equal to what was written in the blurb and nothing more. There was no surprise there, no resolution to any of the plot threads and the whole story was blatantly predictable and painfully dull.

Like urban legends? A good scary story? Well then this is for you! The twist in this book were insane. I was completely sucked into the story and then blindsided! Such a great read!

If you’re a fan of urban legends, then One House Left by Vincent Ralph is definitely a book you should check out. Playing around with Bloody Mary or Death Number 999-9999 is one thing, but living in an urban legend? That’s a whole different story.

For the most part, I wasn’t overly attached to our main character, Nate. Something was off about him – and not just the fact that he was oddly obsessed with Murder Road and keeping people away from there. He just wasn’t a character that I really connected with, to be honest. But sometimes you don’t need to connect with the characters.

I loved Max – she was someone I’d probably have been friends with when I was in high school. She’s fiery but she also has a soft side. She’s my favorite of the characters in this book.

The other two main characters, from whose point of view we get to see parts of the story, Seb and Tyler are interesting characters, but I didn’t really connect with either of them. They were more or less background noise – someone more for Nate and Max to interact with.

The plot for One House Left is fairly simple – Nate and his family used to live near Cherry Tree Lane, also known in the world of urban legends as Murder Road. Unfortunately, Murder Road isn’t just a legend, it is real. Now Nate and his family are on the run from Murder Road… but why? The twist is something you won’t see coming… and even then, it’s a slow burn twist to get the full story.

I didn’t have the massive “can’t put this down” feeling like I have for other books, but I also didn’t hate it. I still wanted to know what was happening, but it wasn’t as much of a burning need as it has been for other books. To be honest, One House Left is the first Vincent Ralph book I’ve actually finished. I tried to read Lock the Doors a couple of years ago and just couldn’t get into it. Maybe it is time to revisit that book, now that I have a better idea of Mr. Ralph’s writing style.

Vincent Ralph’s writing style is slow burn rather than fast paced. It will take you quite a while to get the main action. Sure, there will be bits and pieces to keep you entertained and help keep your attention, but to get to the good stuff, you’ll have to read over half the book. Trust me, it’s worth it.

The ending was great – it left the book with an ending that was both final and not at the same time. The book could have a sequel if Mr. Ralph wanted to write one, but it doesn’t need one. If he did write a sequel, I’d love to read it.

I’m giving this book 4 stars because it’s a great slow burn horror novel that will make you want to know more, but not to the point of obsessing over it.

A very readable book that kept me engaged and turning pages, with a twist that manages to send the book off in an unexpected direction yet still ends up almost exactly where I would have expected. Well drawn characters with more depth than you sometimes find in a short horror novel.

Would definitely recommend for readers into urban legends and creepy vibes.

Nate's high school struggles are about to become much harder when he meets three friends who like urban legends. The set up is terrifying and the ending is horrifying. The pacing at the beginning was a bit slow and that made me knock off a star. This is not my normal type of story and it did not disappoint.