Thank you to NetGalley and Farrar, Straus, and Giroux for this ARC! This book was deeply eerie, haunting, and moving. I enjoyed the plot very much, as it’s a departure from books I find myself reading most often. The ending was surprising and gripping, and made me feel physically sick. So many layers to this book, I feel like I could actually write an essay about it. I particularly enjoyed the relationship between Ezri and Elijah. Sometimes the POV got to be a bit confusing for me, and the structure was hard to follow at times, which is why I didn’t give it a higher rating. A good read for spooky season.

A wonderfully weird book with a cast of E names and a narrator so unreliable than even when you've guessed the twist you'll go well maybe though.

Opens with a gut punch set of sentences and the writing does not let up from there. I've been lightly referring to it as Haunted House or Racism? But the book really hits hard in how it is written and the topics handled.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

I went into this thinking it was a typical haunted house story, and it very much is not. It is so much deeper than that. This book was a thought provoking look at childhood trauma and how it affects our lives, as well as a journey through growing up facing extreme judgement for things out of your control. Once I realized this wasn’t your typical thriller, I enjoyed the book more. There were parts that had me confused for sure but I would definitely recommend it.

I’m impressed not only with how Solomon tells stories but also with what stories they choose to tell. <i>Model Home</i> delivers its promise of being a haunted house story unlike any other you’re likely to come across. This book is best read without knowing what to expect, trusting that Solomon will stir up an unsettling horror that keeps you guessing until the end. I’ve come to learn that the best parts of their writing are the characters that come to life on the page and the subtext that permeates their prose. The social commentary in this book is a scathing admonishment of whiteness as predation, trauma as omnipresent, and family dysfunction as an insidious inheritance.

I love the way Rivers Solomon writes. I’ll read pretty much anything they publish. Their writing is visceral and unsettling.

This one took me ages to finish, not because I wasn’t interested, but because it was so heavy. The last 40% went really quickly, but I kept putting the book down in the first 60% just because of how depressing it was. To be clear, the last 40% is still depressing, but you also need to know what’s happening, so it’s easier to push through.

The story follows the Maxwell siblings, who are forced to return to their childhood home after their parents’ mysterious deaths. The house, and the white suburb it’s in, holds dark, unexplainable secrets tied to their family’s trauma. Solomon turns the haunted-house trope on its head, weaving in themes of racism, segregation, and unresolved trauma.

There’s a lot to unpack—racism, mental illness, sexual assault. It’s not an easy read, but it’s worth it.

Rivers Solomon save me Rivers Solomon....... I love their brain and their commentary and their rage and this book was absolutely spectacular. Horrifying and Real and Visceral.

This is now maybe my favorite horror novel of all time. From the first page I was hooked, and Solomon doesn't rely on eye rolling gimmicks, instead this was truly terrifying and so well done. Highly, highly recommend.

This book manages to deal with grief, abuse, trauma, racism, and family dynamics all within a haunted house story. I was genuinely scared and shocked throughout the story and the TWIST, OMG! Fans of Jordan Peele’s horror movies will absolutely devour this story.

The proposed idea behind gated communities is that they keep the horrors out; but all too often people overlook that those gates can also hide horrors within.

Normally, I’d take you through the plot of this story just a little bit, but I honestly believe this book is best going in blind. The official blurb isn’t 100% accurate but it’s accurate enough to get you started.

One thing the blurb does get correct is that this isn’t your usual haunted house story. The ghosts that haunt the Maxwell siblings are numerous: historical, generational, parental, personal, and maybe even supernatural. The lion’s share of the family’s burdens fell on Ezri, the eldest Maxwell sibling, who was different even apart from being black in a white-as-snow neighborhood. Even as kids the Maxwell siblings knew it wasn’t a good idea to be the only black spot on a white canvas in the suburbs of Dallas. It made for an unhappy childhood and an unhappy family.

Rivers Solomon writes about race, queerness, childhood, and trauma in a very raw, almost poetic way. The prose in some passages reminds me of early Pahalnuik (think Invisible Monsters), with these repetitive phrases containing slight word changes that seem to hit harder each time they land. Model Home isn’t polite or refined. It isn’t pretty or kind. This book is about a horrible mother, discontented sisters, parental alienation, racism, homophobia, mental illness, child abuse and predation, pride in being black, but so much internalized hate for who you are apart from being black and where you came from.

One of the main differences between a thriller and a horror is that horror asks us “what” is causing the conflict. In the case of Model Home, Rivers Solomon is asking us, “What isn’t causing all of this horror?”

(Last note: So many snaps to Solomon for excellent LeGuin allusions and references! I swooned.)

I was provided a copy of this title by the author and publisher via Netgalley. All thoughts, opinions, views, and ideas expressed herein are mine and mine alone. Thank you.

File Under: 5 Star Review/Disability Rep/Ghost Fiction/Horror/LGBTQ Horror/Literary Fiction/Supernatural Horror

3.5 stars and my thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the eARC!

It was hard to get into Model Home at first, and I think that was mostly because Ezri was such an unreliable narrator. They were fascinating and interesting, especially their relationships with their sisters, but I had a hard time getting a read on them. I think the hardest part about it was the fact that the narration skipped time and POV without much warning. It made it equally hard to get a feel for when and where we were.

With that in mind, it was truly a spooky book. The little we got in the way of information about the house was enough to send chills down my spine. Ezri's anecdote about kids taking bets to spend time in the house with one going missing was chilling.

All in all, it was a truly creepy look into the way race, gender, and family in an affluent white neighborhood.

Rivers Solomon's Model Home is an unrelentingly haunting tale centered on the Maxwell siblings - Ezri, Eve, and Emmanuelle. Their childhood in a gated community outside Dallas, where they were the only Black family, was marred by strange and terrifying events in their home at 677 Acacia Drive. This traumatic past has kept them at a distance from both the house and their parents in adulthood. The siblings' forced return home following their parents' mysterious deaths sets the stage for a confrontation with their history. As they delve into family secrets and attempt to unravel the truth behind the house's disturbing occurrences, Solomon crafts an atmosphere of intense unease and palpable dread.

I already love reading about the complex dynamics between the siblings, and Solomon's portrayal of the family kept me invested throughout. I found myself particularly drawn to Ezri's perspective, though it was often a difficult and heartbreaking place to be. Spending time in Ezri's head was truly horrifying at times, as their trauma and struggles were so vividly portrayed. Model Home was not anything like I expected. Solomon doesn't pull any punches when it comes to dark themes and disturbing scenes - it's a brutal read, no doubt about it. But I found myself unable to put it down, even when it made me uncomfortable. If you're up for an intense, unsettling read, this book offers a bold, unconventional take on the haunted house story. It'll make you think, and it'll take you deep into the heart of family secrets and hidden horrors.

This was my first experience reading Rivers Solomon's writing and this book was fantastic! It wasn't sure what to expect when I was reading the story. I love the take on the haunted house theme. This book will definitely keep you on your toes and keeps you guessing. I can't wait to read more from Rivers.

Thanks to NetGalley for this eARC!

This literary horror features a wry and wise narrative voice and an intriguing premise: the main character is summoned home because both parents have died, and it's clear that it’s not from natural causes. But only the siblings think to wonder if the causes might have been supernatural, because of the weird things that happened in that house during their childhood.

4.5 stars
Model home was not what I expected, but it was so good. Rivers Solomon had a beautiful way of writing and it’s always so impactful.
The timeline was a tad hard to follow at the beginning with flashbacks and POV changes, but after a while it was easier especially since all the characters were so distinct.
These characters were very complicated and real. The story follows a family that is very dysfunctional and traumatized and very real.
The ending was not what I saw coming at all and was hard to read but done so well.

Please read trigger warnings

*thank you NetGalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

A harrowing horror story. This one knocked the wind out of me. It spooked me. It sent goosebumps up and down my arms. And it still got more horrifying than I expected. It sent me to this dark, dank place of silence. That was simultaneously all too loud.

This book was so different. The author, incredibly talented, with a writing style that was like a painted picture. It was velvet, raw, and horrifying. There was so much wisdom and depth packed into this book. It touched on social justice, social awareness, what it means to be someone “other” in this world. It truly makes you question who, or what, the monster really is.

This is your warning, though. There are heavy trigger warnings. I go into most books blind, and the turn this one took nearly brought me to my knees.

All of that said: this was terrifyingly beautiful. Wow. Rivers Solomon is one to watch for.

This book definitely turned out to be not what I expected at first, and I'm still not sure how I feel about it.
On one hand, I liked what I got from it - it is a haunted house story, just not in the most conventional way. And the siblings dynamics was appealing to me.
On the other hand, for the exact reason that this book wasn't not 'haunted' in the most traditional way, I felt disappointed.
Gotta say: I'd never read a book by this author before, so I had really no idea what to expect from their writing or mannerisms.
Somethings I liked, some others I didn't.
I can easily see other readers enjoying this book more than I did.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher Farrar, Straus and Giroux for allowing me to read a free arc copy of this novel.

Rivers Solomon’s new book, Model Home, is a rip tide of a psychological horror novel. It sucks you in and once you’re in there’s nothing to hold on to--no safe ground. If you’re familiar with their work, this book has almost all the things you remember loving about An Unkindness of Ghosts, or Sorrowland. (Personally, I’m missing the fungus, but that's a personal preference thing, not a comment on quality.) I’ve been following Solomon’s career with interest since the days of An Unkindness of Ghosts, and the quality of their language has only gotten better. The sentences in Model Home are whips and nooses, cutting off my breath, and making me wince with pain.

Ezri’s and their siblings grew up the only black family in a white enclave in Texas. It wasn’t easy even in the best of circumstances, and this is not the best of circumstances. Ezri is neurodivergent, and troubled, and their house is DEFINITELY haunted. Then Ezri’s parents die in what looks like a murder suicide. But the siblings know that the house definitely killed their parents....or did it.

The story unfolds non-linearly, and borderline experimental prose, as we learn about trauma, family, and resilience. If you like Solomon’s other work, you’ll like this, though I had to read it in small doses as it feels too claustrophobic, raw and personal to take in all at once. I’ve given up trying to predict where they will go next, but I for one will be eagerly awaiting Solomon’s next book.

I received an ARC in exchange for this honest review.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing this eARC.

Model Home follows the Macwell siblings, who return to their childhood home to reckon with their past and their parents' death.

Rivers Solomon continues to demonstrate an absolute mastery of thematic richness, and it's this mastery that keeps me coming back to their books. Model Home is a haunted house tale that doesn't always feel like a haunted house tale, but unwinds the nuanced dynamics of racism and modern life in the south in a manner which is marvelously haunting and thought-provoking. It's an intense read, often a difficult one, but remarkably clever and incredibly gripping. Perhaps it is not the most traditional Horror Season read, but I think Model Home is a book I will be revisiting and recommending annually around this time of year.

So creepy. So eerie. The perfect, quick haunt to start your October off right! Highly recommend to anyone looking to set the tone for the spooky season!

Thanks to NetGalley and MCD for the digital ARC!!!

Model Home by Rivers Solomon- ebook ARC from NetGalley

Ever read a book and feel like you need a Ph.D. just to understand the metaphors? Welcome to Model Home! With its creepy house and haunting pasts, this is the perfect book to read when you want to feel spooked *and* slightly inadequate. 😂

Rivers Solomon’s writing is so stunning that I found myself staring at the page, squinting, and wondering if I was missing some deep, hidden meaning. (Spoiler: I probably was.) But that’s part of the charm, right? You’re swept away by this eerie atmosphere, sinister secrets, and then—boom—the last few pages hit you with a gut punch that leaves you blinking like you just emerged from a dark cave.

It’s unsettling, it’s mysterious, and it’s definitely *not* a book you casually read with one eye on your phone. If you’re looking for a spooky season read to keep you up at night and leave you questioning your own intelligence, Model Home delivers. I’m not entirely sure how I feel about it, but hey, sometimes feeling unsure is all part of the experience!

Would I recommend it? Sure! But only if you’re ready to be haunted… by both the story and the nagging suspicion you missed something brilliant. 😅