This was a quick short story, I finished in an hour or so. It was interesting and felt like a mix of thriller and spooky horror, which I enjoyed. I do wonder why the author elected to make it a short story rather than a full novel- I would have been interested in getting to know the characters more if it had been longer. Worth the read!

Thanks to Amazon Original Stories and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy of The Doll's House in exchange for my honest review.

Pretty good for a short story. Enough time for the story to develop and then a satisfying conclusion.

This was such a creepy novella - especially for those who find dolls and puppets scary! I thought this would lend itself as well to be a longer story, I really liked the plotline. I will keep reading everything by Lisa Unger.

Lisa Unger’s The Doll's House is a fast-paced thriller that will keep you hooked from start to finish. The story moves quickly, making it a real page-turner that’s hard to put down.

Even though it’s a short read, Unger does a great job developing the characters. They feel real and relatable, adding depth to the story and making you care about what happens to them.

The ending is another standout. It’s both surprising and satisfying, wrapping things up in a way that feels just right.

Overall this is a fun and thrilling ride with strong characters and a great ending. It’s definitely worth checking out if you’re into gripping suspense stories.

This novella started out so well. I was really enjoying it and then (like most novellas) ten different things happened in the span of about ten pages. I think this storyline would be a great full-length novel. I really liked it up until about the halfway point and would love to see how the storyline would unfold in 300 pages rather than around 100 pages. 3.5 stars rounded up for potential. I suppose it's not the novellas fault it had to be so short ;)

Thank you to NetGalley and Amazon Original Stories for an ARC of this novella.

It was a well-written, quick, creepy story. Perfect for the upcoming spooky season. I read it in one sitting and enjoyed it so much.
Thank you to NetGalley and Amazon publishing for the ARC of The Doll’s House in exchange for an honest review.
Pub Date Sep 12 2024

An excellent read, this book grabs you with an eerie, foreboding atmosphere that keeps you hooked until the last page. With surprising twists and relentless suspense, this short tale has tension that just keeps mounting.
The author has quite intelligently created well-developed characters, that are relatable and understandable. The novella is thrilling and has quite a satisfying end.

“The Doll’s House” is a quick and easy read that is perfect for spooky season. At just 98 pages, this short story is a bingeable thriller you can read in one sitting. The story was a bit predictable, but I enjoyed the eerie and creepy vibes. A lot happened in such a short story, and I almost wish it was a full-length novel. Overall, an entertaining read that is a great pick when you need a palate cleanser or are trying to get out of a reading slump.

3.25

I thought this was an enjoyable short story. It had a good mixture of suspense with a little touch of the supernatural. Perfect for the start of spooky season!

An easy, simple spooky/haunted read.
I enjoyed the haunted doll house aspect of this, but my favorite was not the AI being involved with the house. Although it was a little predictable with who was the bad guy, I still enjoyed it.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
3.75 rounded up!

This one only took me about an hour to read, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. This was the first of the Amazon short story collections that I have read, and I loved how quick and to the point it was while also giving enough detail that it felt like I full length book.

I will say that I immediately had an idea where the story was going, but it was still a fun and enjoyable ride. I liked the juxtaposition of the POVs of Jules and her daughter, Scout. And I loved how Unger was able to perfectly capture the personality of a sullen teenager in such a short read.

Overall, it is a nice quick one if you are looking for something with a campfire horror story feel for the spooky season.

I am a huge Lisa Unger fan, and I loved her holiday novella last year and was excited to see a new one this year!

The Doll's House centers on a mother and daughter moving in with the mom's boyfriend after the death of her husband. The atmosphere feels eerie and tense, with the over the top technology throughout his house and his creepy job of building large handmade dolls. With a short story, the focus stays on the plot moving forward at a fast pace, and it is a quick and easy read great for the spooky fall season.

Thank you to Amazon Original Stories for the ARC; all opinions are my own.

Jules and her daughter Scout move into the home of her Jules new boyfriend Kirin. He is a doll maker for movies and such, and lives in an extravagant home. He has a checkered past with a missing younger sister, and after finding a doll in her likeness, Scout becomes obsessed with finding out what happened to the girl.

The one thing I hate about Ungers novellas is that they are novellas. This one was interesting and spooky but it only scratched the surface. If this was a true novel, we would have gotten much more creep and unease adding to the atmosphere. I don’t really know how to rate it as I enjoyed it but wanted more, and more would have made it better in my opinion.

A creepy short story with dolls, a haunted house with AI security, and a controlling new husband. It has all the pieces to make your skin crawl.

Jules is recently widowed, but has met a rich, handsome man that sweeps her off her feet. He moves Jules and her daughter Scout to his secluded mansion. The first thing Jules and Scout notice when they get to the new house is the AI security system named Vivi. Helpful or controlling? Scout is the typical grouchy, disgruntled teenager, but she tries to connect to Kirin for her mom's benefit. Although she doesn't feel like things are quite right at their new house. Jules, on the other hand, sees a 'girl' lurking around the house... but she seems to disappear. Is she seeing things? Is it her grief overwhelming her?

This is a great short story perfect for Halloween season!

Thank you Netgalley, Amazon Original Stories and the author Lisa Unger.
Well written short story about a mother and daughter, the struggles following the death of spouse and father.
Mother hopes for a better life with her new man in their life.
But her life and her daughter doesn't turn out quite as they thought!

Something about dolls will always be so creepy to me and this short story definitely didn’t help alleviate that creepiness. 😂

When Jules and her daughter Scout move into a creepy mansion of a doll and puppet maker - what could go wrong?

It’s so hard to tell a whole, well rounded story in a short story format but Lisa Unger definitely managed to pack a punch in this eerie book. I would’ve loved to read it as a full book to answer some unanswered plot points but it definitely creeped me out!

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC!

4 beautiful stars for this gem of a short story.

I have said it before and I'll say it again, horror lends itself to short stories and this was no exception. It was the perfect length to keep you interested and spooked without any excess info dumping or lulls. If there is one thing that will bring a horror book down its the authors need to introduce you to every person the main character has ever so much as breathed beside...I'm looking at your S. King.

This book had some gorgeous writing and just the right amount of scary. Was it a completely new synopsis, not, but it executed very well. I love the twists and turns and the fast pace of this book and would 100 percent recommend to anyone looking for a good time in a book this Halloween season.

This short story didn’t feel like a short story to me and in a good way! There was a lot to it and it was definitely creepy! I

After the death of her husband Jules has met and begun seeing someone new. Kirin is kind and comforting and has asked Jules and her teenage daughter to move from their NYC apartment into his mansion upstate. Scout, Jules' daughter, is very unhappy about being uprooted at the start of her senior year in high school. Jules tries to convince and console her that this move will be what is good for both of them.

So you know what that means, right? NOTHING good will ever come of this.

This is a super quick short story that features creepy dolls, puppets, and has a supernatural spin to the plot line. Personally, I felt this story started strong but kind of went haywire toward the end. Motivations and such just didn't make much sense to me. Perhaps if this was longer and it did a deeper dive into character development this would have worked out better.

All in all this was pretty good. I wasn't wowed but I was entertained. I think other readers will enjoy this but you will need to buy into what Unger's selling, if you can't, then you may be disappointed. 3.5 stars!

Thank you to NetGalley and Amazon Original Stories for my complimentary copy.

Different than I thought it would be from the blurb! Obviously fast paced since it's a short story but I really loved Scout in this book and her tenacity. A thriller with a maybe spooky twist!

Thank you NetGalley for the copy!