Rounded up from 2.5 to 3 stars. I’d like to thank netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review. The premise of this sounded really interesting but unfortunately I struggled with it and it took me longer to finish it than I thought it would. The ending was what saved it for me.

Thank you so much for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book! I absolutely loved it. Dark, eerie, witch folklore punctuated by elegant storytelling. I devoured the last 70% of it in one sitting.

. I found great pleasure in reading this book. It encompassed all the elements that I appreciate in literature. The narrative was filled with suspense and incorporated paranormal themes. Certain sections were undeniably eerie, leading me to advise against reading them at night. The characters were both compelling and relatable. Overall, it was an enjoyable read, and I highly recommend it.

Well… this book reignited my love for creepy Thrillers.. wow. I couldn’t put this book down at all. I just had to keep reading.

4.5 ⭐️

Love love loved! What an eerie and suspenseful read. Perfect for fall coming up. Definitely don’t always love horror but this writing and plot was amazing! Full of twists

I don't get creeped out easily, but Something in the Walls gave me actual nightmares. I read it fast so I could sleep again! Recommend for horror fans and will purchase for libraries.

Will not sleep for days! This book had me looking over my shoulder and in my closet for days! I am not easily scared but this one had just the right about of thrills and chills that kept me on the edge! Keeps you second guessing everyone you meet and the secrets that lie behind their closed doors. This was fast paced and easily a 5star read!

Wow. Wow. Wow. If you’re looking for a good creepy, witchy feel book. Here ya go. I spent the majority of this book yelling at Mina that she was stupid. I mean come on, the proof is in the pudding baby. And there was so much pudding. This book pulled on my heart strings as the characters (Mina, Sam and Alice) truly went through so much. I was for sure that this book would end in a certain way, I wasn’t let down, I was left flabbergasted. So much happened by the end of this book that I ended up having to reread parts, because what? How? Excuse me? To say I loved this book is an understatement.

This book was pretty good. It was the good creepy thriller I was looking for.

I do feel like some of the characters were a little too two dimensional and I wasn’t the biggest fan of the end.

With that said if you are looking for a good read over the Halloween season this is a great pickup!

Mina, a recently graduated psychologist, meets a reporter with an interesting pitch at her grief group. Both her and the reporter have suffered the loss of a close one and he brings Mina on to get experience on a job he’s currently writing. Alice, a teenager who’s experiencing odd seeings and hearing voices and claims to speak to the dead. Mina hopes to help Alice while getting some experience in the field, while maybe also being able to get some closure on her deceased brother. But things get increasingly disturbing as she and Sam stay with Alice and her family in her superstitious home town.
This was not what I expected, but in a good way! Kept me up, turning pages to see what will happen to Alice. Witchy and spooky and that ending! A great fall read!

LORD was this SOMETHIN!!
Creepy. Stressful. Witchy.
I felt like the resolution didn't wrap up as I'd hoped & I have a lot of questions.. BUT - this was a great read and I'd highly recommend. I was totally invested and wanted to finish it to get my heartrate down 🤣

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this ARC in exchange for my honest review. Pub date 02/25/2025

Thank you to NetGalley and MacMillan Publishing for providing me with an ARC of Daisy Pearce's novel in exchange for an honest review.

Mina is a new adolescent psychologist haunted by the death of her brother, and is coasting through her muted life when she meets Sam at a grief group. Through him, she finds herself wrapped up in the investigation of a young girl whose family believes she is being possessed by a demon or malevolent witch. Mina is involved in order to discover whether there is a psychological/physical explanation to the paranormal happenings...but she soon discovers the entire situation to be more than she bargained for.

This was legitimately fantastic and a truly creepy read. While the story itself is gripping, its the atmosphere of the entire novel that works so well. Pearce sets the story during a summer heat wave and the physical discomfort lends itself to a truly unsettling atmosphere for the book. Everyone is physically uncomfortable already - tensions heightened by extreme heat - so the added psychological discomfort is sharpened.

The paranormal aspects are also handled really well. The novel begs the question of what is scarier: the supernatural or humanity itself. You might be left wondering what actually happened once you finish - was there a witch, or was this a case of local beliefs and traditions running rampant? Personally, I'm in the camp of both things happening. There are certain occurrences that don't get an easy, human explanation by the end of the story. For some readers, I can see this being a weakness, or someone crying "Plot hole!" But I actually loved the ambiguity.

The ending does wrap up the side plots a little too quickly/neatly in one scene, which felt a bit like a miss in terms of showing growth for Mina, but I understand that giving more time to side stuff once the main plot had resolved might have ended the book on a weaker note so I can live with it. I'll be looking to pick up more from Pearce after this!

This is the first book I read by this author and it did not disappoint. I enjoyed the book start to finish.

Wow this book. If you’re looking for a creepy, bone chilling thriller, THIS. IS. IT. A modern take on the witch hunts of our past, this book is full of folklore and horror and read like a movie.

Mina, a newly minted child psychologist is called to a small English town rife with superstitions & past scars to work with a troubled girl. 13-year-old Alice is hearing and seeing strange apparitions and claims she’s being haunted by a witch.

Spooky and ominous this book is filled with dark & gritty details. There’s also meditations on mass hysteria, herd mentality and small town proclivities.

With its short chapters & twisty plot, this was a page turner and I never knew exactly where we were headed. The ending surprised me but also left me hanging with a few too many unanswered questions. I’m still pondering it all.
I would definitely recommend this though; my witchy & supernatural friends will love it!

I wish this was being published sooner because it’s perfect for the spooky season but mark your calendars for February 25th!

A big thank you to St Martin's Press, Daisy Pearce and NetGalley for the advanced copy!

***3.5

I really enjoyed this book! It was a compelling story and the writing was actually quite beautiful in parts. Where it lost me a bit was the explanation was quite obvious (to me, I guess) and I had to suspend my disbelief a little too much due to how the character's were acting. The two main characters (Mina and Sam) could have been a bit more fully realized and instead they felt a little two-dimensional, but I still found the story itself to be compelling enough to carry you forward. I wouldn't characterize this book as horror but it does have some horror elements.

Quickie:
Haunting. Possession. Genuine uneasiness. Loss. Betrayal.
For fans of any sort of Exorcist movie in a town like Derry.

Summary (no spoilers):
Mina, a child psychologist, lost her brother, Eddie. In his final days he promised to return to her and give her a sign of an after life.
Sam, a reporter suffering from the death of his daughter, entices Mina out to investigate a girl living with a gift or a curse.
The two of them arrive in Banathel, a town riddled with superstition, where they meet Alice and her family.
Mina and Sam retrace Alice’s steps to get to the root of the mystery. Is Alice suffering from a psychotic break or did breaking the witch’s bottle actually unleash a dark force that is eating away at Alice?
The town believes the latter. Friends become enemies, and strangers, like Mina, are no longer welcomed in Banathel.

Personal thoughts:
Reading Something in the Walls is like looking into darkness. It is scary like “do not hang your foot off the bed” kind of scary.
I was left with many questions but must everything be explained?

Thank you NetGalley and Minotaur Books / St. Martin’s Publishing group for such an amazing ARC opportunity!

I’m not quite sure how I feel after finishing Something In The Walls. I enjoyed the majority of the story, but the ending left me unsatisfied. Some parts (ex Engagement) seemed like it should be a more important storyline than to brush over in a few sentences towards the last page. I’m just left wondering, and not in the amazing “WHAT DID I JUST READ!?” Way.

Wow. Wow. Wow! Something In The Walls is so well written it should be listed as literary fiction alongside its genre category. Daisy Pearce has a gift for the written word. This reviewer savored both the storyline and writing style on every page. The plotline shook me to the core and gave me a sleepless night after finishing the book. Something In The Walls is horror at its best. I wouldn't be surprised if it's optioned for a movie. If so, the story deserves only the best director and A-list cast.

Pearce reminds us that evil can and will hide in the most innocuous places, and that women are most often the targets of this scourge. How we choose to identify and either submit to, or conquer, this evil as at the heart of the story. Our fears and personal demons become our Achilles heel to overcoming the challenges we face. If we're blind to tests of strength, evil will overwhelm us and win. The little town of Banathel, where our story takes place, is a tragic example of this timeless battle.

This reviewer could wax on and on about this exceptional novel. Instead, I suggest readers discover the book for themselves and keep an open mind while reading. Very little is what it seems inside the story. Something In The Walls is highly recommended. Don't miss this one!

Many thanks to NetGalley and St Martins Press for providing an advance copy of the book to read and review. This review will post to Bayside Book Reviews.com at https://baysidebookreviews.com and its Instagram page on release day. Follow us! *NetGalley Top Reviewer*

This is a modern gothic horror with an astounding creep factor. The tension builds from the first chapter all the way to the final page - a final page that leaves me with more questions...I enjoyed reading about two outsiders coming into a town so full of superstition that the idea that a girl could be a witch is simply accepted.

Overall I thought that this a was great story. As with many stories of troubled teens acting out, there is some implied content that some readers may appreciate looking up a trigger warning prior to reading.

A propulsively horrific nightmare that combines the eldritch ritual of Rosemary's Baby and the dawning terror of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre, this sweltering fever dream keeps the reader desperately guessing until the final pages. Something in the Walls is a masterpiece of relentless tension and interwoven motifs of folk horror wielded by the blunt instruments of gothic fiction. As mysteries are layered one on top of the other, the reader is both fully invested in and bewildered by the mounting hysteria and unexplainable phenomena. There are elements of the story reminiscent of Stephen King's best work, but Shirley Jackson's influence shines the brightest with nods both to Hill House and The Lottery. Characters are familiar and yet unique, creating compelling three-dimensional personalities. The mythology is wholly original, as well, and Pearce's capacity for imagining new realms of terror is unimpeachable. Casually poignant and effortlessly profound, her prose illuminates the story convincingly enough to make the reader wonder how much of it might be based on historical accounts. Blending the cultural anxiety of rural cults and witch hunts with the themes of female empowerment and social contagions, Pearce proves herself a pioneer of horror with this masterpiece. Is that someone, or something, watching from the shadows, or is it your own guilt stalking you from the dark corners?

Take a closer look, if you dare, at Something in the Walls.

A huge thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the ARC.