Book Review: The Night House

Much to be appreciated about The Night House - a clever approach to many aspects of horror, highlighting dark corners of dreams vs reality, pretty hefty gore scenes, and an inception-like plot that kept me spiraling.

Richard Elauved is sent to live with his aunt and uncle after the death of his parents. As the new kid in town, Richard gets tangled up in the disappearance of Tom, a classmate that Richard seems to bully into being his friend. Richard knows what happened to Tom, but the story is so unlikely, that nobody believes him. Except Karen, another outcast, who helps Richard investigate the horrific events.

I was fortunate to receive an ARC thanks to Netgalley and Knopf for the advanced digital copy in exchange for an honest book review. The cover is awesome and what a perfect way to kick off the spooky season (or keep it going).

This read like a YA, which I don't mind but I was expecting something different. I was a little confused by the many characters and they seemed to play a different role in each section, which by the end makes sense and can add to the uniqueness of this book. While I'm not familiar with Jo Nesbo's other work, I was hooked with the writing style and level of detail at all the right parts - gruesome, atmospheric, and shady characters. The ending was like a fever dream and I can't say that even now, reflecting on this book, I fully understand it. Did I have fun reading it? Yes! Would I recommend it? Yes!

Rating: 3 Stars

Mood: Hits in all the right places for gore, horror, suspense