started reading: 27 Feb | stopped reading: 27 Feb

I only requested this book since the blurb/hook is "In the tradition of Saw and Eli Roth’s Hostel ...", so I was expecting something horrifying, blood and guts, something fun and maybe even dumb. But I got nothing like that at all, all I got here is dumb things.

This just kept me awake at night, reading and reading hoping that the next chapter was interesting, horrifying, anything but boring but it didn't change. I stopped at chapter 11/12 and skipped to the end of the book where they're at the last room and I was a bit surprised at how it changed, I was at room 4 before skipping ahead.

(removed ending spoilers) The last room is interesting, but it's a little bit trope-y, from the challenge to the outcome, But I could see what the author attempts to do, but I did not care for the characters, partially because I skipped most of the book. I also find the ending just super cliche, especially for a horror novel.

WHAT?! Reading The No-End House was like a massive trip. The trials were all insane (in the best way.) I wasn't sure about it at first, but once you enter The No-End House, you will not be able to this one down! A must-read horror!

Thank you so much, Kensington Books and NetGalley, for the digital review copy!

⚠️ mild gore, horror elements, mentions of kidnæpping/child abuse, occasional language

This book did not live up to what I expected. Several of the other room experiences were so vague I didn't even know they were challenges at all. And there is so much walking around, and sitting around in between. Hours of it, dragging the story terribly. I would have liked it to be more of a escape room type with the horror element.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher.

Absolutely terrifying and addictive I couldn’t put it down and the suspense is edge of your seat worthy! Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book.

Thank you NetGalley and Kensington for the ARC!

I read a lot of horror, and this was not one of my favorites. It dragged a bit for me and I found the characters unlikeable.

This book had a really good premise and was paced extremely well, I didn’t care for the characters all that much and found it hard to connect with them, however I had a good time with this one even though it may not have fully resonated with

WOAH! I loved this horror book! I was questioning reality throughout the entire book and questioning my own ability if I were in the characters place in this book. I do not think I would have made it though the No-End house. I am eager to read more from Jeremy Bates!

3.5 stars

Two strangers enter a challenge for their lives.

I never really liked either of the main characters. They were pretty flat and unlikeable to be honest.

But once the revelations start revelating I was pretty into it. Unfortunately you have to get to about 70% of the book.

The end almost made it a 4 star but honestly the beginning was kind of drag so 3.5



Thanks Kensington Publishing for giving me the opportunity to ARC read this title.

I'll be generous and not give this one star, giving it the benefit of the doubt that maybe this book is not just for me. I had a different expectation for horror but this was not the traditional "horror". The rooms themselves were not scary, i'd definitely classify this book as more on the weird side. Characters were not likeable but that was not a knock against the book, however I did not enjoy the dialogue between them. The good news is the book will let you know if this book is for you or not because it maintains the voice and tone throughout, So if you enjoy it early you'll probably like the book, if you dislike it from the start it won't change your mind halfway.

Thank you NetGalley and Publisher for this ARC. I’m an avid thriller/horror reader and this book didn’t work for me ! The book was compared to the movies Hostel and Saw movies and I couldn’t disagree more this book did not have the feels of a horror book at all, it was more a dark fantasy read for me. It started out well, but I started to lose interest within the story. The characters had immature dialogue for their age in the book, the situation were not terrifying/scary at all and kind of confusing and the ending was extremely predictable. I put the cover of this book was beautiful, and I really like the beginning of the story, I Will try this author again at another date if he writes another book ,thank you so much!

Thank you NetGalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

Two tourists enter an escape room-type challenge but get more than they bargained for in Jeremy Bates’ “The No End House” - with a creepy premise and some pretty imaginative scenes, there is definitely a ton of variety for spooky book lovers to dig into here.

For readers who prefer a slower burn or longer building of tension, there might be too much variety - as the title suggests, there’s a lot more than a standard haunted house to the story, and the settings change really quickly.

Apart from some standard spooky scenes, there’s not much content worthy of a warning, so I could see even an older teen reader enjoying this.

I would have liked to see more character development - while the main character Joe is doing his best to recover from a personal tragedy, the plot kicks off so quickly, there isn’t much of a chance to go deeper. However, if you’re looking for a shorter read, this might be up your (haunted) alley.

4.5 stars. This was a heck of a dive into imagination! This gives horror meets psychological thriller. Another reviewer described a fever dream, and that’s a perfect description because I imagined an “Alice in wonderland” ish but creepier breeds with an escape room wherein your humanity as well as your soul is on the line. What would one do to save their own soul only to leave them questioning whether his/her soul was ever in fact in tact to begin with?! Wow! 🤯

Characters were multilayered. Unpredictable, actioned-packed, clever plotting. Setting was dark and mystical with vivid descriptions. Content warnings: grief, violence.

This title comes out in June of 2025 so be sure to add it to your TBR! You will not be disappointed! Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to arc read this book in exchange for my honest review!

This book just dragged from begging to end, I kept reading thinking it would get better but it didn’t. Very disappointed, I had high hopes.

Thanks to the author, the publisher and NetGalley for providing me an eARC in exchange for an honest review. This is my first read of a Jeremy Bates novel and I must confess hopefully not my last. The No-End House was a delightfully scary read and I did not want the story to end. Both main characters were well fleshed out and the plot was original. A quick read of about 4 to 5 days. Highly recommended.

I went into this thinking I was going to get a Saw remake and this was just not that. I mean it had “challenges” and “rooms to escape” but that was the only similarity. I really felt like this book was one giant fever dream… I was confused, lost, and just never knew what was coming next.

A lot of the challenges just felt soooo random. Sure, Joe and Helen tried to explain them afterwards but by then it was too late. I didn’t feel like any of the scenes were actually scary- just bizarre and random? Then skipping ahead to the ending…once again… WTF? The random story dropped by the police officer??? Or was it truly all just what Joe thought??? Honestly, the scariest part was the questioning of reality. Gave me mind-simulation scaries.

At this point, I don’t know what to rate it. Part of me wants to give it two stars and part of me wants to give it four stars simply for the fact that I’m left speechless. Like, maybe that’s a sign of Bates’s genius to give me this feeling? So in the end I’ll settle on the middle. I will read another Bates book because I’m intrigued to see if this was an isolated incident or not

This was everything that I was hoping for in a supernatural house horror. It was everything that was promised and I really enjoyed getting into the challenge. I had read the creepypasta with a similar premise and this did everything that I was hoping for. I had enjoyed the way The No-End House by Jeremy Bates wrote this and previous books that I read. I thought the characters worked well overall in this story and was glad everything worked together. I'm excited to read more from The No-End House by Jeremy Bates as this was really well done.

This was pretty much what I was expecting. I found thus horror novel to be very unsettling and creepy. This was not a new favorite, but it was creepy.

Thank you to NetGalley, Jeremy Bates and Kensington Books for the free ebook in exchange for honest review.

Such a good premise and so interesting until about the 50% mark and then he lost me. I don’t know why or when exactly it happened but I completely lost interest and it just dragged.

I was not familiar with the Creepypasta, but the premise sounded right up my alley. Haunted House/Escape Room challenge gone wrong? Perfect!

Well, not so much. The rooms/challenges were all over the place, and frankly...bad. Not at all scary, just bizarre. Some...extremely bizarre. The very first challenge is ripped straight from a children's party game, and is overshadowed by Joe (the MC) obsessively discussing how large one man was. Seriously. It went on and on, with every derogatory synonym for 'fat' known to English. Revisited regularly in later chapters. Why?

Several of the other room experiences were so vague I didn't even know they were challenges at all. And there is so much walking around, and sitting around in between. Hours of it, dragging the story terribly. And then, at one point, we get the out of left field horrific exploitation of serious childhood trauma, which is then promptly forgotten again. Again...why?

As for the characters...Joe was decent. I had no real issues with him, other than his general denial. Helen was a mess. She is supposed to be 43, but talks and acts like she's 25. She bullies Joe, tries and fails to deliver flirty banter, and is overall annoying. Also, her backstory is baffling...her Jewish grandmother was forced to flee Nazis during the Holocaust, while pregnant with Helen's mother. Helens mother...who is also Senegalese??

Not my cup of tea at all. But maybe people who love weird, acid trip type books will enjoy this.

Sadly I just couldn’t get into this one. This isn’t horror. Nothing scary even happened. The child kidnapping and child sexual assault wasn’t cool. It was gross. The ending was dumb. I had to push myself to even finish this and I really didn’t want to. I thought the premise sounded good but it definitely wasn’t executed well at all. I hate rating books low but I couldn’t find one redeeming thing from this book. All thoughts and opinions are solely my own. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for a copy of the arc in return for an honest review!